Letters in the Editor's Mailbag.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Don't mess with anthem

In these days of mourning over the horrible events of Sept. 11, why must America be further tortured by some of the miserable renditions of our national anthem at sporting events?

As I have noticed, many of these performers prefer to stray far from the beauty of the original and substitute their own versions. Then, to further compound these sorry performances, the audience is asked to join them in singing, when in many cases you can't tell if it's the national anthem or "Roll Out the Barrel."

Thankfully, when people sing "God Bless America" everyone sings it with so much enthusiasm, due to their great love of our country, that it can't be distorted by self-serving individuals.

K. A. WALKER Eugene

AT&T needs competition

The guest column by AT&T's vice presidents (Register-Guard, Dec. 4) was a classic case of "the pot calling the kettle black," as my mother used to say. These functionaries referred to Eugene Water & Electric Board's previous statements about the availability of high-speed networking in Eugene as "extremely troubling" and "false and misleading," yet in my experience, they are nothing but accurate.

I spent much of last year searching for a high-speed Internet provider for my home in south Eugene. We are in a 35-year-old neighborhood - not exactly the boonies - yet nobody was able to provide connectivity out here. My calls to AT&T were invariably answered with "we will have cable modem service in all parts of Eugene by the end of 2000." The last time I called, in December 2000, I received the same answer. AT&T is engaging in what computer industry insiders refer to as "FUD": spreading fear, uncertainty, and doubt. By propagating rumors of their own planned service, they hope to prevent competitors from entering the business - in this case, EWEB and MetroNet.

We've all seen what is happening with Excite@Home in California, with thousands of customers left without Internet access. High-speed network access is too important to leave in the hands of one provider. Go, EWEB, go!

JIM A. JOHNSON Eugene

Proud to do his part

As the wife of a state police officer, I am insulted by the arrogance and ignorance of the letter from Alan Sims (letters, Dec. 4).

Three weeks ago my husband was assigned to work security at Portland International Airport. My children and I now spend four days and nights without him while he polices the welfare of society and questions suspicious people. He has been taken to task by pilots who feel that they don't need to go through security checkpoints; he has been chastised by people who are trying to take items in their carry-on luggage that they feel are acceptable to carry aboard an airplane. He would really much rather be out working at what he has been trained to do and has done for years, but instead he is spending 10 to 12 hours a day standing at a checkpoint watching and questioning anyone who seems suspicious.

Police officers can't win for losing these days. If they work traffic, they are out to get you. If they stop you and question you, they are out to get you; and now they are being asked by the federal government to do racial profiling on Middle Eastern men. Our flag is hanging high on the front of our home, and my family is giving up precious holiday time with a loved one for the security of our country. We are filled with patriotism and have woken up for freedom, and my husband is proud to do his part.

MICHELLE STORMS Eugene

Hatred is apparent

Why am I left with a cold feeling after seeing each Gang of 9 cartoon? Because there is no love there, even though they claim to be Eugene's true friends.

My impression is that these people have picked this particular Eugene City Council because certain councilors did something that hurt them - who knows what? Whatever happened has caused the Gang of 9 to spend much time, energy and money to do this cartoon thing, which the gang thinks is righteous and appropriate and in the spirit of American politics. But it comes off to me as cold, heartless and totally personal. Gang members want to mock and ridicule the same four or five people continuously and make sure everyone knows it.

The Gang of 9 should realize that we now all know and are painfully aware of how much they hate these city councilors. They have succeeded in that.

PETER WEINBERGER Eugene

LETTERS LOG

Letters received in past week: 122

Letters published: 53

What's on readers' minds: As has been the norm since Sept. 11, the war against terrorism was the hottest Mailbag topic. We received 18 letters on the U.S. war in Afghanistan and 10 on U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft's anti-terrorism campaign in the United States. We also received eight letters on Eugene Sand & Gravel's efforts to move to a River Road site and five each on recent events in the Mideast and The Gang of 9.

- The Register-Guard

CAPTION(S):

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