Letters to the Editor
J T
Published Letters: 283 Editor's Choice: 26
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adjustable height trays
[Read the article: Ask the pilot]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I like the tray suggestions, and would like to take it one step further. Make the height of the tray tables adjustable and allow the tray tables to lock at other angles, at least to 30 degrees or so. If you can't do both height and angle, at least allow the angle to adjust. This would allow the tray table to be better used for reading those books and magazines and also help that hunch-over syndrome. On those long flights I find that if you've got the seat reclined a bit the tray is useless for supporting a book or magazine you are trying to read.
What? You say that if the table isn't horizontal it won't hold your drink? That's what the ring style cup holders are for.
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no big deal
[Read the article: Playing the bin Laden card?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The add does make a point, there are a lot of tough decisions to be made by the occupant of the Oval Office. Sure, one president didn't have to deal with _all_ of the issues that the add touched on. But it did encourage me, the voter (though I already voted in a primary) to think about who has what it takes to do the job. That's not a bad thing, any smart voter should be thinking about who can fill that role. And just because Sen. Clinton approves the message does not mean that she's the answer to who can best fill that role.
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take a lesson from the WWII victory gardens
[Read the article: Your very own climate change Victory Garden]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]For those of you who want to garden who, like the author, have yards unsuitable for gardening, or those in apartments with no lawns, check in your community for Community Gardens. During World War II, many of those famous Victory Gardens were not in people's individual back yards. Instead they found an empty plot of land in the area suitable for gardening and parceled it out to community members. Not only did it allow them to grow food for personal use, it had a sense of community. It also had the advantage that if you grew, say, tomatoes, and your neighbor grew beans you could trade, and also help watch over other plots.
Many areas have already established community gardens, often coordinated through park districts. If you can't find one and are ambitious enough, you might be able to round up a group of like-minded neighbors and get some space in a local park set aside for such use.
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problems with Lincoln-Douglass debates in this race
[Read the article: Quote of the day]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I see two problems with a Lincoln-Douglas debate in this primary.
First, and probably the lesser of the problems, is that the two candidates are, for all practical purposes, very close to each other on the issues that such a debate would cover.
The second, and larger, issue, is that debates of this style are very difficult to judge (in terms of competitive debates), even for experienced debate judges. And if you go to the format of the original Lincoln-Douglass debates, 7 appearances where candidates alternated speaking first, with the first candidate speaking for one hour, followed by the second speaking for an hour and a half, finished by the first following up for 30 minutes.
Do you think people, in this era of short attention spans with 700 entertainment choices surrounding them, are going to be able to sit through that much uninterrupted speaking? And if they do, they'll want to know who "won" which will not be clear at all. At best, there will be a few rhetorical flourishes and some "gotcha moments" that will hit the news highlights, and that's all most people will see. And we really don't need more of those.
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Wait. Now going to church is a problem?
[Read the article: The return of the Rev. Wright]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Okay, for years now I've been hearing people complain that we've drifted away from religion, that people don't attend church and it's hurting our society. Now we're complaining that some people are attending the "wrong" church and listen to the "wrong" pastor? Who is it that blesses a particular church as appropriate for a presidential candidate, or anyone else for that matter, to attend?
Make up your minds people. You say you want a moral leader. Apparently we want a godly president, based on the last two elections. Now you're saying his church isn't good enough for you. I'm loosing more and more respect for the American electorate and media by the hour.
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Put some thought into your food, people
[Read the article: Drop that salmon!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]poostnoodz, You forgot the responses to the King Kaufman sports column:
Why aren't you writing about my favorite obscure sport.
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As a vegetarian myself, it's sure an easy way to avoid all these ethical dilemmas posed by eating seafood. But then you get other dilemmas, like where and how was the produce grown and if you're in the lacto/ovo camp, how was the milk and eggs produced. Okay, you get those even if you're not vegetarian, but if you're going veg to avoid problems with seafood, you should be worrying about those other things too.
The important thing is to think about where your food comes from, why you're eating that, what it took to get that food to you, and the costs involved with producing that food, monetary and otherwise. Sure, there will always be people out there who just say, "I eat that swordfish steak because it tastes good and I can afford to pay the money for it." But for the rest of us, consider your food carefully. If you decide to go vegetarianism, great, but if not please at least think about your food choices and if there might be a better choice.