PUBLIC FORUM.

Romer disappoints

Re ``Romer reveals donors'' (July 13):

As a retired teacher from the LAUSD, I was pleased when the school board selected former governor of Colorado Roy Romer to be the superintendent.

I thought Romer did an excellent job as governor of Colorado, and I was hopeful that an ``outsider'' might get a grip on the corruption that permeated many of the LAUSD departments.

Sadly, it seems that corruption continues unabated. Shabby construction, poor repair and maintenance together with astronomical prices are still the rule rather than the exception. The ``firms'' and ``vendors'' paying off with crumbs are the big winners here. Sadly, the California taxpayers and the students of Los Angeles are again the big losers.

- Robert Matano

Redlands

Quacks like a duck

Re ``Romer reveals donors'' (July 13):

If it looks bad and smells bad, it probably is bad, so keep it under cover.

It seems as though that is exactly what Roy Romer had in mind when he set up his secret corporation. It would have been a closed issue if the Daily News hadn't let the cat out of the bag. Now it appears to me this is the same problem we had at Jim Hahn's City Hall - ``pay to play.'' Looking at the donor list, it is pretty hard to arrive at any other conclusion.

Let's break up the Los Angeles Unified School District before it pulls any more funny stuff like floating a new bond issue or starting a scam of a parcel tax!

- W. Bob Turner 

Sherman Oaks

Start from scratch 

Re ``Panel to investigate foster child deaths'' (July 13):

The child protective system needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. It needs better training, better pay and no more immunity.

If teachers - who don't have the power to put someone in a position where they might lose their life - have to take classes and pass inspection to have their credentials renewed every five years, then social workers should, too. If that had been the case all along, maybe the abuse and death rate among foster children wouldn't be an issue now.

- Harriet Taylor

Lynwood

Home front

Re ``Council members condemn stamp'' (July 8):

What business do American city council members have in deciding what Mexico can or cannot put on its stamps?

Los Angeles City Council members are crying racism. They say Mexican President Vicente Fox does nothing to control racism in his country. Why don't they worry about racism here at home? Why don't they cry racism when they see a speedy little mouse wearing a sombrero and speaking bad English on TV? Or when a certain Chihuahua orders fast food?

I guess it's not racism unless the U.S. says it is.

- Michael Ruiz

Sylmar

Hold your fire

Re ``In line of fire'' (Our Opinions, July 15):

The premise that the police did everything they could have done to avoid a tragic ending is incorrect. The officers could have held their fire.

Simply, had they not fired, the child would not have been killed by a police bullet. If they followed policy, the policy needs to be changed.

The child ultimately may not have survived this incident, but police did not do everything they could have done.

- Tim Bennett

Winnetka

Violation of duty

Re ``In line of fire'' (Our Opinions, July 15):

Maybe I have been watching too much TV, and so I expect that SWAT teams like the LAPD's have sharpshooters with telescopic rifles. Whichever officer or officers shot that infant while her scumbag father held her as a small shield violated his or duty to try to save that infant's life.

SWAT teams wear bulletproof vests. They are supposed to be our heroes, such as our brave firemen, who put their lives on the line for we citizens. Although there are many brave police officers, this was not an act of bravery, but cowardice.

- Bob Greene 

West Hollywood 

One bright point

Re ``Man to stand trial in attorney attack'' (July 12):

Doesn't it boggle the mind that you can have someone on film, seen by millions of people over and over, trying to kill another human being - and now 20 months later he is scheduled for trial?

What could cause this length of time to pass? Now I can't wait for his plea: ``Innocent, judge - that was my twin brother on tape.''

What a joke the legal system in California is. The one bright point is Scott Peterson might be young enough to actually live to his execution.

- George Timko

West Hills

3rd time's the charm

Re ``3rd try begins to return cross to seal'' (July 13):

I welcome the Los Angeles County Heritage Coalition to the efforts to restore the Original L.A. County seal.

The third attempt began April 4, 2005, and hundreds of volunteers have spent many an hour away from their families, gathering signatures since it began. From the 84-year-old lady using a walker, gathering signatures at her church to the city council member in the South Bay, we are please to have LACHC join the effort.

We have one goal, and there is enough credit to go around.

Now it is time for the three supervisors to act. Put the seal changes on ``pause'' until after the people speak. You no longer have the Supreme Court to hide behind.

- David Hernandez

Valley Village

Back-door politics

Re ``Push for gay marriage revived by Senate panel'' (July 13):

It is downright conniving and manipulative for the California Democratic Party to sneak in the gay marriage bill into an environmental bill in order to attempt to get it passed.

It didn't pass the first time in the state Assembly, so they resort to dirty back-door politics. Shame on them.

The people of the state of California have already spoken: ``No to homosexual marriages.'' What part of ``no'' don't they understand?

- Sam Chaidez

Mission Hills

No appeasing

Re ``Not unexpected'' (Your Opinions, July 13):

Grant Gullickson seems to think that there is something we can do to appease the terrorists. If only we weren't in Iraq!

The sad fact is the terrorists hate us for what we are, not what we do. Our belief in Western values of freedom and democracy is what they hate. We weren't in Iraq when they attacked our African embassies, the USS Cole, the first World Trade Center bombing or 9-11.

What should we have done to prevent those attacks?

- Paul Goldman

Northridge

What is isn't

Re: ``Call it what it is'' (Your Opinions, July 15):

Sid Conkwright mischaracterized my position on flag burning. I do not condone the act; I only recognize it as an act of political expression protected by the First Amendment.

Conkwright also incorrectly says that my argument would defend church burning. There is no right to damage the property of others.

- David Holland

Northridge

Try combating terror

Re ``Terrorism not in faith of the world's Muslims'' (Their Opinions, July 14):

If Islamic organizations spent as much time and energy combating Islamic terror as they do combating criticism for their lack of effort to do so, no criticism would be warranted and the world would be better off.

- Shari Seaman Goodman

Calabasas