Letters for December 13, 2007

Who stole what from whom?
Re “Lawbreakers do not deserve legitimacy” (Right Hook, Nov. 29):

An oft-heard saying is, “What part of illegal don’t you understand?”

Here is a part that most Anglos don’t understand:

The first illegal aliens in the American West were speaking English.

They were the pioneers who crossed the Mexican border before 1848. For example John Fremont. One Nevada historian states that Fremont “entered the land of Mexico on the 27th of December 1843.” Same for the Donner Party. Or Kit Carson. Or Brigham Young.

Another historian calls the invasion of Texas “a triumph of illegal immigration.”

So Anglos need to get off their high horse about who is not following the law. A little knowledge of history would temper their moralism about illegality.

Seven Western states were taken by right of conquest—not divine right.

Granted, the best system of governance resulted from the conquest, but this does not change the facts of history.

Ted March
Reno

Doggy yoga
Re “The real warmongers” (Right Hook, Dec. 6):

Why does a dog lick its balls? Because it can.
—Ancient Koan

I know it doesn’t help to yell at your neighbor’s crazed dog. The idiot poodle just gets worse. But it feels right sometimes. So, in reference to Lafferty: Every so often a right-wing hack barks out the “democrats are warmongers” noise. You can’t expect a dog to read a dictionary. He’ll eat the pages and go on barking. But lots of people know that fighting fascist attackers (see FDR and WWII) is not warmongering. What Nixon did in Southeast Asia does, however, qualify. His antics in Chile fit, too. What Bush junior did in Iraq and wants to do in Iran qualifies. Eisenhower’s adventurism, which led to U.S. troops in Vietnam, and silly Ronald Reagan’s attack on Grenada fit the definition. Funding death squads, done on Reagan’s watch and with his knowledge (one supposes he wasn’t yet senile), and Bush the First’s invasion of Panama—that’s some warmongering. Why do party hacks like Lafferty continue to yap about this when the facts speak against them? Why do they snarl at anyone who remembers history, and yip-yip-yip about how fine their daddy-figure heroes are and bark bark bark about bad old Democrats? Because they can, which brings us back to the ancient koan.

Joe Calabrese
Truckee, Calif.

It’s money that matters
Re “Alternative medicine on trial” (Feature story, Nov. 22):

It’s no mystery that there are controlling forces underlying the staggering woes of our nation. The FDA and AMA have our current health care system in a stranglehold fueled by the billions of dollars generated by an increasingly unhealthy population forced to utilize the expensive interventions that these entities protect. There has been a strategic plan to alienate and discredit any alternative to the allopathic medical model here in the United States since the 20th century began. It’s a similar situation with our reliance on oil and the unsubsidized development of alternative energy sources. It’s enough to make one anxious and cynical and a candidate for a happy little pill. Throwing money and power at problems has become Goliath’s solution to those of us standing on the holy ground of David. Kudos to Dr. Forsythe for his tenacity and commitment to his patients and principles.

Taylor Donovan
Reno

Black helicopters
Re “Alternative medicine on trial” (Feature story, Nov. 22):

Thank you for having the courage to reveal the truth about the FDA and its connection to Big Pharma. The good doctor will not be the last to go through this ordeal. Legislation is currently before Congress that will stop all usage of anything “natural.” While doing a podcast for the Holistic Health Hotline, I was approached by Air Force helicopters. I was discussing the FDA in relationship to mandatory vaccines, and my listeners got to hear them while they hovered for more than three minutes. None of this is new, and I am gratified that at least this man’s story made the papers.

Rayna Gangi
Daphne, Ala.

A little help, please
Re “Upward bound” (Feature story, May 12, 2005):

We are some of Mrs. Casey’s ninth grade students at Hutto High School. We plan to enter a documentary contest sponsored by C-SPAN. This documentary will cover the controversy surrounding stem cell research. Your story on Ricci Kilgore was very insightful, and we would like to interview her for our project. Would you consider giving us contact information for her? This would be greatly appreciated. Below is the web address of C-SPAN if you wish to have more information on the guidelines of the contest: www.studentcam.org/About.html. Thank you for your time. We look forward to hearing from you.

Jackie Casey
Hutto, Texas