Apr 25, 2008

Letters

Obsessed with trivia

Dear Editor: Jerry Springer for president? Well if those ABC viewers had little else to go on, they would indeed expect that might be the case. All that was left out of the mix would have been having candidate Hillary Clinton stomp over to Barack Obama and wrestle him to the floor. How else to explain the 45 minutes of little more than gossip and foolishness? Could it be that corporate America wants American voters to remain on this nonintelligent level, failing to question important policy issues and concerning themselves with glitzy trivia? Meanwhile, we invade nations that annoy our elites (the real ones) and keep allowing corporations and the wealthy to "offshore" their income in ways that have nothing to do with investment strategy and everything to do with dodging the taxes that we everyday wage earners can't tuck away in the same manner, issues that remain "unnewsworthy."

Mike Caggiano,

San Mateo



Cargill proposal

Dear Editor: In response to Shaun Bishop's article of April 15 on Cargill Salt's development, it is my firm belief that the public should have the final say on such matters that affect the health and safety of everyone.

The 1,433 acres of tidal lands that Cargill wants to develop will be an environmental disaster and will affect all of us. The city council should be rejoicing that there are enough concerned citizens to help them make these kinds of crucial decisions.

Granted, the council and planners are there to run the city's business and make day-to-day decisions, but we only have to look at our national and state leaders to see what happens when you give a few too much power.

So city council, turn off Cargill's plan and allow "we the people" to have a say.

Robert F. Jordan,

Redwood City



Prostitution

Dear Editor: The most disturbing aspect of prostitution is well known to law enforcement: Many of the girls and women being used are unwilling participants. Sex with an unwilling participant is rape. That is why brothels near Las Vegas were raided.

Moreover, if a governor, attorney general or county sheriff uses a prostitute, he is subject to blackmail by anyone who knows, including members of organized crime who would like to operate in every county in America.

Gary Wesley,

Mountain View



John McCain

Dear Editor: Although I am not a fan of John McCain, I find the April 21 letter regarding his alimony payments and the speculation about his second wife paying "hush money" to his first wife to be highly objectionable. It seems inappropriate for the Daily News to provide Tona Villa with a forum for such questionable comments.

Lynne Trussell,

Palo Alto



The federal budget

Dear Editor: Peter Bradshaw (letters, April 10) suggests that another way to comprehend a billion is to note that $1 billion is about $3 per person in the U.S. This technique can also be used to grasp the size of our country's national debt, now about $9.4 trillion.

Divided among the population, this is about $31,000 for every American. Since more than 70 percent of the debt was incurred in the administrations of Reagan, Bush I and Bush II, those three presidents alone effectively present every newborn American with a notice that they already owe about $ 22,000.

Peter H. Stauffer,

Palo Alto



Trade with China

Dear Editor: When I see a picture of Chinese-Americans demonstrating against CNN's Jack Cafferty, I wonder where their loyalty lies. Cafferty spoke about our trade deficit with China (which has a tenth of our labor costs), imports of lead paint toys, poison pet food and a dogmatic dictatorial government leadership that suppresses Tibet. His remarks have nothing to do with jealousies or ethnic race. Right now, why are Western reporters exposed to e-mailed death threats by the Chinese government and unknown activists in China?

Are these Chinese-Americans demonstrators in Los Angeles loyal to the United States or to China?

Eugene Micek,

Palo Alto