Colorado Sunday
With some amusement, I noted that the Colorado Sunday section of The Denver Post celebrated it’s first year anniversary last week. I’m amazed that it has lasted this long. Each week, I keep hoping for some interesting articles that explore an area of the state in depth, and I am always disappointed. What I do find is a collection of a few unrelated factoids, and articles that are about as long as the average text message. This section seems to be written for people who have the attention span of a 2-year-old child. I sincerely hope this is not indicative of what journalism in the future will become.
Angelika Chappell, Pueblo
Debating Wal-Mart
Re: “Dems go wild bashing Wal-Mart,” Aug. 27 Jonah Goldberg column.
Jonah Goldberg overlooked some past aspects of Wal-Mart that have changed from the early ’90s to today’s Wal-Mart. How many remember Wal- Mart’s proud advertising of “Look for the Made in America Label,” representing their pride in supporting American businesses? I would like for him to find any more than a few items in any Wal-Mart store that are made in America. It is widely accepted that Wal-Mart has driven manufactures to go overseas for cheaper prices in order to sell to Wal-Mart. With the shift of items being made in foreign countries and with their being the largest retailer, most consumable goods today are not “Made in America.”
I would also like to know if anyone has looked into how much the American people supplement Wal-Mart employees in the form of food stamps and medical care. How many employees does Wal-Mart have who work full-time with no medical insurance and qualify for government-supported programs?
I do believe Wal-Mart offers savings to many shoppers. But we also need to ask, at what cost?
I do not see this as the political issue that Goldberg does.
Barbara Owens, Englewood
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I loved the column by Jonah Goldberg, and it made me think about why I love Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart and I have a good relationship. As long as they give me what I want for a price that I want to pay, they will keep getting my money. It’s like that with all the businesses where I spend my money. The only thing I spend money on that I am not happy with is the U.S. government.
So, what we have now are people pressuring the government to reign in Wal-Mart. I guess the government must be jealous, because there are those elected officials who want to do just that. Maybe it’s because Wal-Mart showed them up in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina by delivering goods efficiently.
Daniel Pratt, Lakewood
Schoettler on Bush
Re: “President Bush can step up to challenge,” Aug. 27 Gail Schoettler column.
Gail Schoettler writes that “President Bush’s obsession with taking out Saddam Hussein has only put us – and the rest of the world – at greater risk of terrorism.” If that was true, then Americans would be coming under more attacks, and countries that opposed the war would be safer. But that’s not what’s happening.
Opposition came from Morocco, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey, and they’ve all suffered bombing attacks anyway. Russia opposed the war, but terrorists massacred its citizens in Beslan anyway. Germany recently escaped attack only because the bombs that were planted trains failed to explode.
When Bill Clinton was president, Americans were targets of terrorist attacks, with the bombings of the World Trade Center, the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia, the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the USS Cole. All those attacks on Americans, as well as those on Sept. 11, occurred when there was no war in Iraq, and no such attacks on us have happened since.
Dave Olson, Westminster
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Gail Schoettler should stick to writing about water, roads, forests, trade, AIDS and other inane topics. When it comes to international relations and giving advice, she is woefully inadequate and misdirected. While she thinks she is reading the tea leaves, her advice has no more credibility than the cigarette butts in front of the 7-Eleven. If any president needed encouragement to step up to the challenge, it was President Clinton. Where was Schoettler when Clinton didn’t respond with force when the enemy directly attacked our military forces? Our allies give the appearance of being uncooperative because it is the politically correct thing to do but quietly are thankful for what President Bush is doing. They continue to help with intelligence, information, economic decisions and behind-the-scenes cooperation. Our enemy remains fearful of President Bush, for they know he means business. They just have to wait for a Democratic president whom they know will not respond with force when they attack.
Ross Moon, Colorado Springs
Troops’ entertainment
Re: “Sexy troupe boosts troops,” Aug. 27 news story.
I was disappointed with The Post’s use of the New York Times’ story for a couple of reasons.
First, there is a much more interesting local story where a number of Denver Broncos cheerleaders traveled to Iraq to entertain the troops in July. These women spent time with our troops at a number of bases, not only entertaining them but also spending time talking with them and thanking them personally for their efforts in the war.
Second, the article you used focused on the “skin show,” whereas the Broncos cheerleaders provided a little taste of America so the troops would not feel so far from home. The show was one with music, dance and comedy, providing them an opportunity to laugh with their comrades and take their minds off the task at hand.
We are extremely proud of the effort made by the Broncos cheerleaders to support our troops and thank them in person. It would have been nice for the local paper to recognize their efforts.
Kris Weston, Lone Tree
Editor’s note: The writer is the mother of a Denver Broncos cheerleader.
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I was amused to compare two photographs found in last Sunday’s Denver Post.
A picture on Page 10A, linked to a front page story, shows prostitutes in Bangkok. The article describes the unwholesome conditions found in Thailand that would interest a would-be child molester. Note the prostitute shown on the left, with high-heeled boots, brief shorts, a decorative belt, and midriff top.
A picture on Page 4A shows a performer hired by the U.S. military, dressed in high-heeled boots, brief shorts, a decorative belt, and midriff top. The article describes how our wholesome Marines enjoyed the show.
What is found to be a scourge on one hand is acceptable on the other. I would prefer to have our military tax dollars spent otherwise.
Lisa Haddox, Denver
Marijuana on state ballot
Re: “Legalizing pot would hurt kids, and here’s why,” Aug. 27 Cindy Rodríguez column.
I strongly disagree with Cindy Rodríguez’s stance against Amendment 44. Maybe it’s because I’m a college graduate myself and I work in the tech industry that all of the adult pot smokers I’ve known have been of above-average intelligence with above-average salaries.
As a woman and a taxpayer, I prefer that law enforcement direct their resources toward reducing violent crimes against women and children, not waste my money chasing down otherwise non-violent, taxpaying and law-abiding adults who use marijuana.
The war on marijuana has been costly and ineffective. It has resulted in the criminalization of the hemp plant, which has many uses and is a better crop for many U.S. farmers than cotton or other alternatives.
It’s time to move beyond alarmist language to focus our attention and resources on the real problems that confront us.
Paulie Rainbow, Denver
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Although Cindy Rodríguez admits that the moderate use of cannabis by adults is in many ways a safer alternative to alcohol, she nonetheless argues against Amendment 44 – the Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative – because she believes that pot is inappropriate for children. In fact, there are many activities in our society that are permissible for adults but forbidden for children, such as riding motorcycles, skydiving, drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco. However, we do not condone arresting adults who responsibly engage in these activities in order to dissuade adolescents from doing so. Nor should we justify arresting adult cannabis smokers on the grounds of sending a message to children.
Paul Armentano, Senior Policy Analyst, NORML, Washington, D.C.
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Cindy Rodríguez’s column hit the nail right on the head. I would like to add that marijuana is also a key gateway drug for other addictive and dangerous illicit drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin.
Robert K. Hoshide, Montrose
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Cindy Rodríguez’s arguments against Amendment 44 are persuasive, except for one key point. Relaxing anti-pot law does not mean greater use by kids. I first heard the “kids and pot” alarm in the hype leading up to California’s 1996 enactment of Proposition 215 for medical marijuana. Prop 215 would send the wrong message, I heard, and I believed it at the time. But I was wrong. Kids’ pot use has been on a downward trend since 1996, based on California’s latest biennial student survey. Prop 215 was not the only influence in the past eight years, but if it was as bad as many thought, kids’ pot use should have at least stayed flat.
John Chase, Palm Harbor, Fla.
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Re: “DEA education vs. lobbying,” Aug. 30 editorial.
I would like to say two things to Jeff Sweetin, special agent in charge for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s Denver office. First, thank you for your continuing efforts to clean up the state of Colorado. Despite the resistance you face from liberal mountain communities for your enforcement efforts, most citizens sleep better knowing your agents are up there too. Second, how can the general public make donations to help you keep marijuana illegal in Colorado?
I can only hope the general public is smart enough to see the campaign by SAFER for what it is. SAFER is clearly a bunch of losers with barely the ambition to put on a suit and come up with a misleading acronym.
There are many people in our state whose dangerous drug knowledge comes solely from what they see on television. Thankfully, the DEA is being responsible and exercising its role as non-partisan experts on the subject.
Matthew Hayes, Aurora
TO THE POINT
Re: “New campaign rules should be deferred,” Aug. 31 editorial: I’m all in favor of having each union member write his or her agreement to having union dues used to support a designated candidate – but only when each stockholder is required to sign the same agreement for their dividend being reduced for the same reason.
Dick Bulinski, Boulder
More than 90 percent of our electricity comes from coal and natural gas-fired power plants. Less than 1 percent comes from solar energy. With 300 days of sunshine a year and some of the nation’s best solar experts working in the state, Colorado should be a solar leader.
Abe Wick, Lakewood
Wow, a 33-story building to be built in Blackhawk. As hard as I look in history books, I cannot find a similar building in their past that the new one was modeled after. Blackhawk can now claim distinction for “How not to do historical preservation”!
Rick Brachtenbach, Littleton
According a Newsweek pool taken Aug. 24 and 25, President Bush’s approval rating regarding the Iraq war is 31 percent with a disapproval rating of 63 percent. So what does Donald Rumsfeld do? He says the majority of American citizens are “suffering from moral or intellectual confusion.” Smart move, Donald. It’s time for you to go to the asylum.
Tom Bunge, Denver
Sensible people have been calling for Bush to oust Rumsfeld. But speaking of bad advice, he might also do well to respectfully accept God’s resignation from his Cabinet.
Dan Lyons, Fort Collins
I read in the Pluto Times that scientists there have decided that for a celestial body to receive planet status, it must support intelligent life. Earth has, therefore, been voted off the show.
Jan Matousek, Englewood
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