Letters to the editor 11-2

Carson should do more for deaf citizens

Carson City needs to accommodate hearing-impaired people more. This is an issue that I've been noticing more and more thanks to my deaf and hard-of-hearing friends. Carson City and its businesses seem to forget about the American Disabilities Act laws when it comes to hearing issues. Lack of closed captioning or transcripts is blatant from the state government to Western Nevada College and the University of Nevada, Reno to local and state businesses.

With Carson City being ranked highly for retirees in various national publications as well as increasing numbers of people who've damaged their hearing with iPods and loud stereos, the number of deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens is on the rise. The city, the businesses in the area and the state need to realize this and start making a concerted effort to accommodate this growing sector of the population.

Just recently, we wanted to go on the haunted hike through Carson. Unfortunately not only were transcripts not available for my hard-of-hearing friends, but the attitude when asked was less than polite. Remember, people like me who are friends of deaf and hard-of-hearing people also find this rude, and decide where our money goes.

Just a reminder, not all disabilities are easily spotted. Show some consideration and consider the ADA laws because the number of those people will be increasing.

Todd Mason

Carson City

Unemployment office employees deserve thanks

I'm writing this letter to express my extreme gratitude to all those state workers in the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

In two weeks I will be returning to work after spending one-and-a-half years as a statistic that has defined the economic downturn of the last three years.

Throughout that time, I have been involved in an exhaustive work search, sending out my resume to literally hundreds of employers, and receiving replies from less than1 percent - which at times did little to boost my sense of self-worth. From the half-full cup viewpoint, I made the most of my dire situation by spending as much time as a stay-at-home single parent, and volunteering hundreds of hours at my son's school.

But let me get back to the real purpose of this letter, and that is to give a truly heartfelt thank you to a group of people who probably hear the polar opposite of thank you more often than not. Every correspondence, be it in person, by phone or e-mail I have had with the DETR has been nothing short of professionally polite, informative and helpful. Without their help and the monetary unemployment compensation I have received, I would most probably have become homeless and destitute.

DETR and all our other state workers - you rock.

Toogee Sielsch

Carson City

Bird netting needs regulation to save lives

Politicians are not working for us. Some of our large box stores put up ceiling nets to keep birds out. If not properly installed and maintained, birds get inside these nets, panic and die.

In January, we hand delivered an ordinance proposal requiring proper net installation and maintenance to Carson City's mayor and each supervisor. Included were hundreds of signatures from an online petition and signatures from many area veterinarians. To date: No response.

We contacted four people in three of Sen. Ensign's office. None returned a phone call. Senator Reid's office refused to call back.

One local box store has a net in their entrance ceiling. A dead sparrow has lain in an awning net for weeks and the store won't take it down. Five months ago, we pointed out the openings in the net along the corrugated walls and were promised they would be filled. Nothing has been done.

Lowe's new Carson City store manager, Jay, has been very helpful and empathetic to the birds and is doing his best to properly secure netting.

We wish other businesses and politicians would show the same concern.

PETA gets nationwide calls as thousands of birds die on these nets all across the country. This is a national problem.

Drs. Thor and Dulcimer Nelson

Carson City

'Judge not' doesn't mean accept immorality

Regarding Michael Rooker's letter: There is a huge difference between "judging someone" and recognizing the difference between moral and immoral behavior. God gave mankind the 10 Commandments to instruct man on how God wanted man to live. Part of that requirement is to recognize and speak out against evil as opposed to ignoring it and becoming complicitly guilty of same.

Christ's comment, "Judge not that you not be judged" was not a contradiction of God's Sixth Commandment, as the writer inferred, but to caution man to not judge his fellow man. That's God's job.

Life is about obeying God's commandments if one expects to share heaven with God. The worst pain of eternity in hell, is knowing it was one's own choice.

Mary Santomauro

Stagecoach

Speak out on Douglas County water rate issue

East Valley users are being attacked - again. Douglas County Board of Commissioners have asked staff to prepare an ordinance for consideration Dec. 2 consolidating the East Valley and Sunrise Estates/Fairgrounds water enterprise funds.

The notice published in the newspapers and mailed to the users is defective and misleading by omitting important facts.

Left out is that the consolidation involves constructing a pipeline between the two systems, and in 2012, the water rates will start to climb by some 22 percent.and more in the years to come to pay for it. When was the last time you saw any rates decline after bonds were paid off?

That means the East Valley users will be stuck with the bill without receiving a single benefit - a solution the commission rejected in June.

I have no objection to the consolidation or pipeline, providing East Valley users are not required to pay higher rates for same.

Last October the county increased its revenues by a $1 million a year for cost reallocation. Why not use that money for the pipeline? The entire county is responsible for electing the commissioners who hired and then ratified a county manager's mismanagement of the funds, and therefore, the entire county is responsible to pay for the necessary fix - not just a few East Valley users.

Let the commissioners know how you feel. Call or write them ASAP.

Stuart L. Posselt

Minden