Letters for March 17, 2005

I like your conservative columnist Mike Lafferty. As a conservative Republican myself, it is refreshing to see someone who shares and expresses some of my points of view in the News & Review.

Thanks for bringing some fairness back to the debate.

Sue Denard
Reno

Hook mistook
Re “Bush didn’t lie” (RN&R, Right Hook, March 3)

Your conservative columnist, Mike Lafferty is wrong in his column “Bush didn’t lie.” If the evidence about weapons of mass destruction was so overwhelming in Iraq, why didn’t France, Germany and Russia commit troops? The answer is because Bush lied about it.

Bill Jamesson
Reno

Because it’s funny
Re “Phishing sucks,” (RN&R, Spam folder, March 10)

I got your contact address in my desperate search for a reliable person. As you read this, I don’t want you to feel sorry for me, because I believe everyone will die someday. My name is Mr. Rabi Tutu, a merchant in Dubai, in the U.A.E. I have been diagnosed with esophageal cancer, which was discovered very late, due to my laxity in carrying for my health. It has defied all forms of medicine, and right now, I have only about a few months to live, according to medical experts.

I have not particularly lived my life so well, as I never really cared for anyone not even myself but my business. Though I am very rich, I was never generous. But now I regret all this. Now that God has called me, I have willed and given most of my assets to family members. I want God to be merciful to me and accept my soul, and I have decided to give [the rest] to charity organizations.

Now that my health has deteriorated so badly, I cannot do this myself. I once asked members of my family to close one of my accounts and distribute the money to charity and to the less privileged in Bulgaria and Pakistan. They kept the money to themselves. Hence, I do not trust them anymore. The last of my money is the huge cash deposit of $7 million that I have with a Security Company in Europe for safe keeping. I want you to help me disburse it to some charity. Please send me an e-mail to indicate if you will assist me in this disbursement. I have set aside 10 percent for you for your time and patience.

You can e-mail me at my private e-mail address imathief@yahoo.com for easy communication. While I wait to hear from you, may God be with you and your entire family.

Rabi Tutu
Dubai

Support pot in the home
The Libertarian Party of Nevada supports Initiative Petition No. 3, the initiative to decriminalize up to one ounce of marijuana for personal use in the privacy of the home.

Nevada is well-known for its tolerance of behaviors that do no harm to others but that could only harm the individuals indulging in them, if anyone is harmed at all. Nevada has been a haven over the years for those seeking to gamble, to pay for sexual favors, to get a quick divorce, to seek alternative medications.

Now Nevada once again has the chance to be a leader of the nation, even the world, in exhibiting this same spirit of tolerance.

I.P. 3 addresses the concerns of Nevadans that those individuals who peacefully use marijuana, either medicinally or recreationally, in the privacy of their own homes, shall not be subject to punishment, civil or criminal, by the state.

I.P. 3 also addresses the concerns of Nevadans that the public at large is protected from any harm that may result from this new tolerance toward individual behavior.

I.P. 3 would establish a regulated system of production and sales of marijuana that would better protect minors from exposure to the drug than is the case with unregulated black markets. It would ensure that only those 21 or older can purchase the drug or even visit establishments that sell the drug.

I.P. 3 would severely punish anyone driving under the influence of marijuana who causes an accident on the road that results in death.

I.P. 3 would regulate and tax the production and distribution of marijuana, so we are assured the profits, for the first time since the 1930s, are not going to organized crime, and that a percentage of them are going to be used by the public for drug rehabilitation and other worthwhile public uses.

Once again, the Libertarian Party of Nevada urges the Nevada Legislature to pass I.P. 3. Nevada’s reputation as a beacon of personal liberty will be assured if you do. Its citizens will be safer, its children better protected from harm.

Brendan Trainor
Chair, Libertarian Party of Nevada

Correction
Re “Grassroots Lobby Day,” (RN&R, Contents, March 10)

The byline for the "Grassroots Lobby Day" story should have been "by Carol Cizauskas."