Letters for November 11, 2004

Election results
Shame on US.

M. Max Del Real
Chico

Biased endorsements
Amazing! While I consider myself moderately conservative, before I went to vote on Tuesday I grabbed the current issue of the Chico News & Review to “brush up” on initiatives. I was reasonably educated on the propositions and candidates, and I felt that I just needed a fair assessment before I went to the polls.

What I found was such erroneous, biased and prejudiced journalism it was honestly laughable. Last check, journalists were supposed to be “middle of the road” and report the facts, not opinion. Well, I thank you for your opinion, because I voted almost exactly contrary to your suggestions.

By the way, looking back you supported almost no passing initiatives and rarely did you support a victorious candidate. You went roughly 3 for 30; with that average you’d be lucky get a job hitting in AAA baseball. Keep up the good work. By the way, my 3-year-old little brother is looking for a job. Do you have any openings?

John W. Neal
Received via e-mail

Here we go again
Let’s see now. We (USA) are at war in Iraq. Why? Because our president invaded a “sovereign nation” based on bogus reasoning, and once in this sovereign nation tortured and killed residents therein. Does this ring a little déja vu with any of you?

Well, it should.

Think back to November 1939, when another president (chancellor) invaded a sovereign nation (Poland) based on bogus reasoning and once in this sovereign nation tortured and killed residents therein.

If by now you still do not remember who this other right-wing president (chancellor) was, then history is indeed repeating itself.

W. R. Fiedler
Oroville

Stupid Urban Vehicles
Your paper has mentioned, in several recent issues, the fact that most SUVs exceed the load limit for many local streets. This is also true of the large pickups that are so popular. The reason is this: A general rule is that wear and tear on road surfaces is proportional to the square of the weight of the vehicle. This means that, compared to a 2,000-pound car, a 4,000-pound vehicle is four times as hard on roads; one that weighs 6,000 pounds is nine times as destructive.

This is approximate, of course; it has to do with ground pressure, which is equal to the weight of the vehicle divided by the area of tire contact. This is why commercial vehicles have dual wheels or even multiple axles with duals. Even though approximate, there is no doubt that ridiculously heavy private vehicles cause much more than their share of damage to roads. Has anyone looked at Chico streets lately? Not good.

Nelson Kaiser
Chico

Best shame
As a mother and simply a compassionate human being, I find the fact that the CN&R chose to include the very tragic incident of the baby who died in the Chico sorority as a “Best of Chico Scandal” [Best of Chico, Sept. 23].

What a callous and cruel act of your newspaper.

There was nothing “Best of” about the death of that innocent baby.

As a weekly reader of the CN&R, I question the intention of the CN&R editors and publishers to use and exploit the story of a newborn child’s death.

Shame on the best of you all.

Kathy Braz
Oroville

Editor’s note: For the record, the choice of the incident as winner in the category of “Best Scandal” was made by CN&R readers, not editors.

Plastic carpentry
Recently I have been walking through the wonderful old neighborhoods of Chico. But I have noticed that a recent wave of “remodeling” has been defacing its lovely and rustic architecture.

Part of the beauty of old houses is in the details such as scrollwork, wooden siding and original wooden windows and doors. Replacing old windows with fake plastic and stuccoing old walls creates a cheap suburbia replacement, and all charm and beauty is destroyed.

It’s time the Chico City Council and planners pass architectural-preservation laws before our heritage vanishes forever.

Robert Smith
Chico

Gas gouged
Gas station operators maintain that their profit on a gallon of gas is only a few pennies and that they rely on their mini-marts to keep them in business.

I have no idea what their profit is, but here’s a little history. Those of us who have been around for a few years remember when mini-marts in combination with gas stations did not exist. Yet, gas stations were at almost every corner selling gas at 18 cents a gallon, and the owners survived, earning a very comfortable living.

In fact, a remnant of this era still in business is located on Mangrove, across from S&S Produce, where at times gas can be bought for less.

When gas station owners receive a shipment of gas higher in price than their previous shipment, they have no choice but to raise their prices.

But deliveries are not a daily occurrence warranting daily and often semi-daily price increases. The real shocker is that 8-10-cent hike all in one dose.

Note how long it takes for prices to be lowered once the price of crude oil in the market starts to slide.

So what is the justification for these continuous and frequent price increases—it’s referred to as gouging. We’re being taken for a very expensive ride.

Joe Canzoneri
Magalia

Pass the ammo
My fellow Americans,

Be of good cheer. I bring glad tidings. It has been vouchsafed unto me in a mighty vision from Almighty God that George W. Bush is His Chosen Instrument to initiate the End Times. When the dust has settled from the Final Conflict, all our souls will have been harvested and consigned, for All Eternity, to sit at the feet of the Almighty or to burn in the fires of Hell.

Previous candidates for ushering in the End Times—Adolph Hitler, Josef Stalin, Idi Amin, Saddam Hussein (to name just a few)—have been tested and found wanting.

Finally, in George W. Bush He has found an instrument sufficiently resolute to “stay the course” and fulfill His plan for mankind. Praise the Lord!

Gabriel Hornblower
Chico