LETTERS

LITTLE ROCK — Can’t turn back the clock

A recent letter by Judy Sigmon of Fayetteville declared that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement should do its job and deport “every illegal it can find.” Really? Methinks it’s about 20 years too late for that.

Sigmon has joined those people who make pat statements about the Hispanic community. She states that there would be less need for ESL teachers. I think that is becoming less necessary now that we are going on the second and third generations of Hispanic children in this area.

She claims that there would be fewer gang-related crimes. I recently bought one of those papers that publishes the mugshots of everyone arrested in this area to see how it broke down by ethnicity; the Hispanic percentage was much lower than that of white people. She mentioned that less money would be spent on free and reduced lunches. Children of all backgrounds qualify for those benefits. She commented that many “norteamericanos” would do the jobs in construction and “jobs such as slaughtering chickens.” Really? Why did the poultry industry start long ago recruitingpeople from Mexico to do those jobs that many locals wouldn’t do?

That leads me to say that it seems improbable that after so many years our government and industries are going to change the way they operate. You can’t turn back the clock that far. We all need to just accept our communities as they are and stop ignoring a segment of the community that has been here for a long time.

TOM ARNHART Rogers Leave mindset in past

What an egregious statement to be made by someone who represents the opinion of the male counterpart. Not all men share David Sumrell’s archaic mindset. In fact, that is something that should have been left in the 20th Century when it was considered acceptable.

In his tirade, Sumrell failed to mention all of the inventions and improvements that women have contributed to since they’ve been “liberated,” things that he might use on a regular basis, but has taken for granted. To name a few: the circular saw, Kevlar (for bullet-resistant vests), Scotchgard, correction fluid, vacuumpacked canning . . . the list goes on.

Hopefully he never has the medical need for an intravenous catheter shield, Nystatin, home diabetes test, modern X-ray technology, 6-mercaptopurine (drug for leukemia and other cancers) or the Cataract Laserphaco Probe (to remove cataracts)-these were all invented/innovated by women.

CHRISTOPHER LUNSFORD Fayetteville And Rome burns . . .

I am sending Barack Obama a replica of Nero’s fiddle.

CHARLES NICHOLS MaumelleLooking for hip boots

The world population is now about 7 billion. Assume that, on a daily basis, every four people have a bowel movement weighing a total of 1 pound. That amounts to 1.75 billion pounds of excrement added to the Earth every day.

Putting this in perspective: If the average Arkansan weighs 175 pounds (Thank God for Mississippi), that would be the weight of 10 million Arkies. The population of the state is only about 3 million.

Being an election year, the amount of @%#* being slung about will increase dramatically. Do what you will with this information.

I am getting some hip boots and air freshener, and praying.

PAUL CHRIST Harrison America the troubled

I walked out recently in smalltown U.S.A. to retrieve my morning copy of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in the quiet exquisite beauty of the hillsides, listening to the bark of bushy-tailed squirrel as he went abouthis early morning feeding.

America the beautiful! What a privilege to experience such awe and wonder. Nowhere else but the United States of America.

A glance at the headlines and I was made to wonder how long all this God-given heritage can last.

The last century, around 1940, we were coming out of the Great Depression. Defense jobs were opening up and there was money to be made by the working men and women working side by side, and things were getting better.

As I recall, it wasn’t long until the labor unions began to do their thing. Money was being made, folks weregoing in debt for nicer things and keeping up with their neighbors. It took more money for what would seem a lavish lifestyle. That is when the unions stepped in to aggressively barter for higher wages. Wages went up, commodities went up, and as the financial indicators predicted, finally America was in trouble.

Election year is here. Decisions and choices are to be made. How are you and I going to perform? There are many issues to be considered in the character and abilities of the politician.

EVERETT MASON Pangburn Move its plan forward

The Arkansas Public Service Commission is setting a benchmark for certainty on Entergy’s proposal to join Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator (MISO) that is unattainable, in my opinion.

It would be nice to know with total certainty that all decisions are final, that no new federal government rulings will come down, and that everything could be wrapped up in a nice little box. But that is not the world in which we live.

Instead, we have to make decisions based on the best information we can find by studying an issue. Since announcing their plans to exit the system agreement, Entergy has studied numerous options. Not only that, but other outside groups also conducted studies. The consensus is that Entergy Arkansas joining MISO provides savings for Arkansans and reduces risk.

I urge the commission to follow the results of the studies, and not the suppositions of a staff that seems more intent on creating delay, rather than solutions to move Entergy’s proposal forward.

WILL WATSON Little RockCleaning up that mess

The recent political cartoon saying that “Obamanomics” is a tool to keep people from crossing the border into the U.S. was both uninformed and unimaginative.

Our economic near-depressioncausing meltdown happened when George W. Bush had been president for seven years and 10 months. Any president who has been in office for that long is responsible for the state of the economy. What did George W. Bush inherit from his predecessor, Bill Clinton? A budget surplus that at that time was predicted to pay off the national debt by 2012. What did Bill Clinton inherit from George W. Bush’s father? An economy in a mess.

As I see it, the pattern for the last four presidents has been: a Republican president makes a mess of the economy, a Democratic president has to fix it, a Republican president makes a mess of the economy, a Democratic president has to fix it.

It was interesting that the following day there was a report that in April there was a U.S. budget surplus.

Perhaps, rather than “Obamanomics,” what we are in now should be called “Getting-out-of-the-mess-madeby-a-Republican-president-anomics,” or something more imaginative.

ROY LYNN VAIL MenaDiseases aren’t same

Linda Caillouet’s article on the Take Steps Fundraiser to benefit Crohn’s disease patients was, I assume, wellmeaning. However, it contained inaccuracies in regard to what Crohn’s is.

Crohn’s disease is not a form of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), nor is it called irritable bowel disease. Crohn’s is a very serious illness, falling under the umbrella of a group of autoimmune diseases known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While some symptoms of IBS and IBD may be similar and people with both suffer, because it is inflammatory, IBD patients face the prospect of severe and chronic manifestations of the disease that may require repeated hospitalizations and can lead to surgeries. Complications involving other parts of the body may arise. Treatments for IBD may themselves have undesirable side effects, although as a very smart gastroenterologist once told me, the side effects are generally preferable to an active Crohn’s flare-up. That is an event you might wish only on your worst enemy, and even then you’d probably think twice.

I would suggest clarifying the differences between IBS and IBD. Since pretty much everybody has stomach troubles at some time or another, it would be useful to know when and where to get help and then, when to get more help. And please, take this subject matter seriously. It may be easy to confuse IBS and IBD, but it is also easy to find out what the differences are and to clarify the distinctions.

JONIJANE PAXTON Little Rock

Deputy Editor Frank Fellone says a correction was published May 17th.

She did the right thing

The Sunday edition containing the latest on the University of Central Arkansas did a real service for all who read the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Kudos to Diane Newton, vice president of finance and administration at UCA, who displayed good judgment, honesty and loyalty to the state’s people. She is to be commended for her judgment in retaining the letter from Aramark to former President Allen Meadors.

Let’s hope this incident is inspiring and educational.

RALPH AARON Hot SpringsNeeds more research

I think the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette editorial writers need to do alittle more research as to why the federal government built trout hatcheries after the dams were built. It definitely wasn’t because the dams caused a “ disruption in the trouts’ life cycle”; the key word in that quote is “trout.”

Come on now, do a little research and see if you can get it right. Clue: It has something to do with cold water that wasn’t there until the dams were completed.

DOUG WARRINGS Eureka SpringsFeedback Plan: Kick ’em out

I have written before about the sad state of public education, especially in Arkansas, but just realized that we have a solution.

Forget how the teachers’ union protects bad teachers and how teachers’ colleges seek out the bottom of the barrel for teaching candidates. Simply do what the colleges do-if you do not maintain a C average, out you go. Too harsh, you say?

If enough of their little darlings were flunked out rather than being given “self-esteem awards,” maybe the parents would start doing their duty and shape their kids up. Then you would see some real progress.

ED DUGAN Mountain Home Least of our worries

“Fordyce Freddy” Boen expresses such fear and angst about the state of America because of same-gender marriage. Really?

We have dug ourselves into such a hole with the economy, education, Social Security, health care, and in so many other areas that same-gender marriage should be the least of his worries.

And I really tire of hearing man put words into God’s mouth.

WINCIE GLADISH North Little Rock