Letters for February 4, 2010

Sigh

Re “Stranger in a strange land” (Feature story, Jan. 28):

I really liked this story! I know exactly how this author feels. It felt the same for my wife and me after we came back from our honeymoon. We went to France, Germany, Holland and Switzerland. When we came back to America, it felt really weird seeing huge fat people walking through the airport wearing sweatpants and drinking 42-ounce Big Gulps. Everyone really looked dirty and unkempt. It seemed our American “culture” is so scummy compared to most other countries. My wife and I looked at each other and right there, we knew America is not the No. 1 country with the highest standard of living—not even close. Comparing the super-smart and polite children of Germany, France, Holland and Switzerland and the amazingly beautiful women in Europe to our fat, slow-walking gangster kids and their obese parents wearing sweatpants and flip-flops at the airport, we knew America isn’t falling; it’s already become an international joke. The average American is very, very stupid and unhealthy—mentally, spiritually and physically—compared to citizens of most other countries. It is unfortunately a shame now to be an American when traveling abroad. Stupid people don’t know they are dumb, and our country is overflowing with ignorance. Sad.

Thomas-Wolfgang Rohan
Reno

Horse feed

I have been an opponent of the Bureau of Land Management wild horse roundups but decided to research the issue further instead of basing my judgment solely on my emotions. I have read many reports and have twice visited the BLM facility (Broken Arrow) in Fallon where the rounded up horses are being held.

I have come to understand that the BLM has a huge job to do, and there are valid points in what they are doing. I may not agree with how things are being managed in its entirety, but, there are issues with the damage done by the horses that warrants intervention.

I have an idea that I think is viable. Why not have several “feeding areas” along the migration path for the horses and let them remain wild. Doing that would reduce the foraging damage to the land, provide food and water for the horses, and reduce the costs associated with long-term holding facilities and the saved revenue could be used to administer fertility drugs to help with population control. In addition, Congress needs to revise the 1971 law which mandates the BLM to remove the horses when they reach a point where the land cannot sustain them.

Dawn Overbay
Reno

Support roads,not artists

Re “All local, all the time” (Editorial, Jan. 28):

I’m all for the arts as well as a lot of people. But let’s stop the BS and get down to the real subjects that affect the community. The people have a place now to do their work that I’m sure was paid for by grant money, and they probably receive a check every month to live on. I’m 64 and get a small Social Security check that helps but is not even close to paying my bills, let alone live. I’m an artist in a way. I help my neighbors with their problems just trying to survive, but don’t go to a newspaper to tell people to appreciate what I do, and they should shop at a local shop that shows my work. I pat the hood of the car I just fixed, so the guy with 2- and 3-year-olds can go and look for a job that he needs to feed his family.

I live in Silver Springs; I’m a Vietnam vet and love my country. We have much bigger problems to deal with. We have the Highway to Nowhere with the USA Parkway that is done to the Lyon County line and stops because there is no money to finish it. If it was finished, it would benefit three towns in the area: Silver Springs, Stagecoach and Dayton. Gov. Gibbons came up and did a ribbon cutting at the county line, and that was it. Harry Reid wants to build a high speed rail system for Las Vegas with a company from Germany. I don’t know if the man has a mental problem. He has failed with his Pelosi/Reid healthcare bill, Obama has failed at everything, and no one, including the Lyon County higher ups, want to even talk about the highway. Walmart and Petsmart are two of the companies that will benefit the most from the highway being completed but haven’t contributed a dime to the project. All they are doing is bitching about why it isn’t done. If you want to print something … print this letter and do some good. Or let’s all whine that we need to buy more art for these people who want to play. I wish I had the time to paint something.

Kenneth Jarard Wade
Silver Springs

I’m objective: Bob’s a joke

Re “Angel of Death” (Film, Jan. 28):

It was pretty easy to completely disregard this review since, rather than reviewing the movie for script quality and execution, you opted, instead, to use the fact that you personally don’t agree with the subject matter as your grounds to review it so negatively. It disappoints me that this review contributes to RottenTomatoes.com. I guess I’ll be taking their ratings with a grain of salt from now on if a pointless and completely misguided attempt at soapboxing is allowed to factor in. Also yes, I am a Christian, but I wrote this first and foremost from an objective point of view, something you should practice if you plan to be taken seriously as a movie critic in future reviews.

Aaron Rehrer
Lynchburg, Va.

On Plumb

Re “Soup and salad days” (Foodfinds, Jan. 28):

I wish Plum Good all the luck. It takes a lot of courage to open a restaurant these days, and I plan to help them succeed with my own money shortly. Thanks for the review.

Bill Penn
Reno

Meat off the hoof

Re “Meet your meat” (Feature story, Jan. 14):

Excellent article. Too many people take hamburgers and other animal-based food for granted. They don’t stop to think their lunch was once a living breathing creature capable of experiencing fear and other basic emotions. I’m not a vegetarian, but neither am I one of those so called “animal lovers” who naively think the only animals worth thinking about are dogs and cats.

Cathy Gordon
Reno

Go to war

Re “Can we talk” (Editorial, Jan. 21):

While I agree in premise with “Can we talk?” I have to wonder about the statement, “How can we talk about the military without noting that minorities are disproportionately represented.”

That statement near matches the ignorance of Mr. Reid’s hoof in mouth.

I dare say, many of your active readers can’t recall the days of the draft. It is an all-volunteer military at present. In the days of the draft, for certain, many of the poor of every race served, due to various reasons, but whatever talking point the writer had that was valid then no longer applies.

It is not 1969 at present. The military is perhaps the best chance for anyone “from the street,” no matter their race, to make something positive of their lives. Does anyone imagine that every young adult is going to qualify for an MTV dance career? Or, how many can make the professional sports leagues?

But neither does the military take every slacker and rebel that it took in 1969. Instead of comparing race and how it’s a factor in one’s life, why do we not stress that those who study and work hard in school have more opportunities than their fathers ever dreamed of, whether pursuing college or the military?

Ron Ryder
Fallon