PUBLIC FORUM : KILLING WHALES.In an era when there is never a shortage of revolting events to report, the account of the Makah Indian's slaughter of a young gray whale is disgusting. One tribal member is quoted as saying, ``This brings meaning and purpose back to the Makah men. For 70 years they had what they did best taken away from them.'' Are we to understand that for 70 years that Makah men have had nothing worthwhile to do, and that killing the whale is both a rejuvenating act and the only thing of note they've done for 70 years? Then there was the method of killing the whale - not men in a dugout attacking the animal with traditional handmade harpoons, but a symbolic harpooning followed by an expedient fusillade of 50-caliber rounds. How manly, how glorious, what a reliving of their virile virile /vir·ile/ (vir´il) 1. masculine. 2. specifically, having male copulative power. vir·ile adj. 1. tradition. The International Whaling Commission International Whaling Commission (IWC) An intergovernmental organization created in 1946 to control the rapid escalation of whaling. The original purpose of the IWC was to preserve whale stocks for commercial whalers. has given permission for the Makahs to kill five gray whales per year, and the Clinton administration has endorsed this practice and provided the Makahs with a $310,000 grant from the Commerce Department. Maybe the Clinton administration would like to underwrite our collective search for our inner primal man, so that we can annihilate an·ni·hi·late v. an·ni·hi·lat·ed, an·ni·hi·lat·ing, an·ni·hi·lates v.tr. 1. a. To destroy completely: The naval force was annihilated during the attack. as many species as is necessary for the inflation of our pathetic egos. - Bryan Compton Northridge Doesn't make it right After reading ``Indian tribe INDIAN TRIBE. A separate and distinct community or body of the aboriginal Indian race of men found in the United States. 2. Such a tribe, situated within the boundaries of a state, and exercising the powers of government and, sovereignty, under the national resumes whaling with slaughter of young gray'' (Daily News, May 18), my heart nearly sank to the bottom of my feet. To hear that our government, the same administration that I voted back into office because I believed in it, sponsored the killing and the official start of whale slaughter, almost made me turn to the other side of politics. I thought that even though the whales were off the the extinction list but still endangered the noble creatures had some protection from the United States from senseless slaughter. I guess not. I guess some bureaucrat from the paper-pushing side of politics had given the green light on murder. Since the population of the gray whale is only, what, about 23,000, that makes it all right to make them an international target again. Small as this hunting party is, the Makahs have been given a green light on the whole whaling industry. True, part of their heritage is to kill whales, as part of their traditions. Is putting a species to death part of that tradition, too? - John C. Weaver Reseda Rosie was right I've always been of the opinion that if you walked like a duck and talked like a duck it was a pretty good bet you were a duck. It seems that Rosie O'Donnell is of the same opinion when she referred to Tom Selleck as a spokesman for the National Rifle Association National Rifle Association (NRA) Governing organization for the sport of shooting with rifles and pistols. It was founded in Britain in 1860. The U.S. organization, formed in 1871, has a membership of some four million. Both the British and the U.S. . This immediately raised Selleck's hackles hackles the hairs over the neck and back that are elevated by arrector pili muscles in response to fright or anger. A mechanism to threaten opponents, perhaps by appearing larger. . How dare she (Rosie) refer to him as a spokesman for the NRA NRA (National Rifle Association of America) organization that encourages sharpshooting and use of firearms for hunting. [Am. Pop. Culture: NCE, 1895] See : Hunting . This is America; you can't go around calling people names on TV. It would seem to me that if one makes TV commercials supporting the NRA's position regarding gun control one may be considered a spokesman. I can understand Selleck's reluctance of not wanting to be overly associated with that august assemblage of patriots these days, considering we have wholesale slaughter going on in our schools, but as old Harry Truman use to say, ``If you can't take the heat get out of the kitchen.'' - L.A. Calabro Northridge Rosie was wrong Talk about entrapment entrapment, in law, the instigation of a crime in the attempt to obtain cause for a criminal prosecution. Situations in which a government operative merely provides the occasion for the commission of a criminal act (e.g. . I'm referring to the total ambush of Tom Selleck on the Rosie O'Donnell show. What a piece of work this woman is. Tom Selleck is a decent man and a fine actor and quite likely a perfect representative of the average National Rifle Association member, career notwithstanding. For this attack to occur in this fashion lays bare this woman's agenda and that is to totally disparage dis·par·age tr.v. dis·par·aged, dis·par·ag·ing, dis·par·ag·es 1. To speak of in a slighting or disrespectful way; belittle. See Synonyms at decry. 2. To reduce in esteem or rank. the NRA specifically and all gun owners in general. I take this attack quite personally, and I am quite frankly tired of being labeled something I am not. I can't help but wonder if there is some legal avenue that could be taken to stop these slanderous attacks on our membership? - Daniel Taylor Tujunga Will it help? Regarding the elimination of many paint products by the AQMD AQMD Air Quality Management District AQMD Action Quake Map Depot - we need to know the effect this will have on the air in the L.A. basin. Reducing our quality of life by eliminating paints and hundreds of other products might be acceptable if the air was noticeably cleaner, but I fear it will be no different after the restrictions go into effect. The pollution dumped into the atmosphere each day by paint products is almost nil when compared to all the aircraft taking off from LAX. Just one 747 jet can take up to 150 tons of jet fuel or about 54,000 gallons in one refueling. Jet fuel, kerosene kerosene or kerosine, colorless, thin mineral oil whose density is between 0.75 and 0.85 grams per cubic centimeter. A mixture of hydrocarbons, it is commonly obtained in the fractional distillation of petroleum as the portion boiling off and barbecue fluid are all basically the same product. Remember back in the '80s when we changed starter fluid formulation to reduce smog - a lot of good that did when you realize that LAX contributes one-third of the smog in the metropolitan basin. If a person drove an SUV 20,000 miles a year at 15 miles per gallon Noun 1. miles per gallon - the distance traveled in a vehicle powered by one gallon of gasoline or diesel fuel unit, unit of measurement - any division of quantity accepted as a standard of measurement or exchange; "the dollar is the United States unit of , he could drive for 40 years on the fuel in one large jet. I think it's time for people to start asking questions instead of just accepting statements that ``this will improve our air.'' - James A. Murad Acton Mayor's pet plan In response to Mark Ridley-Thomas and Laura Chick's May 19 Opinion article and Mayor Richard Riordan's response (Public Forum, May 21) in the Daily News, I say that the mayor's proposal sounds fair and workable. Let's give that a try before there is imposed a mandatory spay/neuter program. There are some of us out here who obey the dog laws, believe it or not. We shouldn't be penalized pe·nal·ize tr.v. pe·nal·ized, pe·nal·iz·ing, pe·nal·iz·es 1. To subject to a penalty, especially for infringement of a law or official regulation. See Synonyms at punish. 2. for those irresponsible dog owners who aren't concerned about what their loose dog may do. - Charlene T. Vincent Chatsworth Mission College's future Thank you for your support in your editorial ``Quick-change campus,'' May 12. We think it is important to also acknowledge the contributions of our state Sen. Richard Alarcon and Assemblyman Tony Cardenas toward the anticipated reallocation Noun 1. reallocation - a share that has been allocated again allocation, allotment - a share set aside for a specific purpose 2. reallocation of state funds for the new Collaborative Studies Building on campus. It may also interest your readers to know that the current year has been one of the college's most successful years in that our enrollment and number of graduates grew significantly, and we have a sizable ending budget balance. Los Angeles Mission College Los Angeles Mission College is a two-year community college located in Sylmar, California neighborhood of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley, United States. It is part of the Los Angeles Community College District. is now fiscally sound and with its continued growth looks forward to an outstanding future of service to the communities of the Northeast San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . - William E. Norlund President Los Angeles Mission College Tune-in to Pierce I want to compliment the Daily News for the May 15 front-page article ``In tune with the future'' about Barbara Plourd, the 65-year-old Pierce College associate of arts Associate of arts and Associate of science are two-year undergraduate degrees offered by many community colleges or junior colleges in the United States. Such degrees transfer to four-year institutions which offer full bachelor of arts and bachelor of science degrees. music-theory candidate. Pierce College offers a wide range of educational opportunities for adults of all ages. If you have ever thought about going back to school, now is the time! - Steve Gabel North Hills Trash pick-up great Re ``Angry residents say city turned block into dump'': I live on a cul-de-sac in Sylmar. Our trash pickup day is Monday. About two months ago, the trash in the black container was not picked up. I thought perhaps the truck was behind schedule and waited until Tuesday. The trash was still there. On Wednesday the trash still remained, so Thursday morning I called the East Valley Collection of the Bureau of Sanitation. I told the gentleman who answered the phone that our block must have been overlooked by the truck that picks up the black trash bins. He said he would report it to a supervisor. I went on an errand about 11:30 a.m. and returned about 2 p.m. and the black trash bins had been picked up. This particular incident in Sherman Oaks must have been an isolated incident because in the 25 years I have lived in Sylmar, the very few times I've had to call East Valley Collection of Sanitation to pick up trash they have missed, East Valley has always responded that day or the next. - Debbie Holbrook Sylmar One-word solution After reading Supervisor Mike Antonovich's letter (Public Forum, May 23) and having retired from the LAUSD LAUSD Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles, CA) with over 20 years of service, I felt I should comment on all the LAUSD problems. The answer is simple. Can you say ``voucher?'' - James P. Biddle Quartz Hill Death as duty In the very near future, the ``Death With Dignity'' bill (AB 1592) will be entertained in Sacramento, which will give doctors the choice of executing terminally ill Terminally Ill When a person is not expected to live more than 12 months. Notes: Any gifts given out by the afflicted person at this time may be considered as a dispersion of the estate rather than a gift. patients if some form of consent is obtained. This proposition is far from dignifying dig·ni·fy tr.v. dig·ni·fied, dig·ni·fy·ing, dig·ni·fies 1. To confer dignity or honor on; give distinction to: dignified him with a title. 2. and legislates a responsibility to doctors that doctors don't want. For 2,000 years, the cornerstone of medical ethics medical ethics The moral construct focused on the medical issues of individual Pts and medical practitioners. See Baby Doe, Brouphy, Conran, Jefferson, Kevorkian, Quinlan, Roe v Wade, Webster decision. has been the Hippocratic tradition. Physician-assisted suicide would revert the patient-doctor relationship back to pre-Hippocratic days, when patients didn't know if the doctor would heal them or kill them. Doctors must remain healers, not killers. Approximately half of all medical costs for an individual accumulate in the last few months of life. Imagine how the motivation to urge suicide increases with the financial incentives of inheritance, HMO HMO health maintenance organization. HMO n. A corporation that is financed by insurance premiums and has member physicians and professional staff who provide curative and preventive medicine within certain financial, rewards and government health care reimbursements. Economic, family and social pressures would soon turn the ``right to die'' into the ``duty to die.'' - David S. Campbell, DDS (1) (Digital Data Storage) See DAT. (2) (Data Dictionary System) See QuickBuild and OpenDDS. (3) (Dataphone Digital S North Hollywood Too many area codes The proliferation of cell phones and a second line to many homes for a fax or Internet access has created a situation where we will surely soon run out of new area codes. The greater Tri-County area probably has 15 to 20 already and none with any sequence. Tokyo, Japan, seeing what a mess we had made of the problem, found a better solution; they merely added an eighth digit to all Tokyo numbers, and it was not a problem for their people. Sydney, Austrailia, soon followed their lead, and just this year, Sao Paulo, Brazil did the same. Surely our nation, which supposedly has the highest technology available, could have just once followed someone with a better idea? Incidentally, by adding the eighth digit, it created an additional 90 million numbers. - Bill Nixon Granada Hills CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Makah Indian whalers Whalers may mean:
Elaine Thompson/Associated Press |
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