LETTERS

LITTLE ROCK — Why turn back the clock?

When you think of advancements for mankind the last couple of centuries, the internal combustion engine comes to mind. So does the telephone, the combine and, oh, yes, electricity. Where would we be without these wonderful inventions?

My parents grew up without the benefits of these advancements, primarily because they lived in rural America and couldn’t afford them. I’ve heard them speak often of hard times, times when enough food was a real struggle, times when light was provided by coal oil lamps, clothes were washed in an iron pot over a fire and transportation was a mule or your own legs.

When my parents spoke of those harsh times, they never smiled or remembered them with fondness, but just the opposite: sad and unhappy times. My parents, having lived in modern times, would never have returned to those brutal days even if they’d had a choice, and neither would I, so would somebody please explain why others want to?

My grandparents couldn’t afford electricity because they lived in rural America. If they stop the Turk power plant, we won’t be able to afford it, either. Is that what these groups that are against it want, to stop the flow of affordable electricity so we all have to go back to the horse-and-buggy days? Or do they want us washing our clothes in a cast-iron pot? How do they want us to light our homes or stay warm in the winter? I just don’t understand it.

HIX SMITH Nashville

Elect commissioners

Thanks to John C. Pickett for his guest column about the Public Service Commission. It should be abolished and have five elected members,one from each of the congressional districts and one from the state at large.

Southwestern Electric Power Co. continued the work when under orders to wait. It should have to pay to demolish the plant and try to return the land to original wilderness.

The ecology in that area is worth more than coal fire and energy to sell to Texas and Louisiana.

MATILDA WYNNE New Edinburg

Pain won’t be easier

Re the letter from Polly Munkberg of Little Rock, who believes that not allowing women who are victims of rape and incest to receive paid abortions through the health insurance exchanges is cruel: Does she believe that performing another cruel act will lessen the woman’s pain? I don’t think so.

Not only will the woman have to live with the brutal act committed against her, but she will have to live with the pain of cruelly and painfully taking the life of an innocent baby, her innocent child.

It is proven that unborn babies actually feel the pain of abortion, and ultrasound has shown the baby in the womb cringing to get away from the abortionist’s instruments. Google “Silent Scream” and watch the video. Let’s don’t forget that our Lord, Jesus Christ, was once only a blob of tissue.

Regardless of the pain or inconvenience of an unplanned pregnancy, let’s also remember that even an embryo is a living being created in the image and likeness of God, our father.

Choose life.

MARTHA PIERONI Lake Village

False history rejected

Re Bill Keller’s recent letter: Jews have lived in Jerusalem, their historic capital, for most of the last 3,000 years, despite expulsions by Babylon, Rome and others. Under the Ottomans, Jews again comprised a majority of the city, before World War I. During the British Mandate, Arab attacks killed many Jews and drove out others, but Jews still constituted 60.4 percent of Jerusalem by 1946.

In 1948, the Arab Legion conquered the Old City and other parts of Jerusalem. They destroyed the ancient Jewish Quarter, evicted the Jews and blew up historic synagogues. For 19 years, Jews could only peer at the Western Wall through binoculars from beyond the armistice line, often drawing fire from Jordanian snipers. This was divided Jerusalem.

Jordan attacked again in 1967, but lost, and Israel reunified the city. Today, some claim that “East” Jerusalem is Arab by right. But this is simply the area east of the 1949 armistice line, occupied by Jordan and emptied of Jews until 1967. It includes the Old City with its Jewish Quarter, Mount of Olives and other former Jewish neighborhoods.

Unified Jerusalem has predominantly Arab and Jewish neighborhoods, similar to many U.S. cities with ethnically distinct areas. Those who would bar Israeli Jews from living in parts of their capital are entitled to their discriminatory views, but not to a falsified history.

ROBERT COSTRELL Fayetteville

A ‘modest proposal’

A modest proposal regarding Diane Dove’s letter in which she opposed [the applicant’s having to payfor] drug testing to receive unemployment benefits. She further stated, “[W]hy not support a bill requiring those purchasing a firearm, hunting license or concealed-carry permit to pass a drug test?”

The right to receive unemployment is not that I can recall a fundamental right. The right to keep and bear arms is, and so is freedom of speech. Since it appears that Dove wants to derogate our constitutional rights, why not go farther?

With a nod to Jonathan Swift, I propose that we require government drug testing of all folks who send letters to the editor. This might be characterized as prior restraint, but who cares anymore? I hope Meredith Oakley does not completely disagree, but is smiling at my suggestion.

JOE JAMES Newport

Losses don’t surprise

Not much wonder the Postal Service is losing customers. I mailed a small package ($5) from the Greenland Post Office on Jan. 6. It arrived in Shawnee Mission, Kan., on Jan. 20. Fifteen days, 240 miles. Pony Express did better on horseback.

ALLAN MILLER Fayetteville

What they might say

Let’s go back and talk to the Founding Fathers about guns.

“Founding Father, did you know that today we have guns that can shoot 10 times per second?”

“Ten times per second! Don’t you mean 10 times per minute ?”

“No, I mean 10 times per second.”

“How do they do that? Can they reload 10 times in a second?”

“They have these clips that hold the bullets.”

“What do they hold them for?”

“You put the clip on the bottom of the gun, and when the gun fires, another bullet goes into the gun and it is ready to fire again. Heck, you don’t even have to pull the trigger. It shoots the bullet itself. It’s called an automatic.”

“What do they use a gun like that for?”

“To kill people.”

“I will tell you one thing, I wouldn’t have written the Second Amendment like I did if I had known that folks were going to have guns like that. How many bullets did you say the clips hold?”

“Thirty.”

“Heck, our guns shot just one time. It took forever to reload and you couldn’t hit anything farther than 50 paces.”

WAYMOND TEAGUE Greenbrier

A test of intelligence

I have often heard the question, “Don’t you think President Obama is really smart?” usually followed by “Isn’t Sarah Palin dumb?” I have the belief that the average reader is smarter than Obama, and I think I can prove it with a simple test.

In 2009, Obama gave a speech to the United Nations and the world. He said no nation is superior to another nation; all nations are equal and deserve equal respect.

No, Cuba is not equal to the United States. Dictators that starve and kill their own people to stay in power and threaten their neighbors are not equal to Christian democracies. Therefore, Obama must either be naïve or willfully ignorant.

Question 1: Are all nations equal or are they are defined by their differences? Three of the most popular religions in the world are Hindu, Buddhist and Islam, each having approximately 1 billion followers.

Question 2: Are any or all of these religions equal to Christianity, the criteria being equally good and equally true?

Question 3: Is the Democratic Party equal to the Republican Party? See the criteria above.

Obama scores a miserable 0-for-3 on this test, while Palin is a perfect 3-and-0. You, the reader got 2 1/2 out of 3 correct, getting docked for being somewhat slow and indecisive on Question 2 or 3. The good news is that while you are not quite as smart as Palin, you are way smarter than Obama.

DAVID BRYANT Lonoke

Wrong compounded

I would like to say that the only thing worse than having a woman become pregnant by rape is adding a second victim through abortion. There is the option of adoption. Unfortunately, the second victim, the unborn baby, doesn’t have a voice.

DAN GRELLE Rogers

Cost’s important, too

Re the Little Rock/North Little Rock Broadway Bridge: Is bridge replacement the answer, repair out? Safety and usefulness are very important, but so is cost.

A bridge could be beautiful in simplicity. After all, an aesthetic bridge could distract and cause accidents.

SETH HENRY Stuttgart

Feedback A new kid in town

Re William C. Burk’s letter: The museum that Burk was inquiring about was called the Miles Mountain Musical Museum and it belonged to the Floyd Miles family that moved here right after World War II. From that time until he passed away, Miles was a staunch supporter and promoter of Eureka Springs.

Miles died in 1995 and the doors never reopened. All of the wonderful pieces of his collection were auctioned off in 1997.

There is a new kid on the block, however, and as of Dec. 13, 2010, it is called the Bank of Eureka Springs Historic Museum at Cornerstone Bank. It is located downtown at 70 S. Main St., will be 100 years old next year and was written up on a front-page story in The Wall Street Journal. It is one of only two banks in Northwest Arkansas that are still being run by the same families since before the stock market crash of 1929.

It is free to visitors and we welcome everyone.

JOHN FULLER CROSS Eureka Springs

Don’t change site

As I understand it, it will cost between $25 million and $57 million to improve the present site of the Arkansas State Fair and about $119 million to move it to another location.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out to let the State Fair remain where it is.

MILTON MURRAY McNeil