Letters for December 7, 2006

Help the already born
Re “Combine church and state” (Letters, Nov. 30):

Mary Santomauro—who is rapidly becoming one of the most annoying correspondents to this newspaper since Wild Bill stopped writing—should have paid better attention in her fourth-grade civics class. The amendment forbidding laws respecting the “establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” most definitely includes the intention to forbid any attempts to make any single religious belief legally mandated. Many of our founding fathers came to this country specifically to escape the Church of England, which had a long and sometimes bloody history of suppressing other religious groups. They wanted to make sure it couldn’t happen here.

A woman’s body is her own, and while I would fight tooth and nail against any law that would force Ms. Santomauro to have an abortion, I have to say that I’ve never heard of such a ridiculous and wicked law ever being mentioned. In the meantime, I am adamant that women who need and want an abortion must be allowed to have it. While the Mary Santomauros of the world consider the fetus to be a soul, and abortion a mortal sin, many other women (of other religious beliefs) do not (or else they believe that bringing a child into a world where they don’t have the physical or emotional resources to care for it is an even greater sin). That belief has just as much legal and moral right to exist and to govern their actions as Mary’s does to govern her behavior.

I would be interested to hear Ms. Santomauro’s beliefs (or those of her church) concerning the fetus after it’s born. Her letters haven’t touched on those social issues, but I have found that the vast majority of the fundamental religionists whom I’ve heard or read protesting a woman’s right to choose seem also to be against giving any kind of support to welfare, healthcare or birth control for the poor, meaningful sexual education, or, in short, anything that would help a woman provide for or prevent the conception of unplanned children. Apparently, to them, once the fetus is no longer a fetus, it becomes a “no-good welfare leech” and is unworthy of further consideration.

James Winn
Reno

Bynum missed the mark
Re “Easygoing pizza” (Foodfinds, Nov. 22):

I enjoy Brad Bynum’s restaurant reviews and have even discovered some nifty places as a result of reading them, but I want to counter his comments about Slices Pizza. Overall, his review doesn’t paint a bad picture, though I consider the pizza to be very good, solid, basic pizza. (It seems he forgot the “very.") But I hope people aren’t turned away by his closing paragraphs, in which he says the parking lot smells like raw sewage, and the restaurant is inconveniently located. First, I’ve been there several times and have never smelled anything other than yummy pizza. Second, it’s not inconvenient at all to the hundreds of folks who live just north of El Rancho and McCarran in a very quickly growing residential neighborhood. If it’s inconvenient, I guess it’s curtains for the Del Taco, Arby’s, Wendy’s, Round Table, Quizno’s, Starbucks, Subway, Baskin Robbins, etc. that reside within a stone’s throw. Slices is exactly the sort of neighborhood restaurant my neighbors and I had been waiting for, and we think it’s great.

Pat Thomas
Sparks

Sick of Lafferty
Re “Democrats may win on empty promises” (Right Hook, Nov. 9):

While some readers may enjoy a counterpoint to a mostly liberal paper, I must say I’m getting pretty sick of Lafferty’s poor excuse for a right-wing ideologue.

His pre-election column predicting Republican victory based on voter turnout, given the election’s historic results, are hilarious. The rest of his “column,” however, was insulting in a most Coulteresque manner.

This guy is really the best right-leaning writer you guys could come up with? Retreaded Limbaugh talking points would be a kind description of his drivel.

Guess what? We did show up on Tuesday. We did articulate a better strategy for America’s future. In short, Democrats did kick Republicans’ ass!

His statistical nonsense about red vs. blue states will now need updating as Republicans lost half their “red” states to clearer heads. Bush’s utter capitulation and ass-kissing the day after his “thumping” shows how deep his convictions really lie. (The day before, a vote for Democrats meant the terrorists win, the day after, “I know the Democrats want to beat the terrorists as much as I do.")

I’m sure this titanic shift in power won’t temper Lafferty’s ego in the slightest. Humility requires character.

John Pohl
Reno

Correction
Re “Easygoing pizza” (Foodfinds, Nov. 22):

In the review of Slices restaurant, the address 2975 Northtowne Lane was published. This is incorrect. The correct address is 2975 El Rancho Blvd. We apologize for any confusion our mistake caused. This has been corrected on the Web site.