Why is GOP so frightened of Tea Party candidate?
To the editor:
I've been reading about the concerns Republicans have regarding the Senate campaign of Jon Scott Ashjian under the Nevada Tea Party banner. Their concern seems to be based on the prospect that he will split votes from the mainstream GOP candidate and thereby hand Democratic Sen. Harry Reid a re-election victory.
Election campaigns are similar to selling products. It's all about marketing. If the GOP has a substantive, quality candidate, with ideas that resonate with the electorate, why fear any competitor? If the Republican candidate cannot convince voters that he/she is the best person for the job, why should that candidate be elected?
It's about time for new blood to be infused into our political process. Many have commented that all incumbents should be thrown out; but what good is replacing old politicians with new ones from the same parties who are beholden to the same power structures?
What we have now is simply more of the same. The prospect of new parties, both conservative and liberal, just might provide opportunity for new ideas to be presented, discussed and either accepted or rejected by the voters.
Joel Rector
North Las Vegas
Evolving responsibilities
To the editor:
In response to the Tuesday editorial "Now burn it":
You mistakenly claim that the North Las Vegas firefighters didn't make contract concessions. Cost of living increases, step raises and staffing levels of fire apparatus have already been conceded contractually for the past year ... with more concessions to come. Our union was the first bargaining entity to the table when times got tough, but that seems to have been left out of your editorial.
As passions flare and the debate rages, I believe the pertinent focus has shifted from the highest priority -- the citizens of North Las Vegas. The constantly evolving realm of emergency medical service has adapted and changed throughout the past 40 years from merely throwing the patient onto a gurney and whisking him to a hospital, into a comprehensive pre-hospital system of life-saving techniques and technology. The mixture of private, profit-based caregivers with non-profit, publicly funded fire service has been a necessity to meet the emergent medical demands of our fast-growing communities.
I liken it to the subjective argument of leasing an automobile or buying it outright. By leasing, you are paying less in the short term, but in the end gain nothing but the use of the car. When purchasing a vehicle outright, your investment is prolonged by three to four times with proper maintenance and care.
If the city of North Las Vegas continues to "lease" EMS services from the monopoly that currently provides services to 80 percent of the valley, they are forgetting their most important client -- the taxpayers. In a snapshot of the EMS evolution, with our current system, AMR and Medic West frequently are faced with the dilemma of late arrival times to a scene or not even having "available" units to transport patients, thereby having city units transport the patients to an emergency room. Is this what we deem "adequate service"?
What if it was your parent waiting for emergency transport services that won't show up because Medic West or AMR are "unavailable" or "delayed"?
We have seen bulletproof companies such as General Motors and Goldman-Sachs suddenly bankrupt and unable to continue without a billion-dollar bailout from the taxpayers. Who's to say that the same thing won't happen to the parent company of AMR and Medic West, Emergency Medical Services Corp.? The 911 system must continue to function if their doors should close. The only way to ensure for that possibility is to step up the public-sector's capabilities and responsibilities to meet the ever-growing EMS needs of the public.
Having our emergency response "eggs" in one proverbial basket is a sure-fire recipe for disaster in these dynamic economic times.
The evolution of our system is at hand, as it has been for the past 40 years, and we must look to the future needs and developments of our community to be prepared for the changes to come. Prudence dictates the need to diversify and expand our realm of responsibilities to ensure seamlessly continuous and quality care to the citizens of North Las Vegas.
Tim Mikita
Las Vegas
The writer is North Las Vegas firefighter.
Earth Day
To the editor:
I read that the Strip casinos will shut the lights on March 27 in honor of the Earth Day and thus spread the darkness over Las Vegas.
How appropriate to honor in this manner the environmental cult of death.
Why cult of death? Well, many of our environmentalists think that the present global population of 6.5 billion is "unsustainable" and should be reduced to 1 billion.
And they are hard working to get there.
If the global cooling scam of the 1970s couldn't do it, then the global warming hoax of the 1990s should certainly be tried. Whatever happens to the climate should be impetus for us to nationalize oil and gas companies, coal mining companies, electric utilities, car companies, banks, insurance companies and the health care industry. We now must deal with the cap-and-trade power grab.
Now that will get us to that "sustainable" population of 1 billion!
Spread the darkness over the Earth indeed on this coming "Earth Day."
How symbolic.
Marc Jeric
Las Vegas
