Las Vegas, the state and taxes
To the editor:
The Review-Journal's Thursday editorial regarding the tax study panel that Mayor Oscar Goodman is calling for perplexed my simple mind. Maybe I need to return to Government 101. Since when does a city tell a state how to structure its taxes?
Feel free to enlighten me, but it seems to me that Mayor Goodman has overstepped his boundaries.
Is his city so well run that now he can begin to delve into the concerns of the state to the degree of forming "a bipartisan panel to present ideas on how to repair the state's tax code"? Who's going to pay for this study? The city of Las Vegas? I'd love to see that invoice. Thankfully, I live in Henderson.
Rhonda Powell
HENDERSON
Name recognition
To the editor:
I have no argument with the recent letters mentioning Hillary Clinton trading on her husband's name, but why stop there? Where would Mitt Romney be without his family name and connections? And locally, where would Rory Reid be without his dad's name, and where would Lois Tarkanian be without her husband's name?
Maybe all these people and others are capable in their own right, but many people often vote positively or negatively on name recognition and not on the issues -- and candidates know this and count on it.
KENT RISCHLING
LAS VEGAS
Grand Old Patriot
To the editor:
After their deep sleep in Iowa, Republicans woke up with a start in New Hampshire. They actually voted for their best interests.
John McCain is not only the only GOP candidate who can win in November, he is the only one from either party who can govern with bipartisan support from the sane center of our political life. Confronted by extremists here and abroad, our endangered nation sorely needs guidance from a calm, strong hand; from a leader whose main concern is his country, not his party.
Sen. McCain has been severely criticized by his own ungrateful party for his "maverick" views and votes; for not being a mindless, rabidly political hack. For his basic decency and intellectual courage, he has paid a bitter price from the evangelicals and the comfortable conservatives in the GOP. We all remember their sick priorities and tactics eight years ago, when they ambushed their best man in South Carolina.
Let's hope this time around Republicans leash their attack dogs, adjust their priorities, and put this Grand Old Patriot in the Oval Office. He belongs there. He really does.
JIM PAPPAS
LAS VEGAS
Budget lesson
To the editor:
What is a budget? It's an estimate of income (the amount of money that may be available) and expenses (a plan for the coordination of expenditures to the income).
But just making up a budget does not give you the right to spend that amount of money. The estimated amount of resources may not be there, so you will need to adjust your expenditures. If my income is less than what I expect it to be, I must lower my expenses or I will have a deficit. I cannot pass that deficit on to my employer.
Thus, the government should not pass its deficit on to the taxpayers. For too long, the people we trust to run our business (the government) have done a very poor job.
TONY TORTORICH
LAS VEGAS
Spending cuts
To the editor:
I would like to express my deep concern over the governor's proposed budget cuts. Gov. Jim Gibbons is quick to point out his spending reductions do not constitute a cut because we will still have a budget 15 percent higher than the last. But when our schools will continue to be overcrowded, our children will still go uninsured, and our society's most vulnerable continue to be in harm's way, let's start calling a spade a spade and get back to reality.
These are cuts -- cuts with devastating impacts on all Nevadans.
These tough times call for serious solutions and bold leadership. Cutting budgets and claiming overall that it's still an increase is not leading, nor is it responsible governing. A true leader would see this as an opportunity to tackle the bigger issue here. And that means seriously looking into Nevada's tax structure to find sustainable revenue streams to provide basic services for one of the fastest-growing cities in the country.
With all due respect to Wyoming, we are not Wyoming. Our population will continue to grow, and Nevada deserves a governor who can keep up with its challenges. We can no longer afford to ask our community's most vulnerable to shoulder the burden -- and leadership starts from the top down.
This crisis demands collective leadership, and the central piece to that must come from the governor's mansion. The upside is a state on better financial footing, healthier communities, and a brighter future for all Nevadans.
A.J. McCLURE
HENDERSON
