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Nov. 7
There was an article in Tuesday’s Herald about the ongoing problems we are having with graffiti in our city. Surely in this age of computers our police force could photograph and catalog these graffiti exhibitions. They must be able to determine the gangs responsible for the majority of the paintings, and if so, they must have a roster of who belongs to those gangs. My suggestion for the police would be that after each transmission of some graffiti artwork, a number of the gang members would be notified to show up for a graffiti clean up, or else. Then give them some cleaning tools and let them clean up their mess, under the supervision of some officers. This is hard work and after a few sessions, I think they would think twice before painting any more graffiti. It wouldn’t really matter if the actual person committing the act was involved in the clean up, they would all be guilty by association. Stricter laws would have to be enacted by the town council to facilitate such action, but I think it would lessen the problem of graffiti and vandalism in our town. As it is, the victim becomes the villain if the mess isn’t cleaned up which isn’t fair.
I read the Herald’s Nov. 7 editorial, in which it stated, “The Bush agenda has always been to muzzle the press, to try to keep it from discovering truths and giving voice to harsh criticisms.” Is the Herald prepared to say the same thing about the Bill and Hillary Clinton agenda that has frozen Clinton administration papers from public scrutiny? Is this is not also muzzling the press, to try to keep it from discovering truths and giving voice to harsh criticism? Will the Herald close its eyes like the rest of its liberal media friends? Let’s hope the Herald will not play the hypocrite.
Each week a new church pops up in Sierra Vista. In these buildings made of plaster, pressboard, cheap linoleum, and cheap labor we act respectfully, we take off our hats, and we treat the building with care. We worship in a building that took weeks to make yet the earth is falling apart and we do nothing. How can we call ourselves good Christians when we treat the one true church, our planet, like a dumping ground? Where are our religious leaders? Stop preaching about gay marriage and prayer in school and start talking about something important. We are a town of people who say we are religious yet what we truly are is apathetic and hypocritical. Lead our community toward saving the one Garden of Eden we know we still have. It is not OK to drive your SUV to church and say you care about the Earth. It is unacceptable to not use cloth bags at the grocery store. It is unChristian and lazy to not recycle in a community where it is offered curbside, and it is sinful to not conserve water in a desert.
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I see there is an article in the Sierra Vista Herald (Nov. 9) about the I-10 highway bypass. I do not understand why the discontent other than greed. I for one support the bypass.
Why in the world does the Sierra Vista public schools need a paid public information officer? That’s the superintendent’s job. Why do they need a construction superintendent? That’s the assistant superintendent’s job. It seems we taxpayers are being slighted here. Sierra Vista public schools hasn’t grown enough to justify these relatively new positions which are near the top of the salary schedule. I hope the school board sees this situation, too, and will consider saving money as they list the job requirements for the new superintendent and assistant superintendent.
The Oct. 28 OYM about the fine print on lunch meat labels didn’t go far enough. They didn’t mention high fructose corn syrup, which is in everything including lunch meat. Why do you think we have a generation of obese kids? High fructose corn syrup is probably one of the worst contributors.
Nov. 8
The city is really asking to be sued after the stupid job they did on El Camino and Wilcox. When you take that righthand turn there’s nothing that says that lane is multipurpose until right before Mockingbird. You almost get hit. What are you waiting for, a lawsuit? Because I will sue you.
I’m calling about the young man at the Shell station on the corner of Fry and Lenzner. I went in to get gas and they had changed how to get the pump started. He came out and showed me what to do. Then my ignition had locked up and he came out again and showed me how to get the car started. What a wonderful person to take the time to show me. He was so nice and pleasant. As an 85-year-old grandmother, maybe he thought of me as his grandmother. I want to say they are wonderful to you there at the Shell station.
Mr. Barnett has to deal with illegal people trashing his property. I’m told at least five of those huge commercial dumpsters are hauled off his property every week at his expense. It’s bad enough to have no respect for other people’s property. If they want to be in our country they should do it legally like our forefathers did.
For all yard sale people that put multiple signs at intersections in town: When your time is up, take your signs down. When your yard sale ends at 11 p.m. it’s your sign. After 11 your sign is trash and litter and should be taken down with as much gusto as you used to put it up. There is no yard sale sign litter control plan in the county. If it’s your sign, you take it down. Pretty simple.
Nov. 9
I got a laugh out of someone’s response to Ed Hylsky’s comments on Gabrielle Giffords. I get a chuckle every time I read his calls or letters to the editor. He is so obviously 110 percent pure ultra-conservative Republican. I wonder what would happen if she changed her party from Democrat to Republican? I bet there would be a letter from him praising her. You have to admit she is doing a lot better job than the oddball she replaced.
It would be nice if the city and county would require commercial builders to put up signs as to what’s being built. All the building leads to a lot of speculation. It would be nice to know what’s being built.
I’m calling to applaud Bill Hess for his review of the Sierra Vista Symphony program last week. He does a fine job.
I enjoyed the article about the elementary cross-country meet. Those kids did a great job running and showing their team spirit. I think we need to have more articles along these same lines.
Nov. 10
Pat Wick has another insightful article in (Friday’s) newspaper. It has to be a terribly difficult job to raise a child today, especially teenagers. The task is even more difficult to do it alone especially for a woman alone. Men are lucky. Seventy-five percent of their fatherhood responsibility is to be a good support parent and caring husband. But a woman’s single parent job is much harder to endure. I think most of today’s problems with teens can be traced to a lack of a husband to do his share of financial support and parental guidance for his progeny. Parents should try to resolve their differences. As they say, families that play and pray together stay together.
The new Tompkins Park is really beautiful, and I commend the city for the work and planning that went in to it. There are lots of pet owners who walk their dogs at Tompkins Park. Most of the people actually abide by the rules and clean up after their dogs. Hopefully you people who don’t clean up will get caught and fined. You are setting a bad example for those of us who do and it could ultimately cause us to lose the right to walk our dogs in the park. What were the city officials thinking when they put the dog runs in? Now people not only don’t clean up around the park, they don’t clean up inside the dog runs. A video camera should be placed that is sensor activated so each person who enters the dog run can be watched. If the owner doesn’t clean up, then owner can be tracked down and fined. The city needs to start enforcing the law and use the money toward other city projects.
There was an article from The AP in the Herald on Nov. 10, about how to save energy in your home. It said to turn your water heater down to 120 degrees, for a savings of up to $60 per year. Go ahead and do it, if you like bacteria in your water. OSHA’s recommendation: To minimize the growth of Legionella in the system, domestic hot water should be stored at a minimum of 60 degrees C (140 degrees F).
I see in a Nov. 10 edition of a Tucson newspaper that Michael A. Dawes who according to the phone book still lives in Sierra Vista, just pleaded guilty according to federal court documents to mail fraud and money laundering for running a Ponzi scheme. This criminal has been living and preying on people in our community for years and yet a search of the Sierra Vista Herald archives reveals that our community newspaper published nothing about this criminal’s activities. Sir, don’t you have an obligation to report on the wolves that pose as sheep that live amongst us? Dawes was convicted of taking $4 million from at least 80 investors many of whom probably live in Sierra Vista. How about having one of your reporters digging up a few victims of this man’s crime and doing an expose on what this man did to the people in our community.
Editor’s note: We reported this in our Nov. 10th edition.
Nov. 11
I would like to thank Christopher Zimmerman for his well-written commentary regarding parenting responsibility vs. the abdication of that responsibility to the community or to government. He is 100 percent right and I fully agree with what he said. In the same vein, Pat Wick’s article about parenting and drug abuse among children was the best she has ever written. I want to thank the Herald for these articles.
It is Veterans Day and I’m flying the flag outside and skimming through the recent newspapers. I read that Congresswoman Giffords introduced the much-needed Combat Troops Tax Relief bill and the House of Representatives passed it 410 votes to zero. Then I read in Friday’s OYM column how one person claims that Giffords has no concern for our troops in Iraq and that the poor woman should come in out of the rain. So I’m hoping this OYM caller will oppose her in the next election to prove that his party has scraped the bottom of the barrel.
I’d like to thank you for the beautiful coverage you did on Gabrielle Giffords’ and Mark Kelly’s wedding. It sounded beautiful. It was great. She’s a great lady.
Thank you Christopher Zimmerman for the very informative article in Sunday’s newspaper. I read Chris Campas’ article last Sunday. I was amazed. He has no idea what it’s like to raise a child or deal with a teenager. I go along with your article. It’s time the parents in this area read your article and heeded it. Thank you again.
I have a business in Sierra Vista and I have to clean up trash from ignorant and selfish people all the time. What really gets me are those fools who throw disposable diapers in the parking lot or in the bushes. I can tell you, if I catch you doing that, that diaper is going to go in your face. It’s just disgusting to throw those out in public places. If you can’t carry a bag in your car along with your diapers leave your kid at home.
I have a suggestion for the flag for Huachuca City: Have a white background with a yard full of junk and old cars. That would just say it all.
I must congratulate Christopher Zimmerman for writing a commentary in Sunday’s newspaper (Nov. 12) that says it like it is. His commentary was straightforward and places responsibility squarely on the shoulders of parents for properly raising their children. Unlike Mr. Campas, who wants to take issue with the police for telling the public the truth and with people accepting responsibility for their actions, or lack thereof, just so we don’t upset someone in today’s politically correct society. Get over it Mr. Campas, you’re not running for political office anymore. I also grew up in Sierra Vista, where there was supposedly “nothing to do.” However, I never noticed because my parents kept me busy in sports, after school projects, civic organizations, and hobbies. This is just another example of how some people blame everyone and everything else for their own shortcomings. Kudos to Mr. Zimmerman for standing up and saying what needed to be said.
Nov. 12
I just wanted to let people know about this great Web site, Snopes.com. Its main goal is to give you accurate, cited information about the millions of forwarded e-mails that go around everyday. So before you forward on missing child reports, Target bans, and stories about meth being passed out in schoolyards; I beg you, please check out Snopes.com and make sure that it’s legit. You will be surprised how many of these e-mails are hoaxes that we are all contributing to by forwarding on. Remember, you can’t believe everything that you read!
Last November we were told that Democrats would eradicate earmarks if they gained control of Congress. They told us that earmarks (euphemism for pork barrel spending) were the root cause of corruption in Congress. Although considered very wrong in the former Republican-controlled Congress, earmarks are now politically correct in the Democrat-controlled Congress. Earmarks galore are hidden as unpublicized amendments in critical appropriations bills. Democrats like “pork” so much now that they cannot eat enough. It matters not that hypocrisy is now symbolic of the Democratic Party. Could that account for the lowest public approval rating in recent history of the present Democrat-controlled Congress? Notice the loud silence in the liberal media, especially the New York Times, The Associated Press, and sidekicks like the Herald.
On the front page today there’s an article about how the Douglas mayor, Ray Borane, is going to step down. I think it’s one of the best articles I’ve seen since I’ve been in Cochise County. I’m so happy he is leaving his post. Maybe we’ll get someone in his place who is pro-American instead of pro-Mexican, someone who will enforce U.S. laws.
I have read with great interest comments regarding the Sierra Vista public school Superintendent Dr. (Renae) Humburg. Dr. Humburg has put the students of this district first. She has supported the students, the teachers and her staff. It appears some in the district have not been as honest in dealing with her. This would make it most difficult for most to continue their job and do it well. She has done just that. She continues to be a fine person and a good superintendent. She supports this community with her time and her money. She has been a Sierra Vistan since she arrived in this town. I wish her well in whatever road she decides to pave.
Regarding the OYM comment about the recent death of the 16-year-old being unacceptable and the need for better gun control, it has nothing to do with gun control. It has to do with parental control. It’s the same thing with the other children who died recently. It’s not the school’s fault, or the police’s fault, or the city or county’s fault. The responsibility lies with the parents. It’s time for the parents to find out what their children are doing and to take action.
Several months ago some of our middle schools were damaged by student vandalism and fire. I followed up by calling the schools and the police. I found out that the parents of these kids who caused the damage did not have to pay. As long as the school was able to pay the small deductible they weren’t worried about getting payment from the parents. Why should kids and their parents worry about vandalism if they’re not held responsible? I’d like to see a follow-up article on this.
About the comment in OYM on (Homeland) Secretary (Michael) Chertoff overriding the court decision to halt the fence being built along the border. Our Congress gave Chertoff the authority to override courts when it conflicts with U.S. security. The caller alluded to the wall not being effective. I have firsthand news for you: The wall has been very effective. Similarly, the Israelis’ wall has been effective in curtailing bombing and saving lives of innocent people.
The term “liberal” seems to have become a dirty word, a hateful term. Liberal is really just a point of view. We liberals have had to deal with the worst president in U.S. history for seven long years. Now it’s the conservatives turn to have to deal with at least four years of Hillary. All the polls are pointing in that direction. We need to brace ourselves for every hateful smear tactic imaginable directed at her. Why is it that conservatives must win at all cost? They are hateful and very ungrateful. They can’t stand another point of view. We have a two party system. We need both of them to be healthy. We need at least two points of view for our government to function at its best. The Republican Party has become very sick and weak. We all will pay the price for that. It is going to take a lot of work to repair the damage Bush has done.
I never saw anything in the newspaper about building a new school on Carmelita until voila, here it is at Seventh and Carmelita. We have trouble now with the high school kids coming down Carmelita at 60 or 70 mph. The 20 mph signs don’t do any good. I live on Carmelita. It’s really going to be bad. When we have another school at the end of Carmelita we’re going to have a speedway.
My question is why do we treat the Iraq War soldiers so much like heroes? Didn’t the soldiers in Vietnam, Korea and WWII fight just as much of a war as the Iraq war? All the soldiers should be treated like heroes and not forgotten.
What’s the big difference between Democrats and Republicans? They’re both professional liars. They both tell you what you want to hear in order to get your vote. Then they forget their promises. One lies to the rich; one lies to the poor. A politician is a politician. It’s all the same garbage.
I have a question for all you people who want to knock Gabrielle Giffords or any other politician. If you think you can do better, why don’t you run for office? It’s easy to be in the background saying what you’d do. But when you’re the one getting knocked around it’s not so easy is it?
Amanda wrote on Nov 24, 2007 10:53 PM: