No one’s buying ObamaCare sales pitch

To the editor:

President Obama has dispatched his administration to go out and “sell” the virtues of ObamaCare through various outlets in society such as the NFL, Hollywood and many government and private-sector unions across the United States. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., warned that the NFL and its brand were at risk of alienating its fans across the country. He was right. The NFL declined.

Why does the president have to “sell” ObamaCare enrollment this way to the American people? Why is he using our tax dollars to do so? ObamaCare is the law of the land now, and we are going to have to deal with its aftermath. The costs and the consequences of ObamaCare are well-documented, so why is he trying to “sell” it to us?

MIKE BRYANT

LAS VEGAS

Suing North Las Vegas

To the editor:

I want to thank Gregory Smith for acting on behalf of the residents of North Las Vegas and suing the city (“North Las Vegas sued over plan to seize home mortgages,” June 28 Review-Journal). It’s clear pursuant to NRS 268.008 that eminent domain can only be used if it is for the common good of the city, not for the benefit of individuals.

However, again the City Council has again gone against the will of the people. As the lawsuit by Mr. Smith will show, the city is again engaging in illegal actions, but in the end, when this lawsuit is settled, the only loss to taxpayers will be the legal costs. This will be a far cry from the expense to the taxpayers of all the mortgages the city hopes to buy.

So why did the City Council do this when the new mayor and the new councilman had not yet been seated? If anything, this proposal should have been decided by the new mayor and council. Reading between the lines, those who voted for this, besides being involved in the lawsuit, should be recalled for not acting in the best interest of the residents.

I hope in the future that North Las Vegas residents will vote for people who can use both sides of their brain, and not because of name recognition. Otherwise, let’s have Las Vegas take over the city — Las Vegas is proactive for its residents — before we go totally broke and have the state take over.

Again, thanks for caring for this city, Mr. Smith. Maybe you should run for office?

GERALD McNULTY

NORTH LAS VEGAS

Effective education

To the editor:

I’ve been an educator for more than 50 years and have seen some teaching procedures make a difference and others fail our children. Some letter writers feel that hiring Teach For America recruits for our schools is good for our children. However, allowing untrained persons to learn on the job is tantamount to using our children as guinea pigs.

Some letter writers feel that more money should be invested in our school system for reduction of class sizes. To do what? Maintain the same ineffective teaching methods?

The key to teaching children is the teacher in the classroom. When we train teachers to use effective and efficient methods and procedures, we will have children who learn and can transfer that learning to situations outside the classroom. Children, then, can become more productive members of our society.

Clark County School District administrators remain comfortable with the status quo, which equates to the same ineffective methods and procedures. There is, in existence, a reading-language program that is affordable, easy and effective. However, the school district will not validate it. It incorporates word analysis with content meaning and other particulars of the English language. It’s a necessity for all children, especially Hispanic children who are introduced to English in the schools.

The public should demand that the Clark County School District use such a method. It will send a message that our taxpayers can no longer tolerate our status-quo administrators.

TEDDY OSANTOWSKI

HENDERSON

Who’s moving where?

To the editor:

So, letter writer Dan Warner (“Take a bow,” Monday Review-Journal) asks himself every day why he moved from what I assume must be the heaven-on-earth state of Pennsylvania to the “Black Hole of Calcutta” that is Nevada.

He excoriates Gov. Brian Sandoval, Mayor Carolyn Goodman and our politicians who “don’t even have a clue, let alone a vision.”

He’s particularly upset about our education system, but he conveniently ignores the fact Gov. Sandoval had a whole group of bills (visions?) to improve education results. His reform proposals were killed by the teachers union. Mayor Goodman and the governor, along with every faction in Nevada across the political spectrum, supported the expansion of Teach For America. It was killed by the teachers union.

We are facing education challenges in Nevada brought on by demographics and exacerbated by an obstructionist teachers union (which now wants to pick the pockets of Nevadans for another $800 million a year) that makes Pennsylvania’s problems look like a Sunday stroll in the park.

Do we have problems? You bet. Nonsense? Absolutely. But far more people are leaving Pennsylvania and coming to Nevada rather than the other way around, and that says a lot. It may, in fact, say everything.

KNIGHT ALLEN

LAS VEGAS