Pope cartoon was bad, but it was free speechThe Appeal recently printed a political cartoon ridiculing the Pope and the Boy Scouts. As a Catholic, I found the cartoon very offensive. Making fun of a sick, old man is in such poor taste. Yet, I defend the paper’s right to publish such drivel. The Appeal can rest assured that no mob of hysterical Catholics is going to bomb the building or kill the editor. I also applaud the Appeal’s decision to publish all opinions on the opinion page. Freedom of speech is one of our most treasured and traditional freedoms. It makes us think. It makes us strong. It makes us who we are as a nation.So the next time you see a cartoon or read an opinion that offends you, take a step back. Be thankful those people are able to speak their minds in safety and freedom.Laurie O’BryneCarson CityCartoon featuring Pope bordered on bigotryI am not a Catholic, but I found the editorial cartoon on Feb. 14 not only offensive but bordering on bigotry. If you had printed a cartoon as disparaging as this about any religious or ethnic group other than a Christian group, I believe your paper would have seen the wrath of the national media. It appears that Christians are the last group that it is acceptable to be bigoted toward.Tom RuhoffCarson CityCongress recognizing court reporters’ valueI just learned that Feb. 17-24 has been declared National Court Reporter and Captioner Week in the U.S. Highlighting the work of this profession is important. I’m proud to have been a court reporter for over 40 years. Like my colleagues, I have captured the verbatim record for the judicial system in murder trials, corruption trials, large corporate lawsuits. Court reporters owe allegiance to neither side in litigation and record history without bias. While other countries rely on summaries of the proceedings or minutes taken by the judges or attorneys, in the U.S. we have impartial court reporters who write every spoken word. By harnessing the latest technological advances, court reporters now use their skill to provide captioning services for the country’s 40 million deaf or hard-of-hearing people. Whether it is the broadcasting of a television program, or in a local county commission meeting, or in the classroom of a local university, people with hearing loss can now have access to every word in written form because of captioning.From the work of ancient scribes to the state-of-the-art computerized court reporter or captioner, we have been the silent witnesses and guardians of history. I’m glad that Congress now recognizes that.Karen YatesMinden