Support for Kaul
BRAD NIVEN
Winston-Salem
Shared sacrifice
JON YELLIN
Kernersville
Fever pitch
The clamor and furor over debt and budget has grown to fever pitch. A recent letter, "Last-minute dilemma" (July 29), laid blame on the president: "… we would not be in this last-minute dilemma if he had done his job." I ask: Where was the letter writer 30 years ago? Or even 10 or 20?
The debt and many other issues we face didn't mushroom over the past two and a half years. It has been decades in the making. We are reaping the results of policies and actions sown over the past 30 years. Take time to research what actions our elected officials in Washington took in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s that had short-term appeal but long-term consequences. Make your own decision about what worked for the long-term good of our country. Then look at who voted which way at that time for tax cuts or increases, loopholes or supplements, foreign aid or war.
Who is still in Washington, and what are they saying now? If someone we voted for five, 10 or more years ago is still there, they are likely part of the problem. Take time to look at a candidate's long-term record, look past their words.
We do need to demand that our government get balanced — but help it do so with patience and respect. Let's just make sure we have elected people who will do the job, not just say they will. Where will we be 30 months or years from now?
FELIXA SOMMER
Kernersville
Creating jobs?
Regarding the July 28 letter "One indication," I couldn't have said it any better. How can we pass bills to create jobs when we first demolish more than 10,000? Isn't it rather hard to dig ourselves out of that hole? And I'm investing my 17 cents per day in my IRA.
LINDA C. McDERMOTT
Winston-Salem
Not wrong
The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners was not wrong for having prayer before its meetings and praying in Jesus Christ's name ("Ban on sectarian prayer upheld," July 30). The Bible states it's better to obey God than man.
NORMAN NELSON
Advance
In response to the July 26 letter "Replacement," I must support columnist Donald Kaul. Let's face it, Kaul's columns are not for everybody, as he comes from a liberal point of view, and that is understandable. Myself, I do not care for the columnists who give a conservative point of view, and do not spend any of my time reading them.
Back to Donald Kaul. I find him to express the feelings that I have about most issues in a readable, interesting, down-to-earth, comical style that leaves me amused, and wiser, every time I read his column. Thanks to the Journal for publishing Donald Kaul's columns, and for giving us readers a good variety to choose from.
BRAD NIVEN
Winston-Salem
Shared sacrifice
It was gratifying to read that despite budget cuts of more than 10 percent, the UNC School of the Arts has determined that it will not be necessary to eliminate its film program, as previously threatened ("UNCSA loses seven staff jobs to funding cuts," July 22). Instead, the school has taken a more balanced and mature approach to budget reductions.
Nevertheless, the notion of shared sacrifice, which is often talked about in dealing with the national budget deficit, has not taken root at the School of the Arts, particularly in the chancellor's office.
It is a matter of public record that Chancellor John Mauceri and his COO, George Burnette, each is paid a salary in excess of $200,000. These are large sums for an institution with a relatively small budget of approximately $25 million.
According to statistics from the National Association of Business Officers, these salaries exceed those of many college presidents whose schools have twice UNCSA's budget. Rather than having to reduce faculty positions, which directly impact the students, reductions in the salaries of the school's top officials and contributions by the more well-to-do board of directors would obviate the need for faculty cuts.
Where is the shared sacrifice? The school's dedicated and talented students who have already been hit with increased tuition deserve better.JON YELLIN
Kernersville
The clamor and furor over debt and budget has grown to fever pitch. A recent letter, "Last-minute dilemma" (July 29), laid blame on the president: "… we would not be in this last-minute dilemma if he had done his job." I ask: Where was the letter writer 30 years ago? Or even 10 or 20?
The debt and many other issues we face didn't mushroom over the past two and a half years. It has been decades in the making. We are reaping the results of policies and actions sown over the past 30 years. Take time to research what actions our elected officials in Washington took in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s that had short-term appeal but long-term consequences. Make your own decision about what worked for the long-term good of our country. Then look at who voted which way at that time for tax cuts or increases, loopholes or supplements, foreign aid or war.
Who is still in Washington, and what are they saying now? If someone we voted for five, 10 or more years ago is still there, they are likely part of the problem. Take time to look at a candidate's long-term record, look past their words.
We do need to demand that our government get balanced — but help it do so with patience and respect. Let's just make sure we have elected people who will do the job, not just say they will. Where will we be 30 months or years from now?
FELIXA SOMMER
Kernersville
Creating jobs?
Regarding the July 28 letter "One indication," I couldn't have said it any better. How can we pass bills to create jobs when we first demolish more than 10,000? Isn't it rather hard to dig ourselves out of that hole? And I'm investing my 17 cents per day in my IRA.
LINDA C. McDERMOTT
Winston-Salem
Not wrong
The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners was not wrong for having prayer before its meetings and praying in Jesus Christ's name ("Ban on sectarian prayer upheld," July 30). The Bible states it's better to obey God than man.
NORMAN NELSON
Advance
LTE1: I find Kaul to be mean-spirited at times, but it is the "Journal's" op-ed page, so it can publish whomever it wants.
ReplyDeleteHey WW! You guessed it: I know Brad Niven. He is a beekeeper, keeps his bees in Buena Vista, of all places, moves them to Sparta in the summer so they can make sourwood honey. A good guy he is, in spite of being all abuzz over the acerbic Kaul.
LTE2: Given the LTE writer's background, his opinion warrants consideration. OTOH, there is the matter of getting what one pays for.
LTE3: Yes, the debt problem in long in the making, and, unfortunately, long in the solving. The good news is that our legislators came together and passed (in the House, anyway) a bill that prevents default. No one seems to like the bill, but the ones firmly opposed are TBs on both side of the spectrum. If Maxine Waters is opposed to it, it can't be that bad.
LTE4: Not much more to say here than "I agree."
LTE5: Wrongo bongo. Matthew 6:6: "But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, Who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
Mr. Niven....I find that the Journal does not provide a good variety.
ReplyDeleteIt's clear, at least to me, that the Journal has taken a dramatic shift left. The number of letters to the editor that take up leftist positions has increased dramatically, along with daily columns and articles. Maybe the Journal has conducted polls and determined that the populace of WS is now more left in their viewpoints. I don't know. If that is indeed a fact, then the Journal is doing no more or less than what the New York Times is doing. That is-pandering to its base. After all, running a newspaper is primarily about making money, not about telling the truth anymore.
One only has to look at CNN, CBS, ABC, MSNBC, and FoxNews for a few minutes to determine what political slant the networks have. They used to attempt to hide it, but no more. I'm not sure why FoxNews even uses 'fair and balance'. They are no more or no less fair than the other networks. One thing is for sure though, without Fox, we wouldn't have a clue about what is really going on within our political system. We would be left with the leftist propaganda of the other networks.
Lte-1..for a liberal columnist, Don Kaul is fine. He is perfectly acceptable for carrying the banner of "wrong most of the time".
ReplyDeleteLte-2...I don't know the upper ranks of the peerage at the School of the Arts. We have been contributors to effeorts undertaken by lower ranks and the worker bees.
Lte-3..There were people and groups around DC all those years sounding warnings, but the zeitgeist was heavily against listening to them.
Lte-4...passing bills does not create jobs in and of itself. Passing bad bills is gauranteed to kill jobs and chill the desire to create any new ones as well as any new wealth which is what creates jobs.
Stab...do the women around Mr Niven all call him "honey"?
Hi WW!
ReplyDeletePerhaps, but none call him "hubby." He bees unmarried.
I'm not surprised. I dislike the presence of bees. But I am a fan of their handiwork.
ReplyDeleteI have a bee story, but I'm posting on The Leopard's Limb, lest I be stung by criticism for off-topic commentary.
ReplyDeleteGood afternoon folks!
ReplyDeleteLTE 1: Kaul is generating LTE's. As long as people are paying attention to his column, pro or anti, then he is doing his job.
LTE 2: Some interesting points being brought up. What I find fascinating is that the public seems to be mirroring the private where you have the top brass experiencing 30% increases in pay, whereas the rest are grateful for their 2% increases because it means they are still employed. The UR is again surpassing 10%, meanwhile Ferrari sales are stting new records: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daniel-gross/life-fast-lane-ferrari-sales-surge-u-155253417.html?sec=topStories&pos=8&asset=&ccode=
LTE 3: Excellent points made.
LTE 4: Cutting jobs is not the way to grow an economy, particularly when the economy is too weak to absorb the losses.
LTE 5: We have a republic, not a theocracy. People may abide by the holy books of their choosing in their private lives, but public officials have to abide by the US Constitution when acting in their capacity as govt.
Jamie Dupree reports that MoveOn.org sent an email re the debt limit bill passing: "What in God's name are they thinking?" Congress obviously has done the right thing if MoveOn is upset.
ReplyDeleteLeopard's Limb.....Stab, I'm surprised you missed the whole point of my comments regarding criminal activity.
ReplyDeleteله خالي لوښي لوي اواز خيژي
ReplyDeleteHi Bob!
ReplyDeleteNice, kinda like beating on an empty 55-gal oil drum.
Hi Linds, I really did miss your point. Perhaps you missed my point that murder, even sadistic sexually depraved murder, is an equal opportunity crime, open to all races, ethnic groups, gender preferences, and to both sexes. Yes, Cunahan was a twisted individual. So was Bundy, but more so.
ReplyDelete