Letters for September 6, 2012

Change of diet

This election is about the rich versus the rest. Will carnivorous corporations completely control us, or will there be some semblance of sanity?

“They” want to shill small businesses so that they can buy/eat them up if they grow, and sell them at a tidy profit with a low tax rate. Probably overseas.

That’s what our capitalism is all about. The strong/rich eat the weak/poor. That is their prime mandate. Their Bible.

It’s time to put a stop to this bullshit.

Please, vote for prosperity for all, not profit for a few.

Craig Bergland
Reno

You don’t say

Discovery happens in time, and carbon dating is man’s reflection of what he has identified of himself in time, and in time many individuals, more than you can count on all your hands, including airplane pilots, ship captains and country bumpkins have brought forth their testimonies of unidentified experiences to include missing and recompensed time.

Don’t look now, but you have just gained nine minutes.

Kristin Smith
via email

It’s that time thing

Re “Cut off anti-doping funds” (Editorial, Aug. 31):

Finally, someone has brought up a great point. Why are we paying for a rogue organization spending tax money on investigating an athlete who raced and passed all the tests thrown at him at the time of the competition? The athlete gets no do overs, but this organization does. I could care less if Lance Armstrong rode clean or juiced. Racing is racing, and once it is in the books, it is final, grey areas and all. This is equal to NASCAR having one of its spin-off organizations who is funded by our tax money investigating if Richard Petty ever ran a car out of legal spec, using the newest methods to evaluate, getting comments from past mechanics, then deciding to strip him of 100 or all 200 of his victories. I sure would love to waste my tax money on that one.

Tony Lineberry
Raleigh, N.C.

And Jesus rose from the dead

Re “Mitt and Joseph” (Notes from the Neon Babylon, Aug. 23):

“Mitt and Joseph” or what should be called, “The religious biases displayed against Mormons.” Allow me to state that I am not a Mormon, but have attended Mormon Church services and have been invited into “The High Priest” classes on occasion. It was clear to all in attendance that I was not seeking a new church or looking for a reason to convert, but looking to learn more about a specific faith and their doctrines. Having grown up in the German Lutheran church, converted to Catholicism in my teens and having attended many other denominations services, I have found religion to be a fascinating intellectual exercise.

Unlike many people, I don’t believe that intellect and faith are mutually exclusive. To address some of the Aug. 29 letters to the editor, I would like to make these comments.

Could any writer be more disrespectful to people of faith than to refer to “the magic panties”? Has this individual ever heard a member of the Mormon faith refer to their garments in such a way? I seriously doubt that. Having asked a Mormon bishop as to the significance of these undergarments and why they are worn, it was explained to me that it is an expression of their faith to do so. It is meant as a constant reminder to keep the covenants of their faith and is not believed to be protection of any sort against anything. It is truly sad that the writer, Mr. Whaley chooses to revel in his ignorance. A grasp on reality check may also be in order for Mr. Whaley.

Next comes the letter by Mr. Quong, another person who seems fascinated with Mr. Romney’s tax returns. Tax returns are, of course, no one’s business other than the taxpayer’s and the I.R.S., a fact that seems to have escaped so many citizens. Mr. Quong then proceeds to further speculate that Mr. Romney won’t release his returns because he’s cheating the church out of his 10 percent tithe. Could Mr. Quong be any sillier in his delusions, or is he a close friend of Senator Reid whose delusions have become more evident every day. By the way, does Mr. Quong realize that Mr. Reid is also a Mormon and based on Mr. Quong’s logic, certainly can’t be trusted because of his religious persuasion? But wait, it gets sillier and sillier.

Then follows Mr. Arthur’s letter in which he refers to Mr. Romney as a billionaire, perhaps its time for Mr. Arthur to begin to understand the difference between a multimillionaire and a billionaire. By his logic billionaire seem to have all made their money by cheating other people out of their life savings. Can these letter writers get any denser? I doubt it. I congratulate the editor of the Reno News & Review for adding the following Editor’s note. “I don’t want to diminish these individuals’ rights to express themselves (or Bruce Van Dyke’s for that matter), but I want to point out two things: The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America guarantees freedom of religion, but all religions require faith in incredible things. And a clause in Article IV, paragraph 3, of the Constitution declares “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” Considering that the newspaper is written and edited by what I consider to be people of liberal progressive persuasion, it’s good to see them quote the constitutional requirements for President. Perhaps, this is a good time to quote former presidential primary candidate, Mike Huckabee: “Let me say to you tonight, I care far less as to where Mitt Romney takes his family to church, than I do about where he takes this country.” I could not agree more. Maybe it’s time that we start judging politicians on their words and whether they keep their promises or whether they turn out to be hypocrites. Let’s start looking at what they actually do in their lives not just on their promises which politicians usually forget as soon as the ballot box closes.

Fred Speckmann
Reno

Editor’s note: But if we’re so damned liberal, why do you find yourself agreeing with us so much?

But have you seen the Nexus 7

Re “Unplugged” (Feature story, Aug. 30):

I loved Aaron Lake Smith’s article.

Some college professors around the country are conducting class experiments, in which students are to do without their phones and computers for a week. The results of these class projects are fascinating. After the “withdrawals” the first day—and Aaron Lake Smith is correct in referring to our culture’s use of technology as nothing short of an addiction—students were suddenly awakened to a new reality.

Number one, the participants in these class studies invariably become aware of how rude we are these days. I notice this myself, any time I’m in a restaurant, observing people sitting around tables, interrupting and ignoring one another with their smart phones.

The other thing that soon becomes apparent is what a time and money parasite all this texting and internet surfing has become for us.

In my own case, I have no home computer. I do have an employer-provided computer here at work, and my boss gives me a fancy iPhone4 to use. However, the internet access is severely restricted on my computer, and the texting feature on my phone is disabled.

I see people obsessively texting all the time. I’m off that treadmill. In fact, I’ve never sent a text message in my life, and I feel happier for it.

A common theme in science fiction is when the technology takes over a society. We’ve reached that point already in our society.

We have much knowledge with our “information technologies.” Ah, but do we have the wisdom to use it properly?

Lee Warner
Reno

Correction

Re “The new guy” (Feature, Aug. 23):

We misspelled the name of DePaul University, where Superintendent Pedro Martinez attended graduate school. We regret the error.