Letters to the editor 1-29

Historical event,

not a racial issue

First of all I do not consider myself a racist and could care less about whatever color our president is provided he or she is the best qualified.

As I watched what ABC national news had to offer on the inauguration of our new president on the eve of the inauguration I became very aware of what a racial event it became. I became totally disgusted, not with the inauguration itself of our new president, but with the fact that they made it into a racial issue. I wonder why that had to happen. Why, at this time in our history of our great country, did this event even have to bring race into the ceremony at all?

During the benediction by the Rev. Lowery his prayer was totally based on racism. During the ceremony they played old footage of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from the 1960s. The news media went to Africa to film footage of how joyful the villagers of the president's origination were. And, as the evening wore on while watching ABC, I saw nothing but celebrations and joy as they related to race. I shut the TV off and gave up in disgust.

I believe that any presidential inauguration is a historical event for our country but do not feel that race should have anything to do with it. I do feel, however, that the new president had or could have had total control of what he wanted his inauguration to be. I wonder if he himself wanted it to be a racial matter or did he just let it happen?

I thank both Michael Reagan and John Colyer for their great opinion articles published recently in the Nevada Appeal. They both made very good points and I could not agree more with them both.

BILL RAMSDEN

Minden

Assembly proposal

circumvents tax cap

Assembly Bill 67, sponsored by the Nevada Association of Counties, provides a method for a county Board of Supervisors to circumvent the will of the people.

Section 1 of this bill provides a new authorization for a board of county commissioners to adopt, by a two-thirds vote, an ordinance to levy a separate property tax not to exceed 10 cents per $100 of the assessed valuation of the property in the county to pay the costs of public safety, health and welfare services in its county.

Yes, at the next election voters can remove supervisors who voted for the tax but the tax cannot be removed since a bond was sold.

We must make sure that the executive director Mary Walker, whom we pay to lobby for Carson City, does not press for passage. In addition, we the voters of Carson City must continue to press our present board to pass a resolution opposing passage of AB67 that circumvents the Legislature's cap on property tax.

LOU DEBOTTARI

Carson City

Tough times call

for tough decisions

Dear Gov. Gibbons:

Along with the rest of the state, I have been following closely to your proposed budget for the next two years. While I can completely empathize with the fiscal issues you are facing, I have to question your thinking. Within this current budget you are asking for a 35 percent cut for the Nevada education system, yet you say that cuts for the prison system are off the table. If you will allow me to paraphrase, I hear you to say that a prisoner is more valuable to the state of Nevada, than the education of our children?

While I may not be a governor, I am smarter then a fifth-grader, and even I can see what a blow to our state these proposed budget cuts would be. Nevada currently ranks 45th out of 50 states for elementary education. If these proposed budget cuts are allowed to go through, then I foresee Nevada being ranked 50th. Is that truly the legacy that you wish to leave?

Gov. Gibbons, the time has come to do the job you were voted in for. I recognize that the platform you were elected on called for no new taxes, and I can respect you for your determination to stick to the promise, but that was two years ago, when things were good and life was happy. You might have noticed that things have drastically changed.

Jim, it's time to bite the bullet and do what should have been done long ago. Tough times call for tough decisions. The time to get Nevada on a more solid tax footing is now! For once do what is right for the state. Now is not the time to be positioning yourself for re-election. Raise the statewide sales tax 1 percent on non-grocery items, impose a statewide income tax or add an eighth percent statewide property tax. I am not sure what the solution will be, but I do know cutting our education budget by 35 percent is not the answer. It's time to look at another solution.

ROBIN FERGUSON

Dayton