Hastening transition to sustainable energy
To the editor:
Your Oct. 29 editorial, "War on fossil fuel: 9th Circuit hands greens another victory," sadly misses the point. It's true that the Sierra Club is trying to hasten the transition from fossil fuels to truly clean, renewable and affordable energy coming from sustainable wind, solar and geothermal resources. Here in Nevada we have some of the most plentiful renewable resources in the country.
But that was not even on our radar in our efforts related to the Ruby (natural gas) Pipeline.
Instead, the Sierra Club and our allies are concentrating on minimizing the adverse results of the pipeline. The project cuts across hundreds of miles of nearly pristine Nevada sagebrush habitat and streams that are vital for sage grouse, Lahontan cutthroat trout and other threatened or endangered species, jeopardizing recovery efforts already under way.
Restoring the lands and wildlife affected by the pipeline is an essential part of balancing land use in a way that benefits us all. The pipeline builder needs to take full responsibility and be held accountable for the project's effect on our clean water and wildlife. We've seen before that voluntary measures are not enough to guarantee good stewardship.
The most recent court ruling opens the door for real and enforceable measures to minimize the damage done by this pipeline and by future large-scale projects.
DAVID VON SEGGERN
RENO
The writer is chair of the Sierra Club's Great Basin Group.
Lying or incompetent?
To the editor:
It is one thing to have opinion columns. It is another to be completely ignorant of how the world works, and it is yet another to tell outright lies.
People accept that opinion columns can be flights of fancy, but at some point ignorance and lies will not be accepted by the public. If you keep doing this, then your existence as a daily newspaper is going to end sooner rather than later.
Those familiar with basic science already know that Review-Journal columnist Vin Suprynowicz has less knowledge of the physical world than trees, since trees, by their migratory behavior (yes trees and plants do migrate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forest_migration), have been demonstrating a greater awareness of global warming than Mr. Suprynowicz has shown in his writing. Perhaps he should find a tree to advise him on future climate-related columns.
Apparently, Mr. Suprynowicz is unaware that his readers also have access to the Internet, so when his Sunday column ("He wasn't supposed to leave Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty to die") contains this statement - "Curiously, Gen. Carter Ham, head of U.S. Africa Command, has been relieved of his post after only a year and a half on the job," it does not take long for someone with a triple-digit IQ to find this: (www.defense.gov/home/features/2012/0712_africom/) and this: (www.africom.mil/GenCarterHam.asp), both of which list Gen. Ham as the current commander.
The reader can now decide if the military is a week behind in getting its sites updated, or is lying, or if Mr. Suprynowicz is lying or just grossly incompetent.
As far as his snide remark about the Obama campaign writing off the white males, President Obama has only written off the uneducated white males. Among those with college degrees, the difference is only 1.5 percentage points. I do not think that Mr. Suprynowicz believes what he has written.
DOUG NUSBAUM
LAS VEGAS
Freedom doing fine
To the editor:
It would be hard to better define the state of the Republican Party than with your Wednesday photo (Page 3A) of Alicia Hayes. To be upset by your candidate's loss is understandable, but to say "Liberty and freedom died today in America," is absurd.
Today many Americans are troubled by the way the Republican Party has let a small but powerful bloc within it decide the stances it takes - far, far right of the majority. They have made it much harder for a Democrat, nonpartisan, or an undecided voter to vote for a Republican based on merit rather than affiliation.
Early in President Obama's term some members of the GOP said their goal was to make sure he was a one-term president. They did give it one hell of a shot, and they have turned a lot of the American people against them in doing so. There is so much to do for this country, trying to one-term a newly elected president should be way down on their list.
We never saw this kind of do-nothing Congress during the Reagan or Clinton years, and no, liberty and freedom didn't die then, either. If the Republican Party tries taking their head out of the sand and spending some time doing the people's business in Washington, they would sure gain back a lot of lost respect.
Mainstream Republicans, take back your party, get back to doing the work in Washington. Compromise, give and take, we really are all in it together. If anything, learn from this election and the people who voted against not so much the candidates but your party's hard-right agenda. I am proud to be an American. There is really liberty and freedom for all.
CHARLES KESSLER
HENDERSON
Coroner's inquests
To the editor:
Your Wednesday editorial suggests coroner's inquests should be resumed as soon as possible. I disagree.
We have been without the inquest process for several months, and we are none the worse for it. District Attorney Steve Wolfson is very thorough and reviews each shooting. One review even resulted in a grand jury submission.
So what is wrong with the system as it stands now? Inquests are fact-finding, public hearings that examine whether the shooting was justified. The DA does the exact same thing, only more so. He can actually file charges if the circumstances dictate. Inquests cost money and make the DA do double work. These last few months have shown that coroner's inquests are an exercise in redundancy and should be eliminated.
JOSEPH MOLINARO
HENDERSON
Road kill
To the editor:
I'd like to thank the Review-Journal for its Oct. 31 article, "Roadside memorial sought for fish." It made my day, especially during all the troublesome election news.
The article describes an animal activist group that wants to place a roadside memorial for 1,600 pounds of saltwater bass, which died when the truck carrying the fish to market crashed in California. The fact that they were about to be slaughtered is beside the point, according to this group. This would be a memorial like the ones that honor human fatalities.
Wow. I can just imagine us here in Nevada putting up roadside memorials for all the bunnies, skunks and pigeons who end up as road kill. Maybe we should be more like California and spend our money on these important projects.
LESLIE SCOTT
HENDERSON
