Friday, August 19, 2011

Winston-Salem Journal LTE's FR 08/19/11

Good AM, folks!

At the moment, there aren't any. Oops, now there are. Thank you, Bob, for finding them, and top of the AM to you and WW!

Dismayed
I was rather dismayed by Tom Patterson's Aug. 14 column, "5ive & 40rty's closing is a dark day for City of Arts" for two reasons. First to hear the gallery was closing. Amy Garland had done a fantastic job of creating a truly beautiful contribution to the Winston-Salem arts scene. It will be sorely missed, and she should be proud of her accomplishment.

The second reason for my dismay was the back hand that Patterson gave the rest of the galleries in the Arts District. Calling them "so-called" galleries in a "so-called" City of the Arts was an affront to all who contribute to the arts community. The district has grown these past few years to be a vibrant focal point to our region. Within this past year we've witnessed the opening of Inter_Section Gallery; Red Dog Gallery and, of course, The Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts. Coupled with Piedmont Craftsmen, Urban Artware, Artworks Gallery and several others, it has become a jewel in the crown of our city.

Portraying these galleries as irrelevant pays a disservice to all those who have given their all for the arts. For many it's not the money but rather the love of art the drives them. For this effort to be denigrated is beyond the pale of responsible commentary. Perhaps Patterson would better serve himself and the community by promoting the arts rather than focusing on postmortems. I believe you can be part of the problem or part of the solution.

HARRY KNABB
CHAIRMAN, ART FOR ARTS SAKE
Winston-Salem

Priorities
After watching the national theater of kicking the debt ceiling down the road for just a few more months, we did at least learn about the priorities of two leaders. When 40 cents of every dollar the federal government spends is borrowed, we must make choices on how to spend every dollar. When President Obama and Sen. Kay Hagan were given the choice to return the Social Security money that I put in the guaranteed lockbox, their choice was that they just might not return it. They would rather balance their extravagant budget on the backs of those who depend on the promised lockbox.
2012 is coming.

LES PRESTON
Winston-Salem

Political nature
In the Aug. 8 letter "Guilty civil servants," the writer clearly outlines my objection to the passage of N.C. Senate Bill 769, also ironically labeled, "Woman's Right to Know Act." In addition to the letter writer's comments, Chris Fitzsimon in his Aug. 6 column, "The creeping remorse of the Right," highlighted the intensely political nature of this vote.

To have legislators acknowledge that the act could have been "a little less onerous" or that "some exceptions probably should have been included" is saying too little too late. Legislators who voted for this bill and against good environmental legislation, with the explanation that it is government interference in the private sector, illustrate nothing but their hypocrisy.

TERRY POWELL
Pfafftown

Cruelty
In reference to the article "69 animals removed from Raleigh home" (Aug. 6), I am so happy that somebody took the time to call and report the owners of those 69 animals. I can't believe a person would hoard that many animals in one house. That is just cruel. I really hope that charges will be filed.

TAMMY WILLARD
Walnut Cove

Art appreciation
As a proud, contributing local artist in Winston-Salem's Arts District, I would be remiss in not responding to Tom Patterson's Aug. 14 column ("5ive & 40rty's closing is a dark day for City of Arts,") and his insolent assessment of the arts in our community.

I remain disgruntled and insulted that this "so-called" art critic would use a public forum to disparage the efforts and accomplishments of so many in this community. I have allowed myself a couple of days to digest not only his remarks about the "so-called" City of the Arts and "so-called" galleries in the district, but his obvious attempt to cast a dark cloud over the vibrant, visionary revitalization of such a historical and significant attribute to this city.

This city was founded upon entrepreneurialism, perseverance and art appreciation. Amy Garland's contribution to this continuing vision will be missed. I wish her only the best in her future endeavors. However, Patterson's pejorative comments were unwarranted and inflammatory to those of us who take great pride in bringing art to the people who reside in, or choose to visit, our City of the Arts. I would encourage Patterson to embrace our continued inspiritment of the arts, not to cast a pall upon it.

KIM PEGRAM
Rural Hall

36 comments:

  1. http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/aug/19/wsopin01-the-readers-forum-friday-letters-ar-1312701/

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  2. Bob...magnificently presented!

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  3. Bob..I trust you are well and "keepin' the chain pulled tight"?

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  4. Stab...TGIF, huh?!

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  5. I'm doing pretty well, thanks, WW, well not too pretty, but well. Thanks. Hope you and all yours are.

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  6. TGIF, indeed, WW. But even on the dreaded Monday, I try to remember that "This is a day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad." Had the Lord made the days longer, it would have been helpful, but I'm glad for the 24h.

    Actually, the days are getting longer, as tidal braking by the Moon and the Sun (less so in the Sun's case) are slowing the Earth's rotation. Every so often, those in charge of such things must add a second to official clocks, in order for our timekeeping to stay in sync with the heavens.

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  7. Bob...we are all ok for the moment, which is good around here.

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  8. Stab...be glad for in sync time. It promotes regularity. I'm afraid if the Earth goes too slow, I might fall off.

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  9. Mr Preston: "guaranteed lockbox?" Haven't heard that term since Al Gore in 2000. Al Gore introduced the issue when he proposed the “Social Security Lockbox” during his acceptance speech, but it wasn’t long before George W. Bush was also promising to protect the Social Security surplus revenue. During a speech at Rancho Cucamonga, California on May 15, 2000, Bush said, “Social Security is the single most successful program in government history… For years, politicians have dipped into the trust fund to pay for more spending. And I will stop it.”.

    Bush continued to sing the same tune once he became President. But Bush raided and spent a total of $1.37 trillion of Social Security surplus during his eight years as president. In his last year, he spent $192.2 billion, which averages out to more than $526 million per day. During a speech on April 5, 2005 in Parkersburg, West Virginia, Bush openly admitted to the fact that all of the Social Security surplus revenue had been spent. He said, “There is no trust fund, just IOUs that I saw firsthand that future generations will pay—will pay for either in higher taxes, or reduced benefits, or cuts to other critical government programs.”.

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  10. The LTE's

    LTE1: I am generally saddened when places go out of business. I did not read the article, but calling art galleries and the City of the Arts "so-called" sounds a bit dismissed. They are so called because that's what they are.

    LTE2: A bit of a rant, but Social Security taxes should never have been "lent" to the General Fund. Part of the budget/debt rework should be to put Social Security taxes in the lockbox and leave them there. I don't understand why this isn't an issue.

    LTE3: Big Government legislation by anti-Big Government legislators. Yep, hypocritical.

    LTE4: File charges indeed, make the punishment severe.

    LTE5: My comment re LTE1 applies to this LTE.

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  11. The Idiotization of America by President Obama continues.

    We've never elected a dictator before, so we didn't know what the expect. The 'hope and change' that he promised turned into a daily hope that he doesn't screw-up again, and the hope that he doesn't change more things that were working well in America.

    Obama serves up not only 'dog food' on a routine basis, but whole smorgasbord of disastrous policies and regulations. Everyday it seems his actions drag us further into an economic abyss, for beyond where we've gone before.

    His latest distastful food-Obama has decided to pass his own 'dream act'. Yes, Obama doesn't need no stinking congress to make a law. If he doesn't like congress' decisions, he'll just do it anyway.

    In his latest screw-up that will cost America billions, Obama is going to preside over his own immigration court. Instead of following current immigration law, Obama will decide who stays and who goes. In other words, he be buying votes over the next 1 1/2 years through immigration favors.

    Only a dictator can mete out true corruption, and Obama is getting it down to an art form.

    It takes a true idiot to never admit that he/she is never wrong. How many people still support Obama? Millions......

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  12. Two requirements must be met to avoid deportation:
    1. Register to vote, one way or another, and vote.
    2. Join the SEIU.

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  13. Les Preston's "national theater" re the debt ceiling calls to question the reasons behind SS and our willingness to give government our money so that they might take care of us. Putting in for the common good I guess. Or, "When under the pretext of fraternity, the legal code imposes mutual sacrifices on the citizens, human nature is not thereby abrogated. Everyone will then direct his efforts toward contributing little to, and taking much from, the common fund of sacrifices. Now, is it the most unfortunate who gains from this struggle? Certainly not, but rather the most influential and calculating.

    Government is the great fiction through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else". Said a famous French economist and forerunner to the Austrian School of Economics.

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  14. "It takes a true idiot to never admit that he/she is never wrong." ???? I guess I'm not an idiot then, cause I admit, I'm never wrong.

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  15. the syntax of your sentence is completely wrong, admit it.

    Perhaps you meant it takes a true idiot to never admit that he or she is wrong.

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  16. There's at least fifteen or so mistakes in my post. So, I'm not an idiot. Are you by continuing to support Obama?

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  17. We still haven't elected a dictator and "Only a dictator can mete out true corruption" is a false statement.

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  18. Get ready Bob. You'll love a post I have in the works. It's about Charles Darwin and homosexuals. Hang onto your backend, it's going to be a post that banging bucks will die for.....

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  19. we all die and your posts are irrelevant.

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  20. Not if Charles Darwin's theories are correct. Don't you just hate it when objective theories don't go your way Bob? I do too. But unlike you, I try not to show it.

    Where's Kit at? I'm ready for my daily dose of psycho-babble.

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  21. Where's Kit at? at? I'm glad you quit teaching. Perhaps you could do the patriotic thing and recommend that like minded teachers do the same. lol, you try not to show it? then you're a complete failure.

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  22. You try not to show it when you disagree with something. I don't believe you. that would be cowardly and I don't believe you to be a coward. I could be wrong, though, and I admit it.

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  23. . Don't you just hate it when objective theories don't go your way Bob? I do too. But unlike you, I try not to show it.
    that's just rhetorical bullshit. you ask me a question and then answer it for me too. Take a hike. You'll feel better and so will I.

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  24. Good afternoon folks!
    LTE 1&5: Hmm...Mr. Patterson seems to have offended with his choice of "so-called" in describing local galleries. Given the work involved in setting up and running a gallery, I'd say the umbrage is well justified. It's a shame 5ive and 40rty is closing, but that's no reason to denigrate the other galleries.
    LTE 2: Yes, 2012 is coming just like 2010 came and 2014 is coming (assuming 2012 isn't the end of history). SS isn't a lockbox (well, not anymore), and the guarantee may be reaching its expiration date.
    LTE 3: Nothing to add... especially to the last sentence.
    LTE 4: That was awful. Hope they can find decent homes for the poor things.

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  25. hey ww..thought this was an interesting article that pertained to our discussion from yesterday:
    http://news.yahoo.com/hayek-wrong-bernanke-coming-recession-deflationary-225018903.html
    The title is misleading. Of course, the rest of you are free to read the article also. It's not like I have coded the link to format your hard drive if your name is not "whitewall" when you click on it or anything.

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  26. Some poor smuck in Florida is getting fired from his teaching job because of his views on gay marriage. He made a comment on his personal facebook page that he was against gay marriage.

    That's okay. By the time it's over with, he'll be awarded half of the school district's budget for next year.

    The Constitution is a pesty little document, ain't it?

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  27. dotnet...an interesting read for sure. It seems the author might be assuming the EU is in the process of being "fixed". I tend to believe the EU periphery is only getting a stay of execution. Who knows. If the next recession is "deflationary", then that spells depression I would think. What to do with our trebbled money supply and no economic growth? All the while assets are still deflating, and the consumer has been scared frugal. Eg we have dead low interest rates to goad people to borrow- debt- while the people who need higher interest rates-seniors- get nothing for saving. Thrift vs debt, the old paradox. For each of us it comes down to how much time do we have to prepare and how much time do we have to realize the better world when we emerge "on the other side"? Good read and thanks for the source...music was funny too!

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  28. Even CNN thinks Obama's immigration policy shift is suspicious. CNN says Obama needs Hispanic voters as his polls numbers sag.

    http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/08/19/deportation.policy/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

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  29. DotNet Thanks for the very interesting link. The last sentence is so disheartening.

    "This depression will last most of the decade,"

    Only time will tell, but I tend to agree. While gas and food prices continue to increase wages are deflating.

    I see it daily in my two jobs.

    At one job we hired one person to replace 2 people and we pay this one person less than we paid either one of the previous two. He is also more productive than the other two put together. Also benefits were cut for everyone which is effectively a pay decrease for everyone.

    At my other job I am amazed at all the things I now willing do on my own time just to stay on the payroll. I bet I've put in 60 hours of uncompensated time so far this year to obtain a required certifications. In better times, I would have been compensated for this effort. At the same time we are asked to do more and more with less ancillary help.

    I'm really thankful to have the certifications as they increase my future and continued employment prospects, but 60 hours of free work is a salary decrease, and I still need to go watch a video so I can learn new billing concepts.

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  30. Wordly...that was a good article. Did you happen to read the exchange between dotnet and myself yesterday on this subject? That is what began this. There is more but only so much a person can take.

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  31. Right on Buffcoach! I'm clapping for you, well said. Bucky fell off his rocker again (still)?.

    Great article Dotnet.

    Good weekend to all.

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  32. Sharon...you too!

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  33. thanks, Sharon, have a great weekend. MUAH

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  34. MUAH and big hugs to you both!

    And a great weekend too! :-)

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  35. “What people recognize is that there’s a fear that the United States is in an unstoppable decline. They see the rise of China, the rise of India, the rise of the Soviet Union and our loss militarily going forward,” Bachmann said on conservative activist Jay Sekulow’s show.

    lol, The Soviet Union, lol

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