LETTERS: Economy should be No. 1 priority

To the editor:

Once again, President Barack Obama and our illustrious Sen. Harry Reid are ignoring what I perceive as the biggest problem facing this nation: the economy. They’ve challenged and allowed Congress to get sidetracked on ObamaCare, gun control, immigration, Syria, etc., while ignoring the economy.

I feel for the third-world folks ruled by tyrants and dictators, but this country needs to get its own affairs in order before trying to help other countries. There are plenty of folks here at home needing jobs and protection from losing their homes. The president and Congress need to make the United States their No. 1 priority, working on tax reform and jobs for the American people.

BILL WILSON

HENDERSON

Defend Syrian children

To the editor:

In David Meckley’s Sept. 8 letter in the Review-Journal (“Let’s start defending American lives”), he claims that the Obama administration doesn’t value American lives as much as Syrian lives, and that the U.S. “only defends those killed fighting in a civil war that does not involve the United States.”

To support his claim, Mr. Meckley asserts that there was no American retaliation after four Americans were killed in Benghazi nor any American retaliation after border guard Brian Terry was killed. While their deaths were tragic, at least they were adults who were killed in the line of duty and who were aware from the outset that their jobs entailed significant risk of harm, or even death.

Conspicuously absent from Mr. Meckley’s letter is the fact that the thousands of dead in Syria include innocent children. Surely those children were not fighting in a civil war or otherwise killed in the line of duty. Also conspicuously absent from his letter is the fact that those children were killed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons and that the use of such weapons violates the ban against chemical weapons, which has been agreed to by 189 countries and member states, including even Iran and Iraq.

As far as protecting American lives, Mr. Meckley also ignores the fact that the proposed campaign by the United States to use military force to deter President Assad’s use of chemical weapons would not only help protect the lives of Syrian children, but also protect American lives by deterring Syria or any other adversary from using chemical weapons against American troops in any future military campaign, wherever it might take place.

STEVE DANNING

LAS VEGAS

Casa de Shenandoah

To the editor:

I have lived in Las Vegas since 1959, and I’m among the many good citizens of this town who have converted lawns and gardens that we had grown and tended with pride into desert landscaping. This conversion was not easy, but we did it because it was necessary. The water conservation program in Las Vegas has been a success because of our efforts.

So along comes the new owner of Casa de Shenandoah adding 39 acres of grass (“All dressed up, but what’s the goal,” Sept. 6 Review-Journal). Lacy Harber also added 1,500 trees and bushes, and he’s bragging about it? Shame on him. Did Mr. Harber need to get any kind of permission to do this, any licenses or city planning? If not, why?

Please don’t insult us by mentioning his charitable donations (which are tax deductible). Let us be charitable for a moment and educate this new owner regarding the water history of Las Vegas, giving him the chance to undo what has been done.

JANET KRAVENKO

LAS VEGAS