Letters to the editor, Jan. 30, 2007

Tuesday, January 30, 2007 2:14 AM CST

Anti-war marches

We write to thank The Journal Times for covering Saturday's anti-war rally at Monument Square.

President Bush stated in 2003 that the war was meant to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people.

On May 1, 2003 President Bush declared victory and the end of major combat operations. However, no WMDs were ever found. The war effort has led to an increase in terrorism. And the Iraqi people are now, three years after the US "victory," embroiled in a terrible civil war.

More than 3,000 U.S. service members (68 from Wisconsin) and 34,000 Iraqi civilians have lost their lives in the Iraq war. Racine County's bill so far is $221 million.

This cost was mistakenly reported by The Journal Times as the cost for all of Wisconsin. The cost to the state has been $6 billion.

The Racine demonstration was part of a nation-wide protest against the Iraq war. Scores of community members at the rally signed letters to Rep. Paul Ryan calling for an end to the war, an end to war funding, and the return of U.S. troops. The Racine Coalition for Peace and Justice will be delivering these letters to Ryan's office on Monday, January 29 at noon. The group is also planning on demonstrations there every Friday starting February 9 for two months. We will ask Ryan to make a public declaration he will not support further funding for the war.

Sonali and Pete Knotek

Racine

Limit bridge openings

I've been considering writing this for many months now. It concerns the Main Street bridge openings. I've been thinking about submitting ideas on not opening it so often, due to the inconvenience and wear and tear. Well, in last Thursday's paper, the timing was right! I'm not sure if there's a formal procedure or not either.

The timing of the openings make me wonder too. Why around rush hour anyway? I'm sure you've driven down Main Street to be trapped by the bridge being up. I'm sure you've wondered why it's on-the-hour, right when people are getting out of work.

When I read the statements by Mr. Jones; "The deterioration was certainly unexpected" and "It's not a typical repair job for a bridge that's 10 years old", I was even more perplexed. Well, here's a solution to that problem.

Why not limit the bridge openings? This way, it will cut down on the wear by a huge 50 percent! Secondly, when it's opened three times an hour, multiply that by at least 10 minutes each, and you have the bridge being up a full 30 minutes each 60 minutes. Let's move the times away from on-the-hour too. Maybe open them at 10 minutes after, and 20 minutes before the hour? This way, the traffic from downtown will be clear by then, and it shouldn't affect workers going into downtown that start on-the-hour. The ideal thing to do would be to monitor traffic flow and see when it's jammed and not.

Yes, the boaters will have to plan things a little closer, but I'm sure their goal isn't to disrupt the vehicular traffic anyway. Like they say, "Timing is everything". It's winter now, so let's solve this issue so we won't have to go through another bridge repair, or worse yet, a "Miller Park" repair! Robert Mozol

407 Jonathon Dr., Racine

Samaritans thanked

On Wednesday, Jan. 17, at about 12:55 p.m., I was involved in a rollover accident at Highways 38 and 31.

I would like to thank all the people who stopped to give assistance, especially the two or three gentlemen who got on top of my truck, opened the door and helped me out.

Thanks to all for your help.

Ben Heffel

Mount Pleasant

Interposed in religious war

It is very clear that President George W. Bush is not serious about protecting the lives of our service men and women in Iraq. His quest for Iraq's natural resources (oil) will represent "success" in the Middle East.

The 3,000 plus deaths of these brave members of our armed forces are considered "collateral" damage and are being sacrificed in this effort.

The Shiites and Sunnis have been fighting and killing each other since 632 AD, after the death of their religious leader, Muhammad. Why do we think that our armed forces can bring peace in this very troubled part of the world? We really do not know who our enemy is. We shoot at and capture "suspected" insurgents. This is a religious/political war between the two major tribes. They all look and dress alike.

Many permanent military bases are now being built in Iraq, one of which is bigger than the Vatican in Rome. Don't let anybody fool you to think that we went to Iraq only to get rid of Saddam Hussein. The United States plans to remain in Iraq for many years to keep others from getting their hands on their oil.

This all boils down to securing a source for cheap oil. One hears little about conserving what oil we now have. Note: Hummer (10 mpg) sales are up 17 percent. We are our own worst enemy.

Royse Meyers

4011 Hounds Trail, Racine

Snow and smoke

Recently I have read letters concerning snow removal and a smoking ban in bars and restaurants. Some thoughts came to mind.

As to snow, if you want a bare pavement snow removal policy, you should be willing to pay higher taxes for overtime, salt and extra equipment. If not, just slow down or stay home.

As for a smoking ban, nobody forces you to go into a bar to have a drink. Go to a liquor store and buy a six-pack or a bottle and drink at home. Nobody forces you to go into a restaurant to eat. Go to a grocery store, buy some food and cook at home. Strange thought? Nobody forces you to work in an establishment that allows smoking. There are plenty of businesses that are smoke free that offer employment at the same wages.

It might be politically correct to jump on this bandwagon, but remember, these are privately-owned businesses. If the owner and clientele opt for a ban, then let it be handled that way. We have enough do-good laws already and give the plow jockeys a break.

Mark Johnson

Racine

Help working families

As the 110th Congress moves forward, it must address the issues that affect working families. I believe the fight for equity in education and economic security for women should be made a particular priority.

The House's "Six for `06" agenda is a reasonable start, and the Senate should follow suit and pass these basic measures, especially increasing the minimum wage and cutting student interest rates for some student loans.

It is imperative that Congress pass a responsible budget that accurately reflects our national priorities.

To meet the demands of the 21st century workforce, the federal government must increase its commitment to funding quality public education. We must also increase college aid so students can follow the dream of a college education without being saddled with crippling debt.

Congress should ensure workers have a minimum number of paid sick days to allow working parents to care for their children without fear of losing their jobs.

We must preserve the guaranteed, inflation-protected benefits of Social Security, the nation's most successful anti-poverty program in history.

Congress must also preserve and enforce Title IX, the law that prohibits sexual discrimination in education, because equity is still an issue.

The 110th Congress has a new slate, but they face many familiar problems.

I join with the American Association of University Women in urging them to make the public's priorities their priorities.

Margaret Canary

Kenosha

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