News-Record.com

The article in the May 26 Life section, “Obesity,” is too P.C. for me. The problem starts with the parents of these fat kids.

Yes, I said “fat.” P.C. needs to go out the window on this subject. A little insult is warranted, followed by love. I quote from the article: “Patterns of eating and activity, often set during early childhood, are influenced by government, education policies, cultural factors and environmental changes.” No mention about parents.

Parents need to set the example. I’m not saying that you should start training for the next “Ironman” competition. Go for a walk this evening instead of sitting down and watching TV.
For some parents, this may not be that simple. Most likely, both parents are working in today’s world just to make ends meet. This is where the school system can help.

We need a physical training requirement modeled after the military. Use the Marine PT test as a model. My PT test at the time I served included pull-ups, sit-ups and a three-mile run.

We love to blame everything or everyone else for our problems. Enough is enough.

Carl Peltzer
Colfax

Thank you for making public the truth on the state of our economy in North Carolina and as it compares to our neighbors (“7 myths of North Carolina’s economy” by Brian Balfour, Ideas, May 25).

Folks, this is an election year, and if this isn’t enough to vote out the party and those legislatures responsible for this condition, then what will it take? Taxpayers can’t stand any more of this type of administration and especially those running for office whom Mike Easley is endorsing.

Charles O’Brien
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint

By Al Mankoff

In a city fortunate enough to have matured from Quaker roots, it’s a pity to see the state of racial relationships with the likes of Billy Yow and Charles Davenport Jr.

Davenport’s “opinion” (read diatribe) of May 25 was a deplorable example of just the kind of rhetoric this country does not need in the crucial months that lie ahead. If this is a portent of what’s to come, we are, indeed, in dire straits both as a community and as a nation.

In the early George Wallace era, it was “barefoot and pregnant”; today, it’s “dissing” — not just women, but black women, with the prime target being Michelle Obama. She’s sassy and she’s uppity, and she is, above all, honest in speaking her mind and thoughts — such a refreshing change from plastic Pat Nixon, smarmy, “Just say no” Nancy Reagan and the sugary Laura Bush.

The myopic rightists — as in “The Night of the Living Dead” — are staggering out from their sodden pits, relentlessly pressing their mindless message of hate and divisiveness on yet another generation of gullible innocents.

For the record, I call this right-wing, largely Republican assault on black women “Mammy Myopia.” It is obviously a swift-boating maneuver — but this time, let’s hope that the majority of Americans see it for what it is, a deliberate attempt to slander a woman of grace and beauty, destined for greatness, orchestrated from the same Stygian depths that gave us Watergate, Iran-Contra and “Mission accomplished.”

The writer lives in High Point.

The N.C. General Assembly is trying to get a moratorium passed on cities annexing properties without being able to provide the services as they are annexed.

In the May 23 News & Record, it was said the soon-to-be-annexed areas would not have proper fire and police protection until well after we are annexed.

This is what the General Assembly is trying to stop, but I will bet you Greensboro will not do the right thing and not annex us until we have the proper protection in place. They are too greedy for that. And, to all the annexed homeowners, watch your back because the city will not be able to do it until October or November.

Stan Champion
Greensboro

I would like to second Sandy Bundgaard’s letter (May 21) regarding Sen. Dole’s poor constituent service. I, too, have e-mailed concerns a number of times to both Sen. Dole and Sen. Burr. I receive a timely — and often detailed — response from Sen. Burr that is specific to the issue I raised. I have received only two letters from Sen. Dole, both of which were generic “thanks for your input” form letters.

In contrast, Kay Hagan and Maggie Jeffus both send me weekly e-mail updates on what’s happening in the N.C. General Assembly. I am confident that Kay Hagan’s constituent service will continue when she represents North Carolina in the U.S. Senate.

Please, let us elect a senator who actually cares about the people of North Carolina!

Libby Haile
Greensboro

To keep Greensboro a great place to live, we need to address a problem: Gangs are a growing threat to this community. Mayor Johnson believes that the emphasis should be on prevention instead of punishment. I disagree.

We need to hit the problem at both ends, especially here in Greensboro. Prevention is a great start, but we need to have a plan for the gangs already at large. The place to start is the Greensboro Police Department.

Our Police Department is facing difficult times and it is now time to cut the waste, improve efficiency and hire more officers for the entire city. The Police Department needs to make a decision about officers who have been on paid leave for an extended amount of time. We should, as the saying goes, “use them or lose them.”

The Gang Unit should not be used as a negotiating point in the city budget. The ability to hire and fire in the Police Department should not be the job of the city manager. It should be up to the City Council or the Police Department itself. However, I admit that I do not have any law-enforcement experience, but neither does Mitch Johnson.

Teresa Jobe
Greensboro

It was with a great sense of pride and honor that I watched the Memorial Day Concert on UNC-TV on Sunday.

However, I was a bit frustrated at being left out of the honors parade. You see, we have no flag, no chief of staff, no uniform and no commander. We were all volunteers. We are the Merchant Marine. When you needed something, we brought it — gas, food, ammunition, spare parts, equipment, people and supplies.

We are the silent heroes with more than 8,000 ships sunk beneath us and the loss of more than 180,000 lives. Is it not time to include us in the parade?

David R. Best
Greensboro

To make up for wasteful spending, the city of Eden wants to annex and extend Eden’s territorial jurisdiction to other parts of the county surrounding the city.

Eden needs money bad. Eden City Council will use the extended extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) as a base for the next part of annexation. This new ETJ is the first step of the annexation process.

If the city of Eden needs more money, it should raise the Eden city property taxes to an amount needed. It has already raised fees, permits and the water/sewer rates, but that is not enough. It wants more so it can spend more.

The people who are in the proposed ETJ areas do not want to be under Eden’s control. If we wanted to live in the city, we would have bought our homes in the city. We want to be left alone in the county.

I own property in the city limits of Eden but I live in the county and that is where I want to stay. Everyone affected by this extended ETJ should be at the commissioners’ meeting in Wentworth at 7 p.m. today.

Keith “Zero” Mabe
Eden

I may not always agree with Billy Yow’s politics, but his request to add a one-cent sales-tax referendum to the November ballot is absolutely the right thing to do. It spreads the burden among everyone to repay the millions of dollars in new debt (bonds) that the voters (property owners and non-property owners) have chosen to incur. It is not fair for one group of citizens (property owners) to bear the burden.

Paul O’Neal
Summerfield

I take issue to a comment made by Professor Keith Debbage during his interview on his State of the City report (May 23). Professor Debbage, there is no such thing as a “pink collar worker.”

First, many more nurses today are men.

Second, as a registered nurse, I am a health care professional. Health care professionals do hands-on work (like “blue collar”), yet are highly educated (like “white collar”). Neither label really fits what we do.

“Pink” implies something fluffy and emotional but not really important. Nurses do hard physical labor that requires enormous scientific knowledge, close observational skills, and the ability to critically think in a crisis and to prevent one.

So please don’t call me a “pink collar worker.” Find some other way of talking about health care professionals that shows respect.

Amy Crittenden
Greensboro

Poor Gerald Witt. I imagine Gerald must have parked in the boss’ parking space and was “sentenced” to cover the county commissioners’ last meeting (May 22).

All is well since he got even with the News & Record by doing them the disservice of not covering a single issue on the agenda. Instead we got more coverage of the Skip and Billy show. Billy Yow says something dumb (constituents love it) and Skip calls racism (constituents love it) and our paper covers that as the meeting. Is the business of the county so damn boring that these leaders need something to liven it up? Readers get a silly story.

Enough said.

In many countries, people believe government never solves problems. If there is a banking crisis or some other crisis, the people call a “strike” and for a day or two the players in the crisis get no business. All they get is time to work out their problems.

I propose that the News & Record stop covering the silliness. Go on strike! In the long run, the future owners of the News & Record will inherit a better paper and a better community for the newspaper.

Mark Holder
Summerfield

On May 21, I was a victim of a burglary for the second time in six months. This time the thieves broke my window and did much damage to my automobile. When I called 911, the dispatcher told me there were more serious crimes happening, but I think a crime is a crime no matter the seriousness.

I am a college-educated young black man and I don’t believe in using race as an excuse to get by in life, but this time I do believe race was a factor in determining the response time of the Police Department.

It is very clear that if there is a complaint about drugs or any illegal activity on a specific side of town, the police will be there with no problem. This crime occurred on Spring Garden Street, and when I was asked the model of my car, and once the dispatcher could tell my ethnicity, I think that was the reason my situation was taken lightly. It is relevant that racism still exists today.

The thing with racism is anybody can talk about it but it takes a strong individual to take a stand. That is what needs to be done in Greensboro.

Christopher Monds
Greensboro

“Et tu, Brutus?” said Caesar more than 2,000 years ago. And I say now: You, too, Obama.

According to your latest speeches, you are already in the “pockets” of Israel and the Jewish lobby. You are no different from Bush and McCain, and if elected may start a new war, attacking Iran to satisfy Israel, squandering more billions and killing thousands of our soldiers. Don’t count on the votes of millions of us.

There will be no peace in the Middle East until Israel returns every inch of Palestine to the Palestinian people.

Helio Salvador
Greensboro

Much too much has been said and no action taken about taxes, except to continue to raise them on the people who pay the most, i.e., the property owners. It’s about time our elected representatives stopped running for re-election and did what is their responsibility — to meet the expenses of our government through equal and reasonable taxation — and to stop laying it on one group of citizens.

Being that the many bonds were passed and a small way to pay for them was defeated, I suggest the following to spread the responsibility:

Establish a per-capita tax for all to share the load and take some of the burden off the property owner. But, you say, “That would hurt those who least can afford to pay.” True. However, exceptions can be made through the establishment of an income ceiling, and those who can prove they can’t afford it, don’t pay it.

It’s time to do what is right and fair for the majority of our citizens. For some, the free ride should be over.

Paul J. Smith
Greensboro

I am a disabled retreader. I worked retreading truck tires for 37 years. I have worked with bus tires for school districts in South Carolina and was employed with a major tire manufacturer the last 15 years before I became disabled as an inspector and quality-control inspector of retreaded tires.

I disagree that the tire repairs are unnecessary. In most instances, rock drills require removal and filling in, which is a very time-consuming and costly step in the retreading process. Some retreaders charge for one or two spot repairs per tire just to break even on the tires with more than one spot. I have seen tires with as many as 15 spots and, of course, you can’t charge for all of them so you do the best you can.

I am sure White’s Tire would elaborate to whomever desires this knowledge.

Larry R. Painter
Greensboro

Who the heck is Billy Yow? I know he’s a county commissioner and a r-a-c-i-s-t. But really, who the heck is he?

Did he really say all black people “look alike” and then say it was a “running joke”? Like a refrigerator running down the street? Or what?

Furthermore, who the heck voted for him? Really. If you did, please write a letter to the editor and tell me why.

Marilyn Frierson Melvin
Greensboro

Reidsville police spent a lot of officers’ time and taxpayers’ money recently to arrest just two drunken drivers out of hundreds of cars stopped and inconvenienced at a DWI checkpoint (“Reidsville checkpoint results in 45 charges, including 2 DWIs,” May 24).

In the fight to get drunken drivers off the roads, North Carolina law-enforcement agencies would likely make far more arrests if they spent their available patrol time roaming the streets looking for drunken drivers, rather than standing at roadblocks waiting for these drivers to come to them.

Because they are highly visible by design and publicized in advance, roadblocks are all too easily avoided by the chronic alcohol abusers who comprise the core of today’s drunken driving problem. Conversely, the number of DWI arrests made by roving patrol programs is nearly 10 times the average number of DWIs made by checkpoints, according to testimony by a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation official. Reidsville residents and taxpayers would benefit from employing the most effective tactics to catch drunken drivers: roving police patrols.

Sarah Longwell
Washington, D.C.

The writer is managing director, American Beverage Institute.

Kay “Surrender, Cut and Run” Hagan is running a very interesting race for the U.S. Senate. She appears to be taking her marching orders from those West Coast socialist defeatists, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, the News & Record news staff, and her most prominent backer, Rosemary Roberts.

I notice that analysis pieces about Hagan appear as lead stories in your newspaper, and mentions of Elizabeth Dole are often buried or nonexistent.

Hagan, after a speech in Thomasville honoring service people who have given their lives for this country, dishonored our fighting people in Iraq by saying in a TV interview they have accomplished nothing. Of course, she is an expert, learning all she knows by reading socialist, defeatist commentaries. She should run well on a ticket with that master of appeasement, Barack Hussein Obama.

I really am not a Dole supporter, but Hagan is such a fake. Why could the Democrats not do better?

Jack Stratas
Denton

The following is a Counterpoint.

I write in response to the May 17 column by Cal Thomas. Once again, Thomas is denigrating those who maintain global climate change is real and dangerous. He is upset that John McCain spoke of global climate change as real and a danger to our children. But he actually attacks all who hold this view.

He refers to such people as belonging to the global warming cult. He claims they ignore “evidence and facts contrary to their blind faith.” However, Thomas gives very little in the way of facts and evidence to refute the reality of global climate change. He claims there are growing numbers of atmospheric scientists who are emerging from the global warming cult to testify to their negative convictions. Yet, he gives no names, so we cannot verify this assertion. He speaks of scientists disturbed that current data don’t seem to fit an unnamed computer model. This is cherry-picking at its worst.

Does Thomas challenge the well-established fact that the earth has warmed a full degree Fahrenheit in the last 20 years? Does he deny that the ocean has warmed and that the Greenland ice cap is melting at an astonishing rate? What does he say to the fact that glaciers all over the world are retreating and that rivers and lakes are freezing later in the fall and thawing earlier in the spring? Has he considered the amazing number of plants flowering and animals breeding earlier in the spring? What about the numerous examples of animals and plants moving up mountains and toward the poles in response to a warmer climate? Are all the thousands and thousands of scientists who have gathered such evidence cult members?
Most of these scientists studied for years at the best universities in the United States and the world. Are we to believe they all ignore evidence and facts? Who is the actual cult member here?

Many of these examples I mention are given in the Web site climatehotmap.org. I am not affiliated with this Web site.

The writer is with the Department of Biology at UNCG.

Apparently, the price of fuel has not gotten high enough yet. I drive the interstate each work day and most vehicles speed on as if the drivers think the price of gas and diesel is still a dollar a gallon. I see cars going at least 10 mph over the posted speed limit, and this includes both private autos and police cars.

Police cars, obviously not on any emergency call, including State Highway Patrol, county sheriff, and police cars from other towns and cities, speed on with impunity. Many truck divers with diesel prices nearing $5 a gallon, exceed the speed limit by at least five to 10 mph. It appears that speed and convenience are still more important to us than the hit we’re taking in the pocketbook.

I don’t know what the price of fuel will have to reach before it slows people down in order to conserve more, but with our present way of driving, it looks like the price will have to keep on climbing for a while yet.

Tim Martin
Greensboro

Columnist Charles Davenport joined the huffy throng of white Americans who are astonished by the fact that some black Americans are simply not grateful enough for their freedom. His May 25 appraisal of Michelle Obama as a potential first lady found her lacking because she has had the audacity to articulate what African Americans have been saying for the last 40 years and what is evident in objective studies: Despite legal mandates, blacks have not achieved equal advantages to whites in the United States.

Blacks (like women) are paid less. The mortgage industry has been shown to be less favorable to African American home buyers. Blacks receive harsher sentences than whites for the same crimes. Greensboro neighborhoods are still mostly segregated by race. And even when they go to the doctor, blacks are less likely to get as much prescription pain relief. The statistics don’t present equality, so I’m seldom surprised to hear a black American say “we can do better.”
Davenport speaks in glib condescension of how Ms. Obama benefited from the same affirmative action policies acknowledged as helpful by Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell.

I get the impression that Davenport is working to stifle any re-examination of race relations in America.

David McLean
Liberty

Cancer is the No. 1 killer of Americans under 85. In North Carolina, an estimated 17,450 people will die from the disease this year.

As a breast cancer survivor, I praise God and hope we all find these numbers unacceptable. It is time to recommit our nation to the war on cancer — and that challenge begins at home.
This summer and fall, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is bringing the cancer fight to our backyards through a nationwide bus tour. The Fight Back Express will be in Greensboro on June 13, at the Kmart Shopping Plaza (1302 Bridford Parkway) from 12:30-1:15 p.m. The bus will be on the road through Election Day, building a grass-roots movement united in its mission to defeat cancer and put cancer at the top of the nation’s agenda.

ACS CAN is committed to policy and legislation that boost cancer research funding at all levels; to broadening access to cancer prevention methods, early detection tools and treatment; and to strengthening tobacco-control measures.

Find out more at www.acscan.org and let your voice be one of the millions heard in support of making cancer a top national priority.

Viola A. Monroe
Greensboro

I will remember Greg Niles as a kind and considerate neighbor. When I moved to Greensboro, Greg and his family helped me hundreds of times, from pet sitting to crawling under the house and changing the filter in the furnace. Not only was Greg loved by his wonderful family and his colleagues, but also by his friends and neighbors. Greg’s many kindnesses will not be forgotten.

Deborah Karibian
Greensboro

Due to a typing error, the letter “Can Yow’s supporters explain voting for him?” (June 3) misstated the first name of the writer. The letter’s author is Marianne Frierson Melvin.

The following is a Counterpoint column.

I wanted to comment on your fine May 26 article about the death of George Preddy, leading P-51 “Mustang” ace of all time, killed by friendly fire on Christmas Day 1944. Our town can never pay sufficient tribute or honor to a family losing both sons in war.

George Preddy remains the all-time No. 6 ace of the United States.

Some corrections are needed, however.

The caption with the photograph of George’s brother Bill, also a P-51 pilot, states that he, too, “died by friendly fire.” In fact, he died of injuries sustained after enemy fire downed his aircraft in 1945.

The story stated that the Preddys were in “the Army Air Corps,” the predecessor of the modern U.S. Air Force (USAF). During World War II, the organization was part of the Army and known as the “United States Army Air Forces” (USAAF), the predecessor of the modern USAF. The Army Air Corps preceded the USAAF.

Concerning Pat Tillman, the article states that the Army reported that “its sniper had no way of knowing Tillman wasn’t the enemy.” If I remember correctly, Tillman fell in a hail of gunfire from several other Army soldiers, not from a single shooter or an Army sniper.

I have studied friendly fire extensively. The basic causes?

One: The shooter’s lack of “situational awareness,” i.e., he does not know his own location or the locations of allies or enemies.

Two: Failure, as in the Tillman case, to positively identify the target as enemy.
Three: “The fog of war.”

The first two causes can be prevented somewhat by training, planning and discipline, but the fog of war has always been and always will be inherent in combat, notwithstanding preventive measures.

The fog of war is confusion inherent in warfare, the “friction” that makes the simplest task a nightmare. It is the failure to follow directions. It is the unforeseen event or action by friend or foe; it is combatants “not following the script.”

The list of the elements of fog — what can go wrong in warfare — is nearly infinite.
The old saying is that “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”

The writer is a colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. He is a Greensboro native who lives in Norfolk, Va.

Wednesday's No. 2 editorial.

Something’s not right with this picture: The city of Greensboro is about to annex the Cardinal and other areas — and take on the responsibility of providing services for them — yet it is planning to stop repaving streets for a year because it lacks the money.

Maybe the city should get its priorities in order. With engineers having determined that one-fifth of the city’s streets need to be paved immediately, repaving should be a priority.

The one-year moratorium idea came about as a way to avoid raising the tax rate and balance the budget. City Council member Robbie Perkins rightly calls the move penny-wise and pound-foolish. Raleigh, where such a stunt was pulled a few years ago, still suffers the effects of delayed maintenance. In a year, small road problems can grow to be bigger and more costly.
But delaying repaving now — when the costs of asphalt and other petroleum products are skyrocketing and aren’t likely to decline — is especially ill-advised. The price for a ton of asphalt in Greensboro has doubled in the last five years, from around $30 a ton to about $60. And let’s not forget the fuel required to run the repaving vehicles.

Greensboro isn’t a rust-belt city like Youngstown, Ohio, that is so strapped for cash it has been forced to abandon parts of its city. There they’re bulldozing abandoned homes and pulling up the streets.

Still what Youngstown is doing is more principled than what’s been proposed for Greensboro.
It would even be worse if the idea behind the paving moratorium was that it would spur city voters to pass the transportation bond package that will be on the November ballot. It likely will contain about $15 million for maintenance over 10 years. There is no guarantee that package will pass — and even if it does, the repaving still would have been delayed.

The city needs to find the $2 million. It also needs to examine whether it can cut repaving costs. Using asphalt with a higher recycled content, for example, might provide more road for the dollar.

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Byron Loflin

Imagine if New York decided that Central Park should be sold for development or if London parceled off Hyde Park for commercial expansion. Would Paris be La Ville-lumière without its glorious parks?

Allen Johnson (column, May 4) insinuates that the Downtown Greenway, priced at $26 million, is excessively expensive.

First, Johnson’s logic is flawed as he compares the Greenway to Newbridge Park, which sits on an acre of land, is privately controlled and accessed only by paying customers. It is a wonderful part of our community but it is a business. This is comparing apples and oranges.

Let us all hope that Greensboro citizens will fund the civil rights museum, downtown development and more. But Greensboro is at a critical juncture in the world of cities competing in the new economy. The Center City Park is terrific, but not enough. Greensboro needs something that shows we mean business, particularly when we must compete for businesses looking to relocate.

Sagacious words offer that a “people without vision will perish.” The Greenway is a visionary project that demonstrates what is great within Greensboro.

Central Park covers approximately 36 million square feet. The Greensboro Greenway will be approximately 137,000. At the going rate of $1,000 a square foot, Central Park’s raw value is approximately $36 billion. If New York conservatively considered developing 70 percent of Central Park with buildings that average five stories, that city could net roughly 126 million square feet. The gross cash value of 126 million square feet in New York is roughly $113 billion. That’s approximately $13,000 for every person in New York.

The Greensboro Greenway will cost approximately $151 a square foot. That’s $130 per person in the Greensboro area or one-one-hundredth the per person value of Central Park.
In business school I learned to think about the world with and without me (or my business). What value do I bring to that world?

The world without Central Park is a giant city without a soul.

If Johnson gets his way, we may never learn what the world is like with a downtown greenway. A city searching for its soul needs an edge. The Greenway is a brilliant opportunity for us to show that we are a unique city connected to one another and to a future and a vision that add value to the world that comprises our community.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

The Greensboro City Council is considering eliminating the budget for road paving for FY 2008-09 as noted in an article by Taft Wireback (June 1). I favor some reduction in this budget.

For the 19 years I’ve lived here, I have repeatedly marveled at repaving of roads that seemed to have no problems. This includes my own road in the last couple years, which showed no need for repaving to my eye.

I lived a few years in the Chicago area, and visit my brother in New York State. In both areas, roads in much worse condition serve without being repaved. While their cold weather certainly stresses roads more, the communities seem to do fine with more cracks and bumps.

Keep the budget to fill potholes and cracks. Keep repaving some roads. But I’m quite supportive of waiting a couple more years between repaving — at least for the roads I have experienced.

Jean Pudlo
Greensboro

Nancy Bishop wrote (letter, May 20) that Sen. Elizabeth Dole has a stellar record on women’s rights. As secretary of labor under Reagan and more recently as a U.S. senator, Dole opposed the Family Medical Leave Act; voted against SCHIP six times before finally deciding that underprivileged North Carolina children needed a boost in health care coverage; reversed her initial support of the Equal Rights Amendment and also has been quite vocal about her stance against reproductive rights. These are not the positions of someone with a “stellar” women’s rights record.

As for Dole’s recent vote against the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, this is far from a vote for women’s rights. Bishop remarks that the act would make “small businesses and other employers vulnerable to discrimination suits years or decades after the alleged discrimination had occurred.” We suppose Bishop thinks it is far better for women to be vulnerable to inequality and continue to earn 23 cents less per dollar than men for years or decades to come.

Sen. Dole is not fighting for North Carolina women or their families. She never has and it is highly doubtful she will start should she win another term.

Virginia Gaylor
Greensboro

The writer is a member of Triad NOW.

I never thought I would agree with anything Earl Jones advocates, but legalizing pot for medical use makes sense to me.

Good luck, Earl — you’ll need it.

Fred Stanley
Browns Summit

Having two sons involved in Cub and Boy Scouts (past and currently), I was somewhat surprised to see the parade photo on B-1 (May 18).

For the Scout leaders of Troop 214, and all other Scout leaders as well, please visit www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagetiq.html and learn the correct flag etiquette. The pertinent passage reads as follows: “... The flag, when carried in a procession with another flag, or flags, should be either on the marching right; that is, the flag’s own right, or, if there is a line of other flags, in front of the center of that line.”

But items Nos. 4 and 11 on this site also apply.

Please do better in future parades and functions.

Jack Snead
Jamestown

In response to American Airlines’ decision to charge for all luggage, an expert commentator on NPR was asked if airlines will start charging people according to their body weight. The answer? No, it would be an invasion of privacy.

Well, I have news for that expert. It is an invasion of my privacy to disallow any of my luggage as a “free” item when the guy next to me on my last flight weighed about 100 pounds more than I do and took up part of my seating space. So now I have to pay for my luggage and suffer through a flight by paying for 25 percent of his body mass in my seating area? That is a real invasion of privacy. Establish a weight limit per customer and apportion it to the passenger and his/her luggage and quit charging me for someone else’s inability to curb their caloric intake.

Gee, was that politically correct enough?

Warren Romaine
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Albert P. Lochra

As an original member of the Black Cap Veterans group and a long-time friend of its founder, Steve Millikin, I wish to thank the News & Record for its coverage of the Memorial Day ceremony at Greensboro Country Park (May 25).

The Black Caps do this primarily as their patriotic civic duty calling attention to the fact freedom is not free; sacrifices are sometimes necessary. When better to do this than on Memorial Day in May and Veterans Day in November?

The Black Caps plan, organize and manage these important functions, which are not just for veterans; they are also open to and for the benefit of the public — the more the better.

At the same time, I must advise of an omission in the News & Record’s account of this event.
Phil Johnson, current executive officer of the Black Caps, received no mention in the article.

Even before Millikin’s death last October, the executive board of the Black Caps agreed on the accession of Phil as its appointed leader.

Since then, Phil has worked effectively and tirelessly in conducting the yearly activities of this veterans and friends of veterans group, including not only the May and November park events, but also for our four breakfast programs.

We are indebted to Phil for his diligence. But, we also have every confidence that Phil’s successor, Jack Dubel, will be equally able and effective in the performance of these duties.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

Most Americans are pretty angry about much of what goes on in our country. This is good, because there is plenty to be angry about. Many, for instance, are upset about $4 gasoline. But let’s direct our anger at the right targets.

One such target, in my view, is not big oil, with Exxon Mobil serving as the poster boy. Oil companies typically are earning about 8 percent profit on sales, pretax. This is a perfectly reasonable figure, perhaps a bit low in some eyes. What gets attention is the dollar amount of profit, which, of course, is large for the simple reason that sales volume is huge.

There are plenty of culprits at whom we could point our finger. Futures traders, OPEC, etc. But the biggest culprit is us, the American people.

We laughed at Jimmy Carter when he labeled the energy crisis the moral equivalent of war. We are the ones who drove huge powerful cars. We are the ones who always voted down mass transit initiatives.

Pogo was right when he identified the enemy. It is us, folks. It is us.

Don Hallock
Greensboro

If Mrs. Clinton appeals the DNC’s decision to penalize Michigan’s and Florida’s delegations for breaking the rules, that will tell me that she does not feel that when rules are broken there should be consequences and/or penalties.

I do not want a president who does not believe there should be consequences for breaking the rules.

Melinda D. DeVaughn
Greensboro

In “7 myths of North Carolina’s economy” by Brian Balfour of the Civitas Institute (May 25), the second myth focuses on the number of income earners versus tax dollar paid per dollar earned.

Based on “Free Lunch” by David Cay Johnston, 90 percent of the money is earned by 10 percent of the wage earners. Thus, it would be more meaningful to evaluate the taxes paid per dollar earned by the upper 17 percent of the wage earners. This would reflect the true tax burden.

The numbers in Balfour’s article are an attempt to show that the wealthy pay their fair share. A reality check is that the upper 17 percent of income earners probably pay less tax per dollar of earned income than the lower 65 percent of income earners.

Joe Sipp
Navarre, Fla.

The May 24 Counterpoint, “Please serve our students real food,” may mislead consumers about high fructose corn syrup.

High-fructose corn syrup, sugar and several fruit juices all contain the same simple sugars.
New research continues to confirm that high-fructose corn syrup is safe and no different from other common sweeteners like sugar and honey.

High-fructose corn syrup has the same number of calories as sugar. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted high-fructose corn syrup “Generally Recognized as Safe” status for use in food, and reaffirmed that ruling in 1996 after thorough review.

High-fructose corn syrup offers numerous benefits, too. It keeps foods fresh. It enhances fruit and spice flavors. It retains moisture in bran cereals and helps keep breakfast bars moist.

Consumers can see the latest research and learn more at www.HFCSfacts.com.

Audrae Erickson
Washington

The writer is president, Refiners Association, NW.

Greg Niles was a highly competent professional who came to Guilford County and performed a challenging job in a conscientious and superior way.

He always thoroughly familiarized himself with applicable guidelines and ramifications of potential courses of action. More than that, however, Greg was a genuine and kind person whose presence never failed to brighten up one’s day.

Along with his wonderful family (which was clearly his number one priority), all in the community will miss him.

Jonathan Maxwell
Greensboro

Hurrah for Billy Yow. He has the guts to speak up for the property owners of Guilford County who are being pounded every year with increased property taxes.

Our county is getting dangerously deep in debt by the incessant onslaught of bond issues that will take generations to pay off.

Yet, the over 50 percent of our county populous who own no property keep on passing bonds to be paid off on the backs of around 40 percent of our population (property owners) that pay 69 percent of the money to run this county. Only 20 percent of the revenue to run this county comes from sales tax. Everyone pays sales tax, including visitors who come to special events such as the ACC.

What is going on here? I say let’s have a 2- or 3-cent sales tax increase to even things up. Why should such a large percentage of citizens freeload on the backs of property owners?

I say right on, Billy Yow. I’m proud to say that you grew up in my practice.

Richard M. Fields
Pleasant Garden

Surely Greensboro City Council members have been possessed by some mental affliction. Not only have some stated they need to add more taxes to the already overburdened property owners, but now they want “deferred maintenance” so they can use the money for something else.

I have seen before where streets have “deferred maintenance,” and it ends up costing up to five times the amount it normally would have. Plus it always comes back to more bonds, which cost property owners, and rates are never reduced after a bond is paid off. Oh! That is new-found money after being paid off.

Quit buying $40,000 trucks for maintenance supervisors who don’t need them to haul anything; put them in small trucks. Save money by cutting spending (in case you didn’t think of that).

Buddy Cato
Greensboro

We should formalize the annual Guilford County budget-bicker event. We could hang banners (Go Commissioners! Power to the Schools! No more money! Show me the money! What money?!), have snack vendors, and sell programs. Oops! That’d make the budget-bicker synonymous with the circus, wouldn’t it?

All levity aside, the schools do ask for increasing budget allotments from the county commissioners every year. For some folks, that is all there is to know, which means that the most important element is ignored. Yes, Guilford County Schools always asks for additional funds; but they also provide improved results. Adequate and positive growth as a community is not possible without excellent education. Excellent education is not possible without needed funding. Sure, we can all debate what needed funding means.

Ultimately it comes down to this: Denying requested funds means that students lose out. The heart of the matter, the only thing that matters at all: It is always students who pay for the loss.

Melanie McCarthy
Greensboro

Just wanted to let Christopher Monds (“Not everyone receives equal police assistance,” letter, June 2) know that when my Caravan was broken into — broken window and purse stolen — the police dispatcher gave me the same information.

No police officer ever came to my location to write a report or really do anything. I am a white female.

Karen Finch
Greensboro

I’m a member of the ONE Campaign, an advocacy organization dedicated to fighting global AIDS and extreme poverty around the world.

It disturbed me when it came to my attention that Sen. Richard Burr is putting a hold on a bill (PEPFAR) that would bring life-saving medicine to millions of people in need. Preventing HIV/AIDS from spreading and helping those with this disease are very pressing issues that cannot wait to be thought over and discussed at length.

Five years ago, PEPFAR was able to help 1.4 million people with HIV/AIDS get medicine and treatment. Today, PEPFAR’s time has run out and it is being considered for reauthorization and expansion. This process is being held up in the Senate. The House of Representatives passed the bill in April with a hardy 308-116 vote.

I urge Sen. Burr to lift this hold and to pass this bill quickly. Lives are at stake here; what more needs to be said?

Jordan A. Baker
High Point

I’d like to send out a challenge to all residents of the Triad to consider these things:

l There are more than 250 million registered vehicles in the United States (U.S. Department of Transportation figures for 2006). If each of those 250 million cars’ owners spent $10 a week less in gasoline, we would spend $2 billion less weekly on gas. That would offer huge bargaining power as consumers to express our displeasure in these high prices.

l This can be achieved by carpooling or using resources provided by PART (Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation).

l This could speak volumes to the gas companies.

l This could save energy and our reliance on foreign sources.

DeAnna Lawson-Hay
Kernersville

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Becky Strickland

I do not know whether your Summerfield reporter was distracted or whether she was edited by you, but her article in the June 4 edition of the Guilford Record supposedly covering the 2008-09 budget presentation to the Summerfield Town Council totally missed the mark and is factually incomplete.

While the state of the economy was the main impetus behind a push by me to reduce the proposed property tax rate to 2.5 cents by cutting funding priorities, what Kavita Pillai materially failed to report was my recommendation that the first “cut” be from me; i.e., from governing body expenses.

The budget discussion, which lasted more than three hours, was premised entirely on my and Councilwoman Alicia Flowers’ willingness to relinquish our monthly stipends, and reduce education and publications items (amounting to an estimated $20,000 of governing body expenses in toto) — if other departments/committees would produce similar pro rata cuts from their budget requests in order to reach the $100,000 needed for an additional 1-cent reduction in proposed property taxes.

Ergo, the crux of the entire discussion was that some elected officials were willing to forgo their salaries to help decrease property taxes for Summerfield residents in these dire economic times when gas is almost $4 per gallon, houses are not selling, and lots remain vacant. Flowers’ and my concession, however, was not well received by the majority of the council, who were and are ready to pass the budget as presented that night. The official minutes of the meeting, the audio recording, are all-telling.

Efficient and effective governing starts at the top. In hard times leaders have to be willing to give up something to get something. Nothing is free. If the government provides it, then the taxpayers pay for it.

The citizens whom I represent deserve to know what actually transpired at that meeting and how strongly at least two council members feel about taxing them and spending their money — facts clearly related but which your reporter so conveniently omitted for whatever reason.

If elected officials at any level of government are willing to volunteer their time as opposed to being compensated in order to try to help their citizens with basic needs and bring home buyers into the area, surely that is newsworthy by any journalistic standard. So just what would the News & Record standard be?

The writer is a Summerfield Town Council member.

God help us all! David Parrish (letter, May 31) wants to install yet another gadget on our cars to complicate our driving even more.

How can I be expected to eat my Bo-Biscuit, comb my hair, text my boss that I’ll be a few minutes late, referee the kids in the back seat, adjust my GPS, turn down the radio so I can arrange a lunch date with my friends, wash the windshield, change gears, and still have a free hand to turn on a new gadget every time I switch lanes or make a turn?

I say it’s every man for himself. So look out, here I come!

C.M. Marshall
Greensboro

On May 25, my husband and I stopped at a fast-food restaurant for lunch. There were four Greensboro police cars in the parking lot with the engines and air conditioners running. The officers were inside eating while my tax money was paying for wasted gas.

About 15 minutes later, one of the cars started smoking. It overheated. A tow truck was called to pick up the car. Of course, more of my tax money was wasted on the tow bill.

I’ve always respected and admired police officers and what they do to keep us safe. Now, all I ask for is a little respect back when it comes to spending my money.

To the four officers: Thanks for enjoying my paycheck. I can hardly afford to put gas in my one car because I’m having to put gas in your four cars. I’m glad, however, that I could help the city waste money.

Sheryl Baker
Greensboro

Is Keith Hoile (letter, May 29) for real? Or is that name a pseudonym for big oil? You can’t justify big oil making obscene profits by showing that other companies make more.

What’s more to the point, those other companies sell voluntary products and services. And, despite what Hoile thinks, oil prices are having a massive negative effect on our economy.
I can’t think of how Google or others with big profits have any effect on the cost of living.

Bill Lawson
Stoneville

Doug Clark’s “Second Opinion” of May 28 discussed a problem for North Carolina voters few may be aware of: manipulation of voting districts (at every level) to assure the election of party candidates from a particular party. Both parties are guilty. A number of examples can probably be cited. The North Carolina legislature is in charge of arranging the voting districts.

Several years ago, the League of Women Voters of North Carolina proposed voting districts adhering faithfully to the law requiring balanced voting-age populations in each district regardless of party affiliation. The plan was presented to the proper governmental commission. Needless to say, it never made it out of committee.

Arranging the districts by population instead of by party predominance is a huge job; if they were to take on this task now, maybe this time the plan would be adopted.

Barbara P. Walker
Greensboro

Last month’s big story was Scott McClellan’s confessions that Bush misled us to wage war in Iraq, continuing his fraud right up to the present day.

The book brings to mind the Joseph Goebbels quote, “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. … It becomes vitally important for the state to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the state.”

Cal Thomas writes in his column (May 31) that the Democrats have “fraudulently” misled the American people by failing to end the Iraq war. It must be an oversight that he fails to even mention McClellan’s revelations or the fact that he has never had a problem with the Iraq war in the first place.

Seeking the whole truth rather than half-truths makes us wiser, calmer and stronger.
The converse, of course, makes us dumber, more emotionally unstable and weaker.

Heck of a job, Cal!

Kurt Lauenstein
Greensboro

As a bicyclist traveling rural roads through various Triad counties, I am constantly amazed, at times frightened, and often angered by the disregard for safety and human life exhibited by drivers of vehicles. I ride with various groups and, without fail, each individual is aware of their presence on the road and takes every precaution to enhance safety for fellow riders and courtesy to drivers. Yet on every ride I witness drivers placing themselves and the drivers of other vehicles at risk, in addition to cyclists.

This year a friend of mine was killed while riding a rural road. Now his wife and three daughters and the 17-year-old driver of the vehicle and her family have had their lives unalterably changed. How tragic that a lack of attention or patience will now impact so many, so dramatically, and for so long. A bike and rider are no match for a vehicle.

Please allow us a moment of your time and some space on the road. We will all be happier in the long run.

Mark Johnston
High Point

Back in 2000, the citizens of Greensboro said “yes” to a $3.5 million Animal Discovery bond. Science Center trustees and staff raised the required $1.5 million match and have gone on to build the OmniSphere Theater, kick-start the profoundly important HealthQuest project and initiate numerous aspects of the Science City, USA master plan.

More recently, the solar and sustainable maned wolf conservation center opened, allowing Animal Discovery to expand before its one-year anniversary. Animal Discovery has catalyzed 40 percent growth in attendance, with visitors coming from 81 North Carolina counties.

The Science Center has jumped into the top 25 of North Carolina tourism destinations and looks to leap into the top 15 with this year’s attendance figures. The citizens have spoken.

Combined with the hard work of the museum team, together we have started something wonderful. New projects, ideas, support and plans will further transform our organization into a signature, state-recognized destination.

The museum’s H20-Zone (or Greensboro SciQuarium) project will someday launch Greensboro into an all-new era of tourism by interconnecting the only AZA-accredited zoo and aquarium and AAM-accredited science museum all in one kid-cool, creative, compelling and cost-effective destination.

Glenn Dobrogosz
Greensboro

The writer is executive director, Greensboro Natural Science Center.

The News & Record recently ran an editorial urging state and local officials to take responsibility for fixing Greensboro’s broken criminal-justice system. Many of the same problems plague Charlotte: overcrowded jails, repeat offenders with no fear of consequence, lenient judges and partisan officials pointing fingers or saying, “It’s Raleigh’s job to fix the system.”

Your district attorney cited efforts by Charlotte city leaders to address the problems as “progressive” but warned against similar expectations in Greensboro due to a lower tax base and less money.

Greensboro, are you going to let your district attorney and civic leaders get away with such excuses? Shouldn’t you be entitled to the same sense of security and the level of public safety that we in Charlotte have begun to demand?

In April, city leaders claimed that there was no crime problem in Charlotte. Citizens got angry and marched on City Hall. Now those same officials are responding. There is no reason why Greensboro cannot do the same thing.

Organize your neighbors. Hold your civic leaders accountable for prioritizing public safety.

Citizens hold the ultimate weapon: a voice at the ballot box.

Demand attention, and a safe community And then, let’s go to Raleigh together.

Judy Eiselt
Charlotte

In his column (May 25) lauding the Democratic Party, Ed Cone overlooked several notable reasons for the party’s well-deserved ascension:

President Clinton established the principle that a man can receive oral sex from a woman his daughter’s age — multiple times — without committing adultery. Advancing the principle, Elliott Spitzer championed a married man’s right to purchase $5,000 hookers while building a career on moral high ground.

Rev. Jesse Jackson also diluted the stigma once assigned to adultery by fathering an illegitimate child. He also defended free speech as he vowed to finance a college education for the woman who complained of gang rape, even if — as was ultimately shown — her charges proved fabricated.

We see Democratic vision in our esteemed former senator. Few would have John Edwards’ courage to blast the rich for failing to “pay their fair share” while living under an S-corporation created to insulate his own eight-figure earnings from Medicare taxation.

Above all, the Democrats’ stock is rising because of the party’s magical ability to “support our troops” while voting against their funding in a time of war and while blasting a mission that most, like Edwards, voted for in the first place.

Brian Alligood
Greensboro

I would like to thank the Greensboro Police Department, AT&T and two special detectives who have helped us out during two break-ins of our apartment.

They have done a great job. They have put in many hours watching over our home.

May God protect them and bless them. They deserve it.

N.R. Smith
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Tim Bellamy and Wesley Reid

n a recent letter to the editor, a Greensboro resident wrote that his call to 911 about a vehicle break-in was given low priority due to his ethnicity. However, anyone who had called 911 with similar circumstances would have received the same response — without regard to ethnicity, socioeconomic status or any other factor not related to the crime.

All 911 calls placed by Guilford County residents are answered by dispatchers at Guilford Metro 911. These dispatchers ask targeted questions to ensure that the appropriate assistance is provided as quickly as possible.

For the calls sent to the Greensboro Police Department, the dispatcher determines a “priority code” based on information provided by the caller.

Each priority code includes a set of criteria that helps 911 dispatchers determine the urgency of the situation and the appropriate response. There are 10 priority codes, from 0 — the most urgent type of call, where serious injury or death is imminent — to 9, which are personal messages for an officer. The lower the priority code, the more threat or danger to a person, more potential for catching a suspect, and more opportunity for evidence collection.

Residents who call 911 can help ensure an effective response by following a few simple guidelines:

• Remain calm. This can be a challenge during an emergency, but staying calm helps you answer questions quickly and rationally, which in turn gets help to you faster.

• Be patient. The dispatcher asks a series of questions designed to get help to you quickly. Depending on the type of call, help has already been dispatched while the dispatcher asks additional questions.

• Know your address. If you’re calling from a cell phone, dispatchers may not be able to pinpoint your exact location. This is particularly critical if you are calling from an apartment or dormitory.

Both the Greensboro Police Department and Guilford Metro 911 share a common goal: to ensure public safety by providing emergency assistance quickly and effectively.

With an enhanced understanding of the processes that guide the work of both agencies, residents can help ensure that help will arrive when they need it.

Tim Bellamy is chief of the Greensboro Police Department. Wesley Reid is director of Guilford Metro 911.

As I write this, Sen. Ted Kennedy is recuperating at the Duke University Medical Center after his surgery for brain cancer. I wish him well.

I find it interesting that this is the first time since Sam Ervin left the Senate that we have had a real senator in this state.

Dave Stump
Greensboro

I teach fourth grade at Wiley Elementary School. My wife teaches dance at Weaver Academy. Though our teaching worlds differ significantly, the needs are prevalent in both.

The students benefit tremendously from a budget that fully funds the needs of the district. While they do not know or understand the inner workings of the budget and the present process, they certainly feel the effects when their class sizes increase, their major is eliminated, or they do not have the tools needed to successfully achieve their goals. These students are not only a vital part of Guilford County, they are also its future.

It is imperative that the county commissioners fund the $16 million increase in the Guilford County Schools budget for 2008-2009.

Kevin Brenner
Greensboro

Regarding your editorial, “Patients’ deserve access to physicians’ history” (June 3), I yearn for the days when newspapers stood up for individual rights.

Your editorial on posting physicians’ histories could be clearer as to whether you stand up or sit down on the matter.

The N.C. Medical Board seeks comments. Mine follow.

As a matter of individual rights, arm-twisted settlements should not mar the public record of a doctor. Proven judgments and disciplinary actions should be declared; unproven complaints should not be.

I am not a doctor, nor do I receive compensation from them (or play one on TV). Doctors themselves probably cannot ardently protest against this for fear of the question: What are you worried about?

Our Founding Fathers presciently fought for individual rights. Let us not erode them carrying full disclosure to oppressive, arbitrary extremes. They fought against Star Chambers. We should, as well, for Star Chambers also probably originated with good intentions.

Jack Glenn
Greensboro

During a recent visit to a small agricultural community in eastern North Carolina, I spoke with a man who owns a stump-grinding business and farms as well. He told me how the cost of gas then, less than now, had already wiped out any chance of making a profit from his efforts.

All the experts who have criticized the idea of a gas-tax holiday this summer act as if the beneficiaries are just summer vacationers.

The critics say they want long-term solutions, not short-term political gimmicks, as if all of the gas-price issue is just theory with no critical short-term human dimension.

There is a very real human cost, and it is right now. Millions of people, like the farmer I spoke with and others who live on the edge, need help now, not the urban-based academic dismissal of their need.

Roger Rollman
Greensboro

First, I want to wish Sen. Edward Kennedy the best and I hope and pray for a complete recovery. Even though I seldom agree with him, I would not wish the disease that has stricken him on anyone.

Second, I would like to say that it is a good thing the universal health care system he and his party would like to impose on our citizens is not currently in place. If it were, he would likely be on a waiting list for several weeks just to receive an MRI. However, the senator was able to travel to the hospital of his choice and receive care from arguably the best surgeon in the field of neurology.

The last thing the citizens of the United States need is government control of our health care. Everything the government has ever taken control over cost many times more, and services are much worse than when the private sector competes for the business.

I will agree that much work needs to be done for those who are not covered. The government needs to insure insurance coverage, not provide the medical care.

Barry Meadows
McLeansville

Recently the Stokesdale Town Council voted to allow the dumping of debris to continue as well as the adding of more trucks on Haw River Road. There has always been constant traffic on the road, whether it is day or night. It has always been loud, but with all the extra trucks it now sounds like an interstate. We have dump trucks driving by our house that are exceeding the speed limit and dropping debris all over the road.

Once again the Town Council has shown that is does not take into consideration what the Stokesdale residents want.

Many people opposed the stump dump, but the council approved it anyway. We moved here a year ago and, had we known what was to come on N.C. 68 and Haw River, we never would have bought a home here. What we thought was beautiful and out in the country now sounds like a freeway.

We cannot even enjoy our own backyard due to the noise and smell of diesel fuel. And, with this new Town Council, it is only going to get worse.

Molly Voss
Stokesdale

I want to express my thanks to the North Carolina lawmakers who introduced legislation to oppose the unfunded federal mandate known as the Real ID Act. Most are not aware that North Carolina is already fully compliant with Real ID and even bragged about it this February at a Transportation Oversight Committee meeting.

Our legislators, however, need to take a careful look at the bill introduced and need to stop the DMV from collecting and storing our personal data and biometric images.

I have worked in the information technology field for more than 10 years and I don’t care how “safe” they tell you our information will be. You should not trust the DMV with your personal, biometric information anymore than I do. This legislation is nothing more than a vote getter. The state is in full compliance, and when the feds hand over the money, our state will comply.

The people of North Carolina need protections in place for our identities instead of vote-friendly legislation.

Let’s all get on the phones and ask our legislators to improve the text of HB 2136 and strike out Section B or amend it to stop the collection of biometric data and copying our documents to store in a single database.

James Medeiros
Belews Creek

George Will once again eloquently purveys deadly misinformation while appearing to do the opposite. In his column on cap and trade (June 1), Will cites a World Meteorological Organization claim that global warming has not increased in a decade. Will implies, with this claim, that global warming is a hoax.

The WMO statement might, in fact, be true since the two warmest years (average global temperature) on record are 1998 and 2005.

The WMO data also show that the decade of 1998-2007 is the warmest on record.
Further, the top 11 warmest years have all been in the last 13 years (www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071213101419.htm).

Put another way, one of the most startling pieces of evidence for global warming (the percentage of warmest years on record in this decade) is turned by George Will into its opposite: evidence against it.

Will’s free-market fundamentalism has made him utterly blind to the needs of the human race.

Gregory Meyerson
Greensboro

I just read Joe and Terry Graedon’s pharmacy question-and-answer column in the May 25 News & Record. It mentioned people having a hard time getting off anti-depressants without awful side effects.

I had a terrible time getting off Xanax, a highly addictive medication.

Since you can only cut a pill down so many times, the doctor told me I could have a local “custom” pharmacy make up “gummies” (like the kids’ candy) where each week or two, they would put a little less of the drug in them until it got down to a minute amount.
It took weeks, but it helped lessen the side effects.

Nan Faram
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Andrew Young

David Noer raises important questions (“Dogpatch or Gotham? Rate Greensboro’s future,” Ideas, June 1) in an engaging way. However, the answers are conditioned by the way he’s framed them. Suggesting that Greensboro’s future lies somewhere between Green Acres and New York distorts the likely choices we face.

For example, we’re past the provincialism of yesteryear, when eating “ethnic” meant going to Italian-American or Chinese-American restaurants of lowish quality or when (this being the South, it is hard to ignore) “White” and “Colored” signs neatly arranged society into those whose opinions mattered and did not. Since Dogpatch choices are in the past, let’s remove them from the list.

Imagining the future, as Noer wants the reader to do, is pretty much based on the reader’s imaginative — that is, creative — abilities. Most of us can only envision what we see, and what we see in our immediate environment is mediocre or sub-average.

Most well-intentioned, well-educated middle class adults simply cannot imagine lifestyles that do not include SUVs and gated communities, and the building industry has consistently offered them ugly, hodgepodge styles of McMansions outfitted with Viking ranges and great rooms. Ask the middle class to envision the future and it will show you an expanded version of itself — a model that is not sustainable.

Ideas about living — true innovations — rarely come from the middle. They come from the lower class (rap, hip-hop, NASCAR), from oddballs, eccentrics, loudmouths (think artists, scientists, innovators, garage tinkerers), business people prepared to take very large risks, and the occasional daring official (think Gen. Greene). If we count on consensus — that wonderful, time-honored and time-consuming goal sought by all earnest, hard-working committees — to determine Greensboro’s future, we will probably wind up with heavily protected suburban developments, gently regulated sprawl and an ongoing, unresolved and undiscussed divide determined by race, education and class. More of the same, only more so.

Since it’s evaded hard choices, I suggest Greensboro take on what is within reach of its collective imagination. We can all stand to lose a pound; we’d all benefit if we installed a rain barrel; we’d all gain by driving less.

Let’s get some reality TV-like competitions going, with individual, street, neighborhood, church and office prizes provided by the medical and insurance industries and local businesses. Tacky? Yes. Engaging and fun? You bet. And possibly, a way forward to deal with even tougher matters.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

The federal government permits each state to formulate its highway noise abatement policies. Unfortunately, North Carolina has chosen the minimal federal standards.

The unrelenting noise from the newly opened western Greensboro Urban Loop has left many individuals angry and frustrated. The decline in property value and potential health problems could create a financial liability for the state. Correcting these noise problems now would be prudent from an economic standpoint.

State House Rep. Pricey Harrison, as well as Reps. John Blust and Laura Wiley, are supporting a bill that would encourage the construction of sound barriers along existing highways that generate a significant noise impact. Hopefully the measure also would encourage highway design engineers to incorporate noise abatement measures into future highway designs before roads are built.

The passage of this bill would send a message to the state Department of Transportation that the time has come to make the reduction of highway noise a priority. Reducing highway noise is a quality-of-life issue that demands the support from state and local authorities as well as the News & Record.

The affected taxpayers deserve no less.

Arthur M. Ihrig
Greensboro

I agree wholeheartedly with Warren Romaine’s letter (June 5) that airlines should charge passengers by their weight. In today’s world, we should be responsible for our actions and choices, even if it means paying for them by the pound.

If the airlines want to make weight an issue, then consider the passenger and luggage as a whole. So, if individual weight is such a concern, what about these silly magazines they force on all of us?

I took the April issue of one in-flight magazine and weighed it at three-quarters of a pound. Multiplied by 175 seats and then by the 3,800 flights the airline has each day, the total is 498,750 pounds, or half a million pounds of paper a day and 200 million pounds each year.

Maybe the airlines should stop wasting paper. This would help with fuel costs, and in turn, might keep a few more jobs and routes around.

John Walsh
Winston-Salem

Regarding complaints that property taxes disproportionately burden property owners:
Don’t the great majority of citizens of Guilford County and its cities and towns pay property taxes, either directly as property owners or indirectly as renters or leasers?

Maybe I’m naive, but I assume property owners pass along their property tax costs to their renters or leasers. Therefore, an increase in property tax does not affect property owners unfairly.

It seems to me that a sales tax increase imposes a greater burden on the low-income population than an increase in property tax.

Bob Muir
Greensboro

Regarding the Counterpoint, “Slanderers now target Michelle Obama,” by Al Mankoff (June 1):

Stop worrying. Billy Yow and Charles Davenport are typical examples of people educated beyond their intelligence.

Keeping them both around does little to draw educated/rational people to their philosophy. In fact, it is an advantage to us moderates/“liberals.”

Yow and Davenport preach strictly to the choir.

Davenport’s columns are a real giggle. This guy uses words to impress us that Bill Buckley would have laughed at. He is also quite proud of the fact that he was disciplined as a child by belt beatings (his own admission). Perhaps that explains him.

Yow is an ex-stripper. Need I say more?

Our real worry should be the Karl Roves of the world: smart, unethical and manipulative.
David Colin
Greensboro

On a May 27 NBC Nightly News segment, viewers were asked to tell how the high price of gasoline had affected their holiday plans. I couldn’t believe what they said.

Shame on those who complained that, instead of a rack of ribs or steaks, they had to settle for “bleak burgers” that were bought on sale. One person wanted to know how to break the news to their children that they had to stay home that holiday.

Someone even stated that girls had to ask their boyfriends to pick them up instead of driving their own cars. Wow, what a sacrifice!

I never knew just how selfish and spoiled some people are. To those of you who feel deprived, please think of others who live this way every day.

Be thankful you’re able to cook in, even if it’s only hamburgers. Be thankful your glass is half -full. Some don’t have a glass.

Let’s honor our dead heroes by giving up our comforts on that special day. It will never compare with what they gave up for us — their lives.

Shirley J. Wright
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Pete Dalldorf

My wife and I would like to thank the News & Record for its recent story on our son, Christopher, who lived through an arrhythmia recently due to the help of a number of wonderful people.

We are writing to additionally thank his classmates, teachers and school nurse once again as well as the firemen and EMTs who rescued him and took him to Moses Cone Memorial Hospital. The techs, nurses and doctors at Cone were terrific and made me feel proud to work at the hospital myself. They stabilized him immediately and shipped us to Chapel Hill.

We also need to thank our friends who called, e-mailed, wrote, visited and cooked. We have never felt so loved in all our years here and have never eaten so well.

Even more amazing to us has been the kindness of strangers. People we don’t even know have written and called to say they were thinking of us or praying for our son. People have asked if there is a fund to which they can donate to supply AEDs (automated external defibrillators) in all schools. That’s in the works. Christopher shares our goal.

The upsides of this ordeal surprisingly have been many. Obviously, we have our boy, my best friend in this world. Also awareness about AEDs and their proper use has been elevated.

Basically, if you see someone collapse and he or she doesn’t have a pulse, then call 911, start chest compressions and have someone look for an AED. They honestly are very easy to use.

But the final benefit of this event for us has been to strengthen our feelings about this city as a real community, something we feel fortunate and proud to be part of. Thank you, Greensboro.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

Now that primary elections have been over for a little while, it’s time to ask, “How in the world are we going to pay for all those bonds?” Many who voted yes have graduated college here and gone back home or to another state.

Our local elections are supposed to be for local residents, not for those who are only here for a college education. Granted, there are some who do not move back to their home states, but there are many who do.

Now, all of us who own property are stuck with the bill, which increases year after year after year. When it comes to local bonds, the ones who are responsible for paying are the ones who should be voting on it. It is time to stop letting temporary college students raise our North Carolina property taxes.

Don Wendelken
Summerfield

The following is a Counterpoint..

In ancient times, there was a mighty warrior Jephthah, who fought against the Ammonites and won. He had promised God that if he were to be victorious in battle the first one to greet his return would be delivered as a sacrificial burnt offering to God.

To his surprise and dismay, his beloved daughter rushed out to greet him, and so was destined for sacrifice. She asked one favor: to have two months with her companions in the mountains to mourn the future she would never have, the children she would never conceive, the man she would never wed.

Jephthah’s daughter was willing to be sacrificed, but at her own determined time. And she was granted her request.

She didn’t survive the rash actions of her father but she managed to set her own schedule for compliance.

In our own time, we know that the power of a political party, especially during an election season, can overrule the needs and plans of those who rushed to meet party standards and win elections.

The excitement and exhilaration of the moment will end in deep disappointment for all but one winner. The powers in the Democratic Party willed Sen. Hillary Clinton, a strong contender for primary votes, to comply with their demands that she sacrifice her campaign efforts and concede to her major opponent, Sen. Barack Obama.

Clinton, the sacrificial offering to the coming national presidential election, took her grief and disappointment into account and set her own timing for compliance to the demands of her political party.

In effect, she said, as Jephthah’s daughter had so long ago, “I will do as you have commanded, but first let this thing be done for me: grant me one more day so that I may mourn with my close friends on Friday before my official concession to Senator Obama on Saturday.”
And her party granted her wish, and she sat with her friends to bewail her defeat before stepping forth to sacrifice her candidacy. (For the background story, see the book of Judges, Chapter 11.)

The writer lives in Greensboro

The Esqueda Brothers’ Circus is coming to Greensboro this week. I attended it in Asheboro in 2007 and was shocked at the exploitation of an adult female chimpanzee.

Chimps are highly social and intelligent animals. As performers, they’re taken away from their mothers as infants and generally housed in small cages, except during shows. When retired, they are often solitarily caged for life (up to 50 years) or disposed of in places like biomedical research facilities.

The chimpanzee that performed at the circus was on a chain leash with a lump under her costume, presumably a shock collar, an inhumane method to keep chimps “under control.” Adult chimpanzees are five to six times stronger than humans and more aggressive than perceived.

She was allowed in close proximity to the audience, a safety concern, should she get away from her trainer and a health concern as diseases are easily transmitted across species. This chimp was deprived of a basic need: companionship with chimpanzees.

I urge the community not to support this circus until they remove the chimpanzee from the show; it’s no coincidence that reputable circuses no longer use them.

Beth McChesney
Asheboro

I have not read, nor do I intend to read Scott McClellan’s book. However, from news reports, newspapers and TV, I have gleaned that he apparently knew more intelligence than the information used by our own president, nearly our entire Congress and other world leaders.
My question is: Why speak now and why was he a mere press secretary?

W.A. Taber
Greensboro

Though approaching nine decades and living on fixed income since 1982, I usually manage to maintain optimism. But times are changing. I still have what I need, but recent price increases concern me. Most other news is bad, due largely to the incompetent leadership of this president.

Among other bad decisions, we have had ill-conceived tax reductions and rebates, and worst of all, have sent American troops to initiate an inexcusable conflict that exposes them to continual risk of mutilation and death. The human, financial and other costs resulting thereupon cause serious consequences today, but will mostly be borne by future generations.
Now we have two improbable presidential candidates, neither of whom enchant me. I have seen or read nothing of their campaigns which leads me to expect improved leadership, though certainly the bar is set very low. They mostly promise “change.”

One candidate mentions occupying Iraq for 100 years. That is unlikely since, as things are going, we could be bankrupt long before then — and maybe learning Chinese. The other candidate promises vaguely to leave Iraq. Sometime.

Dan W. Maddox
Greensboro

A column in your June 5 Business section reported crude oil prices falling because of slowing demand. The same article reported that retail gasoline prices were continuing to rise.
Normally, one would expect prices to fall, not rise, as “gasoline inventories rose by 2.9 million barrels during the last four weeks.” What could be hindering the classic laws of economics from operating here. Could it possibly be the lack of competition?

Think of the combining of major oil companies in the last few years. British Petroleum, commonly disguised as BP, and camouflaged as “Beyond Petroleum,” bought Gulf Oil, and then American Oil Company (Amoco).

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act was long ago passed to split up John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Co.

Has the Justice Department gone to sleep, or is it fashionable for big companies to gobble up their competition so they can set their own prices?

Charles C. King
Siler City

Enough already! Why is it that the Guilford County commissioners can’t find another way to fund their projects other than a bond? I’ll tell you: Because it would not pass, that’s why. If it were a sales tax for schools or any other tax that everyone had to pay, it would not pass. So, you keep putting out bond referendums and people who don’t own property and, therefore, don’t have to pay the tax push them right through.

Sadly, there are many people in foreclosure and a lot more close to it, and all these extra taxes don’t help. If we need something, so be it. But let everyone share the tax burden, not just property owners.

Now the city wants $114 million more for transportation projects. Keep it up and you will drive hard-working people right out of Guilford County and your tax base will dry up. Then what are you going to do?

Timothy Elliott
Greensboro

With any issue, much less one as important as choosing a president, we should base our decisions on the truth instead of Internet e-mail rumors.

A great site is www.snopes.com to check out all e-mail rumors (political and nonpolitical) before you forward them. Most of them are false, including the Obama Quran one and the Obama refusal to take the Pledge of Allegiance rumors. I encourage you to pass the truth along to anyone who sends you these e-mails.

Here are the links to some of the Obama ones:

• www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp
• www.snopes.com/politics/religion/ellison.asp

I supported Hillary, but whomever you vote for or against, do it based on their positions instead of blindly believing e-mail rumors.

Joni Carter
Reidsville

How many humans of one ethnic/cultural/professional group does it take to screw in a light bulb? ... Take my wife, please. ... Three ethnically and dialectally diverse humans walk into a bar. Unless it’s a sight gag, most comedy is cruel and condescending.

Every joke made is at someone’s expense. Should we stop laughing now, so soon after the Greeks started poking fun?

Embracing is the last thing we need. Understanding, maybe — as long as we understand why the Simpsons, Dave Chapelle and Richard Pryor make us laugh. Not only is their humor cynical, but they poke fun at our cynicism.

Billy Yow possesses the same comic genius, but he is vilified for exploiting a crowd that fails to recognize this. When people say they are offended, they are simply disagreeing over what is funny, but this philosophical conflict gets messy when the embracing, enlightened, tolerant class becomes intolerant of the humorous attempts of people they cannot tolerate. For me to have a better life, I need elected officials at each others’ throats long enough for them to keep their hands out of my pockets.

Please quit looking for moral instruction from someone who is placed in government because humans lack the capacity to govern themselves.

Chuck Atkinson
Greensboro

Further recognition is due R.S. Gwynn, Texas poet, whose poem, “Fried Beauty,” appeared in the News & Record on June 8 in the American Life in Poetry column.

Sam Gwynn is a native North Carolinian, a graduate of Morehead High School in Eden (Leaksville), a graduate of Davidson College and the University of Arkansas, and is University Professor of English and Foreign Languages at Lamar University in Texas. Sam holds numerous awards and distinctions in poetry, fiction and other literary outlets. “No Word of Farewell,” his selected poems from 1970 to 2000, was published in 2001 and is recommended for reading.

Because the News & Record is circulated in his hometown of Eden, his poem in the June 8 edition should not go unnoticed. (Maybe you will have a chance to reprint “Fried Beauty” in a later edition.)

Bill Knight
Greensboro

This is a critical time for our schools. Soaring fuel prices, increased maintenance costs and an anticipated surge in enrollment by more than 1,300 students places unprecedented demands on our school system. The county manager’s proposed budget shortfall of roughly $3.5 million further compounds the problem. It will force our district to make cuts in the two areas that most impact the budget but also most impact students — personnel and programs.

Such cuts could not come at a worse time. Guilford County is gradually emerging as one of the nation’s leading destinations for businesses seeking a well-trained work force. Their perception of our community is shaped in large part by how well we support our local public schools. The district is doing its part by taking great strides academically. Recent news reports of the increase in math and reading scores provide evidence that the district’s best days are still ahead.

Now is the time for our county commissioners to show their support for our children, schools, education and the business community by voting to fully fund the district’s 2008-09 budget request.

As a parent of two in the Guilford County schools, I fully support this request.

Michelle Clark
Greensboro

Did you see “Recount” on HBO the other night? It’s a movie about the Florida cat fight to decide the Bush-Gore election.

It was fast-paced and well-done and grabbed you the whole way, even though you knew very well how it turned out. Some of the fascination was the nasty tactics, and some was the constitutional emergency, but you know what? It was knowing the ending that really drove the thing.

Consider: What if you plucked Bush-Gore out of the plot and substituted Calvin Coolidge-John W. Davis? (Remember John?) And assume Coolidge won by dirty tricks. Would you sit through a longish movie about it, given the unremarkable aftermath?

Plug Bush-Gore back in, though, and everything changes back. You know how their movie ends, too, but this very knowing is what keeps you from taking a bathroom break for two hours. You sit watching in quiet horror knowing that Rosemary really is going to deliver her baby. And when she’s done and when you finally get to see his eyes, you will know he’s the devil. I think they called him Adrian in that version.

Sands Hetherington
Greensboro

Sen. Clinton has fallen from presumptive nominee to non-nominee. Why? In 1981, President Reagan nominated Sandra O’Connor to be the first female Supreme Court justice. A reporter asked him if we’d ever have a female president. He said yes. He didn’t know who, but he promised that she’d be a Republican.

So maybe Hillary was jinxed from the start, by Reagan’s prophecy.

Al Shumard
Greensboro

I support a moratorium on street paving. Most of the time that I have observed paving of main roads, they didn’t need it. They were mainly smooth with a few cracks. The price of asphalt paving has increased with the price of oil and may go higher.

Tax increases should be avoided where possible due to many families being hit with higher food and energy costs and job losses.

John Mooney
Greensboro

I was on a DWI checkpoint in Reidsville May 23 and 24. I often work with these officers, who do a super job.

If we keep one drunken driver off the road, we may have saved someone from going through what my family did back in 1990. My brother, who was only 19 years old, was killed in my mom’s driveway.

If Sarah Longwell (letter, “DWI checkpoints miss most drunken drivers,” June 3) had been through losing a brother, mother, father, sister or any family member, would she feel the same way?

Rockingham County no longer has a MADD chapter. But a few of us use our own money to make sure our officers have drinks, water and snacks at these checkpoints.

I lost a sweet, good little brother who was the youngest of seven children. He was still home with my mom and dad. He helped my mom take care of our dad, who had a stroke at 59 years of age.

If you must use alcoholic beverages, stay off the roads we pay taxes on. We have rights, too.

My heart breaks each year on Nov. 4.

Sarah Ellington
Stokesdale

I was reading the story about the young boy who lived in Kampala, Uganda (News & Record, June 2), who chips rocks into gravel with a homemade hammer and gets 6 cents for every five gallons. He works 12 hours a day to fill three buckets.

Then I thanked God I live where I do and have the money to pay $4 a gallon for gas; money to go to the grocery store and buy clothes to wear; a home to live in.

We can always be worse off than we are. Just read the paper or hear the news and see how fortunate we are.

God bless America, and may we stay free. Thank God for all who serve to keep us free.

Iris Newby
Eden

While the N.C. General Assembly debates teacher raises, let me tell the citizens of Guilford County about two groups of educators.

As a 35-year retired teacher and current tutor, I have witnessed the dedication and hard work of educators at Colfax Elementary and Hampton Leadership Academy.

At Colfax, under the leadership of Michelle Thigpen, and at Hampton, led by David Jarmon, the teachers struggle daily to improve the lives of students and help them master the knowledge needed to become educated, employable, responsible citizens.

As teacher and parents know, students are not always focused and committed to learning. When parents and teachers work together, in these two schools much is accomplished. As parents and teachers do their jobs, students must be dedicated to learning and excellence.
Teachers deserve the raise and a restful summer.

Dorothy E. Walker
Greensboro

While our electric and gas utilities companies provide a billing history online, I come to find that there is no such option for our water department. I just finished a frustrating call with a customer service representative for the city water department. She told me that she had no problem reading it on her screen, and I had to explain the difference between her access and the general public access. Unbelievable.

Why hasn’t our water department made each resident’s billing history available to them online? Are we that far behind other utility companies in our automation?

Broadus Moore
Jamestown

I agree with Richard Fields (letter, June 6). Thanks for Billy Yow.

If I could vote a thousand times for him, I would. Yes, he does have the guts to say what a lot of us would like to say but are afraid to.

I say keep on doing what you’re doing, Billy. You have good job security; stay on ’em like a duck on a June bug.

Ron Smith
Greensboro

Poor Hillary Clinton! The vast right-wing conspiracy has struck gain and denied self-entitled, self-anointed and self-elected Hillary her coronation.

Norman Welker
Greensboro

I was delighted to read that Terry Wood was returning from retirement to serve as the city attorney for Greensboro.

Terry is a man of unquestioned integrity and ethics. His years of service as counsel for the city of Greensboro make him the perfect choice for the position. I have known Terry for many years and have the utmost respect for him both personally and professionally.

Terry’s return to the city Legal Department is the first step in a long-needed healing process for city employees.

Al Stewart
Jamestown

In a May 31 letter, David Parrish told us about a great idea he had come up with to save lives and prevent accidents: a stick on the left side of the steering column that when pushed either up or down would make lights on that car blink according to which way the car was going to turn. Brilliant, I thought. I was so excited that I spent the rest of Saturday on the road in Greensboro researching the idea.

Unfortunately, I discovered through this research that the idea was flawed, even dangerous. With the lever on the left-hand side, and the left hand occupied holding the cell phone to the ear, the left leg would have to be used to activate the lever. However, as the left knee could only push up, the car would always indicate right even if going left, creating even more confusion.

Putting the lever on the right-hand side of the column also would not work, the right hand being essential to eating, drinking and adjusting make-up.

Great idea. What a shame it is impractical.

David Stansfield
Climax

I am sorry to read about David Best’s disappointment in the omission of the Merchant Marines recognition on the coverage in Washington on Memorial Day (letter, June 1). I would like to point out the Merchant Marines do have a flag, a song, an emblem and a heritage. All of the above were included in our dedication on May 18 at the Veterans Memorial in Pleasant Garden.

Our monument honors Merchant Marines along with the other five services.

And by the way, it is the oldest recognized branch of service.

Dave Goltare
Pleasant Garden

Kay Hagan, who is challenging Sen. Elizabeth Dole, urges “reforming guest-worker programs for businesses that have trouble meeting labor needs,” says the News & Record (May 30). “Something like that could cover most illegal immigrants.”

Legalization of illegal immigrants — popularly known as “comprehensive” immigration reform — is favored by most Democrats and some Republicans.

Legislation in 1986 illustrates how the approach works. President Reagan signed a bipartisan “one-time only” amnesty for an estimated 1.5 million illegal aliens. It included promises of fines for employers and stepped-up border security.

What happened? An overwhelmed INS — under political pressure from Congress — sped through and approved 2.7 million applications, many fraudulent. Employer sanctions were forgotten over time (employers howled, congressmen listened). By 2008, 13 million to 20 million additional illegal aliens had taken up residence in the United States.

“Guest” worker programs also have a history:

“In many countries, under many types of government, and across many time periods, experiences with guest worker programs have led to an overwhelming and simple consensus among those who have studied the issue: there is nothing more permanent than temporary workers” (“The Mirage of Mexican Guest Workers,” Philip L. Martin and Michael S. Teitelbaum, Foreign Affairs Magazine, Nov./Dec. 2001).

Tom Shuford
Lenoir

It is time for county commissioners to vote for a better future for our children by approving the current budget requested by the Guilford County Schools.

Eighty-five percent of the requested increase in the budget will cover state-legislated salary and benefit increases, the direct cost of an additional 1,294 students and anticipated energy costs.

The balance of the budget request would allow us to make real progress in the key areas of supporting more art, music and physical education teachers in our elementary schools and fund key efforts to positively affect student behavior and safety issues along with the continuing process of closing the achievement gap and improving student graduation and achievement rates.

I urge the News & Record and all citizens to support the 2008-09 school budget request.

The voters have spoken. The voters handily approved the bond proposals. Now it is time that we come together and show that we want the best possible schools in Guilford County and approve an operating budget that will support this vision.

Alan D. Pike
Greensboro

“Recent DNA analysis found that the Shitsu is one of the oldest breeds of dogs” (caption under photo May 27).

What an insult to an honored and delightful breed that you cannot even bother to spell it correctly — Shih Tzu.

Shame on you.

Estill Holmes
High Point

I am a college graduate, a professional assistant and a 30-year resident of Sumner — one of Guilford County’s oldest communities. Most of our families have been here for generations.
We are hardworking and family-oriented and do not appreciate big government. It is this community that has supported Billy Yow as a Guilford County commissioner. We know Billy Yow as a fourth-generation “Sumner boy” — a gregarious, popular and hardworking man who runs a very successful business, but is never too busy to stop and discuss the needs of his constituents.

We know him as someone who has listened to us, argued with us, stood with us and, most of all, represented our views on the county board. We appreciate his knowledge, his fiscal responsibility, his quick wit and sound judgment. We value his candor and frankness because we do not appreciate politicians who say one thing and do another.

We believe he does all he can to assure that the county’s money is spent responsibly and fairly. If he disagrees with some on the board, we do not think this is r-a-c-i-s-m. We think it is p-o-l-i-t-i-c-s. We’ll keep voting for him, too.

Kathryn Harris Humble
Greensboro

The city of Greensboro is committed to good stewardship of tax dollars and the environment, so we think it is important to explain the practice (referenced in a recent letter to the editor) of police officers leaving the engines of patrol cars running.

All but 70 Greensboro Police Department patrol cars are equipped with older-model, energy-draining computers. These computers take a very long time to reboot when shut down, and leaving the computer on with the engine shut off will very quickly drain the battery. This is why patrol cars may be observed idling. As resources permit, we will replace all computers with models that reboot almost instantly.

In the meantime, officers using the old computers must leave the engines running so that, when they are called to an emergency, their computers will be immediately available. As the new computers phase out the old, this situation will be resolved.

We do welcome suggestions from the public that allow us to save money and energy.

Pat Boswell
Greensboro

The writer is director of the Public Affairs Department, city of Greensboro.

I was disappointed to read the negative article you wrote concerning Judge Henry Frye Jr. and the delay in entering an order in a civil case.

I have known Judge Frye for almost 20 years. As a practicing attorney, he was always prepared, honest and completely ethical. He has retained those traits as a judge. He is well-respected across the state. He treats all who appear before him with dignity and respect. He treats the powerful and powerless just the same. He hears thousands of cases each year and renders judgments and orders in each. He does all of this while traveling across the state without the aid of a law clerk or secretary.

The demands put upon him are constant, but I dare say you won’t find anyone who will utter a word against him. He is one of the few judges who earns praise from both sides of any dispute.
I hope you will take the time to write a positive article about Judge Frye. If you do take the time to write a fair article addressing the positive aspects of this good man, you had better buy extra ink — because it will be a very long article indeed.

Robert O’Hale
Greensboro

The writer is a Greensboro attorney.

The following is a Counterpoint

By Jeff Sovich and Michelle Horvath

As we face difficult economic times, government needs to look for ways to reduce costs and save taxpayer money without eroding residents’ health or quality of life, or the business climate.
However, the Greensboro City Council’s recent proposal to cancel road resurfacing funds as a cost-saving measure would not save money and would damage our community. Delaying these projects only would increase the cost of later maintenance due to increased disrepair.

A pioneering 2006 study by the Utah Department of Transportation examined nearly 30 years of empirical evidence and found that allowing the overall condition of a roadway network to deteriorate by as little as 5 percent without timely remediation can cause substantial long-term increases in the cost of preventing further degradation, even after routine maintenance is resumed. The study found that when total costs, including decreased safety and increased travel delays are considered, good roads actually cost less.

Road resurfacing is critical to the safety of all road users, especially bicyclists. Small cracks or holes in the road that a motorist may not even notice represent significant safety hazards for bicyclists. As more and more residents rely on bicycling to offset rising fuel costs, it is essential that the city maintain pavement quality.

Also, in most cases, installation of new bicycle lanes is contingent on the city’s road resurfacing schedule; eliminating even one year’s resurfacing projects also freezes the expansion of important bicycle infrastructure.

Studies show that cities with well-placed bicycle lanes have lower rates of motor vehicle-bicycle collisions. Bicycling also improves air quality, as well as physical and emotional well-being. In addition, it reduces greenhouse gas emissions, traffic congestion and demand for petroleum.
Finally, encouraging bicycle transportation by providing a safe and convenient on-road network of bicycle facilities also would decrease the need for new roadway capacity, saving tax money in the long term. We hope the City Council will work to preserve the resurfacing schedule.

Jeff Sovich is president, Bicycling in Greensboro (www.bikegso.org); Michelle Horvath is vice president. This column also was signed by the Bicycling In Greensboro Board of Directors.

I am a veteran teacher of 34 years and this profession is still engaging and exciting to me. I have experienced many changes throughout my career with the evolving profile of my students, complex subject matter and high expectations for student performance.

The role of our teachers and of the school has changed over time. We are many things to many students and members of our community.

To attract bright, creative, and capable new teachers and to keep the dedicated and esteemed professionals in our educational system, we must make salaries competitive. Therefore, I am asking all who are involved to vote yes for the increased budget proposals.

Thanks you for your consideration on this matter because our children’s future is in your vote.

Cecelia D. Antahades
Greensboro

We have seen lots of suggestions on how to keep kids from joining gangs and out of trouble. Here is one of our own: When a neighborhood kid stops by and asks if he (or she) can mow your lawn — or rake leaves, or clean your gutters — hire him!

We were fortunate to be approached by a very polite and professional young man named TJ. He was soliciting for yard work, complete with a flier that boasted his motto of “making money the old-fashioned way.” We couldn’t have been more impressed with his work ethic and determination to make an honest buck, no matter how hot it was outside or how hard the work may be. His parents have obviously instilled in him a value he will carry for the rest of his life. But without the cooperation of the community, kids like TJ will quickly lose this motivation and turn to other ways to make money.

So, when opportunity comes knocking at your door, don’t turn them away. You might be doing more damage than you realize.

Steven and Susie Way
Greensboro

Kudos to the News & Record editorial staff for supporting greater transparency in how the state’s Commerce Department hands out corporate incentives (“Open incentives deals,” June 11). The editorial disappoints, however, when it claims that such transparency will prevent the Commerce Department from being “suckered into bidding too much to land a new company.”

That’s suggesting that there somehow is a “right” price taxpayers must pay to help government planners play favorites. One penny of tax dollars (or targeted tax breaks) is too much.
If a company needs specialized treatment from government, it indicates that: a) taxes in North Carolina are too high and should be lowered across the board on all businesses, or b) the company cannot operate profitably without government assistance.

Showering specific companies with handouts or tax breaks encourages a dangerously cozy relationship between business executives and politicians, while propping up otherwise unprofitable businesses diverts scarce resources and jobs away from entrepreneurs who could create real, sustainable economic growth. Greater transparency in government is always a good thing. In this case, however, it isn’t enough. State lawmakers need to put an end to the unfair practice of corporate welfare.

Brian Balfour
Raleigh
The writer is affiliated with the Civitas Institute, a Raleigh-based think tank.

The recent letters to the editor (David Parrish, May 31, and C.M. Marshall, June 8) concerning turn signals reminded me of the adage: If you ever see a car in Greensboro with a turn light flashing, you can be assured that it more than likely came that way, and the driver doesn’t know how to turn it off!

Francis J. McCormack
Greensboro

When a solution to a problem is put forth that would alleviate an issue, say, more efficient scrubbers for coal-fired power plants, or mandated increases in fuel-efficiency standards, we are told that such solutions can’t be implemented because it would be “too costly for the consumer.”

The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources has said Duke Energy’s new Cliffside coal-fired plant must meet the strictest air-quality standards. Already the howls have begun. “It will cost too much; we can’t afford it.” This from the same segment of society that otherwise rushes to remind us there are no free lunches.

I submit that we already pay for dirty air — in every insurance premium, in every medical bill, in lost productivity. We pay for the thousands of people with asthma, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or any number of other conditions that are created or made worse by air pollution.

If pay I must, then I would rather pay for fewer new cases of children’s asthma, less mercury in our streams and rivers (and fish). Like the old joke says, “You can pay me now, or you can pay me later.”

It’s been my experience that later is almost always more expensive.

Sandi Campbell
Siler City

I want to thank all the people who voted for all the bonds. I hope you enjoy having your taxes doubled over the next five years. You must love paying taxes.

Sheriff BJ Barnes must be having a big laugh over his getting his Taj Mahal jail. After all, he will be retiring anytime he wants on a big pension courtesy of us taxpayers.

Enjoy your taxes!

Ray Hilton
High Point

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Robert Burns

Regarding John O’Brien’s June 3 Counterpoint to Cal Thomas’ column:

Thomas’ main point is that “the most relevant question is whether global warming is true.”

I can’t speak for Thomas, but I can counter some of the points made by O’Brien. Ironically, O’Brien faults Thomas for giving “little in the way of facts or evidence” and then neither states the facts directly or provides references, aside from a global warming advocacy Web site.

Approximately 32,000 U.S. scientists signed a petition questioning the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s views ( http://www.petitionproject.org ).

O’Brien makes many false statements in the form of questions.

His first assertion is “that the earth has warmed a full degree Fahrenheit in the last 20 years.” This is erroneous based on three widely used satellite data sets. When measured from April 1987 to April 2008, we find the following changes: GissTemp shows an increase of .26 degree Celsius (.47 degree F); HadCrut3 shows an increase of .18 degree C (.33 degree F); and UAH MSU shows a decrease of .10 degree C (-.18 degree F).

None of these shows an increase of a full-degree Fahrenheit over the last 20 years, and the MSU data show a slight drop.

O’Brien asserts that the ocean has warmed, but does not specify a time period. The ARGO network, which monitors the oceans with floating devices, suggests a slight cooling from 2003 to present ( http://www.climatesci.org ).

O’Brien also asserts that “Greenland is melting at an astonishing rate.” This is also false. While measurement of the ice is difficult, one recent study concludes “that the current changes in surface mass balance are not exceptional” ( http://www.cosis.net/abstracts ).

With the government discussing climate bills that would impose huge costs on the nation, it is very important that we determine if carbon dioxide is causing climate change. The absence of increasing warmth since 1997, coupled with increasing CO2 since 1997, is a major problem for those who support the idea that it causes global warming.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

Regarding rising fuel prices in the Triad:

Every morning I wake up, get dressed, have a bowl of cereal and get into my car to make my commute from Summerfield to Greensboro. As I drive down Battleground Avenue, I keep my eye out for the lowest gas prices for my commute home.

While I’m the first to admit that I want to find the cheapest gas in town, I am still secretly happy to see those numbers rolling up. I’m happy because there are few people willing to take the time to do the right thing simply because it’s the right thing to do.

As the price of gas increases each day, more environmentally sound options become more competitive and legislation that decreases our demand for oil, like the Clean Cars Act, becomes more appealing to voters.

Will Kim
Summerfield

I think Obama would be a great president. So what’s all this stuff about him not offering specifics and all? I mean, it seems like he’s got it all tied together, the whole package. Like, he’s for hope and change and the future.

Come on, it’s obvious. You can’t hope for the past or change the past. The future is like, in front of us, and the past is, like, behind us.

On top of all that, he wants to turn the page. I mean, like you know, seriously dude, who do you want to be president? Duh!

Bill Stevens
Jamestown

There’s been much written about the increased use of “framing” by political candidates and media to give their words a shortcut connection to interpretive commentary. For example, using the words “Iraq” and “terrorism” in the same sentence continues to imply their connection long after all evidence has failed to do so.

Now comes Jack Stratas’ letter, “Hagan backs a policy of surrender in Iraq” (June 3) to demonstrate clearly that such language devices are being digested well and in this case dutifully regurgitated to encourage his interpretation of Hagan’s qualifications for the U.S. Senate.

Immediately his phrase “Kay ‘Surrender, Cut and Run’ Hagan” ties her to bad stuff way beyond Iraq, while “West Coast socialist defeatists, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid” paints a bleak picture of their politics with no explanation of how all those elements are connected.

And what framing as a substitute for thought would be complete without his citing the name “Barack Hussein Obama” to suggest sinister things indeed with which Hagan has become associated.

The world situation being so terribly complex these days, we’re fortunate to have the Hagan candidacy framed up for us in such simple packaging we can all understand.

Bill Yaner
Jamestown

I want to commend the Greensboro Transit Authority bus drivers. They are unfailingly courteous and competent.

Starting out as a GTA bus rider at age 82, I had misgivings as to how I’d do. On my first outing, the driver lowered the steps to meet seamlessly with the curb. He helped me as I fumbled with inserting the coins in the proper slot. He waited until I was seated to start up.

As I became more skillful, I noticed where extraordinary care was given to riders. Seeing an elderly man with a cane hurrying toward the bus stop still a ways off, the driver stopped mid-block to allow him to enter.

The drivers are competent, having been trained to maneuver the burly vehicles in and around the busy shopping malls and medical parks to accommodate the needs of riders. Knowledge of the various routes and transfer points is readily shared with passengers. Since I’ve started riding, I’ve learned the routes that will take me to church, Wal-Mart, doctor, dentist, Friendly Shopping Center, even to my hairdresser.

For information on GTA, call 335-6499 or visit www.greensboro-nc.gov/gta. Next time you’ve got an errand to run, try the bus. And meet the courteous drivers yourself.

Doris Mullings
Greensboro

As a high school student as well as a musician, it has become urgently evident to me that fine arts programs in the public schools, namely music departments, are plunging toward extinction.

As our politicians and parents continue to emphasize the importance of testing, sucking money out of these once-magnificent programs, the children have become victims. This mindless destruction has led to a great decrease in support for such programs, depriving today’s youth of a proper introduction to music.

Music not only stimulates the brain, but also is a gateway of expression for the soul. It’s a way for students to release their energy and frustration, and turn them into art. It is the very essence of learning. It becomes part of you, something that a musician, a child, can never forget.

Shelby Stoneking
Greensboro

As a citizen and candidate, I appreciate Doug Clark giving attention in print and online to the seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court that will be on the ballot this fall. In recent blog posts, he highlighted parts of our conversation about my reasons for running for that seat, especially against an incumbent. As we discussed, I believe that the high court should write more opinions that clarify the law and resolve conflicts from the Court of Appeals.

While I believe that we need more clarity, that belief is part of other, more fundamental reasons that I am running. The opinions of the Supreme Court should teach the law. I am a law professor with 27 years of experience in analyzing and critiquing appellate opinions. Also, I wrote the three-volume treatise that is considered the authoritative source for family law in this state, and family law matters are before the Supreme Court in increasing numbers. My expertise would be particularly useful at this time in the life of the state.

I am grateful to Clark for encouraging voters to consider carefully the background that would best serve the state on our highest court.

Suzanne Reynolds
Winston-Salem

As a citizen of the Divided States of America who is concerned with our march toward socialism, I have a short quiz for potential voters.

• Who said the following: “We can’t continue to drive our SUV’s, eat all that we want, and keep our thermostats at 72 degrees, and expect other countries to accept that.” a) Joseph Stalin b) Karl Marx c) Barack Obama

• Who, though thus far refusing to meet with the commander of our Iraqi forces, said he would, without pre-conditions, meet with the mentally disturbed leader of Iran, or of any of our enemies: a) Mrs. Clinton b) Sean Penn c) Barack Obama

• Who referred to working-class whites, whose votes are difficult for him to get, as bitter clingers to their guns and their religion: a) Barack Obama b) Louis Farrakhan c) Jeremiah Wright d) a, b and c

• Who said he could unite the DSA while he was causing major division in his own party: a) Bill Clinton b) Barack Obama c) Howard Dean

• Who was shown by the National Journal, based on 99 Senate votes, to be the most liberal senator in 2007: a) Barack Obama b) Ted Kennedy c) John McCain

Tony Moschetti
High Point

Attention, all you people driving like idiots. This is for you. You know who you are. You are the ones still driving over the speed limit. Stomping on the gas pedal to get from one stoplight to the next and weaving in and out of traffic with one foot on the brake and the other on the gas pedal. I believe these actions are the superfluity of dumbness.

I would guess it doesn’t really bother you that gas is over $4 a gallon. You know that gas is going to keep climbing because it has not slowed you down and the oil companies are finding out you don’t mind the high prices.

In all probability, gas will rise well above $10 a gallon. I can’t wait to see which ones of you still waste gas at that price.

Glenn Lee
Greensboro

Nearly 1.7 million children in America live in homes with guns that are both loaded and unlocked, and every year thousands of children are killed or seriously injured as a result.

On Saturday, parents and organizations throughout North Carolina will celebrate ASK (Asking Saves Kids) Day, which urges parents to ask if there is a gun in someone’s home before sending their children over to play. ASK Day is held the first day of summer, a time of year when children play more often in other people’s homes. As every parent knows, children are naturally curious. That’s why just talking to a child about the dangers of firearms is not enough. If a gun is accessible in someone’s home, there is a good chance a child will find it and play with it.

In North Carolina, more than 168,000 children live in homes with loaded guns, and more than 82,000 children live in homes with guns that are loaded and unlocked. That means there are thousands of reasons to ask one simple question: Is there a gun in the home where my child plays?

Gail Neely
Chapel Hill

The writer is assistant director, North Carolinians Against Gun Violence Education Fund.

In order to save our perfect union, we need another “separation” law. We have separation of church and state. We need to legislate separation of professional lobbyists from elected officials. Contrary to most, I am advocating for a loss of jobs. Indeed the entire lobbying industry.

The corporate sponsors of lobbyists are corrupt, power-hungry and greedy. The corrosive effect on legislators results in the following: Billionaires get taxpayer money to build sports stadiums; profit-laden oil companies receive tax subsidies; pharmaceuticals get legislative windfalls; corporations get very rich while our youth fight a war; the oil industry writes our energy policy (in Dick Cheney’s back office), effectively hindering efforts to produce alternative fuels.

Ill-advised tax policy and public subsidies have resulted in us being the No. 1 debtor nation in the world. If foreign countries should cash in our Treasury bonds, or use them to really buy up huge chunks of our country, think of the catastrophe. That bursting bubble would end it all.

I am not thumping my Bible when I say “The end is near.” God help us. Amen. Peace.

Max Roseman
High Point

Consumers beware: High-fructose corn syrup is not the benign additive that Audrae Erickson purports it to be (“High-fructose corn syrup called safe, beneficial,” letter, June 6). High-fructose corn syrup, in fact, has a crucial difference from other sugars: Its effect on hunger and appetite increases the total number of calories consumed.

When consumed, HFCS prevents us from feeling full (by inhibiting the secretion of leptin, the hormone released to give the brain a message of fullness). In addition, it causes us to continue to feel hungry (by not reducing the amount of ghrelin produced, which increases appetite). Given the high amount of foods on the market containing HFCS and its effect on appetite, it is not difficult to make a connection between America’s obesity epidemic and this highly prevalent sweetener.

Readers, don’t be swayed by the sweet words of the president of the Refiners Association. Instead, heed the advice backed by medical experts with a vested interest in people’s health and not the refining industry — avoid foods containing high-fructose corn syrup. (Source: “YOU On A Diet,” by Dr. Mehmet Oz and Dr. Michael Roizen)

Hannah Pao
Greensboro

In an interview, Leonard Pitts indicated he wanted to be known as someone you couldn’t anticipate in his columns.

A Cryptoquote puzzle last week was able to typecast him better than anyone could: “If you can’t annoy someone with what you write, I think there is little point in writing” — Kingsley Amis.

Guyon Phillips
Burlington

I write because the written word is so powerful in making change. We live in such a wonderful community that I know, if made aware, people would be moved to help those in Darfur who don’t get to come home as we do each night.

In short, the story of the people of Darfur is that they have been run out of their homes and homeland, purely due to the fact that they are not of Arab descent. Backed by the Sudanese government, a militia group descends on their homes after dark, killing the men, raping the women and young girls, causing those who escape to run to shelter until morning, when they can then flee to a refugee camp for food and rest.

Sick as this is, it’s been going on far too long. Five years. The worst part is the solution is simple: full deployment of peacekeeping forces to the region, which has been voted on unanimously by the United Nations, so they may safely return to their homes.

If everyone who reads this article simply picks up the phone, dials 1-800-genocide (436-6243), they can leave a message encouraging their representatives to support the deployment (which involves no U.S. troops) of peacekeepers to the area.

T.K. DiStefano
Summerfield

Last Saturday, I watched a rerun of a 2006 interview Tom Brokaw conducted with the late Tim Russert to publicize his second book, “Wisdom of our Fathers.” Many of the stories Russert recounted moved me to tears.

Russert was a dedicated, enthusiastic and fair journalist. He was one of the few mainstream newsmen who tenaciously grilled all politicians, regardless of their political persuasion. I admired his faith, his Roman Catholic education (which we shared), and his love for this country. How sad it is that he is gone at such a relatively young age.

Although he is best known for his media career, the most enduring legacy of the man is contained in his wonderful books, “Big Russ and Me” and “Wisdom of our Fathers.” They should be considered national treasures.

Mike Dougherty
Eden

I quote our Gov. Mike Easley: “I know I’m late, but I am on the train.” I’d rather be a bum on the boxcar of the Obama train than at the front of the bus with John McCain. I believe many will agree that Mike is already halfway there!

Jim Sharpe
Reidsville

Many writers are blaming oil companies for high gasoline prices. Why is it never mentioned that the state and federal governments make more per gallon of gas sold than Big Oil?

Is Big Oil controlling the amount of oil coming out of OPEC? Is Big Oil not drilling in the United States because it is just lazy?

Maybe we should consider blaming a Democratically controlled Congress for stopping oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve and off the U.S. coast. They are the ones who stopped President Bush’s proposal on increasing domestic oil production. Bill Clinton vetoed drilling in ANWR in 1995.

So what are we going to do?

1. Keep driving our SUVs.

2. Vote in liberals who talk about solving gas/oil problems but in reality do nothing.

3. Keep bellyaching about the price of oil.

It gives us something to do when we aren’t upset that our favorite “Idol” was voted off.

Please pass the clues.

Steve Cook
Greensboro

Brian Alligood’s critique (letter, June 9) of columnist Ed Cone suggests Democrats occupy the low country of sex scandals alone. This is far from the truth.

John Dean’s 2007 chronology of congressional sex scandals and reports published in the nation’s most respected newspapers prove American sex scandals are nonpartisan.

Alligood evoked Monica Lewinsky’s name to elicit sufficient star power among Democratic scandals. Clearly, the sexual proclivities of Republicans such as Florida Rep. Robert Allen and Louisiana Sen. David Vitter ran toward adults. But in reviewing recent Republican sex scandals from 2007 to the present, there’s a disturbing tendency among the party’s elite toward deviance and pedophilia. Many of their victims cannot be named for they are minors.

A review of Republicans linked to sexual misconduct with children (as young as 5) includes a staggering list of powerful, educated men including prosecutors, city councilmen, senators, state representatives, arty chairmen, constables, judges, congressmen and even a prominent talk show host.

The editorial “Where sex offenders can live still is a riddle” (June 10) noted, “They have to go somewhere.” Judging by a growing roster of Republicans with a penchant for pedophilia, it appears they found that special somewhere: government.

Cynthia Adams
Greensboro

Hel-lo! I watch with stunned amazement the TV advertisements for Elizabeth Dole and her “work” with North Carolina law enforcement on immigration. Regardless of her position on this issue, the thought that comes to mind is: Where has she been and what has she done for the citizens of North Carolina since becoming “our” senator?

Judith Abraham
Greensboro

Last month, Boyce Hudson, formerly with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), pleaded guilty to extortion. Part of what Hudson received was a consulting contract with the company that benefited from his actions at DENR. Hudson’s behavior is extreme but highlights two problems in state government.

State employees work hard to provide essential services and frequently earn far less in their state jobs than in the private sector. Too often, they learn their crafts while working for the state and then move on to private companies.

Even with ethics reform, there is still a revolving door allowing someone to work for the state on Friday and on Monday lobby their former co-workers. Legislators and state agency heads have to wait at least six months after they leave public service before they can lobby their former colleagues.

We need a cooling-off period for policy-making employees before they go to work for the businesses they have been regulating. It is time to enact legislation and not wait for another misdeed to surface.

Jane B. Pinsky
Raleigh

The writer is director, North Carolina Coalition for Lobbying and Government Reform.

The time again draws near when we Americans celebrate the birth of our one great nation, UNDER GOD, and the independence that you and I take for granted every day.

My hope is that everyone will keep in mind that this upcoming holiday was bought at an extremely high cost, that being with the lives, limbs and blood of soldiers so many years ago — people who were willing to risk their lives for what was then a pipe dream of a cause called American independence.

With that in mind, I urge everyone to call the holiday by its real name, Independence Day, rather than July Fourth. Those who refer to it as July Fourth take all the importance out of the meaning of the day; they slap the faces of those who sacrificed everything so we can be free from tyrannical rule.

It is necessary that we honor the efforts of these men more appropriately.

Please keep this in mind this year as you shove that hot dog all the way down your ungrateful throat.

Eli Oklesh
Gibsonville

Most certainly the airlines should tie the cost of a ticket to a person’s weight. Everything else that is shipped is priced according to weight.

A small- to medium-sized person should not have to subsidize the cost of fuel needed to carry a large person. Most any flight will have a mother and a child or two whose total weight will not be 200 pounds.

On any flight carrying 150 to 200 people there will be two dozen or more people weighing 250 to 300 pounds or more. These people should pay their own share of the fuel cost. In fact, some people are so large they should have to purchase two tickets.

John W. Taylor
Greensboro

I can’t believe the enormous number of Democrats willing to put our country in danger by backing a rookie senator with no real experience to be the president of the United States. We are in a precarious situation worldwide. Enemies are sworn to destroy us. We need a leader who understands this threat.

Obama has no military experience and wouldn’t know an M-16 rifle from a .45-caliber pistol.
No one knows anything about Obama’s resume other than that he was a member of a hate-spewing church for two decades; he associates with a terrorist; and he had a mediocre stint as a state senator in Illinois.

He claims he will bring change to Washington, but he offers no specifics.

He has the most liberal voting record during his short term as a United States senator.
This man is dangerous because of his lack of experience that’s needed to lead this country, especially in our current situation. This man is not a new product. He is a confirmed politician wrapped in fancy oratory. He is in fact an empty suit.

The fact that he is endorsed by the Hamas terrorist group should give you a clue why he shouldn’t be elected.

Dave Derence
Greensboro

A month ago, my old 3-speed bicycle was stolen while I was in my downtown bank making a deposit. It was stolen quickly and silently. This prompted me to buy a new bike, and I settled on a hybrid; one that is comfortable, 21-speed and urban-friendly. Now I ride the bike to and from work, take short adventure trips, and decided my rear end can fit a minute bike saddle.

The business car has remained at home and I smile each time I think of not filling the gas tank for $50.

A hybrid bicycle costs between $200 and $300, gets unlimited gas mileage, and, coupled with the city’s bike trails and UNCG’s bike corridor, is a delight to use.

We all remember that first bike push our parents gave us and how we explored the neighborhood once we had wheels, remembering to be home by dark. Go back to basics. Ride and smile, become a youth again while becoming healthy and thrifty. After all, the person who took my 3-speed bike probably had this in mind.

Carl Myatt
Greensboro

Congratulations! I just want to commend all the students and their parents, as well as their teachers, and say well done! Especially to those of you at James Benson Dudley High School.

I was under the impression that few students at that school met state testing requirements. So I was confused, to say the least, when I saw that out of 306 graduates, only 47 had no symbol of accomplishment attached to their name. Of those graduating, 259 had one or more of the following attachments, and some had all of them:

College tech prep completers, N.C. Scholars, National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society, The Early College, Academy of Education, and Engineering and Health Science (gold cord).

Just thought that academics at Dudley High needed as much PR as its athletics.

Fred A. Darby
Greensboro

After reading Richard Barron’s article, “PTI leads N.C. in late flight departures” (June 10), I noted the minuscule differences in the number of delayed flights among the three airports. I also noted the size of the screaming headline. If you want to discourage the use of our local airport, you are doing a great job with your very unbalanced treatment.

I’m an AAA member but I wouldn’t give 2 cents for the opinion expressed by Carol Gifford. She lives in Charlotte and could not care less how her opinion reflects on the Triad airport. To think that people will drive an hour-and-a-half to two-and-a-half hours with today’s price of gas to save a few minutes’ time is puny, and where is the time saved?

Rule No. 1: Think twice before you quote someone from Charlotte or Raleigh unless it is positive when referring to Greensboro or the Triad. They are inclined to give their own community a positive rub. We should be working at improving our community image rather than tearing it down with petty issues we have no control over.

Kevin J. Guthrie
Greensboro

The column, “Who speaks for the poor?” by Leonard Pitts Jr. (June 12), brought back many memories.

I was considered “poor white trash.” I was a single mom with three kids who lived in their car for a week till a battered women’s shelter room opened up. I ate plain popcorn for weeks on end to give my kids healthy meals. I made and mended my children’s clothes. Goodwill was a treat to buy jeans for school. We went without extras to pay for the coming year’s school outings, supplies and holiday needs. Our refuge was the love we shared in family times at the local parks, walks and music. I raised my children to be proud of who they were and respectful to those around them. We were poor, but not trash.

Now my grown children struggle with poverty in a society that condemns you for being generational poor. I made letter-writing to congressmen regarding “The Poor’s Plight” a lifetime task. I received nothing but curt form-letter responses. I encourage others to contact your representatives and senators to join in this fight.

God bless Leonard Pitts Jr. and America’s poor.

Christine Keaton
Randleman

I voted for Mayor Johnson primarily due to her interest in the well-being of our youth. Little did I know my son would be sent to her program for standing up to a long-time bully. Back in my day, school fights were handled in school, not by receiving an assault charge for hitting someone once. This is absurd.

More absurd are the conditions to be given the “advantage” of attending Teen Court vs. the juvenile system. The child has to admit guilt regardless of circumstance. The judge cannot throw out a case believed to be unfair and unjust. The children have a litany of “minimum” requirements once their “verdict” is given. They have 90 days to complete these, yet it can take several weeks before they are given dates to attend the five-week Life Skills classes.

The child must then act as a juror for other cases. Well, some of these “jurors” act like immature delinquents who most assuredly and definitely should not be giving the time of day, let alone passing verdicts.

Yes, I’m sure it helps many, but Teen Court needs to be revamped itself before we can improve the state system.

Chris Ozment
Greensboro

North Carolina needs Elizabeth Dole in the Senate for another term. She has a proven record of working for North Carolina families, voting to increase the minimum wage and co-sponsoring a bill freezing the federal corn-based ethanol mandate, which had increased food prices 4.9 percent since last year.

Despite strong opposition from congressional Democrats, she continues to fight to reduce gas prices. She voted to halt oil reserve deposits, which would increase the oil supply. She advocates safe drilling in ANWR, offshore and in Western oil shale regions — an estimated 139 billion barrels of American oil — reducing our dependency on foreign oil.

She voted to increase fuel-economy standards on cars. Elizabeth Dole understands the economy, recognizing that tax increases only weaken our economy and harm North Carolina families. She consistently fights to keep taxes low and reduce government spending.

She’s a strong force for national security in her unwavering support of our service members and for strong borders. She voted against the immigration bill that would have granted immediate amnesty to millions of illegals without strengthening the borders.

Sen. Dole has the courage to fight for North Carolina and the experience to win. We need her in the Senate.

Roberta Spillane
Greensboro

Why are we chasing the big oil companies when the real culprit is a regulatory glitch? Granted, they may be contributing to the problem by making huge political contributions, but the real culprit is the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The price of oil has been run up through future purchase contracts, yes, another kind of financial instrument like the subprime bonds that are ruining the housing market. The contracts, however, only have a 5 percent to 7 percent margin requirement, meaning you can spend $70 and buy $1,000 worth of oil in the future.

The real glitch is that the CFDC is regulated and controlled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture because future purchase contracts were originally designed to protect farmers and their crops of potatoes. Congress has been unwilling to separate other future purchase contracts from this antiquated regulatory structure because the people who benefit have large pocketbooks in election years. If we could get realistic, we could all be much better off.

The contracts are securities and should be regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Reasonable margin requirements, such as those on the purchase of stocks and bonds, should be mandated.

John Compton
Greensboro

On June 6, I kicked off my Veterans Town Hall tour with a stop at VFW Post 2087. I want to say a special thank you to the veterans who came out to discuss what’s working and what needs to be fixed.

The military tradition in my family is strong. My husband went to law school with help from the GI Bill, I have three other veterans in my family, and currently I have two nephews serving overseas.

Some of the stories I heard were heartbreaking — a veteran who lost both legs and still didn’t qualify as fully disabled, and families who are relying on their loved ones to raise their children during multiple deployments overseas. There were some success stories, too, and we should remember those as well.

I am running for U.S. Senate in the most military-friendly state in the nation, and I believe we need to do a better job honoring our promises to our servicemen and women and to our veterans. I know I will be effective where Elizabeth Dole and Washington have dropped the ball, and these town halls will give me the tools to hit the ground running when I am elected.

Kay Hagan
Greensboro

The writer is a U.S. Senate candidate.

As a frequent business flyer, I don’t like John Walsh’s suggestion (letter, June 12) that airlines get rid of their in-flight magazines to save weight and costs. Between having to strip for security, the cattle-call boarding and all the new extra charges, the magazines are one good thing about flying these days. Without them we’d have to buy our own, and those magazines would probably be heavier.

Take the peanuts if you have to, but keep the magazines.

Sherry Yonge
Greensboro

It is a sad state of affairs when we consider it entertainment as we watch The Discovery Channel and The History Channel (five minutes of knowledge and 55 minutes of commercials on both) glorify how the prisons are being run by the inmates and how prison officials accept it as normal.

We are spending tax money to coddle this bunch. Why do we expect anything to change?
Keep electing liberals, supporting the ACLU and the Dr. Spock type and see our country collapse.

The only bond I voted for was the one for the jail, and I regret that. Why should they have better than I, who has to pay for their comfort and obey the law? It is safer in the jails now than it is on the streets of Greensboro and High Point because the laws in prison that the inmates make seem to work better than ours.

Ken Sawyer
High Point

Help for our economy “should” be right in our hands. We just need a government that is concerned enough to require one of the richest countries in the world to pay us for our help to them.

I’m talking about Iraq. We have freed them from a dictator and are saving their hides from the bad guys with billions of our dollars being spent. Yet we have not required them to pay us back! We have given many lives to see that they are on their way to a better government and have spent much to do so. So why are we not requiring them to furnish us with the oil that we need?

We should have our refineries full to overflowing with free oil considering how much we have given to them. Yet we get nothing in return. Show appreciation, Iraq, and give us the oil we need to help with the economy by creating new jobs and opening closed refineries.

I urge you to write your congressmen and senators. They need to be held accountable to do what this country needs. It’s time we demand that they listen to us.

Ouida Campbell
Greensboro

On Oct. 20, 2006, you published a letter and photo concerning the dangerous intersection at the corner of Westridge Road and Westminster Drive. That afternoon a call was received from a safety engineer from Greensboro. Over the last 19-plus months, there have been at least seven conversations. Action taken to date:

1. Put in bike path to hopefully help sight line.

2. A survey crew (last summer) laid out what would be a safer sight line looking north on Westridge from the west-side corner of Westminster. This resulted in cutting down the growth on the hill causing the problem.

3. A safety engineer did a speed study and determined speeding was a problem. A motorcycle patrolman was to be assigned to the area. In the last several months, we have seen an officer on one occasion.

Trimming the growth last summer helped but did not provide a solution. Now it has grown up again this year, with the same old problem. You now have to pull into the bike path to view oncoming traffic.

What must we do to avoid a serious accident? Someone, please help. We will not give up.

Norman D. Franklin
Greensboro

Kudos to David Lefkowitz for his thoughtful letter regarding drug legalization. Every commission empaneled in the past century has recommended a drug policy much different from what we have today. Our “tough-on-crime” politicians, backed by a drug-abuse industrial complex hungry for our tax dollars for programs and grants, more or less exacerbate the drug war and solve little. You can read about past drug commissions at: http://www.druglibrary.org/Schaffer/LIBRARY/studies/cu/cu60.html.

The real truth of the internecine relationship of guns, money and drugs worldwide may be that they can only be reined in through drug regulation and treatment, no matter what testimony the drug-abuse, law-enforcement, prison industrial complex provides our elected officials and the double-talk we get as a result. Cui bono?

Peter Christopher
Hurdle Mills

With the downward economy, everyone has to make sacrifices. This includes local, state and federal governments. There’s no money to increase your salaries and freebies. It’s time to stop the raises and retirement accounts for all politicians making decisions that are bankrupting America.

Fifty thousand jobs have been lost, and the number is climbing daily. Folks working for themselves or a company haven’t had a salary increase in several years and you politicians want your salaries and freebies increased in today’s troubled times when household budgets are already out of sight because of your “tax and spend” habits.

The latest Jamestown annual budget proposal is appalling. Several areas must be cut. I noticed several items that seem to be duplicated. Is this what’s called “balancing the checkbook”?

Jamestown residents got hit with a $5 monthly charge for garbage, which is another tax. Water and sewer rates have doubled.

With all these “extra charges” and “extra taxes,” it makes a person with common sense want to check everyone who is handling taxpayers’ money to see where the money is going.

At the rate politicians are spending, your children and grandchildren don’t stand a chance.
Don’t you think it’s time for a “fair tax”?

Shirley deLong
Jamestown

I read the June 13 editorial, “Which license works best?” This seems like a good idea up front. I am sure it would help control some of the underage alcohol purchases. I know it would not prevent them 100 percent.

The problem is that we are going to trust the same state agency that issued more driver’s licenses to illegal aliens than probably any other state in the union to do this. Illegal aliens come from all over the country to North Carolina to get their license. If you can control the age group, why can’t you control the other? How often do you read about an examiner caught selling licenses?

If our state legislators are serious about correcting problems, let’s take care of the major problem before we try to correct another problem. I don’t see any concern about the illegal alien issue and licenses.

George Cole
Greensboro

As a avid fan of mixed martial arts, I was more than disappointed when CBS decided to block a fight being seen in the majority of North Carolina because it felt Kimbo Slice’s character didn’t correspond with the network’s values. I find that statement a little hard to believe. How many NFL players have dealt with off-field issues? CBS should take the same type of action on NFL players. Instead, it brushes these issues under the rug.

Furthermore, as I am coming to the realization that I will not be able to view this fight, I have the pleasure of seeing the new summer show “Swingtown,” apparently a show about married couples that swap spouses regularly then go back to their lives. It is really good to see with a show like this that CBS is keeping family values in mind. I am more than disgusted with CBS’s hypocritical views and am baffled at how fake its image truly is.

Not to say that Fox or ABC upholds morals more than CBS, but next time CBS should spare the fake family values and tell it like it is.

Greg Burns
High Point

Recently, 100,000 South Koreans demonstrated against U.S. beef imports.

Beef production accounts for more greenhouse gas emissions than automobiles. Its insatiable demand for feed grains has raised world food prices to levels beyond the reach of the world’s hungry. Creation of beef pastures is the key cause of destruction of the world’s forests. A beef-based diet uses 20 times as much land and water as a plant-based diet with equivalent calories and protein.

Nutritionally, beef offers protein, iron and some B vitamins, but no fiber, carbohydrates nor most vitamins and minerals. It is replete with saturated fat, cholesterol, pesticides and pathogens, including occasionally, the prions of “Mad Cow” disease.

Each one of us can demonstrate our own outrage with beef production on our next trip to the supermarket by selecting from the rich variety of soy-and-plant-based alternatives in the frozen foods and produce sections.

Norman Richardson
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Philip T. Porter

Here’s a Top Ten list (a la Dave Letterman) about why the U.S. Constitution needs a balanced budget amendment:

1. Over the last several decades, this nation has seen only two or three years without a deficit; the national debt now amounts to around $7 trillion. In understandable numbers, this amounts to about $120,000 for a family of four. The money that we find in our pockets rather than in Treasury’s coffers is often spent on luxuries we didn’t really need (eg. a vacation house or a third car) and makes the family mistakenly feel richer than what is factual by that $120,000.

2. This debt is an unsecured loan to the government not backed by anything that can be seen or touched; it covered current expenses, not capital.

3. Members of Congress from both parties, when left free of constitutional constraint, have historically been reluctant to raise taxes or to cut spending.

4. Auctioning our paper debt at reasonable rates is bound to become harder as the debt grows. When a “tipping point” will occur is unpredictable.

5. Much of this debt is owned by foreign countries such as China and Saudi Arabia. This limits our ability to pursue a fully free foreign policy.

6. It is ethically wrong to saddle our descendants with obligations that they did not agree to.

7. Servicing this national debt currently absorbs about 7 percent of tax revenue. We could get a 7 percent tax cut if we didn’t have to pay that interest.

8. Most state constitutions require a balanced state budget. Why shouldn’t the federal government have the same constraint?

9. As world leader, our fiscal policy sets a bad example.

10. Problems in Social Security and Medicare funding await, as the baby boomers reach 65.
In the biblical story of Exodus, the Egyptians saved food during the fat years to tide them over during the lean years. We never save during the fat years, but give instant tax cuts, which, in turn, are wasted on a so-called higher standard of living, rather than saved up for the lean years.

OK, so I lied. There is an 11th reason. A simple way to assure a balanced budget would be to predicate yearly tax rates on the size of the yearly budget and the estimated size of the tax bases as predicted by some semi-independent agency of the government.

Voila! Stay tuned.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

I was dumbfounded after I read the News & Record’s June 7 editorial about why I should pay for city water connections after I am annexed.

Let me see if I get this straight: The Greensboro City Council, Zoning Commission, Planning Department and developers have “urbanized” (that is to say, over-developed) my neighborhood. This “urbanization” might pollute my well water so I have to pay to clean up the mess caused by their bad decisions. Does this make sense to anyone else? This reasoning is exactly backward.

I believe the Pottery Barn rule applies: You break it, you buy it. I didn’t break it, so I’m not buying it. Shame on the News & Record editorial staff for peddling such tripe.

Patrick Harman
Greensboro

I have no personal knowledge of the referenced civil case involving Superior Court Judge Henry Frye Jr. However, based on my experience practicing criminal law, I offer the following comments, which I believe are widely supported by the criminal law bar.

Judge Frye is respected, admired and liked within the legal community and the community at large. He presides without arrogance and demonstrates unfailing courtesy and consideration. He is impartial and exercises judicious temperament — whether toward an “entitled” litigant or toward an indigent entitled to his day in court. These qualities are apparent to any observer in his courtroom.

Superior Court judges hold court around the state, sometimes leaving home district and family for weeks at a time. They preside over a large volume of cases, conducting civil and criminal sessions of court in many counties and judicial districts. Each case involves any number of parties with differing and contentious interests.

Judge Frye has presided over all variety of cases — civil, with money at issue and criminal, involving victims and with life and liberty at stake. Judge Frye consistently makes keen, forthright and difficult decisions.

Judge Frye remains a devoted, diligent and humble public servant of many years.

Kathleen O’Connell
Greensboro

The author is an assistant district attorney in Guilford County.

John O’Brien (Counterpoint, June 3) gave us “facts” about global warming. Being a biologist, O’Brien should be aware of a few more facts. This planet has warmed and cooled repeatedly since its origins, long before man arrived. Surely he remembers studying about Ice Ages.

The Wisconsin Glaciation (Google it) covered much of the United States thousands of years ago. Several hundred feet of ice, as far as the eye could see, melted long before Al Gore came along spewing all that hot air.

In 1978 Lowell Ponte wrote a book, “The Cooling,” in which he warned of another ice age if we didn’t follow his advice. Thirty years ago, the scientific “consensus” was exactly opposite what it is today. Fortunately, we ignored this “consensus” and did nothing.

Any scientist worth his salt knows that science doesn’t work by consensus, but by proof. We would do well to ignore Gore and O’Brien as well, at least until someone can prove what the ideal temperature for the planet really is.

Robert Hudson
Pelham

After reading a constituent’s defense of Billy Yow (letter, June 17), I realized that it is important to let people know Yow’s supporters are not a bunch of barefooted, inbred, uneducated yokels. Many are college-educated, hard-working, family-oriented individuals.

Of course, it’s also important to note that other college-educated, hard-working, family-oriented individuals who have opposed big government in either the past or present include George Lincoln Rockwell, David Duke, Nick Griffin, Preston Brooks and Robert Byrd. Few of them would have considered themselves racists. They were just politicians.

Dana Hatcher
High Point

When the Democrats took control of Congress in 2007, gas was $2.33 per gallon. Barely a year and a half later, gas is at an all-time high of $4-plus per gallon.

For years, Democrats have stopped attempts to increase domestic oil supplies by blocking drilling in places like the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge and offshore in California and Florida. In 1987, a filibuster by Senate Democrats blocked ANWR drilling. In 1995, Bill Clinton vetoed ANWR drilling. In March 2005 Democrats blocked ANWR drilling in the U.S. House and in December 2005, Democratic senators filibustered ANWR drilling.

The Democrats do not want us to be energy-independent, but they do want dictatorial government to control our lives. Even their presidential candidate, Barack Hussein Obama, said in Oregon on May 17, “We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times.”

No new drilling, no new nuclear power, no new refineries, but ban the incandescent light bulb. That’s their solution.

As it has been said, “Freedom is delicate and forever in peril.”

Robert L. Simpson
Burlington

Sens. McCain and Obama — what a contrast. Being in my 60s and having observed politicians for many years, I’ve noticed there’s a model candidates use in their quest for the White House.
In the primaries, Democrats court the left and Republicans the right to get nominated. Then, for the general election, they move to the center, hoping to attract a majority.

What happens after the election? Without exception, a politician’s voting record will mirror his actions and policies. Losers will return quickly to their political leaning (i.e. Kerry and Gore). Winners, regardless of their campaign promises, return to their “pre-campaign” positions.

Obama has promised bipartisanship, to work with Republicans, but his Senate record doesn’t support this. McCain has promised the same, but his record does, many times to the disdain of Republicans.

Obama is rated the No. 1 liberal in the Senate. He promises change, a new direction, but his record shows not even a hint he will work with the other side.

McCain’s record backs up his campaign promises. He has worked with the most liberal and conservative members, and has my respect.

Bob Goodman
High Point

We are all saddened by the death of Tim Russert, one of our country’s most beloved TV talk hosts.

Two years ago, our daughter Cathy was visiting a college schoolmate who lives in Nantucket and they were having lunch at a nice restaurant. After lunch, they walked outside to enjoy the weather and gardens. Who did they see but Tim Russert and his son, Luke.

Our daughter approached him and asked if he would mind having his picture made with them. He said he would be delighted. She told him her father watched his TV show and thoroughly enjoyed the program. Then he asked where she was from because he detected a Southern accent. She said Greensboro, though she now lives and works in Virginia.

Tim asked her if she attended a basketball game between Boston College and Duke, whom would she pull for. Being a big Carolina fan, she said Boston College! Tim laughed and said he figured as much.

Now this picture she has will always be a treasure.

Jean Hill
Greensboro

A Tuesday letter incorrectly stated that CBS chose not to air Ultimate Fighting. The local affiliate, WFMY (Channel 2), made that call.

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Charles W. Ward

A bumper sticker I have noticed several times in the past few years reads, “God protect me from your followers.” I thought of it after reading Cal Thomas’ June 14 column, in which he condemns Barack Obama for not adhering to the “key tenets” of Christianity. According to Thomas, this disqualifies Obama as a Christian. This kind of narrow, fundamentalist thinking frightens me, not merely when expressed by Christians, but when proposed by members of any faith.

Thomas and so many others seem oblivious to the central question of faith today. If there is a God, is he/she a god of vengeance or a god of love? Historically the fundamentalists who believe the former have had no problem with killing those of other faiths, and their own liberals who disagree with them.

The beliefs expressed by Obama are concepts that have been embraced by Unitarian and Universalist Christians for centuries: that there is one God, and that God’s plan will eventually bring about the salvation of all souls. As a practicing Unitarian Universalist, I often wonder why such a message of hope and love is so vehemently rejected by fundamentalists. Why, during the radical reformation, was the concept of Unitarianism so alarming to the Protestants, who had only recently broken with Catholicism, that they felt compelled to burn Unitarians at the stake?

If Thomas takes the time to re-examine his theology, he will discover that one of the most popular Christian denominations in the nation, the Baptists, are a non-creedal faith. As such, there is no “test of belief” required to be a Baptist and many of the more liberal members of that church share the beliefs Thomas condemns. Are they not Christians?

Additionally, I would note that Thomas Jefferson himself was called “a howling atheist” by his political opponents. After his death it was learned that he had edited his Bible, marking out all references to the Trinity, Jesus’ divine nature or miracles. I wonder what Jefferson, the author of our Constitution, would have to say about Thomas and his fundamental brethren who so often try to declare America to be a “Christian Nation.”

I find it sad and frightening that some of those who claim to want to protect us from hell do so much to create it here on earth. Dear God, protect us from your narrow-minded followers like Cal Thomas.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

This is a response to Ray Hilton’s letter to the editor on June 18.

He undoubtedly has not had anyone break into his home, rob him, or rape his wife or daughter. Would he rather have the offender in his home or in Sheriff BJ Barnes’ “Taj Mahal Jail” (to quote him)?

Reading the paper on a daily basis shows there is not room in the jail to hold these people. They are released daily and commit the same crimes or worse. If something isn’t done, the federal government will take over and tell the taxpayers what to do, how to do it, and that we will pay for it.

I don’t like paying taxes any more than you Hilton, but sometimes it is necessary.

Cathy McDaniel
McLeansville

The column Rosemary Roberts had in your paper on June 20 shows how liberal she really is. The biggest majority of the Mexicans who worked there were illegal.

The cost of keeping them over here — medicine, taxes, schools, crime — far outweighed the benefits of having them work at Pilgrim Pride.

Not everyone was saddened by the closing of Pilgrim Pride as she would like you to believe.

Richard Vanderford
Siler City

I’m proud that the Guilford County Tax Department and the state are on top of evil doctors who give away free sample drugs without paying taxes on them.

How dare they! Don’t they know the government needs tax revenue to subsidize medical expenses of our most vulnerable citizens through government programs?

It’s obvious that free sample drugs should be valued at list price for tax purposes and money-grubbing doctors should pay tax on them! Clearly, like pens, pencils, paper and copiers used by office staff, they are supplies owned by those misers. They should pay taxes on them! Never mind the doctor paid nothing for them, they produce no revenue and are used by customers, not staff.

Maybe after those thuggish doctors pay taxes on samples they give away, they will stop this dastardly practice. I’m pleased to see our government’s intelligent public policy, protecting our interests and, of course, theirs. How would we survive without wise government leaders?

If our local representatives in Raleigh are responsible for this government policy or do nothing to fix it, they should take a bow.

Walter J. Sperko
Greensboro

A Tuesday letter incorrectly stated that CBS chose not to run “Ultimate Fighting.” WFMY (Channel 2) made the call.

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Ellen W. Gerber

The Jameson Taylor article (June 18) on enrolling children of undocumented immigrants in our community colleges and universities totally ignores the good, common-sense reasons for doing so.

It is known that the more education one receives, the more money he or she likely earns as an adult. In turn, that increases the taxes paid and the ability to make other contributions to our society.

To the extent that American citizens compete with immigrants for jobs, such jobs are for the lowest-paying wages usually given to high school dropouts. Such competition can be harmful to our low-wage earners. So by facilitating the higher education of children of these workers, this effect of illegal immigration is mitigated. What do we gain by denying a higher education to these young people who have graduated from our high schools? Nothing.

Most people mistakenly believe that undocumented workers harm our economy. In fact, economists generally believe that when averaged over the whole economy, these workers provide a small positive effect. They create demands that lead to new jobs. They buy food and cars and television sets, go to restaurants, pay rent and otherwise stimulate our economy.
Immigrant workers also pay taxes for income and for Social Security and Medicare. According to a recent report on CNN.com, the Social Security Administration estimates that about three-quarters of illegal workers pay taxes to Social Security and Medicare.

In 2005, about $9 billion in taxes was paid. Given that these undocumented workers will never be able to collect these benefits, they are contributing mightily to the solvency of Social Security and Medicare.

Finally, on another level — the humane considerations — the immigrants’ children did not make the decision to come to the United States. Are we so angry at their parents that we would punish these young people and destroy their potential? Have we come to that?
I hope not and intend to support passage of Pricey Harrison’s legislation, HB 2717, to allow children of undocumented immigrants to attend our community colleges and universities.

The writer lives in High Point.

I am writing on behalf of the Downtown Greenway Steering Committee to praise two groups exemplifying the type of collaboration and commitment it takes to move our community forward: Greensboro College and the city of Greensboro.

There are so many moving parts involved in the planning, engineering and design of a 4.8-mile urban multi-use trail. Working with an outstanding team at the city of Greensboro, the Downtown Greenway Steering Committee has committed hundreds of hours to the project, with many more ahead.

This past year, the site of Greensboro College’s future Sports Park emerged as the ideal greenway connection between the South Elm/Lee Street and Warnersville neighborhoods along the southern edge of downtown to those in the west and north. Greensboro College generously agreed to dedicate a portion of land to an easement for the Downtown Greenway, and the City Council accepted it. This is exactly the type of good-faith effort and community commitment it will take to make the Downtown Greenway a reality.

We deeply appreciate the hard work and leadership exemplified by the boards and staff of Greensboro College and the city.

April Harris
Greensboro

The writer is executive director, Action Greensboro.

Below are two quotes:
Michelle Obama speaking on video: “For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country.” Sometimes the “really” is left out by detractors.

John McCain speaking on video: “I really didn’t love America until I was deprived of her company.” He has said this, or something similar, many times. What shall we make of this? Frankly, nothing.

These are two prominent people who, while speaking off the cuff, sometimes say things that, on reflection, they didn’t really mean.

Harvey Herman
Greensboro

Years ago, a diverse group of community leaders identified strong arguments for constructing a greenway loop around downtown Greensboro. Their vision’s validity is clear today as progress and partnerships on the project mount and Greensboro’s need for it becomes more compelling with each passing month.

At its core, the proposed Downtown Greenway is a transportation project that will offer an affordable, healthy, environmentally friendly alternative for getting around the Central Business District, surrounding neighborhoods and campuses.

Transportation alternatives are needed now more than ever before in our history, with gasoline exceeding $4 a gallon.

Your narrow-minded perspective (editorial, “Greensboro taxpayers face costly decisions,” June 22) that “transportation” means using a car and that “transportation” bonds should be stripped of all but conventional street projects catering to cars, is rapidly being replaced with the enlightened realization that transportation alternatives warrant funding priority.

In today’s competitive environment, cities that do not innovate will stagnate, and the Downtown Greenway presents Greensboro with the opportunity to innovate and distinguish itself through investment in a project that is green, progressive and unique.

We need our elected leaders to transcend provincial self-interest and embrace greenway funding as a component of the transportation bond because the greenway will be a distinguishing feature and economic generator for all of Greensboro.

Marsh Prause
Greensboro

We have seen the Supreme Court in California legalize same-sex marriages. Also, two homosexuals said in a recent television interview they were doing their utmost to promote the issue.

One basic question needs to be asked of these individuals: Aren’t you glad you had a mother and a father?

I feel their answer would be yes, even though some of them may have felt abandoned or unloved.
Let’s face the whole truth: It takes a man and a woman to have children. All we have to do is watch the animal kingdom around us to realize that.

On abortions, there again is one simple question: Aren’t you glad you were not aborted? Again I think the true answer from even those who support the issue would be yes.

These two issues keep coming up over and over. I know in my heart that our Lord God, the creator of all that we know, is so disappointed in these issues.

We should remember that our time on this earth is limited and, in the end, to Him and Him alone will we as individuals be required to give an answer for our actions.

Robert Hege
Greensboro

I understand that opponents of equal marriage rights plan to spend at least $10 million in California this fall. They hope to overturn the California Supreme Court’s decision that same-sex couples have the same right to marry and form a family as opposite-sex couples do, without forcing any church to officiate or change its marriage requirements. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger opposes discriminatory efforts to amend California’s Constitution.

It’s curious that a number of the organizations planning to spend this large sum of money are faith-based. According to the Census Bureau, nearly 5 million California citizens live below the poverty line. At least 2 million children in California live in extreme poverty, suffering due to hunger and the lack of basic life necessities. It is thought that there are 360,000 homeless in California, and a quarter of those are military veterans.

According to groups identifying themselves as “pro-family,” stopping same-sex couples from marrying is “critical” and comparable to the abolition of slavery. Fighting poverty and homelessness will have to wait.

Bob Page
Greensboro

The Museum of North Carolina Traditional Pottery in Seagrove recently has been the center of disrespectful, negative, inflammatory rhetoric aimed at dividing our community of peaceful potters.

Because the allegiance of Seagrove potters lies with one another and with this community, we have chosen to support a separate festival on the day of the Seagrove Pottery Festival, and to withdraw support for the museum.

While we recognize and deeply appreciate all of the positive accomplishments of the museum and its founder, the late Richard Gillson, we have decided we will not remain dependent on the Museum of North Carolina Traditional Pottery to make decisions that financially affect us during an already sluggish economy.

We feel the museum has acted irresponsibly in purchasing a piece of property it cannot afford. We also feel the museum does not reflect the aspirations of the Seagrove potters.

The time is right for Seagrove potters to assert their independence, take matters into their own hands and rise above the political fallout that results from the museum seeking financial support for unrealistic goals.

Michael Mahan
Robbins

The letter was signed by 46 other potters in the Seagrove area.

I wrote you in 2006, about an additional bus stop in Prince E. Graves Homes on 16th Street. As of this date, there is still not one. There’s one next to the office and the other is on Joseph McNeil Avenue. I still can’t get a return call, a note, a “stop asking,” “drop dead,” not a thing for us seniors with bad knees, feet, etc., at the top of the hill. I am just asking for a pick-up and drop-off at the last driveway. Please help us. Gas is so high and I still can’t walk that far.

Eva Gates
Greensboro

I was appalled to read about the governor’s trip to Italy compliments of the North Carolina taxpayers. Why would the outgoing governor go to Italy to get new business for us when he is not going to be in office after 2008? Why did he have to take his wife with him? What a great state we have.

I think the administration should be required to report to the taxpayers the so-called six promising leads to new business or expanding business.

I cannot imagine why the governor would only speak for four minutes at a 90-minute program. He and the entire administration should be ashamed and embarrassed about this “vacation” they took at our expense. I hope they enjoyed themselves.

Bill Wardell
Burlington

As I witness the devastation from the flooding in the Midwest, I can’t help but think of Hurricane Katrina. Some comparisons are in order. Midwest flood of 2008: People were warned beforehand that disaster loomed and they evacuated in droves. Katrina 2005: People were warned disaster loomed, yet by and large they ignored the warnings and instead put their faith in government. We’re all too familiar with the rest of that story.

Midwest floods 2008: News footage shows people evacuated and people filling sandbags, constructing makeshift shelters, preparing food, filling water bottles for distribution among the victims, and doing whatever is in their power to help their fellow man. Katrina 2005: News footage reveals people on rooftops, rioting, looting, shooting each other, raping, shooting at rescuers then nodding in unison when their elected leaders go on national TV and blame all their problems on President Bush.

Personal responsibility: There is no substitute.

John Parson
Stokesdale

I have just started reading “The Beat Goes On” by Jim Schlosser and it is really good. It will take me a while to read it, as I am nearsighted and I use a magnifying glass to read it. If you are a history buff either about Greensboro or North Carolina, you will enjoy this book.

I am glad I bought it and I know I will enjoy all of it. I have already read about something that happened here that I did not know about (NASCAR). If you want to read a good book, go get this book. Thank you, Mr. Schlosser, for writing this book.

Caroline McLean
Greensboro

Only a fool would try to argue with Tony Moschetti’s point of view in his letter of June 19. There is little doubt that the 17 percent of people polled who feel that the country is going in the right direction probably agree with him. The other 83 percent, who are reeling and staggering after being Bushwacked for the past seven years, cannot afford to invest another four years in support of anyone who does not possess fresh ideas, candor and a passion to reverse our slow-motion downward spiral that is eroding the foundation our society is built upon.

In 1974, at the tender age of 24, I bit into a cricket that had been processed into the contents of the canned food I was eating as part of my dinner. Being young and rash, I fired off a letter to the food company, telling them that I would vote for an African American before buying another one of their products. It’s taken 34 years for a candidate of that distinction to emerge, and in Barack Obama we’ve got a chance to turn things around.

I’ll be stopping by the bait shop this weekend for a snack.

Bill Wallace
High Point

Two recent articles indicated Greensboro would receive federal grants of $7.2 million to build sidewalks and part of a transit authority complex and buy just one hybrid bus. Several thoughts about these projects:

It is interesting how willing some spend others’ money. Would these have been pursued if Greensboro had to fully fund them? Only 20 percent of the costs will be funded locally, the remainder from other taxing authorities. The only problem is the balance is also coming from the taxpayers, just different pockets.

It takes about 40 years for the gas savings on the hybrid bus to justify the added costs, about four times the bus’ useful life.

I am for sidewalks but against their indiscriminate placement. Can anyone possibly justify the building of sidewalks on both sides of Friendly Avenue between Holden and Westridge?

The U.S. Constitution’s 10th Amendment provides, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

There is no constitutional basis for the federal government to use its taxing authority to fund these entirely local efforts. If we want it locally, we should pay for it locally.

Bruce Raynor
Greensboro

I learned that Nielsen, the rating service for TV and radio and a Dutch company, is outsourcing several hundred jobs. Most of those people are guest workers from India.

My solution is outsourcing our federal elected officials and those to be elected in November. We may get better treatment as American citizens.

George Deaton
Stoneville

Gov. Mike Easley responded negatively to John McCain’s proposal to consider offshore oil drilling: “We need to get off gasoline, not trying to deplete what little might be left.”

Really, Gov. Easley? How much fuel did you deplete on your $19,500 first-class flight while on your $170,000 taxpayer-funded trip to Italy? How much fuel was depleted when $51,000 of our money was spent on a chauffeured Mercedes to transport you and your wife? How much fuel is depleted when you use state-owned aircraft to fly to your home in the Southport area?

Peter Schweizer wrote a book titled, “Do As I Say (Not As I Do): Profiles in Liberal Hypocrisy.” Perhaps the sequel could feature our governor.

Tom Imbus
Browns Summit

A word of caution about Barack Obama’s economic policy: Watch your wallet. First, his plan includes nearly doubling capital gains tax. This hurts middle-class families.

In 2005, 47 percent of taxpayers reporting capital gains made less than $50,000. He says he’ll raise income taxes and payroll taxes on North Carolina businesses. He’ll tax coal and natural gas, the two largest sources of electricity in the United States. He’ll impose a windfall profits tax on oil companies, already taxed at 35 percent, one of the highest rates in the world. Those taxes will be passed to the consumer, increasing gas prices even further. The last time a windfall profit tax was tried, U.S. oil production decreased, the price of gas increased, there were oil shortages, and the weak economy got weaker.

Obama’s love for taxes is not new. As senator, he voted 94 times for higher taxes: opposed eliminating the death tax, opposed repeal of the tax increase on Social Security benefits, opposed repeal of increases in AMT, opposed an income-tax deduction for people purchasing their own health insurance. The National Taxpayers Union gave him an “F” for his voting record on taxes. This is not change we can afford!

Warren Nash
Greensboro

Congratulations to David Moff for his on-the-nose Counterpoint, “Jokes based on prejudices aren’t funny” (May 29).

If unthinking county commissioners continue to make insensitive comments under the guise of humor, there is little hope for a return to decorum, something the citizens expect from their public servants.

Jean Wehner
Greensboro

Emerging clean-energy industries, such as wind and solar power, are not only taking steps toward solving global warming and America’s energy problems, they’re creating good jobs that help the economy and environment.

We should be making investments in clean energy so green innovations can make an even bigger difference in stopping global warming, cleaning our air and building the kind of economy that future generations can rely on.

Yet, Congress has to act now to deliver on the promise of a new energy future. Big Oil and its friends on Capitol Hill have been blocking the extension of critical clean-energy incentives. If these expire, an estimated $19 billion in clean-energy projects will be canceled, and America would lose more than 116,000 clean-energy jobs.

With today’s economy, threats to the environment and dependence on foreign oil, the worst thing we could do would be to impose a crippling tax increase on the fast-growing clean-energy industry.

For the second time in as many weeks, U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr voted to block the extension of these crucial clean-energy investments. We urge them to extend the clean-energy tax credits.

Margaret Hartzell
Raleigh

The writer is field organizer, Environment North Carolina.