Letters to the editor for Sunday, March 29, 2015

Right to die? No, right to life

Regarding SB336 introducing “right to die” — Question for Republican Sens. Ben Kieckhefer and Patricia Farley and Democrat David Parks et. al: What are you using for a brain? How did ya get into public office with the obvious lack of same?

All supporters of this bill, evidently, don’t have a clue as to the basic right of all mankind — the right to life, or where it came from.

It was a gift to your parents from God, the creator of all life! Ever heard of his Ten Commandments ... the Fifth being thou shalt not kill ... including murder and suicide?

I wish you people would realize the real reason our nation and the entire world, for that matter, are in such a crisis! We kill the unborn (for whatever reason); we propagate homosexuality (ever hear of Sodom and Gomorrah?); we ignore the source of our lives and the reason we even exist.

When I first learned that, eventually, everyone will die, I was five years old. The first question I asked myself was, why are we here? I learned through the love of God, the creator of all life!

Mary Santomauro

Stagecoach

There’s proof of ‘illegal voting’

Leigh McQuire asks for proof on “illegal voting.”

The Cooperative Congressional Election Study was a joint venture of 38 universities and more than 100 political scientists.

Using data from this study, professors at Old Dominion University conducted a study which indicates there are more than one million registered voters who are not citizens and who therefore are not legally entitled to vote.

Per William Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration Pac (ALIPAC); “It is a felony for a non-citizen — legal or illegal — to register to vote. It is another felony for them to actually vote. Every illegal immigrant or non-citizen who votes steals the voice of an American citizen in the U. S. election.”

I feel it is important to safeguard the value of the vote of a citizen of this country, and that a method of personal identification is the best way.

Personal identification by means of DNA, eye iris recognition or fingerprint may be more positive forms of identification, but they present cost problems. A photo ID card — federal or state issued — would not be as costly and would be better than just a piece of paper. Most states currently issue a driver’s license with photo ID included.

I think most of the elderly and handicapped would be able to arrange a way to get to a location to obtain such a card knowing it would make their vote, as a qualified citizen, more meaningful.

Sanford E. Deyo

Minden

Prefers long life for indoor cats

This letter is in response to the letter written by C.J. Ojanpera that appeared in the Sunday paper, March 22, regarding managing coyotes.

First of all, I don’t know how or why your letter regarding coyotes became an attack on people like myself who choose to keep our cats indoors. The fact that you think it’s OK to let a family pet outside at night, again a family pet that has no knowledge of how to defend itself against coyotes, proves to me you have no business owning a cat.

Apparently you have never heard the screams from family pets like yours being attacked and killed by a coyote. Maybe if you had, you would think twice before thinking it’s perfectly OK to feed your sweet little trusting pet to a pack of ferocious animals.

My four cats are perfectly content living indoors, and I choose to give my cats a happy long life, not the short horrible life you choose for yours. Bored, for human amusement only?

Melinda Cash

Mound House

Kick canned ALEC bills back to billionaires

March 2015 Headline: “Wall St. bonuses rise to $28.5 billion.” Hasn’t Wall Street hurt Nevada families enough already? Nope, apparently not.

If you have a dime to your name, Wall Street is now using your state legislators to pass bills to pick that dime from your pocket and put it into their corporate coffers.

But why would Nevada legislators write, introduce and pass bills that devastate Nevada’s middle-class families? The answer is, Nevada legislators did not write these anti-middle-class bills; ALEC did.

ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) is a corporate-funded “bill mill” that writes corporate-friendly bills and passes them onto state legislatures. These deceptive bills have Wall Street slick advertising names, such as “Right to Work” and “Pension Reform,” plus legislation to repeal existing Prevailing Wage laws. ALEC tries to “divide and conquer” by creating “problems” where none exist (e.g., the nonexistent “voter fraud” problem) and by pitting private-sector vs. public-sector middle-class workers, when the reality is that we’re all in the middle class together.

ALEC’s supporters include a number of Nevada legislators: Don Gustavson, James Settelmeyer, Michael Roberson, Ben Kieckhefer, Jim Wheeler, Randy Kirner, Scott Hammond, Pat Hickey, Ira Hansen, and Jill Dickman, among others, who have sponsored ALEC bills in this legislative session.

Here’s what you can do to help your family: Tell your legislators not to support ALEC bills; then vote ALEC supporters out of office.

Nevadans ought to kick the canned ALEC bills back to the billionaires on Wall Street; we don’t need ‘em.

Harry Burchfield

Carson City

Light clothing can save pedestrians’ lives

In the last months people have been hit on the road, and even with all the advice that our law enforcement gives, more apparently is needed.

It’s always mentioned to wear light clothing, which unfortunately the walkers seem not to want to do. It’s also suggested they have lights, but I’ve never seen it mentioned walkers should shine bright lights directly at the drivers’ eyes; this does not help at all. If you walkers doubt this, check with your optometrist.

I had a very scary happening when coming home. As I turned onto the through road before coming to the turn onto our cul-de-sac, both my husband and I saw a couple bright lights, but as they were directed up toward our vehicle, it appeared to be another vehicle, probably another street away. Fortunately at the last moment, I realized these were walkers, all in very dark clothing walking on the side of the road and not far away, so I was able to avoid them.

I hope whoever this was will think on what I said and perhaps read this and learn from it. Blinded by bright lights in one’s eyes does not tell me people are behind those lights! Aim them down toward the road so that we have an indication of just where you are!

Sadly, this is not the first time we’ve encountered people walking in dark clothing, and some even without the help of a light. Put some light clothing on to save your life.

Judy DeRyke

Minden