Let’s Stress What’s
Allowed
Editor:
With the ever growing list of "can’t do’s" for our Ocean City beaches
and Boardwalk, now might be a good time to re-do the signs listing what you
"can do" on our beaches and Boardwalk.
To list the "do’s" would be substantially shorter a list and less
negative than the "don’ts".
Think about it.
Robin Yates
Carter Howell
Ocean City
Elderly
Term Offends
Editor:
The headline on page 11A
of the June 11, edition of The Dispatch was “Elderly Man Attacked After
Crash”. Your reporter, Shawn Soper,
described an unfortunate incident at 4:40 a.m. when a 27-year-old man attacked
a 66-year-old man who was injured in a car crash. At no time did the reporter
describe the attacker as a “young whippersnapper” or even as a “young” man. Why
did he describe the other party as “elderly”?
I do not see where the
age-linked adjective adds anything to the story. I have no issue with the
reporter stating the ages of the two men.
I am old enough to
remember when newspapers would use the adjective “colored” in connection with
any story that involved a person of African-American descent. During the Nazi
regime, German newspapers would describe people following the Jewish religion as
“the Jew”. Thankfully, we have moved beyond that as a culture and journalistic
principles have followed.
I suspect that “the
young” Mr. Soper simply has not been practicing his craft long enough to be
sensitive to these issues. I hope that you will edit his stories more carefully
in the future.
Howard Hammerman (age
67)
Berlin
Mr. Hammerman,
Point taken, but I do
feel the need to point out Mr. Soper is four years shy of being eligible for
his AARP card and recently marked 10 years at our publication.
Editor.
Official In Hiding?
Editor:
According to a June 6
article published in the New York Times,
Frank Kratovil (Congressman for Maryland’s 1st District and
up for re-election this fall) is one of several Democratic Congressmen who
appear to be purposely “in hiding” from the general public and have abandoned
use of the town meeting as a part of their re-election campaign strategy.
Instead, they now appear to be attending only “safe events”, such as
carefully-planned dinners with known supporters – anything to avoid meeting
with the general public.
It is particularly
interesting to note that the New York Times, in fact, chose to highlight
Kratovil, right from the beginning of their article, as a classic example of
what has apparently become a national trend among Democrats seeking re-election
this fall.
Supposedly, the purpose
of the Town Hall venue was to provide an opportunity for voters to have an open
dialogue with candidates – to have an opportunity to freely ask questions and
exchange ideas with those running for election. It is intended as a two-way
street for the exchange of information, helping the candidate to better
understand the issues and concerns of voters and providing the voter with the
opportunity to assess the candidate’s qualifications for election.
Why, then, are so many
of these Democratic candidates abandoning the town hall meeting and hiding from
you, the electorate? Are they ashamed of what they have done during the last
year-and-a-half during the rein of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and the Obama
administration?
What is it they are
ashamed of?
Are they ashamed of
forcing through a national healthcare bill though use of “reconciliation” (a
bill the majority of Americans do not want)? Are they ashamed of voting for
trillions of dollars of federal expenditure that seem certain to bankrupt this
nation for decades to come and destroy the futures of our children and
grandchildren? Are they embarrassed by the lack of transparency in most of
their dealings (contrary to what President Obama promised during his election
campaign)? Are they ashamed of
threatening our national security and financial well-being by failure to secure
our southern borders and allowing illegal aliens to infiltrate by the millions
and hide among our citizens?
Could they be ashamed of
what appears to be an obvious strategy of pushing for amnesty for illegal
aliens, in an effort to “buy” their future votes as a means to guarantee
re-election? Are they ashamed of the enormous hardship they will impose on
American families, through passage of a cap and trade bill that will
significantly increase the cost of energy to families already struggling to
survive financially in these tough times? And, finally, are they at all ashamed
to be a willing part of what appears to be concerted effort to trample on our
constitutional rights, dramatically increase the size and scope of government,
destroy our basic freedoms, and move us rapidly toward governmental control of
assets, redistribution of wealth and Socialism?
Yes, I believe there is
good reason for Kravoil and others to hide.
The only thing I have to
say is, “November is coming, and I can’t wait.”
Richard H. Beatty
Ocean Pines
Editor:
Letters should encompass
one point, and with that in mind, let me address three topics that involve a
greener environment.
1. We too had a time
adjusting here at home to tossing into our regular trash what we had recycled
since we came to OC in 2000. If the operation in Pennsylvania truly works and
remains in existence, fine. Remember that landfills will sooner or later reach
capacity. Also think about all of the water saved by not rinsing cans, bottles,
plastic containers, etc.
2. Beautification: If
everyone thought about their neighborhood and worked at keeping it beautified,
we’d have a nicer community. And that means removing your rollout trash
containers from the curb after pickup. A small point, but they are so
unsightly.
3. Has anyone ever
meditated on the serious loss of gasoline caused by all of the traffic lights
on Coastal Highway? Think about all of the stops and starts, the idling of
engines as we stop, wait and restart perhaps every three blocks or so. Kind of
thought provoking.
For a greener community,
Bob LeMay
Ocean City