Letters for August 20, 2015

Can’t evolve

Re “Loaded argument” (Notes from the Neon Babylon, Aug. 6):

Bruce Van Dyke’s “Loaded Argument” hit the nail on the head! Some people just can’t move on. They are destined to be living in the past until the day they die. So sorry for the rest of us.

Marcia Cuccaro

Carson city

Express gratitude

When we talk about health care, it’s important to remember that even though more Americans have health insurance coverage these days, millions of people still struggle to find a place to go for regular preventative care. A key part of the solution lies in our nation’s Community Health Centers, which have provided quality, affordable care for 50 years. In 2014, the Silver State’s Community Health Centers saved Nevada’s health care system $98.2 million in reduced overall costs from preventable hospitalizations and avoidable emergency room visits. Sustained federal investment is critical to our success and survival. Earlier this year, health centers barely averted a massive funding cut. Were it not for the broad bipartisanship support from Congress, 15,000 to 18,000 Nevadans would have lost access to care. This would have affected hundreds of families in our community. Today, we are grateful for their support and used National Health Center Week 2015 (August 9-15) to thank them for their hard work. All too often we have been cynical about government and our leaders in office. We are grateful because there are working families in our health center waiting rooms getting affordable health care thanks to their vote.

Nancy Hook

Carson City

Getting better all the time

I lived at the South Shore of Tahoe from ’61 to ’71, and I’m embarrassed to say I was a “Tahoe snob” working at Harveys. Once a month, my wife and I would come down to have her shop at the Wonder ladies shop and then go to the Roundhouse Room at the Nugget. Aside from that, I looked at Reno as “The Skid Row of the Sierra.” It was pretty filthy and not too inviting. However, in ’71 I was forced to move to Reno and went to work at the Mapes. From that day to this one, my love for the Truckee Meadows sprouted and has continued to grow. We’ve got it all now (good and bad). But for the most part, it seems to keep getting better. We’re a few minutes away from the Lake and the desert and only an hour’s flight to San Francisco, Los Angeles or Las Vegas. We just need to make sure that we don’t outgrow our air and water. Our next generation will solve those problems as we dealt with ours. For a wonderful history of our area read Tough Little Town on the Truckee by John Townley.

Mike Strem

Reno

Power and money

NV Energy is nothing but a scammer and a fraudster. I was one of the ironworker foremen who built the coal storage (dome alongside the freeway going to Fernley off Interstate 80 East). To this day, not one lump of coal has been stored in this facility—not one ounce. It cost millions of dollars to build, and it has a complete conveyor system to transport the material from this storage unit to be fired up and used, not to mention the furnace and support buildings and equipment. I don’t know the total value of the project, but it was in the tens of millions, and these costs were all past on to us the consumers.

Joseph Benenati

Reno

Heck no!

Re “Energy plan debated” (Upfront, Aug. 6):

Joe Heck’s comments show why he is not suited to step into Harry Reid’s shoes: Heck’s vision is small and old. The Obama plan is one that Nevada is now investing in with considerable positive return already being felt through increased jobs, additional industries moving into our state, and a cleaner world. It appears that Heck wants to govern a constituency that is small and extreme—the T-Party. Nothing they have supported thus far has moved our country forward economically or served to unify us as a country. Why does Joe Heck want to hold we Nevadans back rather than propel us to bigger and better things?

Rex Stock

Reno

Everything is one

Re “Spiritual experience” (Art of the State, Aug. 13):

For the record, there’s a slight misquote that’s extremely important to us to fix. In the third paragraph about metaphysical churches, it should not read that people are hoping to “avoid references to God,” as that could not be further from the truth. What I meant is that oftentimes people who attend metaphysical churches come from strict Catholic or Christian backgrounds, and now attend metaphysical churches hoping to avoid Christ-only doctrine. Metaphysical churches, in my experience, have always embraced references to God, Supreme Being, Divine Spirit, The Great Mystery, etc. Much love to all!

Rev. Jessica Levity

Reno

Editor’s note: We’ve changed the online story to read, “avoid references to Christ-only doctrine.”

Green machines

Re “Charging electric cars” (Upfront, Aug. 13):

The introduction of electric vehicles does change how road maintenance is to be funded. It is odd that EVs should be taxed by a different method than gasoline cars. If taxing by miles driven seems a fair way to tax EVs, then why not scrap the gasoline tax and have all cars taxed by miles driven? That would eliminate the need to tax different fuels differently and avoid having two administration methods to manage and pay for.

Another oddity regarding the Oregon scheme is tracking the cars with a device that poses privacy concerns and is expensive to establish and complex to administer. Why not use the instrument that records miles driven that is in every car on the market, the odometer. Many states already record car miles as part of the annual emissions check. The capture of the data necessary to administer miles driven already exists.

JP White Hendersonville, North Carolina

Corrections

Re “Educator” (News, Aug. 13):

The A-minus we quoted from RateYourProfessors.com was not a grade given by readers to Prof. Lafer. Rather, it reflected the average of grades reviewers said they had received from him.

Re “Biggest Little Best of Northern Nevada” (Goods & Services, Aug. 6):

Due to an editor’s error, we failed to publish the results of Best Tattoo Parlor. We regret any confusion our omission caused.

BEST TATTOO PARLOR

1. Aces Tattoo

681 S. Virginia St., 333-0915

2. A Toda Madre Tattoos

1465 S Wells Ave., 622-8189

3. Battle Born Tattoo

1717 S Wells Ave., 327-4465