Letters to the Editor
rexprimoris
Published Letters: 25 Editor's Choice: 6
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To be honest....
[Read the article: Why Bush hasn't been impeached]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Douglas Moran, I ask you to consider this:
Dick Cheney currently is, and has been for the past 7 years, the president of the U.S. for all practical purposes that matter. Bush is the check-signer who gets to wear bomber jackets emblazoned with the presidential seal and hold press conferences; Cheney and his neo-con pals set the agenda. This arrangement has become fairly well documented over the past few years as more and more insider accounts emerge regarding how the administration operates. It's the perfect set-up for a seasoned apparatchik who prefers to let a dunce like Dubya hog the spotlight while he does his dirty work in the shadows, away from scrutiny.
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Gettysburg Address
[Read the article: Memorial Day]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Interesting that you mentioned the Gettysburg Address, Gary. I had been thinking about that document yesterday. In this age of packaged and utterly shallow "presidents," speechwriters, handlers, image consultants, pollsters, etc., how refreshing it is to think back to a time when someone like Lincoln, a man with no formal education, could sit down and compose, unaided, a speech of such deep sincerity, emotion and eloquence (and brevity). The man who spoke before Lincoln at Gettyburg, one of the greatest orators of the day, talked for two hours; his speech has long been forgotten. The Wikipedia entry on the speech features a jpeg of one of the five copies of the speech, in Lincoln's own handwriting, with his changes. I get a real thrill out of looking at it. Looking at a person's handwriting somehow ties one to history more intimately than merely reading about them.
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Coronation
[Read the article: Not exactly must-see TV]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'm sorry - what makes Kucinich et al. less legitimate candidates than Sen. Clinton, Edwards and Obama? Granted, the latter three have more money and media recognition; however, the nomination should be won based on a weighing of ideas, not coffers. The media's obsession with fundraising is doing an extreme disservice to our national political discourse. Let's focus more on the candidates' agendas and plans and less on how much or little money they raise in a given quarter.
To that end, boycotting the Fox News debate is infantile. Like it or not, the channel is a media power, watched by the very people Democrats need to reach in order to retake the White House in 2008. Boycotting the debate does nothing to undermine Fox News's legitimacy or popularity.
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Latest Role
[Read the article: Thompson gets one step closer]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]THompson was effective on-screen in portraying the prototypical man of authority. His latest role - an unbelievably infantile and plainly unfunny Youtube video in which he suggests Michael Moore should check himself into a mental hospital - leads me to question both his judgment and maturity. This is how a man purporting to be presidential material conducts himself? He should be embarassed.
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Analogies
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Interesting column, King, but, truthfully, I'm confused by your incongruous analogies. Comparing the Cavs to the SPurs is akin to comparing Pearl Jam to Nirvana? Both great bands, seminal in establishing the "Seattle Sound," and the former is still rocking out.
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Footnote
[Read the article: Robert Bork redux]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I wouldn't say Judge Walton was ridiculing the legal profs who signed the sentencing brief on behalf of Libby. Read it - the footnote is, however, dripping with sarcasm as Judge Walton expresses his hope that the same profs will step forward in the future to provide their legal insights, free of charge, on behalf of defendants of lesser means and notoriety. I applaud him for handing down a fair and indeed a very justified sentence, despite the threats leveled against him and his family in the aftermath of Libby's conviction.
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Breaking the Cycle
[Read the article: Plastic bags are killing us]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]As with almost every environmental issue confronting us, awareness and willful action on a personal level are the keys to reducing our use of plastic bags. However, well-conceived government action designed to act as a catalyst or kick in the pants to the public is also helpful. Ireland enacted a very successful "plastax" a couple of years ago that requires shops to charge customers a modest tax on every plastic bag they use. THe monies collected so far, a substantial sum, are used to fund domestic environmental programs. I believe it has reduced the use of plastic bags by roughly 90% so far. I know that stateside, some municipalities like San Fran are banning the bags. I only hope NYC will join their ranks.
I believe if Americans are made aware of the harm these bags are causing, a vast majority of them will respond by using re-usable hemp, cotton or other re-usable bags. Merchants may be trickier to deal with, since they have their bottom line to be concerned about.
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Some "Loss"
[Read the article: The collapse of Karl Rove]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The Bush Administration may have two years left in power and a dubious legacy, but I would truly hesitate to state that Rove "bet on the religious right and lost." Rove managed to con the country into voting for perhaps the most unqualified, immature and undeserving presidential candidate in American history - no small feat - TWICE.
We can see already that the fallout from this Administration's self-interested, secretive, nepotistic, jingoistic and incompetent governance - whether in the realm of foreign policy, the environment or on the domestic front - is going to have negative long-term repercussions that are going to harm this country and the world for many years to come. Rove was a part of bringing this bitter crop to fruition, so I would refrain at this point from trying to paint his departure as some sort of victory.
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Unrealistic Premise
[Read the article: Israel eyes the '08 Democrats]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]There will be no realistic difference among the three democratic front-runners in terms of U.S. policy with respect to Israel, assuming they win the WHite HOuse. None of these politicians is so stupid as to rock the boat politically and risk AIPAC's wrath. The U.S. will continue to give inflated, over-generous and largely unnecessary military and economic aid to Israel, only serving to perpetuate that state's arrogant and omnipotent attitude, and continue to turn a blind eye to its self-destructive and ill-conceived policies, such as settlement expansion, much the same way an undisciplined parent allows a spoiled brat of a child to run around, doing whatever they please, without any kind of admonition or restraint.