Four years of progressive propaganda
To the editor:
In Sunday's Viewpoints section, T. Matthew Phillips opined that Nevada voted as if it were one of the most educated states in the union. He stated Fox Business News defined "educated" as "having a college degree."
When was the last time anyone actually believed that a college degree equaled common sense? And considering that it would be difficult to find a conservative professor at almost any institution of higher learning, it should be no surprise that with the liberal brainwashing most college graduates get in the course of a four-year indoctrination, they would come out with a progressive bias.
Those of us who still fall back on our "guns and religion" and Fox news are not really the "least educated among us," as Mr. Phillips states. We just haven't had the benefit of four years of the liberal brand of "enlightened" college brainwashing.
JERRY PATCHMAN
LAS VEGAS
Late a lot
To the editor,
Regarding Las Vegas firefighters' superior response times to medical emergencies, Graham H. Tye (Monday letter) makes the observation that we are at a competitive advantage to American Medical Response ambulances because "Private services, unlike the Fire Department, have been unable to purchase the Opticom device used to change traffic lights from red to green."
It is an easily made mistake.
Actually, AMR ambulances were late for emergency 911 calls 11,171 times last year. The same company was "unable to respond" some 408 times in the first nine months of this year in the city of Las Vegas.
AMR entered into a franchise agreement with the city of Las Vegas knowing it did not have Opticoms to meet their 11:59 response time.
The Opticom system can be a valuable tool, allowing emergency responders to shave seconds off of their response times. We have a record of showing up within six minutes. AMR's goal is to arrive on scene within 11 minutes, 59 seconds. They missed that mark more than 11,000 times last year.
Picking up a couple of seconds wouldn't have improved AMR's record much. It certainly wouldn't have made a difference in its inability to respond more than 400 times in the first nine months of this year to all types of medical emergencies.
SCOTT JOHNSON
LAS VEGAS
The writer is vice president of Las Vegas Firefighters Local 1285.
Freedom
To the editor:
It's admirable that Stan Vaughan of the Independent American Party has launched his drive for states to secede from the union, and it makes perfect sense for citizens to support his position and sign his petition (Nov. 13 Review-Journal). Who wouldn't want the freedom to fend for themselves, exempt from taxation and government overreach?
The federal government provides or subsidizes so many unnecessary services like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, ObamaCare, veterans' benefits, aid to education and dependent children, disaster relief, the federal highway system, the National Guard, the U.S. military, unemployment compensation, food stamps, free emergency health care, DOD, DDOE, USPS, USDA, FAA, FCC, NTSB, TVA, FDIC, HUD, VA, NLRB, EPA, et al. (look them up), and I'm certain there are many more.
In addition, there would be no need to vote because you would have no president, Congress, Senate, federal courts, judges or prisons. You would finally be totally free to live as you like, totally independent of government control and/or safeguards to your civil liberties. This must be exactly what the Tea Party has been demanding for the past four years when it decided to take the country back - to the 18th century.
Oh, for the good old days without an interstate highway system, railroads or municipal airports. The Pony Express looks pretty good. But no, that was a federal program! Oh, well. Enjoy your freedoms.
DIANE J. KREMSER
LAS VEGAS
Treason
To the editor:
Those who advocate secession are committing acts of treason and should be treated as enemies of this country (Nov. 13 Review-Journal). They should take a cue from Mitt Romney and self-deport, renounce their citizenship or surrender to the authorities for prosecution. In any case, good luck on finding a country that will accept you.
The conservative elements of this country are proving that they are the ultimate sore losers, blindly spouting the same tired ideas and threats yet again and expecting different results.
STEVEN SMITH
LAS VEGAS
Richie Rich
To the editor:
Glenn Cook was almost right when he announced the GOP's big problem is its messaging (Sunday column, "The GOP's greatest loss"). But its problem isn't the messaging, it's the message, which was made very clear: What's most important for the country is that the ultra-rich be given special treatment at the expense of the rest of the country, and God help everyone else.
Its greatest loss? That Republicans are now jumping through so many hoops to rationalize Mitt Romney's sweeping loss to President Obama and the many gains progressives made around the country in the 2012 elections, rather than accept that their message might not have especially wide appeal, no matter how many TV ads are paid for by Sheldon Adelson, the Koch brothers and myriad other ultra-rich party backers and corporations.
STEVEN GRANT
HENDERSON
It never works
To the editor:
I would like to compliment Review-Journal columnist Glenn Cook for his succinct, well-reasoned and terrifyingly accurate assessment of the shape of things to come in our once great country (Sunday).
And a word to my fellow Americans who voted for this "progressive" form of governance: When this economic Ponzi scheme collapses, when the erosion of our personal liberties becomes manifest, when you're eating government-issued swill and wearing government-issued chains, I wish you bon appetit. You'll richly deserve it.
GEORGE EVASHWICK
BULLHEAD CITY, ARIZ.
Stickin' with the union
To the editor:
Finally, after 10 years, the Obama administration has approved, in spite of the congressional decision to the contrary, the unionization of the Transportation Security Administration. We can now expect the usual amount of featherbedding, over-manning, new work rules with numerous union stewards enforcing them, and a stricter enforcement of anti-profiling edicts (frisk everybody except young Arab terrorists.) TSA had no right to strike - but now they do!
Another nail in the coffin of the good old USA.
MARC JERIC
LAS VEGAS
