PUBLIC FORUM.

Slow-walking Mayvis

Re ``Slow-walking senior guilty; but $114 fine waived'' (July 8):

The Los Angeles County Superior Court commissioner, Jeffrey Harkavy, found Mayvis Coyle guilty of jaywalking. Such a finding has to be beyond a reasonable doubt, just like any other violation. Harkavy obviously found that Coyle's version of the events was simply not credible. Period.

Frankly, he should not have waived the fine. What happens the next time, and there will be a next time, that a person, senior citizen or not, is convicted of the same violation and gets fined? They'll be asking for the same break as Coyle received. Coyle, you received an early Christmas gift. Obey the law next time.

-- John Hernandez

San Gabriel 

Failed to focus

Re ``Slow-walking senior guilty; but $114 fine waived'' (July 8):

Mayvis Coyle convicted herself with her original statement when she declared ``the light was green.'' Obviously she was not focused on the ``Walk/Don't Walk'' signal.

She, like most pedestrians, fails to focus on the most important part of a signal. Well, the judge found her guilty on the jaywalking charge and suspended the fine.

-- Robert Gilbert 

Van Nuys

Just too sad

Re ``Zookeeper resigns after failing to report threat to elephant'' (July 7):

Does anyone remember the touching story of Gita in the old PBS Videolog series with Huell Howser? I remember so well that clip when the old man who had owned and worked with Gita in her youth came to the L.A. Zoo to visit her after not having seen her for so many years.

When he called Gita's name, she recognized him and came to him immediately. The two old friends had a chance to get reacquainted, he even put her through her old routine for the camera, and then he had to leave. Gita seemed to want to follow him. Maybe she thought he had come back to get her. The old man left with tears in his eyes, saying he pretty much knew he would not be seeing her again. I cried. She deserved better.

-- Millie Derose

San Fernando 

Zoo scapegoat?

Re ``Zookeeper resigns after failing to report threat to elephant'' (July 7):

It defies credibility that the L.A. Zoo would not have had written guidelines on Gita, an elephant of such notoriety with such precarious health problems. Or is the retired zookeeper simply a scapegoat?

-- Bill Dyer

Venice

Accountability

Re ``Zookeeper resigns after failing to report threat to elephant'' (July 7):

The Los Angeles Zoo and John Lewis cannot absolve themselves from gross negligence with the resignation of a zookeeper when the zoo is responsible for creating the conditions that led to Gita's death. She was kept in conditions not suitable for elephants.

Gita lived her entire life on hard surfaces that created the arthritis and osteomyelitis that kept her standing for years and caused her to sit down. Her feet were in constant pain. As director of the zoo, the buck stops with John Lewis. He should resign. He certainly should not be in charge of the remaining two elephants.

-- Marlene Goodman

Senior Citizens For Humane Legislation and Education

Sherman Oaks

`Snit' is a good thing

Re ``Zine's parking problem'' (Our Opinions, July 6):

You say ``snit'' like it was a bad thing. Let me point out some of Councilman Dennis Zine's other ``snits.'' How about the snit over a ``drug house'' that Zine had bulldozed, much to the thrill of the neighborhood? What about the snit over graffiti, illegal dumping, potholes, missing or damaged street signs? This snit led to the formation of Zine's POSSE, People Organizing Safe Secure Environments. Several hundred of us cleaning up the West Valley.

Oh, by the way, this was not Zine's parking problem. It was the problem of the people of the Valley. I for one am very happy when my councilman has a ``snit.''

-- Betty Green

Canoga Park

Clean money elections

Thank you for your incisive editorial ``Clean Money -- City Council tries to kill reform by making it ugly'' (July 7). One feature of our current special-interest-funded election campaigns is the enormous advantage it bestows on incumbents. If you are trying to buy privileged access to legislators, the smart money goes to incumbents.

By leveling the playing field, ``clean money'' elections give a challenger a fair chance. Incumbent re-election rates in Arizona dropped from 98 percent (the year the Clean Money Initiative passed) to 75 percent in 2002 (when the clean-money option became available.)

-- William H. Forthman

Northridge

Fox in chicken coop

Re ``Commission `citizens' not independent'' (Viewpoint, July 9):

Once again the foxes are in the chicken coop. Some in Sacramento must think the citizens of California are blind to nepotism.

-- Richard Promen

Chatsworth

Money should talk

Re ``A vast take for `Pirates''' (July 10):

The top money-making movies this past week are all PG-13, except ``Cars,'' rated ``G,'' and something called ``Waist Deep,'' which is rated ``R'' and came in ninth out of the 10. This is typical for the Monday morning earnings recap, i.e., apparently few ``R'' rated movies earn much money. You'd think the people who make the movies would get the message.

-- Pauli Carnes

Woodland Hills

Illusions of grandeur

Trash pickup, better known in city jargon as ``Solid Waste Collection, Transfer, Recycling, Recovery of Waste Resources and Disposal Fee for the City of Los Angeles.'' It seems that when the city needs money, the homeowners are the easy targets; just assess them, get your money and plan for the next project.

Our neighborhood is 99 percent senior citizens living on a fixed income. We pay our taxes, keep up our property, contribute to our community; and are always hit when money is needed. We are tired of being nickled and dimed to death by a city that always seems to find money when they want to. Mayor Villaraigosa appears to have illusions of grandeur, using homeowners and senior citizens to climb the ladder of success.

-- Joanne L. Foley

Woodland Hills

Tesla's birthday

An important birth anniversary was ignored by most of America. One hundred fifty years ago, Nicole Tesla was born in the small Croatian village of Smiljan. ``Tesla, who's that?'' will likely be the response from most. An energy pioneer, who invented the A.C. electric motor, A.C. power systems, the induction coil named after him -- Tesla coil -- radio (before Marconi) and even radio control (a model battleship, in 1898.)

Yet, unlike Thomas Edison, Tesla seems to be forgotten. July 10, 2006, was his 150th birthday. If it weren't for Tesla, most of our modern electronic world would not exist. Happy birthday, Tesla.

-- Edson Andre Johnson

Sunland

Can't take it with him

So even in death we are cheated by Kenneth Lay. According to your paper, he left thousands jobless and wiped out billions from investors, so can you tell me how he is absolved of all guilt just because he is dead?

Dead or alive, assets should be seized from the defendants and auctioned off to pay the debts. Is there any life insurance? That should be seized as well. I for one wouldn't mind seeing Linda Lay as a greeter at Wal-Mart.

-- Susan Mueller

Granada Hills

Meanwhile, on Earth

Why does NASA have a team of experienced astronauts repairing a space station 200 miles above Earth while Caltrans doesn't have anyone repairing our freeways here on Earth?

-- Robert L. Rosebrock

Brentwood