PUBLIC FORUM : TRAFFIC: BURBANK HAS BEEN `SOLD TO THE STUDIOS'.

``Burbank stung by success; studio expansion brings big traffic,'' Daily News, June 23:

We haven't been stung; we've been sold to the studios to keep out the airport. We're talking ``projected'' growth beyond the year 2010. Bumps on the secondary arterials force the traffic onto the main arterials, congesting them further. Citizens can't drive their own streets because of ``speeder'' hysteria. Police, fire and ambulances will have difficulty getting into neighborhoods. Frustration and accidents will escalate.

Try squeezing a geriatric driver who thinks he owns the streets past a truck that's on its way to a job and see what you get.

But what does the City Council care, if it can get another fat check from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to widen Hollywood Way, which isn't as congested as it was when Lockheed was working.

I asked the City Council about volume studies, the percentage response to the ``survey'' and percentage of negative comments. It stonewalled. Its response: get the work done before more people catch on.

Warner Bros. will probably get all the residential area between Pass Avenue, Hollywood Way, Riverside Drive and Olive Avenue. Disney already owns most of the houses on Keystone Street between Alameda Avenue and Riverside. So if the Council gives them Keystone and blocks it off, who cares? They're renters. They don't vote. They don't live next to me.

Take my neighbor's house. Just give me speed bumps.

- Fran Avery

Burbank

`Irrelevant' gun statistics

Mark Genrich's article (``Gun-a-month law works,'' Opinions, June 24) is among the most misleading that I have ever read.

The Committee to Prevent Handgun Violence is once again using non sequitur logic and irrelevant statistics to prove that night is day. Less than seven percent of criminals' handguns are obtained from retail sources, according to federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms figures.

The whole idea of a person legally purchasing a gun, anywhere, to sell to a criminal is absurd. That gun would be traceable back to the buyer. Also, ``black market'' guns sell for much less than guns at retail prices, not the other way around.

By wasting time and funds arguing over gun controls that have been shown to cause no net reduction in crime, rather than looking for real solutions to our nation's violence problems, the Committee to Prevent Handgun Violence is just frustrating and agitating those of us who care about personal safety, freedom, self-defense and the reduction of violence in America.

- Steve Gates

North Hills

Genrich contends that Virginia's limit of one handgun purchase a month has been proven effective by a Committee to Prevent Handgun Violence study. Would he be as willing to accept the results of a study by the Committee to Promote Handgun Use proving that the limit had no effects? And, even if we ignore the obvious bias of the source, the study says nothing about a reduction of crime rates, which is supposed to be the effect of the law.

It's not surprising the study ignores this most important point because the law cannot have any significant effect on crime, since five out of six in a sample of gun-owning felons obtained handguns from the secondary (nonregulated) market and by theft.

Genrich also commends the CPHV for helping in a lawsuit against the maker of a handgun sold legally but used in a crime. The same logic would allow the victims of a drunk driver to sue car companies; yet another damaging result of our out-of-control court system.

- Robert Harding

Granada Hills

Mark Genrich's article, ``Gun-a-month law works'' (Opinions, June 24) was full of misinformation that must be addressed.

Two of the sources Genrich uses for his statistical basis of support for gun rationing are at best suspect. The American Medical Association has taken a political position in opposition to private gun ownership.

The Committee to Prevent Handgun Violence is none other than the disingenuously renamed National Coalition to Ban Handguns. The idea that it has ``been leading the charge for thoughtful changes in gun laws'' is absolutely laughable unless you consider a total gun ban a thoughtful change.

No one really knows how many out-of-state guns are used in urban crime. Urban crime may reflect a higher percentage of imported guns than in suburban/rural settings, but this may simply be due to the fact that non-native residents brought legally purchased guns with them when they moved to the big city.

No one knows, and no unbiased studies have been conducted toward a specific determination in this area.

The bottom line is that gun rationing is just another feel-good scheme to limit private gun ownership without having any true impact on violent crime. The only program to demonstrably affect misuse of firearms, short of an outright ban, is the point-of-purchase instant identification check.

- Brian Baker 

Valencia

The Valley's `fair share'

I never realized that so many San Fernando Valley residents felt shortchanged about being part of the city of Los Angeles (``Does Valley get its fair share of services?'' Viewpoint, June 16).

Many writers compared their city services to those of Burbank and Glendale, which are relatively tiny cities. That leads me to believe they would feel equally frustrated in a city that encompasses the entire San Fernando Valley.

Perhaps the only solution would be to incorporate 10 or 15 separate cities about the size of Glendale or Burbank. That would indeed give most residents more say in their civic affairs. It would probably also cost a lot more money to run city government but maybe it would be worth it.

- Jim Tartan

Los Angeles 

I am a police service representative for the city of Los Angeles. My duties include answering 911 calls for emergency police service, calls for nonemergency police service and working as a radio telephone operTator with officers on the air.

The letter from Jim Rowe (``Does Valley get its fair share of services?'' Viewpoint, June 16) was completely inaccurate. He states that ``. . . each of the Los Angeles Police Department divisions downtown has separate radio-dispatch channels'' while the Valley divisions have to ``time-share.'' In fact, 20 of our 22 divisions (including the four traffic divisions) have to ``share the air.''

- Cathy Sotos

West Hills

Gift of life

We wrote this letter while the gift of life, a kidney, was being transferred from Stevi to Joel Bennett (``Hubby in need of a kidney takes wife up on her offer,'' Daily News, June 16). We are among scores of people whose lives have been touched by the Bennetts through their years of scouting, coaching, PTA, advisory councils and Marriage Encounter. Our collective thoughts and prayers will sustain them on their road to successful and complete recoveries.

We hope that this gesture of love will reach out to others to donate to the thousands of people waiting for a second chance to lead normal and healthy lives.

- Stan and Shelli Schwartz

Sherman Oaks

`Rolling arsonists'

I have an acquaintance who smokes and habitually throws lighted cigarettes out of his car window while driving, most recently in Canyon Country where the vegetation is extremely dry.

I have told him on several occasions that he was committing a serious crime but, due to obstinacy, senility, stupidity - or all of the above - he continues to put at risk the lives and property of a lot of innocent people. I certainly would not want to be an accessory after the fact if this criminal act ever reaches its logical conclusion, so I will not ride with that person again.

He probably watches the terrible California fires on television and never has a pang of conscience. Maybe he and his fellow potential rolling arsonists will see this letter and start using their ash trays. But I doubt it.

- H.L. Bradbury

Granada Hills

Parents play key role in education

Numerous stories have appeared in the Daily News and elsewhere that bemoan the lack of preparedness of our youngsters and the fact that so many of them require remedial education. Blame has been leveled at K-12 preparation, overcrowded classes, watered-down curriculum, too rigorous a curriculum, poorly conceived teaching methods in areas such as reading, easy grading, too rigorous grading, etc.

Solutions have been proposed that include smaller classes, standardized testing, back to basics, grading that does not label students as failures, use of computers and technology in the classroom, etc.

Time and time again we see that success in the classroom does not result from regimentation of specific teaching methodology, but instead from great teaching by great teachers who use methods of their choice. But not every teacher is a great teacher, and the problem must be solved on a more global level if the United States is to maintain leadership in the educated world.

A key solution is the parent. Agencies such as the National Science Foundation realize this and many of its new education programs aim at more parent participation in their children's schooling.

When I see a successful student, I often see a student who has had years of assistance from a parent. Usually there is no contest between a student left on his or her own to tackle homework and difficult concepts, versus a student who goes home every day for years to a parent who provides additional academic supervision.

If the United States could aim more resources in providing training opportunities for parents to help their youngsters in school, we'd be well on our way to a major turnaround in the sorry state of affairs of student preparedness.

Steven B. Oppenheimer

Director

CSUN Center for Cancer and Developmental Biology 

Northridge

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PHOTO Media District traffic: Cars cross the intersection o f Olive and Alameda avenues.