GLOBAL WARMING

Misguided view would change with trip to Stanley

Ellie Whitney, Ph.D, New Jersey, spent a week in Boise and decided to write a letter blaming global warming and CO2 emissions for our dry and warm summer. What is her Ph.D in? Marxism? Government control? Kansas had the “Dust Bowl” in the 1930s, a five-year drought that devastated that part of our country. Was CO2 to blame? There were very few autos and coal-fired electric plants in that area at that time.

Don’t believe anyone encouraging government control by blaming CO2 emissions as causing climate change. Natural disasters happen.

Fellow Idahoans, let’s buy her a trip to Stanley in January and see what kind of letter she would write. Maybe she could find another excuse asking that we support some other kind of government bill to further subjugate us to Washington, D.C.

FRANK CELSNAK, Eagle

HOSPITALITY

Guatemalan teenager sets a good example

I was amazed to read the letter “Made in China,” where a man refused to sell his used hat to a visiting Japanese tourist for $5 and insisted on charging him $20 instead. Mr. Diffendaffer took umbrage at the Japanese gentleman’s “no deal” and made this an issue with China, since that was where the hat was made.

I was reminded of a trip when I took students to Guatemala, one of the poorest nations on earth, for a service project. One of the teens happened to mention that they liked the music on a CD that was playing on a Guatemalan teen’s CD player.

The Guatemalan teen popped it out of the player and gave it to the student for free as a gift from his “new friend in Guatemala.” Mr. Diffendaffer could learn a lot from that Guatemalan teenager.

ANDREA SYMMONDS, Boise

SALMON

Breaching still the answer for salmon survival

In the Sunday edition, July 29, the editorial board submitted a piece about “An Idaho template for change.” I thought I was going to be reading something refreshing about the state Legislature.

Instead, the subject was salmon and the millions we have spent in the Upper Salmon Basin Watershed Program. This is extremely positive news that rancher attitudes have changed to supporting salmon restoration in the Lemhi River (and salmon have responded too in ever increasing spawning numbers).

The more important message here is the intelligent position of the editorial board (since 1997) in supporting the removal of the four lower Snake River dams. This is their centerpiece on the subject of salmon restoration in Idaho.

It’s mine, too, and should be for everyone who claims Idaho citizenship. The hearts and minds of everyone should advocate this solution for long-term survival of Idaho salmon.

RICHARD HOWARD, Boise

MILITARY BUDGET

Security not compromised by closing more bases

I am responding to a recent letter warning about reducing our military budget. Closing even half of our more than 800 overseas bases would save billions, would not compromise our national security and we would have more friends and fewer enemies. President Eisenhower warned about the “military-industrial complex,” and we are witnessing it.

Congressmen lobby for weapons to provide jobs in their districts. Why not enhance our infrastructure to provide these jobs? The military is notorious for waste, cost overruns, lack of competitive bidding and for threats about an enemy that is non-existent. The U.S. defense budget is greater than the combined defense budgets of the next 17 largest spenders, according to The Wall Street Journal. How can anyone with common sense justify this?

Few would argue against a strong military, but that does not mean they can be given a blank check or not be held accountable for fraud, waste, lies and advocacy of weapons that are not needed. I would hope that reducing their budget as planned might produce more efficiency in the military and certainly should help reduce our obscene national debt which is much more a threat to our security than any foreign power — real or perceived.

ROD MILLER, Boise

MALPRACTICE LAWS

Idaho laws tilt toward insurance companies

Idaho Statute 6-1012, proof of community standard of health care practice in malpractice cases, makes reference to “applicable standard of health care practice of the community in which such care was allegedly or should have been provided at the time of the alleged negligence….”

How can the “community” standard be determined when the statute does not require doctors to come forth and communicate it? Do the citizens of Idaho realize that this law protects the doctors and insurance companies? On the surface this statute seems realistic, but most doctors in the community will not come forward to establish the standard of care. Most times what you get is a vow of silence from them. Why is there no accountability from the medical profession to address the standard of care in these cases? I imagine that the politicians who created this statute had never lost a loved one, or had a child disabled by the negligence of a doctor. Idaho citizens, you and your loved ones have no protection under this statute.

VEVERLY EDWARDS, Idaho Falls

RESTORING LOVE RALLY

Dallas event deserved more media coverage

I am deeply disappointed, but certainly not surprised, that there was no coverage of the Restoring Love events last weekend in Dallas.

A private citizen, who just happened to be Glenn Beck, filled Cowboys Stadium with a message of love, freedom, patriotism and service to others, not politics.

At another event, 35,000 volunteers performed a day of service at over 300 locations around Dallas: repairs, cleanup, painting, visits to nursing homes, and collected enough food to fill 14 semi-trucks to supply food banks all over the U.S.

One would think some reporting of “good” news would be of interest.

MICHELE MITCHELL, Nampa

POLITICS

Beware of governors promising to spur wealth

Once, many years ago, there was this pirate roaming the shores off the coast of the American colonies. One day a fisherman, coming off a hard- working journey with a cargo of fish, was in his path and the pirate overtook and captured the fisherman. He took their ship and put the fisherman in a small rowboat and cast them off, perhaps to make it to shore safely, perhaps not; he really didn’t care.

The pirate sold the ship and all the fish, mostly to foreign merchants, and put some of his ill-gotten gain in an offshore chest. But he kept some to buy extravagant things like a bejeweled, gold crown for himself as well as another castle. He then attempted to become governor of one of the colonies, saying that he had great experience at creating wealth for the colonists — but not all the colonists, mostly his family, he being a strong family man, and others who yearned to be wealthy, too, and had no reservations about where the wealth came from, or cared about fishermen.

Nevertheless, this pirate campaigned constantly that he was the one who knew how to create wealth!

ROBERT GOYDEN, Boise