Letters for February 27, 2003

V for Victory
The women of V-Day and The Vagina Monologues would like to thank the community of Chico for its support in joining us in our endeavor to stop the violence against women and girls. Together we raised $16,000, of which 10 percent will be distributed to the Canadian Native Women’s Association, while the bulk of the monies will be staying right here in Chico supporting our local Rape Crisis and Catalyst as well as our own community theater, The Senator.

The women of V-Day are a grassroots ensemble. The play is performed by college students and women within our community who have graciously volunteered their energy and time. We are humbled and grateful to share the stage with courageous talented wild women who decided to use their voices for a noble cause.

Elizabeth Coudright

Candace Phillips
Chico

Scholastic challenge
We are writing regarding the financial crisis facing our school district. Our family has had four children educated in our local public schools. They were able to have this privilege because the community taxed itself to provide this benefit. We are now retired, and our children are grown. The education they received from CUSD has been the basis for their success in life.

We are aware that this crisis will affect teachers and support staff and their ability to provide for their own families. But, most important, the lack of funding will affect the ability of our community’s children to have the best education we can provide for them. Our community’s as well as our country’s health, vigor and quality of life are dependent on an informed and educated population.

We challenge our neighbors to step up to the plate and come to the aid of our kids and our schools. If each family were willing to donate, according to its means, a set amount each month until this crisis is over, we can help our schools maintain their standards and our neighbors who may lose their source of income due to budget cuts. If we all pull together, we can help our kids and our community. We’ll be first? What about you?

Homer and Loretta Metcalf
Cohasset

Multiple choice
Supporting, questioning or protesting a possible war with Iraq does not prove or disprove a citizen’s patriotism. Democracy relies on a diversity of opinions and is best demonstrated when our government takes into account both conforming and dissenting viewpoints. Therefore, it’s important that each of us make our opinions known.

President Bush has stated that “War is my last choice.” So far that position has appeared to get results. Our tough posturing has yielded more from the Iraqis with each passing day: increased and “more intrusive” inspections, acceptance of surveillance flights and greater disclosure. The “intense pressure” on Iraq to comply grows with the appearance of a superpower poised to attack. Can this very credible threat eventually lead to total compliance with our disarmament edict?

Let’s continue to use the “threat” of attack to gain every possible concession from the Iraqis. If war is indeed our “last choice,” then we have many opportunities left to avoid it.

Scott Huber
Chico

Shelter reality
Here we are advertising our March 2 Open House, so it must be true. Forgive me, as I work through my disbelief that we are really done with Phase I construction. This project seemed so huge and for so long was thought of as “in the future,” it is almost unbelievable how much progress has been made! Even as I pass through the building, walking on flooring I watched Chico Community Shelter Program board members choose, as I see the decorative wall tiles I watched shelter guests paint now in place in the bathroom … it still seems unreal.

But soon the shelter will be filled with people. People no longer limited to three showers a week, people who will have the opportunity to wash their clothes, to sleep on fresh clean sheets on beds—not on mats on the floor!

And, when I think of weekends free from U-Haul rentals and loading and unloading supplies, I am filled with gratitude. Gratitude for the many congregations who have made shelter possible for the past four years, gratitude for the volunteers who have donated countless hours to feed and nurture our guests, and gratitude to the individuals who have so generously supported our efforts to get us where we are today.

There is still much work to be done, and I have no plan to become lazy, but right now I just want to enjoy this feeling of overwhelming gratitude for the amazing gift of support we have received from the community. It’s like Thanksgiving in February!

Thank you.

Tami Ritter
Executive Director

Chico Community Shelter Program

Big Santana fan
Just a quick note of praise to Kimberly Pozar for an excellent article regarding Carlos Santana’s new album Shaman [Shelflife, Dec. 12, 2002]. She really wrote a great review and I so thoroughly enjoy the CD, both guitar-jamming with it on my Fender and just simply listening to it.

Her great review was so unlike Chris Macias’ recent “hackneyed” attempt at reviewing Shaman in the Sacramento Bee. His review sucked; he put Santana down, called him “papa,” and even got the name of one of his tunes wrong! Jerk! Pompous clown!

So, kudos again to Kimberly for some inspirational words. “Sideways” is an awesome blues jam, and some of my other favorites, “Adouma,” “Foo-Foo,” “Game of Love” and “Victory Is Won” were also given high marks in her column, and I just would like to compliment her for “nailing” it so well! Way to go, News & Review! From a truly diehard Santana fan since 1968.

Joseph “Rocco” Morreale
Somewhere near Nimshew

Osama bin forgotten
Why has the man who brought down the towers been forgotten? The man President Bush solemnly promised to find and bring to justice is still loose. Why has Mr. Bush shifted our attention away to Iraq, a country that did not attack us? Even more puzzling, why did President Bush break the national ban on flying a few days after 9/11, in order to fly 11 members of bin Laden’s immediate family out of the United States? Despite the bin Laden oil family’s ties to the Bush oil family, all the bin Ladens should have been made to stay within the United States. Instead, they were whisked back to Saudi Arabia, away from us and the 3,000 families of the 9/11 victims before the bodies were even cold. Why was this done?

I wonder what the Republicans would say if President Gore had been the one to break the nationally imposed flight ban to fly out of the country the family of the world’s most wanted man? Cries of “Impeach Gore” and “Cover Up” would have deafened our ears and filled that liberal media of ours to this day. Kenneth Starr would have had no end of things to do. It would have made peanuts of his Lewinsky peeping, with all of Al Gore’s oil connections to follow hither and yon. Yet, we have no special investigators, no truth seeking task forces, no Osama and family, and no questions about it all from the major “news” networks. Alice, pass me the looking glass.

David Singelyn
Received via e-mail