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Send letters to: Letters, Illinois Times. P.O. Box 5256. Springfield, Illinois
62705. Fax: (217) 753-3958. E-mail: editor@illinoistimes.com
BUILD A HEALTHIER SPRINGFIELD
I read with wonder the “Up in
Smoke” article by R. L. Nave in the Dec. 1 edition of Illinois Times. I
smoke cigars occasionally but never in public, for even people who
smoke get highly annoyed. So OK, no problem. I believe that any
bias would be muted for this fact. I did not know that the reason for this
legislation was to save service employees from breathing tobacco
smoke. I find this hard to believe, for if the legislators are so
concerned, why not national health insurance for everyone who
works? Why not offer free nonsmoking classes and seminars for those
who do smoke and now, because of this law, need to find a way to
get on with their lives in an industry that does not allow it? If smoking really concerned nonsmoking
citizens and workers of Springfield, they would simply not go where
the smoking exists. It is a law that takes no planning, no funds,
and little work in the art of compromise. If the City Council is
concerned about the health and welfare of the citizens, how about
more car-free bike trails, more parks, more activities for the
youth, and a couple more beaches on the lake? Apparently it is simply easier to ban than
build a better community. August Lamczyk Springfield EXTREMISTS DISGRACE SOLDIER’S MEMORY
On Dec. 10, followers of Westboro Baptist
Church will visit the Virden community. For those of you who are
unfamiliar with this group, they are a church organization from
Topeka, Kan., who travel the country, protesting at the memorial
services of soldiers killed defending this country overseas. They
protest at these memorial services by waving banners of hate,
preaching their views, and kicking around and walking on the
American flag. It is their belief that God is killing servicemen
overseas because they are defending a country that allows
homosexuality. The WBC’s next stop on a long crusade
against fallen soldiers is the celebration-of-life service for 1994
Virden High School graduate Staff Sgt. Gary Harper Jr. This man,
with whom I went to school and played football, dedicated his life
to defending his country. He joined the Army on May 30, 1993, and
served his country until being killed in action on Oct. 9, 2005. I’ve never publicly written about my
views or beliefs before, but, being a member of the armed forces
and a Virden community member myself, this is a topic that hits too
close to home. As much as I believe in the freedom of speech and
religion, I, too, believe that the family, friends, and community
of an American hero like Gary Harper should be able to have a
memorial service in peace and without the protests of religious
fanatics like the WBC. Gary Harper and other soldiers paid the
ultimate sacrifice to ensure that Americans have the freedom of
speech and religion, and for the WBC to use those freedoms to try
and ruin their memorial services is a disgrace. I have nothing
against people protesting or publicly preaching their beliefs
whether I agree with them or not, but not at a funeral. Why
doesn’t the WBC protest in Washington, where laws protecting homosexuality
are made, or at military installations? If this church wants to protest
against homosexuality and the military, they have every right to, but
to do it at the funeral of a soldier who gave his life defending the
freedoms the WBC hides behind is cowardly. Gary Harper no longer has a
voice to defend himself against those who would twist the words of the
Bible to preach their views against him and his family. He gave it up
to protect them from terrorists overseas. So to all Americans who support our troops
overseas, I hope you will join me on Saturday, Dec. 10, at 1 p.m.
in the Virden High School gym to pay tribute to a fallen soldier
and stop those who would try to ruin his funeral. Gary gave his
life to protect us. The least we can do is ensure his family can
have a memorial service in peace. Staff Sgt. Jon M. Hopkins Illinois Air National Guard Virden WE DESERVE TO BE HATED
President George W. Bush spoke Wednesday
(Nov. 30) about his “Plan for Victory” in Iraq. In his
speech, he stated that “we know that free societies are
peaceful societies.” I wonder to which free societies he is
referring? If he is referring to the U.S., I think he would be
hard-pressed to provide any evidence to support that claim. We are
one of the most warmongering nations in the world. We are one of
the largest, if not the largest, exporter of arms in the world. We
end up fighting nations using weapons we have provided them.
I suppose it’s amazing we
aren’t fighting most of the world at any given moment. They
hate us, and with good reason. It’s not because we are free
and they desperately desire freedom. It’s because we are
wasteful, greedy, and profane people. We refuse to recycle our
waste for the most part — why should we? It’s too much
trouble. Besides, someone will come haul it away and take it
somewhere. We continue to buy gas-guzzling vehicles and then
complain when gas hits $3 a gallon. We talk about how God has blessed us and how
he is on our side, and then we live our lives in ways that do
anything but bring glory and honor to the God we claim is guiding
us. We talk the Christian talk, we go to church every Sunday, we
know which political party is God’s party, but we don’t
do a very good job of walking the Christian walk we claim the world
needs and to which we are staking our eternal salvation. God bless America? Maybe. Chris Babb Rochester SPRINGFIELD MUST SPEAK ON IRAQ
Shall President George W. Bush and Congress
commence a humane, orderly, immediate, and comprehensive withdrawal of all
U.S. military personnel and bases from Iraq? This is the significant question that must be
placed before the voters of Springfield on the March ballot. Americans were led into this war on false
pretenses. No weapons of mass destruction were found. Saddam
Hussein’s tyranny has been replaced by chaos and the
potential for civil war. U.S. military personnel are ill-equipped
for the mission and disrespected by a Congress that cuts military
benefits. More than 2,000 U.S. troops are dead and many more
scarred for life. More than 100,000 Iraqi civilians are dead.
Iraq’s infrastructure is devastated for years to come. The
occupation places significant strains on military preparedness,
evident in a glaring inability to coordinate responses to natural
disasters. The Iraqi war drains billions of dollars from
the public treasury, funding better reserved for the urgent needs
of education, health care, and housing. Global terrorism has
increased as a result of the conflict. Evidence and investigations
prove deliberate deception on the part of the executive branch. Many municipalities across America have taken
a firm stand on this great issue of our day, affirming that the
American people are light years ahead of Congress — turning
against war and pursuing withdrawal as the alternative to continued
catastrophe. Big cities and small towns have voted for withdrawal. Now, it’s time for Springfieldians to
take a stand by participating in an advisory referendum and say to
Washington and the nation, “Not in our names.”
This is not cut-and-run; this is sanity. I am circulating petitions to include the
question on the March primary ballot. Signatures are required by
the filing deadline of Jan. 3. Please contact me at zirim@ic.edu.
Let us pursue justice and peace.
Michael P. Ziri Springfield THANKS FOR GOOD WORK
Bless you all for some great journalism this
past year. You folks really showed some great J-school talent,
integrity, and just plain guts, especially in Dusty Rhodes’
expose of the phony political Silver Star and then the questionable
Illinois State Police “professional standards.” Please
keep it up — you made this a real Thanksgiving for a lot of
people.
Raymond W. Phipps Springfield HERE’S A HANDY BUDGET TRICK
If temporary taxes were not given an
expiration date, they wouldn’t need to be made permanent at a
later date. Donald E. Palmer Springfield
This article appears in Dec 8-14, 2005.
