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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels September 8, 2004 Vote to avert a Bush shipwreck The well-worn "ship of state" metaphor resonates anew, having immediate relevance to America's voyage to disaster. Her Ship of State, seized by corporate pirates on a treasure-looting spree, pitches perilously in turbulent seas, stabilizers disabled. Ship's founding documents - segmented by these sword-wielding "bucko-neers" - now adrift as flotsam and jetsam on waves of greed. Citizen passengers languish in the dank, dark brig without charge or due process, while dissenters - despite a gag order - send repeated SOS distress calls. Unless a capable captain takes her helm, and soon, this Ship will founder on reefs of corporatism. John Kerry, with skill and confidence, could guide her out of the squalls of chaos and onto a steady but progressive course. Americans have the power and, imperatively, the obligation to rescue their Ship from avaricious scoundrels and betrayers of America's once-defining principles and liberties. A vote for Kerry is a vote to avert shipwreck. Once past that danger, layers of neocon mendacity can be swabbed from the bridge and the rats skulking there sent scurrying to the hold. Under a legitimate, responsible crew, efforts can begin to repair Ship's stem-to-stern damage and restore some luster to her tarnished reputation. In time, she will sail in partnership with foreign seafarers, practicing diplomacy, honoring treaties, respecting international law, and cooperating in critical humanitarian efforts. Citizen passengers should not, however, let reliance on dependable navigators lull them into complacency. Constant vigilance is necessary to ensure that America's Ship of State never again lists precariously to starboard side. Marie Arvette Phoenix Pot of lies calls kettle black I read Aaron Corbet's Guest Forum with increasing dismay as he accused the government of various lies but told a few whoppers himself, as I know from personal experience. First, Corbet claims that two congressional investigations concluded that, contrary to earlier government reports about the Kennedy assassination, there was a conspiracy, and the assassin did not act alone. He does not identify the "two" investigations, but almost all authorities have repudiated the 1975 House investigation led by Lou Stokes as a political response to the pressure of conspiracy advocates. My parents and Louis Stokes were friends, and I interviewed for this committee but withdrew when I realized its pre-ordained outcome; it was not Lou's finest hour. Second, Corbet claims that depleted uranium used in weapons derive from "spent fuel rods of our nuclear reactors." He implies that DU in weapons derives from civilian nuclear power plants. But the government has always kept military and civilian nuclear fuel cycles separate, as I know from consulting to government and private industry. Early in his administration, Reagan proposed steps linking the two cycles, was roundly criticized, and withdrew his proposals; it was not his finest hour either. Corbet admits having been deceived and writes like one soured by the realization. But the government is not always wrong or dishonest, and its critics always right and honest. Still, its recent record has not been good, and Bush's propensity to "spin" the truth is a good reason to vote for Kerry. Michael Hays Ashland Despite walls, damage is done Another DeBoer house debacle in Ashland (Tidings June 18, 2004). What was once a large, sloping lot with great potential at 99 Granite Street, is now an enormous pit with the "lay of the land" forever distorted. The builders excavated more than their permit allowed, and the immediate neighbors are experiencing problems with their properties (leaking pool, property line falling away). It wouldn't have taken a soils engineer to have foreseen problems with this degree of earth removal. And the builder's response is equivalent to "Oops, my bad!" It is now "fixed" with massive retaining walls. All this for a spec house, which I have to assume refers to the spectacular size it will be. This monument will be 6,800 square feet with a price tag of $2.5 million, almost twice the amount of any other property in the area. When is the city going to wake up and say no to moneyed developers who submit plans for trophy houses not in keeping with the neighborhood profile? I invite everyone in Ashland to drive by the excavation on Granite to see for themselves the direction in which our fair city is going. Claudia McAllister Ashland DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams