Letters from our Readers - December 2004

Elderly Rights
Sen. Kerry had every right to mention the fact that all people are God's children and that this applied to Dick Cheney's daughter who is a lesbian. What if President Bush were Gay? Would not this be an issue? 
Of course a bigger issue is our elderly and how they are being warehoused, but hardly anyone wants to talk about that. In Alabama citizens cannot determine their own fate, they do not have the power to say who will be their guardian/conservator. This issue is well documented in the case of La Faye S. Lynch, who declared that she did not want to live in a nursing home but was forced to by the court.
Hundreds of thousands of elderly are being exploited, their bank accounts and estates raided by corrupt lawyers to pay for substandard care in nursing homes where our elderly do not want to live until the day they die! This is an outrage and both President Bush and Dick Chaney should be talking about this issue. 
In fact the elderly care issue has been largely ignored by the media. There has been some discussion of Social Security and Medicare/Mediaid, but little has been said about how the elderly are warehoused in states like Alabama. Warehousing of the elderly is worse in those poor states where the elderly care system is underfunded. To pay for elderly care, the state has empowered judges to appoint lawyers as guardians and conservators. These lawyers than raid the bank accounts and estates of the elderly, paying themselves huge fees and using the rest of the money to pay for elderly care. Often this results in family becoming bankrupt and impoverished.
Sure, the gay marriage issue had been in the news and made headlines. But instead of President Bush suggesting that we need a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman, what President Bush and others should be pushing is a constitutional amendment guaranteeing that every citizen has a right to determine their own fate by specifying and designating their own guardian/conservator. Then this power would be taken away from judges and lawyers who often are corrupted by politics or a desire to get a big cut of the pie when they raid the estates of our elderly citizens.
Indeed, a constitutional amendment to grant every citizen the right to appoint their guardian/conservator is much needed, as this is not a power that should be given to judges and lawyers. Every person, every citizen should have a right to say who will act for them should they become incapacitated or disabled. Otherwise families can be destroyed when an elderly member who has provided for younger family members, has their rights taken away by powerful judges and corrupt lawyers, their bank accounts and savings plundered, and their estates liquidated.
The only way to protect our elderly from the corruption which exist in the system is for every citizen to have a constitutional right to determine their own fate by specifying and designating who will be their guardian/ conservator. This should not be an issue for the separate states to decide themselves; rather, it should be a right preserved for all people by the constitution.
Elderly rights concern each and every one of us, for one day we will all be old people, should we be fortunate enough to live so long. My mother was so blessed only to have the courts make unwise decisions, go against her expressed wishes and directives and consequently destroy her life. We need to be honoring our elderly by preserving their rights, not taking their rights away at the first sign on old age. See Honor Thy Parents at http://rock_the_boat.blogspot.com/
People often do not realize that when they get old their rights can easily be taken away by the courts. This is a form of prejudice, just as is discrimination based upon race and sexual orientation. But people do not want to talk about it or do anything about it. Why? 
Terry Lynch
Montgomery, AL 

The Nasty Old Main Stream Media
The mainstream media publicizes every death and every negative thing that happens in Iraq and exaggerates the dangers faced by our military while failing to report all of the many good things occurring there. Those very biased and prejudiced reports are contradicted by the personal statements of our brave and patriotic American men and women who are serving and working in Iraq. 
While every life is precious and every death is tragic, we had more American casualties here in the United States than in Iraq last year. 
In 2003 there were 599 homicides in Chicago; 596 in New York City; 500 in Los Angeles; 249 in Washington, D.C.; 274 in New Orleans; 270 in Baltimore, Maryland; and hundreds more in cities all across the United States of America. City crime rankings currently rate Camden, New Jersey, the number one most dangerous city in the U-S-A...followed by Detroit, Michigan; Atlanta, Georgia; St. Louis, Missouri; Gary, Indiana; Washington, D.C.; Hartford, Connecticut; New Orleans, Louisiana; Richmond, Virginia; and Birmingham, Alabama. Some days there are multiple murders here in the Jackson, Mississippi, area. Violent crimes in America numbered about 1.4 million last year. 
Innocent citizens are murdered on American streets, in businesses, when they go to retrieve their vehicle from a parking area, in shopping centers, and even in their homes. 
We didn't let those atrocities interfere with our national election, and I don't see Americans abandoning our country and returning to their "homelands." 
Quite the contrary. Life in the United States goes on. 
We continue our American way of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 
R. Tullos "Dan" Hanchey 
Ridgeland, MS

I Am Fed Up
I just read your article titled "Let's Get A Few Things Straight", and I just had some comments that I would like to make. I am GLAD that we have the Bulletin to fill us (Conroe & Willis Residents) in on what is happening in Conroe and the Willis Area. I might not agree 100% with everything that you write in your paper, I give you Kudos for covering the North part of the county! 
I read the Courier everyday, but I am getting fed up with reading nothing but articles that have to do with the Woodlands, Oak Ridge North, Shenandoah, etc! The Woodlands has a weekly paper just for that area, WHY does the Courier have to continuously report on JUST the S. County area? It seems like the only time that Conroe PD or Willis PD make the paper is when something bad happens, and that really SUCKS! Pct 3 has there little weekly blotter in the Courier...who REALLY cares! CISD has to Rezone the Woodlands area schools again, and the Woolandites are upset...WHOOP DE DO!! Does this really have to be on the FRONT page of the Courier? Willis ISD rezoned last year, DID it make the FRONT page of the PAPER... NO.... because it did not have to do with the Woodlands! 
I am just tired of the people in the Woodlands thinking that they are there only little country and deserving better things from the County then the rest of us... because they don't! They may live in there big houses and drive there expensive cars, but they are human just like the rest of us!! 
I will step off my soap box now, because I went a little bit overboard, but I am FED UP! 
Keep up the good work Bulletin, and keep on keepin us North County residents aware of all that is going on locally!! 
Jennifer R, 
Willis, TX 

Loss of Public Airwaves
Recent radio programming changes in Houston are symptoms of something much deeper than the average person can comprehend: the takeover of radio frequencies by corporate America means community issues are irrelevant.
Have you noticed the absence of public affairs programs featuring local community leaders? Have you noticed many dj's broadcasting from locations outside the community? (i.e., Your local radio station number often forwards you to a Los Angeles answering machine). Have you notice that the few Houston radio news stories broadcast are identical to the stories found in the Houston Chronicle? 
There are a limited number of radio frequencies allocated and the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) originally understood the issue. In 1927 the FCC set up the fairness doctrine which put the interests of the public ahead of corporations. This doctrine was reaffirmed by the Supreme Court in 1969, when it said:
“It is the right of the viewers and listeners, not the right of the broadcasters, which is paramount.”
The doctrine ended with Supreme Court appointees turning over radio frequencies to big business in the 1980's. Corporate America responded by buying up most radio stations and creating a true monopoly.
Though the FCC recently took action against a few “shock jocks” and Superbowl halftime nudity, they have returned to their coma.
Legislators have shown some willingness to return radio frequencies to the public; two bills introduced in the 1980's were vetoed by the president. Ironically, radio broadcasters may want fewer consumers of free radio in the Houston area. They own much of the new satellite music business and may charge for programming. 
Unfortunately, big business is in total control of something that was considered a public possession. Contact the FCC with your comments at: Michael.Powell@fcc.gov  
Jim Becka
Splendora, TX

The Anti Christ Is Almost Here
I'm sure you already have or will be getting an onslaught of comments on this matter. This link has been posted on one of Mr. Manson's biggest and most-read fansites. 
I had been pleasantly surprised, until now of course, that his tour has not found itself hit with all types of conservative ammunition/protesters. I thought that died years ago. In regards specifically to your article, it is disappointing to see that not unlike many past anti-Manson critiques, you have focused on all the cliches that I had also thought had died, and most of which aren't even true. 
It just proves yet again that research has not been done, and you have instead taken the easier road of merely believing all the misconceptions that the Manson-haters have littered the world with. "Satan's Minion?" Perhaps the most used Manson attack, it never had much basis in reality unfortunately. Manson has never been a supporter of any organized religion, and that includes Satanism. Being a friend of the late Anton LaVey, does not automatically make him a Satanist. Manson has looked to many religions, including Catholicism and Satanism, for research purposes, and even to say dabbled in any them, would be exaggerating. 
Moving on... I will just go in order of your points in the article. Your third paragraph that explains what the holidays should be, even if it somewhat sarcastic, perfectly sums up the sad nature of this country. I can't think of a less healthy and mind-numbing holiday treat than a "Nick and Jessica Christmas." Why is it a good thing that today's youth are being taught that those should be their role models? Oh I forgot, she is from Texas, and a big Bush supporter. Her blonde, tanned self is about milking the entertainment industry for everything it has so she can acquire more and more exposure. 
To tie my last point in with your comment about Manson once being the "Greatest Threat to Our Children and American Way of Life," at least Mr. Manson is challenging society to think for themselves, in addition to encouraging us to create art, in whatever form, and most importantly educate ourselves. Even in my most open-minded moment, it's quite difficult to see Jessica Simpson accomplishing one of those things. But again, it's the easier road to take, right? Also, if you take a look at some of Manson's fansites, it may be difficult to believe, but if you only knew the teens and adolescents that he has affected in only the most positive of ways. Kids that were feeling suicidal found refuge in his words and his music. Kids that were being bullied found hope in the fact that Brian Warner was once the underdog, and unfortunately since this society uses his as a scapegoat in too many occasions, he still can be seen as the underdog. And these kids feel a little bit better knowing that that they don't have to be beautiful in the way society has defined them to be. 
Educational institutions obviously see that Manson has something to teach all of us, or he would not have been requested to teach a class at selected universities recently. Even the most disbelieving of him previously, left the class saying that they learned something (even if it was merely that he is a really intelligent, funny, sweet man, and they were never aware of that.)
You make note of the costumes and make-up Manson uses, but I think you failed to see the theatrical nature of his stage shows. It is art, it is a performance, and it is theatrics!!! Again, very easy to take Manson for what he is right on the surface. And you are taking him much too seriously. 
It is a low blow to even bring up Colombine and blame Manson for that. Are people still honestly blaming him for something that was so clearly not his fault? You repeatedly attack Mr. Manson with things that can only be considered old, unnecessary, and bearing no factual basis. 
Although your article fuels up a lot of passion in me and many others, I can only thank you. And I'm sure Mr. Manson thanks you as well. It is an article like that, a person like you, and a narrow mind like that of which your comments spawn from that only push Manson to continue to create, continue to speak his mind and piss people off, continue to play music to sold out crowds, and just basically be himself. Without a people like yourself, and he would admit this himself, Manson probably wouldn't do what he does. He hates you all too much, and he wants to change the disaster that is this county. 
You can't kill him, Mother@#$%^&!!!!!!!!!! 
Time has come, it is quite clear, out Antichrist is almost here!!
I hope you have enough balls to actually attend his show tonight after the article you wrote. See what it's really about instead of the mere rumors you hear and subsequently believe. 
Lisa Contino
Philadelphia, PA 

Term "Insurgents" Is Misnomer
Paul Harvey and I agree about something; that the term "insurgents" is a misnomer. The over 1,200 people killed in the recent campaign to liberate Fallujah were Jihad savages, thugs, barbarians, subhuman filth akin to the rats which inhabit metropolitan sewage systems and underground septic tanks. 
Using the term "insurgents" to describe this low life which defiles all Muslims by calling for a holy war, taking innocent men and women hostage, chopping off their heads and video taping their perverted slaughter is like calling Satan's caldron a Saturday evening barbecue. The media is attempting to white wash the nature of the horrible people doing these hideous deeds by calling them "insurgents."
I challenge the media to use a more appropriate term for those holy warrior Jihadist who infiltrate the population centers of Iraq and commit acts of terrorism. Call them what they are, immoral, subhuman trash, garbage from the slums of Jordan, Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt and other decrepit hell holds which have slithered to the surface of the desert to defecate upon civilization like so many worms and maggots eating away at the flesh and fiber that is social order.
Our soldiers in arms have dealt a fatal and deserving blow to this scum of the earth which has brought havoc to Fallujah. The corpses should be disposed of, not in graves but in fires to turn their filth to ashes and more quickly fertilize the earth with their decay that something more fruitful may blossom from their utter destruction than martyrdom. Perhaps if this were done, civilized society would hear no more call for Jihad, as those beckoning forth immoral social degenerates would realize their fate and damnation, not to sit beside Allah in paradise, but to burn in hell and be damned by all of sane humanity.
Ah, but such utterances are themselves vial and if we were to burn and incinerate this scum of the earth, these "insurgent" corpses, what would the Islamic clerics say? What propaganda would then emerge from the bowls of those fools of folly calling for Jihad? Would we who have cleaned and sanitized the world of these immoral wretches somehow be viewed as a monster worse than the Great Satan our nation has already been labeled?
Our moral actions cannot be dictated by how we might be perceived by the kin and clans of the degenerate filth which we have exterminated in Fallujah and which continues to fester like an open wound throughout the Middle East. Rather we must continue boldly upon our course until all these vial, radical, subhuman creatures called "insurgents" have been obliterated from the face of the earth! Moreover, the media might tell the truth by referring to these lost souls appropriately, not as insurgents, but as Jihadist servants of Satan, for that surely is a more appropriated expression of their conduct than the mere infiltration of Iraq for some high purpose of martyrdom. 
Terry Lynch

Thanks for the Kaul 
So glad to be able to read some more Don Kaul articles. When he retired I had a very short letter printed in the Register saying I had enjoyed his columns over the years. To my surprise I received mail from the religious right or religious bigots as I call them just for writing that short message. They are so scary. 
Name Withheld 

Drowning in Health Care Costs
One of four Texans lack health insurance and one of five children live below the federal poverty threshold. For financially-strapped Texans, health care is a daunting challenge. 
Many legislators seek to give Texans relief by expanding Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Because state-subsidized health care is unsustainable, this “relief” spells disaster. 
Economists say Medicaid and CHIP will bankrupt every state, including Texas, by 2014. Signs of the impending crisis are evident in health care cost over-runs and budget shortfalls. 
A little over 26 percent of the state budget is devoted to Medicaid, a portion that exceeds average national investment by 21 percent. By the end of 2004, $17 billion will be invested in Medicaid, covering 3,000,000 Texans and an additional $808 million will underwrite CHIP, covering 407,000. 
Because the price of government health care is expected to double within the next ten years, no state – not even Texas- can bankroll Medicaid and CHIP. 
Before expanding enrollment and making more Texans dependent on a sinking program, it would be useful to look at Tennessee. Ten years ago, Tennessee lawmakers offered a government-subsidized health care program to residents not covered by other insurance. 
Today, TennCare covers nearly 25 percent of the state’s population and consumes nearly 33 percent of Tennessee’s budget. Tripling costs forced lawmakers to institute draconian controls and now Tennessee rations medical care – 12 doctor visits per year and 6 prescriptions per month. Anticipating a $650 million deficit in funding for TennCare in 2005, Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen is proposing to jettison the program.
Although Texas is traveling the same route as Tennessee, there is an alternative. Health Savings Accounts pair a major medical insurance policy – for big medical expenses after a deductible is met – with a tax-exempt savings account that pays for routine medical expenses such as preventive care. 
HSAs first became available on January 1, 2004. Although new, there is solid information about how HSAs work, based on experience of their predecessor, Medical Savings Accounts. 
HSAs are affordable. Most participants pay less than $100 monthly, an amount that is almost half the cost of a conventional health insurance. With HSAs, participants can tailor health spending to avert expensive care – participants invest in about 30 percent more preventive care than used by individuals with conventional plans. Flexibility allows HSAs to meet the needs of the old and young (more than 70 percent are over age 40), individuals and families (more than 75 percent are families with children), and people in all income brackets (nearly half earn family incomes of less than $50,000 and 27 percent have a net worth of less than $25,000). High rates of re-enrollment suggest people prefer consumer-centered health care over conventional insurance. 
For Texans struggling to make ends meet, HSAs offer an affordable alternative to conventional health insurance. For employers, HSAs offer a way to furnish health benefits to employees at a reasonable cost. Some companies have reduced health care costs by 11 percent in replacing conventional health insurance with HSAs. 
For lawmakers, HSAs offer a way to control government health costs. Securing a federal waiver to expand Medicaid vouchers (now used for acute and long-term care in Texas), HSAs could be provided for Texans enrolled in government health programs. 
For the uninsured, HSAs offer the most promise. Over the past year, HSAs have reduced the number of uninsured Americans. Texas could reduce its uninsured population by establishing a clearinghouse of information about consumer-centered health care alternatives.
The upcoming legislature will consider tax hikes to erase budget deficits caused by health care cost over-runs and increase funds for expanding the passenger list of the Medicaid-CHIP Titanic. 
Recognizing that socialized health care cannot work any better in Texas than it has in Tennessee, Canada, and Europe, some legislators will propose an alternative: HSAs offer reliable, affordable lifeboats for all Texans. 
Chris Patterson
Austin, Texas

There are no Virgin Births 
It takes two to tango. Every child has a biological mother and a biological father.
Abortions result when a mother and a father conceive a child that they don’t want. It does not take an Einstein to figure out that "Just say No!" is naïve and flat doesn’t work. Simply preventing a mother from having an abortion does not get at the root cause. 
The problem today is that only one party of the two required has a true incentive to want birth control – the woman. Why is that? Because … society does not hold the father responsible for his participation in conception. 
No one wants to have an abortion. . We need to address the number one reason that makes women want to have an abortion – Economics.
If men knew that they would be held financially responsible for every child that they create, the world would be turned upside down. If a man knew that a causal sexual encounter might lead to 18 years of financial responsibility he would have an incentive to either not indulge himself or to at least use some form of birth control.
Let’s go ahead and make abortion illegal for all incidents except for the mother’s health. Simultaneously, however, let’s make every father financially responsible from the moment of conception.
This can be readily achieved by making every man register with a DNA bank. Then every child born in the United States would automatically have its father identified. Once identified, a father is held financially responsible for every child that he has for 18 years.
Enforcement of financial responsibility would be mandatory. A father would have to provide monthly child support to the mother of each of his children until they reach the age of 18. The amount of child support would be 20% of his income or $500, which ever is greater. Jail sentences would be applied to any father who did not meet his financial obligation. After all, the purpose of punishment is to elicit proper behavior and to prevent bad behavior from occurring.
There are many additional benefits that would be received in addition to eliminating abortions. Some examples are:
Reduced costs of government supplied child welfare
Fewer incidents of venereal disease
Reduced heterosexual transmission of aids
Children would know who their fathers were
This idea is straightforward and moral. Any and all specific implementation issues can be worked out. And, obviously while the situations that a mother doesn’t take financially responsibility are relatively rare, this concept would actually apply to both men and women. There would be no discrimination.
It is important to note that most fathers take responsibility for their children. It is only a minority of men who do not. Thus it is in the best interest of society as a whole (men, women and children) that we make sure that the few who are deadbeats are held responsible.
If we can take our shoes off at an airport we can certainly have our mouths swabbed to make sure that every child born in the United States has a mother and a father. If we can be registered as gun owners we can certainly keep a database of DNA. If we can keep everybody’s tax records private, we can certainly keep their DNA records private. 
Obstructionist’s motives against this bill will be transparent. To not want to hold both mothers and fathers responsible for the children they conceive is simply unacceptable in a society that wants to outlaw abortions and considers itself moral. 
Angie Pratt

Manson Was Here
First of all,why would want to make millions of music lover to have the same taste in music,performers,and art.Do we have to share you"religious,self rghtous ,conservative points of vies. 
Sir,with all due respect,I can't believe you posted this for a one-night event.Your commets about the Columbine shooting is really unacurate,and please,let's not even start with the subject of blaming singers and artists for such tragic events. Instead of wasting time posting this trash,talk to your kids and make them see the difference between reality and lyrics or movies.Manson was here and I went to his show,and nothing happened our city is still the same;more gang-violence,poverty,and full of dull radio-stations.concentrate on the real issues,make your life easier.
Name Withheld

Adopt a Special Dog Named Sparky
A fire dept from Houston area, has a Dalmatian about 2 years old well trained even has been on the truck, but they cannot keep him (against fire ordinance) I am not sure, so they take turns with him at homes where they can not permanently keep him. He is adoptable and needs space and an owner who wants a devoted companion. 
Kat, 
www.SpiritAcres.org  
936 597 5316 

Crying Shame
It seems that one of our well-known
chain stores has done away with an age old tradition. They are no longer allowing The Salvation Army to stand in front of their doors. Its a crying shame! I call it tradition.
They refer to it as soliciting, claiming they give mega bucks a year to charities. Big Deal!
Let the little people also give. The Salvation Army is to Christmas as apple pie is to America. Wake up people, before other traditions are taken away.
B E Musachia

Merry Christmas
I just read your article on Target and agree with you completely. Thank you for a well researched, and well thought out article. 
Have a very Merry Christmas. 
Jay Churchwell

Jim Hightower and Wal-Mart
Thank you Jim another good one! Maybe the truth hurts them just a little?
Sandra Durham

Way Off Target
I am disappointed with Target's decision to not allow Salvation Army bell ringers to set up outside Target stores. My objection is not based on any alliance with religious faith; rather it is founded upon what I believe is everyone's obligation to help those less fortunate than themselves. No matter what your religion, or lack of, it behooves each and every one of us to consider those less fortunate, especially during a nationally recognized holiday season. 
Bell ringers have been a staple of charitable donations for many years. I know of few people who object to them being set up outside businesses such as Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, and I doubt that there is any organized objection to them being at Target. I've never had any bell ringer accost me if I failed to drop any money into their kettle. Quite the contrary, they wish me a happy holiday and give a blessing regardless. In an era when market success many times depends on the whims of a customer base, I think this decision reflects badly on Target. 
Larry L. Melton

Why do you portray stupid illegal alien maids as superior to normal rich white woman? 
I am shocked at your review. So it did not bother you at all that she was illegal Mexican? That she was here illegally making more money then 30% of Americans do, and stealing someone else's husband on the way? I did not think that Deborah Clasky was such a terrible mom and character as you portray her. And having a husband
like the one played by Adam Sandler would make anyone crazy. And what is wrong with ""right" possessions and "right" neighborhood and "right" schools for
children"? I applaud her for that, I wish more people were conscientious enough to do that - we would have less poverty and better education that way. What is wrong with full time maid if someone can afford it? Is
everyone supposed to be uneducated and poor? Is that your motto?
Why do you have to portray illegal Mexican illiterate maid as a winner over normal rich and intelligent American woman? Do you see anything wrong with your picture - "she's wise where Deborah is ignorant, caring where Deborah is selfish, loving where Deborah is hateful"? I see plenty of a wrong s here. 
Your message is rich is evil, education is evil, white American is evil, and everyone who want to have a better life and are beautiful, rich and powerful are evil. 
You are wrong!
It is a stupid movie; well Adam Sandler does not play in any smart movies, so no wonder. It is made in a very poor taste. It is very inappropriate at the time when illegal Mexicans drown our economy. 
Thumbs down to this movie and especially to your review.
Violet

Cancel Debt of Americans First!
Let me see if I have this correct: President Bush has vowed not to ignore economic problems during his next term in office. In so doing he has forgiven the $4.1 billion Iraqi debt to the US and we are spending additional billions of dollars to rebuild Iraq; plus, the US is spending billions more to host some 150,000 US troops in a country that is basically a waste land and hell hole! Is this correct?
All total the regime of Saddam Hussein left behind a $127 billion debt. Now the United States and other nations are forgiving this debt and helping rebuild Iraq that oil may flow again and money pour into the coffers of a new regime that will in all likely hood be as corrupt as the old one. Would not it be a better policy to use the profits from Iraq's vast oil reserves to pay for reconstruction and cancel its debt over time?
Who is going to want to offer any credit to Iraq when past debts have not been paid? How can we and other nations hope to meet our own financial responsibilities when we cancel such enormous debts rather than develop a constructive plan to enable their repayment over time? Why I wish my meager credit card debts and those of my fellow Americans could be so easily canceled!
Why does not President Bush ask other nations to cancel our staggering debt! After all we are the country that is paying the most in lives and money to fight the war on terrorism. Does not the whole world owe us a great sum for this sacrifice? How much are the lives of American soldier who have died in Iraq worth? Is there any sum of money that can make up for the lives of over 1,300 Americans who have died in Iraq and the many more who may parish there?
Many of these soldiers will come home and leave the service to find themselves without jobs, without homes, without spouses and in debt themselves. If we want to cancel debt we should be canceling the debt of those who have sacrificed so much to keep the world free.
President Bush, why don't you cancel the debt of American soldiers and their families who have been the ones on the front lines fighting and dying to make the world free! Why don't you give these soldiers and their families the economic means to survive and thrive, rather than just get by? Why don't you help Americans first and make Americans your priority when it comes to forgiving debt? We will only suffer more by being a nation burdened by our own staggering debt while canceling the debt of other nations and fighting to make them free in concept when they are in reality ruled by corruption. 
Terry Lynch

Down a Slippery Slope
You want to know why when news of prisoner torture percolated up the channels of the government nothing was done? The answer is quite simple. They condoned the actions. In fact, we now know that they were following an executive order from George W. Bush. 
This isn't based on hearsay. This isn't a figment of some Massachusetts liberal's imagination. This allegation is based on an internal FBI document obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union. 
The document, a two-page FBI internal e-mail, references an Executive Order that states the President directly authorized interrogation techniques including sleep deprivation, stress positions, the use of military dogs, and "sensory deprivation through the use of hoods, etc." The FBI e-mail, which was sent in May 2004 from "On Scene Commander--Baghdad" to a handful of senior FBI officials, notes that the FBI has prohibited its agents from employing the techniques that the President is said to have authorized. 
Now… do you think the government released this e-mail freely? Nope. It took a federal judge in response to a freedom of information request lawsuit brought by the ACLU to force the release of this information. Why? Because the Bush Administration knows it is guilty of sponsoring the use of inhumane interrogation methods against Moslem detainees. 
The Bush Administration has slipped down the slippery slope and fallen into Satan's den. The God that George Bush claims to speak to is not the one that Jesus speaks about. Torturing prisoners is not an activity that Christ would approve of. Christians around the world need to stand up and declare these actions immoral. 
The people of the United States need to step up and demand an accounting from the Bush Administration. We need the Administration to stand up and tell the truth for a change. If they think they were right in ordering an abandonment of the Geneva Convention then let them stand up and say so. The fact that they are hiding and probably shredding information stands as proof that they know that they have broken the law. 
This isn't a case where fully releasing pertinent information will harm the security of the United States. This isn't classified defense stuff. This is evidence in a criminal investigation. No wonder George Bush was against signing the European war crimes initiative. 
A quick and dirty investigation by anybody with any ties with the Bush Administration is unacceptable. An independent prosecutor must be named with full subpoena powers. Anything less will be a charade. 
There is more at stake here that the impeachment of George W. Bush. The very moral fiber of the United States of America is at risk. We have always been able to hold our heads high because we knew in our hearts and minds that we were on the moral high ground. To find out that our leader has embraced morally reprehensible behavior strikes at the very core of our American values. 
The moment we decide that the ends justify the means is the moment that we become no better than our enemies.
Angie Pratt

Happy Being Right
Well stated. Well written. Thank you. You are spot on in saying we are a nation of cowards, but of whom are we afraid?! When did being a victim become so vogue?! 
I'm far happier being right, than "left" behind...
Tamara J Engle 
Herndon, VA

How to Spend a Billion Dollars Without Trying
A general rule of thumb is that when you start to see politicians jumping on a bandwagon, taxpayers are about to get run over. Comptroller Carol Keaton Strayhorn has recently added her voice to other state lawmakers’ calling for a $3,000 across-the-board pay raise for teachers.
The Comptroller’s billion dollar price tag is better than the no-strings-attached billion the legislature threw at schools in 2003, and a lot better than the much bigger numbers sometimes bandied about since then. But it’s not good.
Comptroller Strayhorn has always correctly said the classroom gets too little of the money in public education. Her figures show only 52 percent or less of public education spending getting to the classroom effort. The actual percentage is probably significantly less than that.
Increasing teacher pay without spending more anywhere else would increase the classroom share of public education funding. But, so would reducing all funding except for teacher pay. And, so would increasing teacher pay without changing total funding at all. An across-the-board pay raise is the very worst option for taxpayers.
Not only will such proposals not work, but don’t make sense in the face of facts.
As the Comptroller has said, “Turnover is highest where teacher pay is lowest,” but her pay raise would not target those who are lowest-paid, meaning that higher-paying teacher jobs will continue to encourage low-paid teacher turnover. She would provide bonuses for teachers in schools that show improvement but that again does nothing to bring up the pay of low-paid teachers.
In her public statement, the Comptroller says that failed policies of the past cause our educational ills, including high dropout rates. But an across-the-board pay increase, tried repeatedly in this state and others, is the best example of failed education policy.
What does work? Paying people based on job performance; letting the best teachers make more than the worst teachers.
The Comptroller’s teacher pay report correctly points out the importance of effective and well-qualified teachers, but then she makes the leap that this means “fully certified” teachers. The very studies to which she refers show subject knowledge and language skills constitute an effective teacher, not arcane certification requirements.
Finally, the Comptroller’s study elevates a bunch of correlations to cause and effect relationships. She says high teacher turnover causes dropouts, but couldn’t that be turned the other way around? Numerous well-constructed studies show teachers quit more often due to working conditions than pay; dropout rates could just as easily be symptomatic of working conditions.
Go to any campus in this state. Ask the kids, teachers, parents, and principals who the good teachers are. The same names will always come up. Those are the teachers who deserve more pay. The money is easy to find after we get rid of dead-wood administrators who seem unable to pay good teachers well or fire bad teachers quickly.
Teachers and students need emancipation from a monopoly school system that tells you where to go to school or where to work based solely on where you live. School choice would emancipate teachers to start their own schools, determine their own policies, and pay themselves well.
Educational liberty is the solution to our public school woes, not forcing taxpayers to share in and fund the current system.
Byron Schlomach, Ph.D., is the chief economist for the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a research institute based in Austin.
Byron Schlomach, Ph.D.
Austin, TX

President is to Blame for Poor Security in Iraq
Gen. Richard Myers, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld are not the right men for the job. This has been clearly indicated by their apathetic response to the mess tent bombing in Iraq.
All our military installations in Iraq should have multiple layers of security. Metal detection similar to that used at airports should be employed for Iraqi civilians who work on military installations and they should under go psychological screening.
That a suicide bomber could gain undetected access to a facility and kill American soldiers illustrates the fact that perhaps the man in charge, the Commander in Chief, President George W. Bush, has not delegated responsibility to the most qualified person for the job. That a suicide bomber can penetrate the heart of a military installation represents a gross failure in security which extends up the chain of command all the way to the President!
Certainly dividing our nation is a consequence terrorist would like to achieve. However, it is irresponsible not to criticize those leaders who have neglected to provide our Armed forces in Iraq with the highest level of security humanly possible.
To secure our forces we must think like the enemy, discover our weakest links and vulnerabilities and fix those loop holes. Then we must go on the attack and kill and destroy those who would do us harm before they have the opportunity. This is not being done effectively in Iraq because those leaders in charge are pussy footing around and playing politics instead of making security of our troops a priority! 
We should not be spending one cent on reconstruction in Iraq until: all our Humvees and vehicles have armour protection; until all our military installations have multiple layers of security and metal detection; until every home, building and rat hole has been searched for weapons and explosives; and, until every citizen in Iraq who is employed to work on military installations is screened and profiled with regard to their potential for terrorism. 
These may sound like extreme measures, but they are the tough decisions our Commander in Chief should have had the foresight to implement even as we invaded Iraq. That this was not done indicates a failure of the top dogs for unless you know your enemy and stay one jump ahead of him, he will bite you in the ass every time! 
Terry Lynch
Montgomery, AL

Cut-N-Shoot Hogs
The Cut-N-Shoot Chapter of Harley Hogs, business partner to Austin Elementary, participated in the EXCEL to RIDE PROGRAM with the students at the school.
All students with good grades, good behavior, and those showing improvement were eligible to participate in riding on a motorcycle as a reward for their hard
work. Thanks to the Harley Hogs for helping motivate the Austin students to
EXCEL in school!
Pamela Britton
Conroe, TX

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