Not all Sun City Summerlin residents are NIMBYs

To the editor:

I support the action of the Clark County Commission regarding opening the Lake Mead Boulevard interchange ("County to open Beltway entrance," Wednesday Review-Journal). However, I would like to make an attempt to enlighten the residents of the Las Vegas Valley, all of you, regarding the residents of Sun City Summerlin. Recent articles and editorials seem to categorize we residents, all of us, as NIMBYs (Not In My Back Yard).

We are of about the same cross-section as all other communities in the valley, although a bit older. I am a resident of Sun City Summerlin. My non-scientific poll, taken over the past two years with golf buddies, RV club members and neighbors, affirmed the desires of most of the residents here to open the Lake Mead Boulevard interchange.

We have a very small minority of folks who oppose everything. They seem to think that if it wasn't their idea, it isn't worth the action.

One of the arguments against opening the interchange held that non-residents would speed down Lake Mead Boulevard and collide with old folks. I will tell you this: I live on Villa Ridge Drive, which is a major, single-lane, east-west street within Sun City, and the residents come by my home at least 35 to 40 mph. The speed limit is 25 mph -- I have trouble backing out of my driveway!

Old folks driving slowly on Lake Mead Boulevard will not be the problem. So, the argument that Sun City residents drive at 25 mph and are a hazard to other drivers is a myth. Come by my house, plunk down a chair and watch the cars speed by.

Thank you, Clark County Commission, for opening the interchange -- from a Sun City resident.

Review-Journal, please make it very clear, somehow, that not all Sun City residents are NIMBYs.

Jerry Pattison

LAS VEGAS

Create 'green lanes'

To the editor:

Let's have the Legislature designate a "green lane" on our highways and byways. Yep, the far right lane would be the "green lane." Set the maximum speed at 55 mph and the minimum speed at 45 mph. All other lanes would have to be set at a 65 mph minimum, of course. This would move traffic smoothly during rush hour and still allow those of us with somewhere to go to get there, while allowing those who like to drive in the fast lane at 55 to have their own lane.

Ever notice how there are huge breaks in traffic in front of those drivers who insist on driving under the speed limit in the fast lane? What would be the impact of having Highway Patrol troopers writing citations for impeding traffic? I am guessing that it would help with congestion and bring in more revenue for the nanny-staters to spend on whatever social program is popular at any particular time.

Nicholas P. Gartner

LAS VEGAS

Supply and demand

To the editor:

Has anyone noticed the sudden drop in the price of fuel at the pumps in the previous weeks? You can thank President Bush for that.

In contrast, if you should happen to notice the price for the aforementioned commodity begin to go up in the weeks to come, if you haven't noticed already, put the thanks squarely where it belongs: on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Let me stave off the usual accusations of Republican bias by putting things into proper perspective:

By early July, courtesy of the macro-economic law of supply and demand, the price of oil per barrel -- controlled by policies established by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries -- had reached an all-time high of $147, ringing prices at the pump to more than $4 per gallon nationwide.

By July 14, President Bush had lifted an executive ban on offshore oil drilling in order to send a message to OPEC: Increase crude oil production or we drill for our own oil. OPEC's planned increase in crude oil production from 32.31 million barrels per day in the second quarter to 32.88 million barrels per day in the current third quarter (according to the federal Energy Information Administration), combined with a rapid drop in demand on the part of the American consumer and a stronger dollar, started bringing relief to Americans at the pump.

Although it seems to have worked, there comes only one flaw: new oil exploration on the outer continental shelf will remain off limits until a Democrat-controlled Congress takes action.

Sen. Reid and Speaker Pelosi put the environmental Nazis ahead of the welfare of the American people.

Mark Wilson

HENDERSON

Who's got next round?

To the editor:

I have followed the excellent work by the Review-Journal in exposing drinking on the job by construction workers at the CityCenter project. We can certainly agree that even minor impairment from drugs or alcohol can create a dangerous situation for not only the worker, but the people around the worker. Any form of impairment on a job site can affect both the judgment and coordination of the worker, and definitely have an adverse influence on the work product, as well as the more immediate and obvious danger from injury to the worker or those around him. The more responsibility vested in a worker, the greater danger he creates with impaired judgment.

With that in mind, I encourage the media to look beyond merely the workers at CityCenter, and to cast the same critical eye on journalists, attorneys, public employees and particularly our elected officials. Surely the work product, judgment and lasting effect of their possible impaired judgment is even more dangerous to the public than an electrician or carpenter ingesting alcohol before starting work.

We are all familiar with the three-martini business lunch so enjoyed by the white-collar community; perhaps well-placed photographers and reporters at many of the restaurants and pubs visited by these non-construction workers would turn up examples of imbibing alcohol during the lunch hour.

Thomas A. Gauldin

HENDERSON

Charter schools

To the editor:

Thank you for your excellent editorial taking the Nevada State Board of Education to task over the newly lifted moratorium on charter schools ("School choice," August 15). Obviously, charter schools are wildly popular with Nevada parents, providing a welcome relief from the status quo.

I find it telling that the board lifted the moratorium only after receiving additional funding for a position dedicated to reviewing charter school applications -- when the status quo holds the power, it tends to hold hostage the popular ideas that benefit people if it feels threatened by them.

Thanks for holding the State Board of Education's feet to the fire on this subject. I think you summed up the situation, not just in Nevada, but in many states nationwide, by stating: "Heaven forbid an enterprise make such efficient use of the identical resources given to public schools that there's some left over. Heaven forbid enough of these institutions succeed that ever more citizens want to give them a try. That might introduce the behemoth [insert name of local entity here] to the one thing it fears most: competitive pressure."

Karla Dial

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.

THE WRITER IS MANAGING EDITOR OF SCHOOL REFORM NEWS.