Letters in the Editor's Mailbag.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Brilliant 'strategery'

What happened to that bumbling, stumbling, inarticulate, uneducated, rich daddy's boy who wasn't qualified and didn't deserve to be president of the United States?

President Bush sent the Taliban packing. He now has the support of Congress and the United Nations to start the certain, imminent downfall of Saddam Hussein. Saddam's regime will fall like a dwarf pussy willow, probably without dropping a bomb.

Through Bush's popularity and political "strategery," Republicans now control the White House and both houses of Congress. They would have won bigger if it weren't for Losertarians (Libertarians) siphoning votes from them.

Scientists have placed food in the center of a cage and, in front if it, a 3-foot-square piece of clear glass. It takes monkeys about 30 seconds to detour around the glass to get the food. Losertarians have been pursuing their party's goals for two decades without success and should now detour around to join the Republican party where they can work to make their changes there. Apparently, Green Party members are much quicker to learn, as many realize they probably cost Al Gore the presidency and are switching to vote Democratic. As a results, the Greens didn't have enough support to get candidates on some ballots.

Democrats would also have done better if they hadn't let morally bankrupt Bill Clinton campaign for them. With friends like that, who needs enemies? Democrats are now in disarray - fighting like toddlers who think they are the center of the universe and who blame others for their liberal dysfunctions. The stock market will rebound. Companies now have confidence to build and expand industry, which really makes our economy grow, not government.

ROBERT DAVID SMITH Eugene

Saluting our schools

Today marks the beginning of 81st annual observance of American Education Week - a time for saluting our public schools and the relationship among teachers, students, parents and community.

The Eugene community celebrated American Education Week early when Measure 20-67 passed on Nov. 5. The theme of this year's American Education Week celebration, "Making Public Schools Great for Every Child" reflects our combined commitment to all students. The Eugene levy will assist in providing Bethel and Eugene district students with an enriched public school experience. Interaction among children, parents, teachers and community cannot be underplayed, and if that partnership is strong, a child's chances of success skyrocket.

On Nov. 7, Eugene voters once again demonstrated their commitment to students and to a quality public education, and we Eugene area educators express our appreciation. Today's teachers and specialists do more than teach basic skills. They nurture and inspire children. They help students learn essential and life enhancing skills not always measured in testing, such as critical thinking, conflict resolution, cooperation and problem-solving.

Please consider taking time to visit your nearest public school and volunteering to work with our future - Eugene's K-12 students.

PAUL DUCHIN, President

Eugene Education Association Eugene

A blistering satire

You may be doing a disservice to your readers by publishing an article like Noam Chomsky's piece, ambiguously headlined "Iran may step in for war with Iraq" (Register-Guard, Nov. 10). As our warmongering administration is doing everything in its power to stir up blind patriotic emotions that would enable us to destroy another small nation, its voters and soldiers do not need to be confused by irony or satire.

Chomsky's tongue was so deeply imbedded in his cheek, that only an Idaho patriot could miss it. He even twice referred to the scheme as a "modest proposal," referring to Jonathan Swift's ironic 1729 satire of the same name in which hunger and population growth of Great Britain could be controlled by cooking and eating a percentage of newborn babies (mostly Irish as I recall). It did, however, fool your headline writer whose subheads "Alternative: The United States should encourage Iran to invade" and "Iran surely has far better credentials for war-making and for running a post-Saddam Iraq, than Washington" suggest that he or she did not read the entire article or, worse, has been numbed by election season rhetoric and lies.

Chomsky's article is, in fact, a blistering rebuttal of the Bush administration's proposition, noting that we already tried that in the 1980s, encouraging and supporting both Iran and Iraq to destroy each other. The result: the Euphrates River ran blood and our two enemies remain. Chomsky leaves no doubt in his final paragraph, "Granted the modest proposal that Iran liberate Iraq is insane. Its only merit is that it is far more reasonable than the plans now being implemented" by the Bush administration.

Irony over; plain truth.

RICHARD LEINAWEAVER Eugene

Library needs filters

Last evening, I attended a Downtown Neighborhood Association meeting and heard a very interesting presentation about the new library by one of their staff members. It was all lovely except for the fact that the library is providing free pornography access to people who would not otherwise have easy access to it.

Our presenter said more adults than teenagers view pornography, as if that should be a comfort to the public. So here we have a beautiful new library located between a church and a bus station with families, teenagers, children, the elderly and the porno addicts coming and going using the facilities.

The U.S. Supreme Court last week agreed to hear the U.S. Department of Justice's appeal regarding the Library Filter Case, the Children's Internet Protection Act. This is the third attempt by the federal government to restrict online porno in libraries by requiring the library to install filtering software if they choose to accept federal funds.

It used to be that the worst kind of porno was limited to red light districts, or restricted by adults, or isolated by shame. Now we have the nation's 40,000 libraries making it available to anyone.

President Bush says, "Libraries aren't required to make X-rated movies and porno magazines available and shouldn't have to offer access to pornography on their computers."

John Cornyn, the former Texas attorney general who is now a senator, says, " Parents should not be afraid to send their children to the library either, because they might be exposed to such materials or because the library's free, filterless computers might attract people with a propensity to victimize children."

I think that most people in Eugene would like to see our new library opened with filters on its computers. We need to let our voices be heard.

JEANINE WEBB Eugene

Exodus has begun

Not gloat? Forget it. I'm gloating, and I don't care who knows it. I'm enjoying the sight. All of those who wrote letters to the editor denigrating our president, saying he had a "room temperature IQ" and making other silly comments, now have mouths full of black crow feathers.

But they are still at it. They are in denial. They just can't believe that most of the country is moving even more to the right where real people live. The only areas where the socialist Democrat cabal still holds sway are in the large metropolitan areas on each coast. where the citizens have become addicted to government handouts paid for by wealth confiscated from producers.

Sadly, my joy over the national results has been tempered by the results in my adopted state. Although my sympathies have been with the Libertarians, I don't vote with them. They can't win. They would be better off forming a coalition with the conservative Republicans where they have the best chance of seeing at least some of their good ideas incorporated.

Sadly, Libertarian leadership is rigid to the point of ossification. By holding to their single issue ideas, they have turned the state over to the socialists and their ideas have no chance of being considered. So get ready for higher Oregon taxes, continued promotion of perversion, more government control and a tighter grip on business by unions. The exodus has already started. When you can't find a job, you can thank the Libertarians who were dumb enough to betray the state.

Maybe it's time for Oregon business to go on strike.

TOM PREUSS Creswell

Redirect those voices

Let me see. Saddam Hussein implies that he has nothing (that we are worrying about) to hide. That being the case, it will simplify the current exercise for him to really open up Iraq to unfettered inspection.

Those in the world who are vocal, on one side or the other, about war with Iraq, should redirect our vocal energies toward Saddam. Open inspection means no invasion, no bombs, no gassing by his forces, no suffering, no billions of dollars wasted. Embargo ends, trade begins. Milk is produced. Medicines become available.

That was simple.

LARRY W. HIRONS Eugene

Turn off extra lights

During these darkening days, I would like to remind people that the use of fog lights, driving lights or any type of auxiliary lights is prohibited when other traffic is present. These lights are intended for off-road use or open roads without other vehicles. According the the Oregon Driver's Manual, these lights are only legal to use when standard high beams would be allowed. As these lights are typically very bright and aimed differently from standard headlights, they can cause problems for oncoming traffic.

Please, for the safety and comfort of other drivers, switch off these lights while driving in traffic, and encourage others to do the same.

SETH SKINNER Eugene

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