Letters to the editor Aug. 29

Improvements to Carson Street are waste of funds?

Well, here we go again spending money we don't have to fix downtown Carson Street. They want to put more landscaping in the center, make it two lanes of travel to entice people to shop and park on Carson Street. The worst part is they want to make a plan at a $240,000 to $300,000 price tag to start. Why?

As I look up and down Carson Street, I do not see enough stores open to make it worth the trip. Save the money for some other things like our schools or fighting gangs or helping our older citizens.

William Sears

Carson City

Paslov, take responsibility for education's failures

In the Aug. 22 opinion section, J.R. Arndell did a a great service by documenting a few of the fallacies of considering Paslov's three moderates as moderate. If I assume that Paslov is not second to a dead tree stump in intelligence but rather blinded by ideology, then who does he consider as a leftwing liberal? I suspect that list might include Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Mao Tse-tung, Fidel Castro and Barack Obama.

Besides being driven by ideology, I think his motive is more sinister. While he throws grenades at the Texas School Board and Republicans, he is diverting attention from his past. Paslov was the state superintendent of education. It is generally recognized that Nevada has a poor education record.

As the superintendent, what part of our state's educational decline can be laid directly on Paslov's doorstep?

I was disappointed that the chancellor of the University of Nevada said he has no fiscal responsibility to the state of Nevada. Rather he is responsible to grab as much money as he can for the university system.

While disappointing, it is hardly surprising, because for the last several decades, the response from education - despite increasingly poor results - is (to) just send more money. Among public universities, the University of Nevada competes with New Mexico State for the worst graduation record in the country.

Sam Batdorf

Gardnerville

Tea Party's demands? Principled politicians

Mainstream media often says the Tea Party demands ideological purity.

Is that the same as demands principled politicians? If so, I guess we are guilty. Is that a bad thing?

Dave Campbell

Carson City

Angle reminiscent of Nevada Rep. Baring

Sharron Angle reminds me of Walter Baring, who defied his detractors by being re-elected to Nevada's lone seat in Congress 10 times (1949-53, 57-73).

This Goldfield native didn't like a broad interpretation of the Constitution, foreign aid, give-away programs or federal government very much.

Some say he was a loner with his colleagues and not effective when getting federal funds for the Silver State. After the votes were tabulated on election days, however, he usually won.

It'll be interesting to see if Nevadans select Majority Leader Harry Reid or another.

Bill Byrnes

Dayton

Library's grant deserved, and put to good use

This is in response to Mr. Guy Farmer's column of Aug. 15 where he alluded to the $600,000 grant that the library recently received. He asked what that was all about.

Well, Mr. Farmer, this has been explained in at least four articles in this paper already. The Broadband Technology Opportunity Program stimulus money was a competitive application - it included the possibility of a new library and technology to support the new space.

During the due diligence phase, the federal government asked, "What if the new library is not built?" and Library Director Sara Jones replied that if that is the case, all stimulus money - should it be awarded - and the $160,000 donated as a cash match by the Hop and Mae Adams Foundation will vastly improve the technology of the current library and the new business branch library in the old Fireside Building.

We were immensely qualified for this stimulus with our community's 14 percent unemployment. We should celebrate this award, not disparage it.

About the parking lot, I have been a member of the library board of trustees for seven years, and for the last six years, we have been asking the city to do something about our parking lot. It was deteriorating, with potholes in the driveway, and the striping all faded away. It was simply unsafe. This year, it was finally on their list and was repaved and restriped giving us a much safer parking lot.

Phyllis Patton

Carson City Library Board of Trustees