LETTERS.

Prayer breakfast stirs up emotion

I am disgusted yet not shocked by John Grannis' thinly veiled intentional misinterpretation of the intent of Thursday's prayer breakfast. He says he is ``surprised'' by reaction to what he describes as a ``nonpartisan event ... a form of religious expression that is protected by the Constitution.''

I hope that the good Christian citizens of this city will be able to discern when attempts are being made to convince them that certain groups have their interests at heart simply because they claim to share their faith. Mr. Grannis should never be surprised when the citizens of Santa Clarita raise their voices against elected civic leaders who fail to represent the entirety of their diverse constituency.

This breakfast was never intended to be a nonpartisan event. One need only look at the sponsoring organization to see that the intent of the event is to support and foster Republican leaders who meet the Dunamis Group's narrow interpretation of Christianity.

Nobody has questioned the Dunamis Group's right to gather and pray. What is being questioned is the appropriateness of the use of the name of the office of the mayor of the city of Santa Clarita to sponsor a noncity event for the purpose of supporting and fostering a single religious ideology to the exclusion of others.

-Michael Menchaca

Santa Clarita

Must an official leave faith out?

I do not look forward to the day when a public official must check his faith at the door before he serves in his official capacity. It is probably a good bet that most of what gets one elected in the first place is the result of living out his sincerely held religious beliefs.

This modern notion that one's faith cannot be a part of their public life is destructive and irrational and certainly unconstitutional, and I'm sure we'll hear much more as the result of your coverage of this issue. I look forward to the debate.

- Brad Leber

Canyon Country

So much protest over prayer event

I want to be one of the many to support the mayor. Our country was founded on men who believed in prayer and God. I can't believe that there is so little to worry about in our community that our mayor being part of a prayer breakfast is worth so much protest.

Maybe there could be more effort in helping the homeless, supporting our schools and making safety a priority in our community. There are so many Christians in our community, I feel like maybe those who oppose what the mayor did should look elsewhere to a community who doesn't pray.

- Jamie Gray 

Santa Clarita

Mayor helping us maintain rights

Thanks for fairly presenting the issue about the prayer breakfast. All I can say is, ``Mr. Mayor, we are so proud of you. By standing up for your rights, you help us maintain our own rights of freedom of religion.''

Linda S. Gray

Stevenson Ranch 

Road needs new speed-limit rules

There are signs warning of flooding on Bouquet Canyon Road. However, numerous accidents happen daily at the same area of the road. What is considered flooding is actually the stream crossing over the road because the culvert that it usually runs through underneath the road is clogged with debris, and has been for some time now.

There are inches of fast-moving water and slippery moss growing on the road because of this. My 10-year-old daughter and I are lucky to be alive after hitting a washed-out part of this road and hydroplaning into a spin and ultimately hitting the K-rail.

The firemen who are stationed near the area said this happens constantly and something needs to be done by the department responsible for the road. In most cases, speed is a factor; however, we were traveling at a low rate of speed while following another vehicle. Something needs to be done before lives are lost. At least the speed limit could be lowered to 15 mph both ways to ensure that motorists can safely pass through until the county finally gets around to fixing it.

- Cyndi Fisher

Palmdale