Submitted by admin on Mon, 2005-10-24 08:00. ::
Thomas uses his position to bully black Americans. The Journal Star welcomed his brand of hatred into our community. My children now know how free speech is used to spread hatred.
The Population and Environment Committee of the Wachiska Audubon Society would like to commend the Lincoln Journal Star for its recent editorial, “Bush would do well to restore UNFPA funds.” The editorial effectively educated Lincolnites to the significant accomplishments of the United Nations Population Fund as it seeks to prevent maternal mortality and advance the rights of women globally.
The P & E Committee further appreciates the position taken in the editorial that the Bush administration is misguided in its continued refusal to spend the U.S. monies appropriated for the program because it contends that the UNFPA contributes to China’s policy of aggressive population control. While we respectfully accept that there are significant differences of opinion on abortion, we also put forth that the administration’s invocation of the “gag rule” is akin to throwing the baby out with the bath water.
By refusing to contribute, the U.S. undermines and potentially cripples an organization working in 140 nations with ramifications for us here in Lincoln.
Case in point: One of the YWCA Tribute to Women awards went to a young immigrant woman who came here as a bride of 14, suffering domestic abuse, poverty and homelessness. She is now a single parent of three living in her own place and a student seeking to gain skills to become self-sufficient. How sad that she had to travel such a road!
Jennifer Matheny took Democrats to task (letter, Oct. 19) for complaining about Jeff Fortenberry’s acceptance of at least $10,000 from Tom DeLay’s political action committee. The issue isn’t so much that the PAC money might have influenced the election, the issue is what it bought — Jeff Fortenberry’s vote for Tom DeLay’s corruption.
Nebraskans thought they elected someone to represent them in “the People’s House.” Instead they got someone who has voted nearly 100 percent of the time with Tom DeLay. Jeff Fortenberry doesn’t have the guts to put Nebraska’s interests ahead of DeLay’s.
Billions in tax breaks for Big Oil while they enjoy record profits. Billions in pork-barrel projects like bridges-to-nowhere in Alaska. Billions in deficit spending, billions in tax breaks for the wealthy (but not you and me) and the intrusion into the Terry Schiavo case. DeLay jerked the string and Fortenberry voted his way.
There have been over 500 roll-call votes this year and nearly every time both Tom DeLay and Jeff Fortenberry voted, Jeff Fortenberry voted with DeLay. Like a good toady, Fortenberry has toed DeLay’s line perfectly. Amazing what just $10,000 can buy.
Lin Quenzer’s Community Column (LJS, Oct. 15) was on the mark. The Patriot Act is, unfortunately, being used to silence and/or intimidate anyone who disagrees with the government’s position on a variety of issues.
It is a return to the “dark ages” of the government mindset that “anyone who is not 100 percent like me and/or 100 percent in agreement with me is bad and therefore un-American.” Terrorism is real and very serious, but the Patriot Act is becoming a useful tool for bullies.
I feel that the people with these narrow, exclusionary beliefs are more of a threat to American freedoms than the ones they are trying to persecute. What reliable proof is there that gays are automatically terrorists? If they don’t want Muslims to have views opposing government policy, how long until they go after people with other beliefs?
How sad that an American citizen, Tariq Khan, a veteran with four years of service, is not allowed to express an opinion contrary to the government’s. Which freedom(s) does the government say he was fighting to defend?
I’m writing in regard to the front-page article, “She never thought it would happen to her” in the Oct. 18 Journal Star. This was a terrible violation of the victim. The perpetrators of such crimes demand punishment, but who needs the graphic description of what happened?
Does this belong on the front page? Children of all ages read the paper. The same thing happened with the coverage of the child who was assaulted in the school with the description of what went on in the bathroom. Is this necessary?
Is the paper competing with the scandal publications on the newsstand and much of the TV programming? Reporting crimes is one thing, but my hope is that the graphic “sex scenes” will be omitted.
One of the rules for the sculpture art was that there was a size limit. The sculptures were to be no larger than 3 feet wide and 6 feet, 8 inches tall. The reason for this size requirement was so that all the art work could be moved to different indoor locations for public viewing.
I spent some time and effort making some thumbnail drawings of some ideas for a sculpture. From all my thumbnail drawings I picked out two ideas that I liked best. Then I reworked these designs so they would fit into the 3-foot by 6-foot, 8-inch size requirement. I then rescaled the art design to a 1-foot base size, the size requirement for the model of the art work to be judged. I then made my two models.
I was very surprised when I went to the first viewing of the Star Art project models at the Lied Center. When I looked through the printed-out list of art work I found some of the sculptures to be very large. For example, one was 4½ feet tall and 6 feet wide. Another sculpture is listed as 15 feet tall and 6 feet wide.
I don’t think it is fair that all the sculptures didn’t have to meet the size requirement. I don’t think it is fair to the other artists that followed the rules.
I also find this puzzling because I had one of my art pieces disqualified by one of the judges. On the evaluation form he wrote “disqualified due to size.” I didn’t understand this because I had scaled the sculpture to fit the 3-foot by 6-foot, 8-inch size limit. And now it seems like there really isn’t a size limit. Is that fair?
This is cache, read story here
