Letters to the Editor
aroneus
Published Letters: 11
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wow
[Read the article: The NRA view of school shootings, in pictures]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Read the whole picture book before you make a comment. This kind of stuff gets written for people who already agree with its content, or for the half-crazed who are easily swayed by ranting hysterics. There's a reason I've enjoyed some hunting and shooting, but am embarrassed by the NRA.
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"God" conveniently hates the same people we do.
[Read the article: Churches slam doors on sex offenders]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Working at a youth detention center and shelter for 6 years gave me an odd view of sex-offenders. Some were bright, some were manipulative, and others were just plain creepy. That said, you couldn't help but feel a little bit of sadness for some of their situations. Sex offenders, yes. But they were still kids, and sick kids at that, some as young as 12.
One of the most disturbing meetings of religion and sex crimes came in with a 15-year-old boy who had an IQ of 70 (according to his psyche eval). Abused himself and living with a foster family, we booked him in on sexual assault on a younger child.
This kid couldn't read, and could barely function in a group of his peers. During this time, delegates from his church (whose denomination I won't get into here) kept asking to come visit him. While our policies allowed for such visits, the facility would not allow the ministers to bring in a document, which they insisted the boy had to see.
Our admininstrator finally let us make the exception, and the three people came in to visit the lad, paper in hand. I didn't monitor the session, and so wasn't wise to what had happened until later that day.
When I opened his cell to bring him dinner, I noticed his mood seemed a bit flatter than usual. I asked him what was up, and he handed me the document given by his pastor and company.
Printed on nice, heavy paper, was a letter to the kid informing him of his excommunication from the church, using his crimes as the reason for expulsion. The kid had no idea what to really make of it all.
My immediate reaction was, "those fuckers." They made such a big deal to see this boy and give him this letter, and it was all just so they give him a spiritual punch in the nuts.
Nice to know that churches can be so choosey as to exclude the simple and the young and the obviously very sick.
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Been like this for a while.
[Read the article: Kiddie prisons]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This used to happen all over the country.
I worked at a youth detention center in Montana for several years. INS would bring in kids for immigration issues, and we would book them like our other kids. They got strip searched and put into 8x8' cells with 300-pound steel doors and a security light that never turns off (so we could check them at night). These kids often spoke little English, and few of the staff had even a basic knowledge of Spanish, usually making the whole process even more awkward than usual. In a facility where the other youths had to be charged with either misdemeanors or felonies, the INS kids were simply here for not having the proper paperwork.
Our administrator made a point to let us know that the feds paid our facility more money than state and county agencies, and so we were to never turn them down if we had room.
The worst situation I remember involved a girl who kept crying in her cell for hours, stopping only to beg: "Ayudame! Ayudame!" My simple Spanish ability stood no chance against her panicky, rapid-fire questions. She had no clue what was going on, and none of us could articulate it well enough for her to understand.
Now that INS has become a part of ICE, the youth detention facilities in Montana no longer hold these kids unless they have committed crimes. It's sad to know that they're simply in a new location with all the same problems.
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not a big secret
[Read the article: The military's interrogation secrets]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The many people released, from both Gitmo and US detention in Iraq, are probably more than capable of lining others out on our techniques. People abroad know what we do. The people at home are the ones we need to inform.
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Can't stand dogs
[Read the article: Pit bulls are innocent]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I don't like dogs. In fact, I hate everything involved with dog ownership. They're needy. I refuse to deal with crap. And I've been chased far too often on my morning runs (bitten by the notorious golden retriever).
But pit bull "problems" are caused by owners, not the dogs. I shared a house with a roommate and his pit bull, Sugar, for one year. The dog was a complete sissy. She would just kind of hang around all day, and would maybe rest her head in your lap as you tried to read a book.
Sure, there was some violence. The most striking example being the time Sugar got out of the car when we visited my office. She walked up to an alley cat who happened to have a bundle of kittens. The next several minutes involved corralling a screaming dog as it ran away from a ten-pound cat. Yes: a killer, born and bred.
This is about jerks with pit bulls, not the breed itself.
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Not only the President
[Read the article: Breaking the Iraq stalemate]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]While it's obvious that Bush plans to pass this mess onto the next administration, we should take a look at the whole Republican party. Look at the near complete solidarity still present within the Republican congressional caucus. By appearing steadfast now, the whole lot seems to be playing for 2010 and 2012.
We will leave Iraq, and it will slide further into hell. Then the conservatives have their Vietnam fairy tale all over again, and they can tell the world: "We were resolute and committed to winning. You voted us out, and now look what happened."
The Democrats need to recognize this cynical electoral strategy, and call the Republicans out on this in the press and on the hill.