Letters to the Editor

I am wondering what kind of dispatch service Gothenburg is getting. I saw someone walking north of the bowling alley Thursday that looked like they needed assistance. Since I have the Gothenburg Police Department programmed in my cell phone, I called. I was put in touch with a dispatcher that insisted I give her an address. Well, I am sorry I did not have that information at my fingertips. I tried to tell her just to tell the officer “north of the bowling alley on Hwy 47” and she said she didn’t know where that was at. I said, “The officer in Gothenburg will.” I almost hung up on her and probably will not report such activity again.

However, I wonder what will happen if I have to call with a real emergency. I have heard other people talk about this same situation and am wondering what we can do about it. Are we getting the best service we can? What happened to local people who know our community? Where is this woman working from that she can’t understand the dynamics of a small town? Scares me to death.

We live in Custer County where the addresses do not match Dawson County. If the dispatcher uses our address it is very likely the rescue unit will end up a mile east of our farm with no crossroads to get back to us. However, if we are allowed to just say our names, most of the rescue unit would know how to get here. Addresses don’t always tell the whole story. We need people who understand that.

In the 12-28-11 edition of The Times “Capital View” column, Mary Kay Quinlan of Nebraska News Service, poked fun at Republican presidential candidates (even one’s relationship with her God) and the “Republican Nomination Comedy Tour.” Apparently, what began as a UNL student legislative “news” service, has become a springboard for her opinion as bureau chief.

Yes, the candidates are humans. With all their faults, they showed the courage to stand up—seeking a return to the rule of law and freedom for individuals in this country. I for one, want them to be vetted to the greatest degree possible—that we might avoid the terrible mistake made in 2008.

I side with her lamentation for the time when Nebraska had a more important role in the presidential election process and the present over-importance placed on the Iowa caucuses, as if Iowans have more political “insight” than the people of any other state. I’ve been to Iowa. Where I take umbrage, is in her descriptions of and statements about the candidates.

She refers to Ron Paul as “...the darling of the tea party folks who say they hate big government. Except please don’t tamper with their Social Security and Medicare.”

First of all, Ron Paul’s support comes only from Ron Paul supporters among tea partiers, not the movement as a whole (no more than any other organization). Secondly, why wouldn’t people who hate big government be concerned about the money stolen from them, when it could have been placed in a real investment plan? Especially at a time when Obama’s payroll tax cut threatens the funding going into the system.

She then finds an artful way to call Newt Gingrich “slimy.” As for his statement about Palestinians being an invented people and a dig at “...the former history professor’s foreign policy credentials.”? Tell me where to find a credible reference to the nation of “Palestine” being ruled by Palestinians.

She obviously likes Jon Huntsman as “...the only candidate with credible foreign policy experience...” I disagree. Rick Santorum (who I’m surprised wasn’t labeled warhawk) also has foreign policy experience. It’s not that Iowans don’t care about Huntsman. Most people don’t even know who he is. His comment about Iowa picks corn not presidents and speaking Chinese in debates, probably doesn’t help.

In her 01-04-12 column she promoted former Lt. Gov. Kim Robak as a “...respected Lincoln attorney, and surely is an example of the type of people whose credentials plausibly fit them for public office.” With all due respect to attorneys, they are the last people we need to see more of in government. I still think Democrats should be pushing Rebekah Davis as a replacement for Senator Ben Nelson.

I do not know Ms. Quinlan, but I get the sense that she may have helped vote in the circus we currently have in Washington. No one is laughing but the clowns.

Neil A. Davis, Gothenburg

Editor’s note: The Capital View column, featuring commentary about state and national events and politics, has been written for years by Ed Howard. Recently, he has not been able to offer his comments due to illness. Other writers, through the Nebraska News Service, have been filling in on a temporary basis.

We look forward each Christmas season to put up lawn decorations of deer, carolers, angels and a Nativity scene.

On Sunday evening, Dec. 4, vandals destroyed a good portion of these. It is a shame that people young and old will not be able to enjoy them anymore.

Our prayers go out to the people that did this cruel destruction, as they are people filled with anger. Our hope is that the ones involved will voluntarily turn themselves in and accept the consequences. You may think no one witnessed or saw you, but be assured our loving God saw your actions.

This is the second time this destruction has happened in the last two years. With sadness—we will not replace them anymore.

If anyone has any information, please call our city police.

Recycling makes sense (11-02 article), but should it be a function of education? I think of how good intentions became the Environmental Protection Agency. Sure, it’s quite a stretch between those two points. What started out as an agency that gave us cleaner air and water, now has far reaching powers into almost every aspect of our lives.

Over 17,000 socialists, Leninists and general nanny busybodies, along with five people in black robes, have decided that the gas which supports plant life and in turn all living creatures, is a pollutant. They believe this gives them the power to literally control the air that we breathe. One of their latest attempts, was to force dust regulations on farmers.

I see merit in the school recycling project as it pertains to acquiring organizational and business skills, etc. Students sitting around, peeling labels off of plastic bottles (?)—not so much. Property taxpayers can tell me it’s none of my business. I just think it’s a distraction from more important learning experiences.

Our educators and students do deserve congratulations. Recent articles in The Times show how our students exceed state graduation and (on most levels) testing rates. Unfortunately, this is not the case nationwide (a much lower graduation rate around 70%).

A report issued by America’s Promise Alliance, found that “...only about half (53%) of all young people in the nation’s 50 largest cities are graduating from high school on time.” Reports show that one third of those who do graduate (most with a GPA above 3.0) need to take remedial (developmental) classes, mostly math and English, before entering college. If they enroll in an “elite” university, they have a good chance of being indoctrinated by leftwing, Marxist, America-hating professors like Obama’s buddy, Bill “the bomber” Ayers.

I looked at the results of a study claiming, college makes students more liberal, but not smarter about civics. I also looked at an online civics test. Not surprisingly, comments I read on liberal blogs, denied the major bias of professors in academia (re-writing history). Only a few were honest enough to admit that the study wasn’t slamming liberalism and that more than likely, conservatives didn’t score any higher on the tests.

In my mind, diminished study of history has damaged the country. If you don’t know history, you don’t know the sacrifices that were made and therefore take for granted what made this country the greatest experiment in the history of the planet. Don’t expect a sudden outbreak of patriotism on campus.

The president received applause and cheering for his speech at Columbia University. Oh wait, that wasn’t our president. That was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, who calls for the destruction of Israel and thinks that the United States is the “great Satan.” When our president speaks to college students, he tells them Wall Street stands in the way of their education. Voila! Occupy Wall Street, gives us an ongoing look at the idiocy of socialism on parade.

Neil A. Davis, Gothenburg