A very special president
Monday, October 13, 2008 9:39 AM PDT
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E-mail this articleOct. 13 Letters to the Editor
A very special president
Regarding letter Oct. 3 by George Earhart, after some research and memories, “yes,” Hoover was president at the beginning of the Great Depression and terrible drought. Seven months into his term the stock market crashed.
Hoover had been very popular for his humanitarian and government work.
But he failed to do anything about the depression; he was opposed to any dole for Americans. This turned the voters against him and he was not re-elected. In 1932 Roosevelt was elected.
Except for Hoover’s halting attempts, Roosevelt was the first president who attempted to cure an economic crisis of this great magnitude. FDR’s “New Deal” forced the country to take responsibility for its citizens. He worked for unemployment relief, established the WPA for the working mass, set up Social Security for millions of American people, and was famous for his fireside chats on radio, talking directly to the people. I recall a speech made after Pearl Harbor: “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”
We then were at war with Japan and Germany. Roosevelt did not live to see the wars end; 82 days after his fourth inauguration, he passed away.
I’m proud to say that my first vote 68 years ago was for President Roosevelt. He was a very special American president.
Vivian Allen
Castle Rock
What nerve!
In response to Alex Marthaller’s Oct. 7 letter, when men speak out against abortion, I think: “What nerve. Who bears the child, who nurses the child and bears primary responsibility for child care? Hasn’t he ever heard about domestic abuse, rape, incest, and failed contraceptives?”
As long as there are no contraceptives that are 100 percent effective, as long as we must endure the disgusting ads for Viagra and Cealis, we will have a need for abortion (as we have since the beginning of time). Ask your grandma about life before Roe vs. Wade. And remember that Dino Rossi is anti-choice and anti-birth control.
Jean Bruner
Longview
Why is ticket so costly?
Did anyone know that a ticket for not wearing a seat belt is only $25 in Louisiana? Wow. I wonder why ours is so high.
I was thinking if they are going to give us a ticket for talking on our cell phone, shouldn’t they give us a ticket for watching the TV in our car, putting on mascara, eating a hamburger, turning the radio station, talking to a passenger in the car or digging around for a CD? Is it just me or do all these things interfere with driving and cause accidents? I just wondered if anyone else noticed that.
Brandy Walton
Kelso
Bailout or sell out?
The Senate revised the $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill that failed in the House by adding $150 billion in pork.
Several pork-loving Democrats and Republicans changed their votes. This $850 billion boondoggle will be added to the $9 trillion national debt, a budget deficit of $400-plus billion and the cost of two wars. All of this is borrowed money. Nothing has been said about the interest to be paid.
The United States has become a debtor nation. This deplorable situation has been caused by the present administration, corporate greed and an ineffective Congress. It will take many years to recover from the mistakes made on Wall Street and in the White House. The American middle class will, as usual, suffer the most.
Neither McCain nor Obama is capable of leading the nation out of this economic failure. We can only hope whoever wins next Nov. 4 will not follow Bush’s practice of making cronyism appointments to important positions, will have the guts to cross party lines and choose capable people to bail out the United States, and have the sense to let them do what has to be done.
Dean Messinger
Kelso
Pack a healthy lunch
In response to Shelley Merrell’s Oct. 3 letter titled, “Area needs fast food,” the last thing we need is another fast food restaurant.
With America’s huge obesity epidemic, what we need is education and more resources to teach people how to eat healthy and live an active lifestyle.
I personally think that instead of worrying about which fast food restaurant you like best and which one you have time to get to and back to your job in half an hour, your time would be better spent packing a healthy lunch and taking a quick walk. Not to mention it’s dangerous to shift and eat, plus think of all the gas you’ll save.
Lindsey Tiemens
Longview
Reason to vote for Obama
I am a Hillary Democrat and I will be voting for Barack Obama — not because I like him, I don’t, but because I want the current band of thieves out of the executive office.
McCain and Republicans would have you believe changing the name on the Executive Office door will change Washington, D.C. I don’t believe for a minute that, if Republicans win the White House, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove and the rest who have stolen the U.S. budget surplus, domestic military and emergency reserves, our children’s economic future, our constitutional protections, and our respect abroad, will suddenly disappear. They will not, because no one wields power in Washington without the support of their political party and the lobbyists, special interest groups, and money that go with it. George Bush would never have gotten as far as a primary if he’d been running on his own money and brain power.
I have great respect for Ralph Nader, the independents and third parties, but I will not cast a national vote for them because presently they have no chance of winning.
I will be voting for Obama because the Democratic Party most closely represents my views, and then I will be hounding my elected representatives for the legislative changes our country so dearly needs.
Diane Dick
Longview
Who is in charge?
The Oct. 7 Daily News headline stated that traffic signals are out of sync. The article stated that our mayor, Kurt Anagnostou, said synchronization was supposed to be a top priority.
I guess the mayor and city council did not know that the public works director runs the show. Maybe they should get Jeff Cameron’s phone number so they know what goes on.
Arold Lien
Longview
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