Letters to the Editor April 28

One call could have ended ordeal sooner

On Friday night April 2, the weather was bad, it was raining, snowing and extremely windy. A

19-year-old developmentally disabled man went for a walk. This young man was not from Carson City, was not wearing his glasses, and could not find his way back to where he was staying.

He had walked to the Fandango where some kind soul gave him french fries and a grilled cheese sandwich, but didn't realize he was developmentally disabled and sent him on his way. He went into several other establishments where they did the same thing. He even told people that he didn't remember the address or phone number of the people he was looking for.

Come on, people. When someone comes into your establishment and it's late at night and horrible weather, hear the bells that are going off. See the red flags that are waving. Call the sheriff's office, they might be looking for them.

Not everyone is homeless. Someone might care about them. Someone might be looking for them. We were looking for him for 18 hours.

All you people who saw him, talked to him or gave him food could have ended the search a lot sooner if you just called the sheriff.

Doreen G. Engel

Carson City

GOP spreading lies about IRS agent hiring

The "Party of No" continues to lie about health care reform. Unfortunately, all too many citizens appear to be repeating lies rather than facts. Just one example - the claim that the health care bill requires IRS to hire 16,000 new tax collectors. This is a Republican talking point repeated over and over to the media by Newt Gingrich and other Republican and Tea Party propagandists.

The media blindly repeats it as they have discovered that fanning controversy and anger brings viewers and advertisers. And, too many of our citizens, wounded from the economic mismanagement of the past eight-plus years, blindly repeat the nonsense put out by the very interests that brought on the recession.

Want facts, not fiction? Factcheck.org says:

"Will the IRS hire 16,500 new agents to enforce the health care law? No. The law requires the IRS mostly to hand out tax credits, not collect penalties. The claim of 16,500 new agents stems from a partisan analysis based on guesswork and false assumptions, and compounded by outright misrepresentation."

But, it is so much easier to vent anger-inducing fiction rather than learn facts. Sad, but today, all too true.

Jon Nowlin

Carson City

Gibbons' stand: Protect us from Obamacare

Sue Morrow accuses Gov. Gibbons of a maneuver in trying to stop the Obamacare plan. Has Morrow ever read the U.S. Constitution? What does she think the following words mean?

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

Those are the words of the

10th Amendment. Where does the Constitution give authority to the federal government to require citizens to buy a product from a commercial company? Where is the requirement for people in their 20s to get medical insurance? People in their 20s have better things to do with their money.

States require auto insurance. Not a comparable idea. Auto insurance covers that damage that we can cause moving pieces of steel down the highway at 60 mph. Obamacare requires us to buy a certain kind of health insurance just because we are living.

Ms. Morrow needs to check Europe and see just how expensive and low quality government medical plans actually are. Citing Newsweek writers who "seem to bolster Masto's opinion" is not rigorous thinking.

The attorneys general of 13 other states, Republican and Democrat, have decided that there is a very good chance that Obamacare is unconstitutional. Gov. Gibbons has taken a brave stand to protect the people of Nevada from socialist medicine.

David K. Schumann

Minden

Sheriff candidates should answer for gang problem

The incident described in the Nevada Appeal on April 17, between two local cops running for sheriff, is reminiscent of the bungling Keystone Kops.

If the spitting contest between White and Guimont doesn't turn your stomach, how about Ken Furlong seeking re-election? This Kop has no shame. His policy of enforcing only the laws he approves of is a dismal failure.

The increase in criminal activity here can be traced directly to the Three Amigos. As a direct result of a lack of leadership from Furlong, White and Guimont, drug trafficking thrives and violent gang members walk the streets with impunity.

It's interesting that it's only prior to an election that a candidate publicly announces his cure for crime in this city.

The mayor, supervisors and city manager do citizens a great disservice. Why haven't they invited candidates from other cities in Nevada as well as candidates from out of state to run for sheriff? If someone from outside the department is elected, he should know that he's expected to enforce all the laws and to solve the gang problem. Law enforcement is all about citizen safety, not political ambition.

Carson City can't afford four more years of a sheriff who simply collects a salary.

Robert Sennett

Carson City