But what about Interstate 15?
To the editor:
Reading Tuesday's article about the legislators who wish to create a north-south interstate in Nevada makes me wonder: What qualifications are required to be an assistant director at the state Department of Transportation?
Geography knowledge doesn't seem to be one of them.
NDOT's Kent Cooper says, "There are no north-south interstates between California and Colorado."
Just to be sure, I looked at a map of the United States and found that Nevada and Utah lay smack dab in the middle of California and Colorado. Looking closer at the map, I noticed a big red line going from the bottom of Nevada through the top of Utah, into Idaho and Montana, all the way to the Canadian border.
Maybe Mr. Cooper meant to say that there is no north-south interstate that runs through the majority of Nevada.
Tim Friedenberg
Las Vegas
War experts
To the editor:
A few short years ago, four (and many more) politically ambitious lawyers, masquerading as senators, severely criticized the architect of the only intelligent strategy ever to emerge from our sorry Middle East wars. Gen. David Petraeus and his "surge" strategy were viciously attacked by the arrogant senators, who had neither the knowledge nor the experience, nor the intelligence to even discuss complex military matters with him.
One of them, Sen. Barack Obama, whose strategic expertise came from community organizing in Chicago, harshly lectured the general he now desperately depends on in his hour of need.
Another one, Sen. Hillary Clinton, who actually saw the ugly face of war up close dodging bullets in Bosnia, thought very little of the general and his plan because he worked for the commander in chief she planned to replace.
Another deep thinker, Sen. Joe Biden, who believes the Bosniaks/Bosnians have been fighting a civil war for a thousand years and who is a great nation builder/divider, thought little of the general and that surge business and explained that the complex problem in Iraq was easily solved by separating all those troublesome Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds and giving them their own countries, as if they were children who can't play together and need their own space. (One wonders how he proposes to solve the cultural tensions in our country.)
The last senator, Harry Reid, older and wiser than the rest, declared that not only was the surge worthless, but the entire Iraq war was lost and that was because our president was a "loser." Sen. Reid probably gained his military expertise in the boxing ring, where he was, I'm sure, always the winner and his opponents always the losers. It probably never occurred to this strategist that his irresponsible remarks were sabotaging our efforts in Iraq and giving encouragement to our enemies because his real enemy was in the White House at the time.
Now these Beltway Napoleons actually run the government! We were actually dumb or drunk or delusional enough to elect them.
And now we are paying the price.
But the price we are paying is trivial compared to our soldiers, who have the incredible misfortune of having their fate in the hands of such leaders. Let's hope they get out of the way and pontificate about something they actually know about, and let's hope that Gen. Petraeus is given the resources to do in Afghanistan what he so brilliantly did in Iraq.
Jim Pappas
Las Vegas
Dr. Evil
To the editor:
Each time I read about "Dr." Dipak Desai I feel sick (June 19 Review-Journal). The only just punishment for this monster would be for someone to perform a colonoscopy on him according to his methods.
NAOMI PLISKY
LAS VEGAS
Boycott worry
To the editor:
As I do each morning at breakfast, I read my newspaper. One recent morning, there was a small article relative to an initiative launched by Assemblyman Chad Christensen. It would create a law cracking down on illegal immigrants.
Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority said, "We cannot afford to give people a reason to choose other cities for business or leisure travel."
To Mr. Ralenkotter, it doesn't matter that the illegals break our laws and cause social and economic problems in our country. The dollar in Nevada is the only thing that is important.
If large groups of terrorists came to Las Vegas, that would be just fine, so long as they were spending dollars. Let's not offend anyone who might visit if we took action against the terrorists.
It was said, "We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics."
WALTER E. GUNTHER
LAS VEGAS
Search this
To the editor:
I am amazed by the search of Walt Churchill's home ("Las Vegas man accuses police of assault," Wednesday Review-Journal). I guess the police no longer need a search warrant to search someone's home, they just need a phone call.
That should be hard to get.
I would think they'd ask for an ID, and if it's that person's home, they should not be able to search. The potential for abuse otherwise is too great.
DAVID BLACK
LAS VEGAS
Heartless politicians
To the editor:
I find it appalling that both sides of the aisle find that they can play their political games with the lives of people depending on unemployment checks for the sake of re-election hopes ("Republicans kill jobless aid bill," Friday). What happens now? People depending on the checks for rent, mortgage, bills and food are suddenly left with nothing, while still applying for a job.
The move is always, "We're doing this for our children and our children's children." What about the children of the unemployed right now?
Congress can bail out banks, car companies, send aid to Haiti or wherever the next disaster is, and ignore the people who are unemployed because of this depression?
I can only think of voting "None of These Candidates" in the November election.
Barbara Lakkard
Las Vegas
