Letters to the Editor
tortoise
Published Letters: 42 Editor's Choice: 4
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Democracy and Ethics
[Read the article: "They don't own the Democratic Party"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]"Wait a year until the progressive solidarity police are once again dictating that you mustn't even think of voting for a third party in November."
Some people think of voting as a statement of principle. I think of it as a strategic action. Solidarity police? Fair enough.
I'd rather vote for an imperfect Democratic candidate and win than put another Republican in the White House. That is an ethical choice. If a Republican wins the White House in '08, then more people will suffer and die.
You know damned well that this is true, and that makes you responsible for the result if your '08 Presidential vote is a poor strategic choice that helps another Republican get into the White House.
This isn't philosophy class, it's real life, and for many people on this planet the question of (R) or (D) by the name of the next U.S.A. President is a matter of life and death, and you all know it and have a moral obligation to act accordingly.
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Ever heard of the carbon cycle?
[Read the article: I hate buzzwords! It's not "carbon," it's "carbon dioxide"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Google "carbon cycle".
This word carbon, as in "carbon neutral", is not a buzzword. There's a reason we talk about "carbon" in general instead of specifically discussing "carbon dioxide".
When we say "carbon" we don't accidentally refer to elemental carbon in the form of graphite, we mean carbon in all its forms.
Understanding the storage of carbon in all its forms and in all its reservoirs, and understanding the fluxes between these reservoirs, is essential to knowing how the earth (solid earth, oceans, and atmosphere) will respond to disruptions in the carbon cycle, such as the big one we've caused by removing large quantities of carbon from the planet's crust and adding it to the atmosphere as CO2.
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Beware institutions begun with a purge
[Read the article: Will Rudy Giuliani's marriage hurt his chances?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]That line is stolen from a poet; I forget her name.
It takes a special kind of person to have an affair that breaks up a family.
This kind of private behavior matters. What Rudy and Judi have done is clearly, unmistakably, and horribly unethical. Having seen it all the way through to a large public ceremony celebrating their "affairage" tells us all we need to know about their character, both of them.
Rudy doesn't stand a chance of becoming President in 2008. I doubt he can even get the nomination with this in his past and I'm glad it's like that. He should be ashamed.
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Abrams Nit Pick
[Read the article: Will the real Colin Powell stand up?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Abrams' convictions were for misdimeanors. He was not indicted for any felonies.
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Take Your Stereotype And Cram It
[Read the article: Condors vs. the NRA]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I thought the trouble with steel shot is it is not effective and causes animals shot with it to suffer slower and more painful deaths. A hunter I used to know complained often about this problem.
It seems unlikely that tire balancing weights are killing condors. How would this lead wind up in the body of a condor? In this case what matters is not where most of the lead comes from, but where most of the lead that kills condors comes from.
How about a debate that actually searches for the truth instead of trying to fog it over?
FYI, as a liberal I have no interest in grabbing anyone's gun. Most of my liberal friends are on roughly the same page.
And grammar alert! I don't think "cohorts" is a word.
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Intellect?
[Read the article: One state, two ads]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]As much as I agree with the principles and message of Barack, I don't believe his ad will sell as well as Hillary's merely because it appeals to intellect and not emotion.
It may seem at a glance as if Obama is being scholarly and serious, except for one thing: there is nothing wrong with Social Security. More money going out than coming in during Boomer retirement is part of the plan. I have no idea what Obama is doing nor can I figure out exactly what kind of intellect it appeals to.
Tactically, I think Obama's ad is an attempt to flatter people who pride themselves on being sensible and practical. In that sense it is making no less an emotional appeal than Hillary's ad is making.
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It's not just energy
[Read the article: Public bathroom dilemma: Paper or air?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Not one time does the word chlorine appear in this article.
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Democrats Attacking Hillary's Character -> President Rudy
[Read the article: On the fake campaign trail]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The town hall plant was not a good thing. Also it is not very important and says very little about Hillary.
When liberals buy into this insane obsession with authenticity, this immature belief that hypocrisy is a mortal sin, and these dubious characterizations of Hillary as "devious and untrustworthy", they assist in the effort to put another Republican in the White House.
See, if you help make these ugly (also largely unimportant and often false) characterizations stick to Hillary now, they'll still be stuck to her if she does become your nominee and she'll lose.
So keep it up and you will have President Rudy. And more people will suffer and die.
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Alternative Explanation
[Read the article: Journalistic balance vs. truth]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'll bet you could easily find reporters who actually think legislation requires 60 votes to pass the Senate.
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Gordon's Been There All Along
[Read the article: Bloggers mature, the New York Times stumbles]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'm more troubled by Michael Gordon's continued employment as a NYT reporter than I am about a discredited neocon's new job as columnist. Kristol is on the opinion pages and easy to ignore. Gordon puts White House spin and misinformation directly into the news.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/02/12/gordon/index.html?source=search&aim=/opinion/greenwald
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So much unanswered!
[Read the article: Ask Pablo]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Another very important consideration: the speed at which these materials are "downcycled" to the point of having no industrial use.
Eventually these materials will exist in nearly infinite closed industrial cycles. Until then, we must ask, not only how much energy does recycling a can/bottle use, and how much waste does it produce, but also: How many times can you recycle the item before the material is degraded past the point of usefulness as an industrial material?
I disagree with people whose solution is to demand that others become more like them and give up their standard of living. It's not necessary, and it is a perspective I find somewhat bizarre.
What we need are better industrial cycles with no waste (as well as better motivation to stop storing our food in packaging that makes it toxic).