JOSEPH DUNCAN
Carry out death penalty
Joseph Duncan is a convicted rapist, murderer and torturer of children. It’s appalling to me that our judicial system allows him to have any rights in regards to his death penalty sentencing. Duncan, by his own admission, is guilty of committing the heinous crimes he was charged with and he waived his rights to appeal. I can only imagine what torture his victims went through as he was committing his crimes on them, and the image that Shasta Groene will play in her mind the rest of her life. The death sentence needs to be carried out in Joseph Duncan’s case. If it is not, we are sending a clear message to every other murderer and rapist out there that it’s OK to kill and rape, because the judicial system will take care of you.
MARK BARBER, Boise
WATER HEATERS
Location is critical
Would you like to get hot water to the faucets in your home more quickly? Or are you one of the many who takes an excessive delay in hot water for granted?
With the faucet wide open, it can take 30 seconds to one minute or more for arrival of hot water. One minute represents a waste of about 1 1/2 gallons of water plus the dissolved softening salt. It is also an inconvenience, as the delay often results in cold water being used when hot water is preferred. Locating the water heater in the garage, far from some faucets in the house, is the main culprit. In colder climates, the water heater is, of necessity, commonly located centrally within the home.
With the faucet wide open, getting hot water to all, or nearly all, faucets within 15 seconds is a reasonable goal with most floor plans. To attain this goal, the water heater must be centrally located among hot water use points in the house. Also, hot water lines must be run as directly as possible from the heater to the faucet — often not done. Existing houses can be retrofitted to solve the problem but the fix can be costly.
LYLE MYERS, Meridian
MEDICARE CUTS
Don’t put vulnerable at risk
Congress has difficult budget decisions to make, but budget revenue should not come at the expense of Idahoans who rely on Medicare and providers who have already accepted difficult cuts. One such program is the End Stage Renal Disease program that covers Americans of any age with kidney disease, on dialysis or waiting for kidney transplant.
As a veteran nurse, and member of AARP, I think it is important for our congressional delegation to consider changes to state programs prior to making decisions at the federal level that could put vulnerable Idahoans at increased risk.
The Idaho Legislature ended the state program offering supplemental coverage for Idahoans with kidney disease. The program will terminate on June 30. The Legislature felt the federal program provided enough coverage, yet if Congress cannot reach an agreement, the across-the-board cuts to Medicare triggered by sequestration would likely include another round of cuts to the federal ESRD program, affecting Idahoans who are losing state-based coverage this coming summer. This puts Idahoans waiting for kidney transplant, or suffering through daily dialysis at a significant disadvantage to thousands of other Americans living with End Stage Renal Disease.
DIANA K. ROSKENS, RN, Boise
