On March 2, the education support professionals of the Ventura Classified Employees Association want to get the word out about the importance of children’s literacy.

The National Education Association’s Read Across America is a year-round literacy project that encourages readers, both young and old, to celebrate reading.

This year, NEA’s Read Across America is a multicultural, multi-hatted affair. And in celebration of the growing diversity of America’s public schools, we will continue with “Lea con La NEA� (“Read with NEA�), the Spanish bilingual program designed to reach out to the Hispanic community.

Re: Deidre Frank’s Feb. 24 letter, “Area will have enough LNG�:

This letter regarding liquefied natural gas was an eye-opener. What of the argument the anti-LNGers were using about how the proposed pipeline was going to cut through the low-income area of Oxnard, that they were the poor, unwilling pawns of the evil, greedy corporations who could care less about them? What about the “nuclear blast� that could occur if this LNG terminal went up? I suppose it is OK for the people of Ensenada to worry about these problems, as long as Ms. Frank is able to get her natural gas without having to worry about it.

Re: Boyce Clark’s Feb. 19 article, “We are still learning history lessons�:

In his article, Mr. Clark mentioned an “Andrew Dunford of Louisiana with 75 slaves.�
Andrew (1800-1859) was the eldest son of Thomas Durnford, an English white, and Rosealina Mercier, a New Orleans free black.

Thomas, at the age of 15 in 1775, came to West Florida with his cousin, Elias Durnford, the newly appointed lieutenant governor of Florida’s British Colony. He worked as a clerk in Elias' office.

I never understood why it takes California so long to get its condemned executed. I think we should be using Texas’ system, which appears to shave 15 or 20 years of appeals off the time needed to go from court to death chamber.

Now California is adding a new delaying tactic, one that I understand even less than the time delay. Heaven forbid that the condemned feel any pain at their execution!
There is no doubt that Michael Morales committed the crime. Did he have any regard for the pain inflicted on his victim as he hit her more than 20 times with a hammer after a failed strangling attempt but before he raped and stabbed her?

In April, we will be asked to annex thousands of acres in Adams Canyon in favor of a developer who is seeking to donate 40 acres for a school site. In exchange, the developer and owners will develop at least 495 luxury homes and a few other amenities. The language being used in the proposal does not guarantee that the number would never go higher, as it did when we voted for Fagan Canyon in 2000.

Residents were seriously misled when we approved the Fagan development after a promise that only 400 homes would ever be built. The City Council members sold our vote in favor of five times as many new homes, increasing the traffic impact by 500 percent.

Re: your Feb. 26 article, “McClintock assumes mantle of statesman as keynote speaker at Republican convention�:

We have known Tom McClintock since he was a teenager, decades ago, and even then he was an exceptionally able and dedicated young man. His hard-hitting, insightful political columns were widely printed and discussed in this part of the world, and few who admired those columns realized the author was still in school.

Given the importance of the media in our system of government and The Star’s participation in it, I believe The Star should vigorously encourage everyone of voting age to see the movie, “Why We Fight.�

Few people who face reality still think that the United States did and is doing the right thing in Iraq, or that the situation is under control.

Most of the people I’ve talked to don’t realize the additional benefits afforded them by their credit cards.

During the holidays, I rented a vehicle and placed the charge on my Visa card. I did not pay the additional amount for insurance coverage offered by the car rental company because I have my own insurance, but with a $1,000 deductible.

The vehicle was vandalized and the bill came to $1,150. Instead of me paying my $1,000 deductible, my Visa card paid the entire amount because I used their card when renting the vehicle.

Re: Kathryn Jean Lopez's Feb. 20 commentary, “There’s something really criminal about prime time ‘legal’�:

I applaud “Boston Legal� for its compassion and knowledge.

Ms. Lopez condemns the show for making Valentine's Day a political lecture. What better day than Valentine's to support the right of women to receive knowledge of all their options and, yes, make an informed decision about their reproductive rights?

Re: your Feb. 24 article, “Wipeout�:

I was disappointed to see this headline and the accompanying photo of U.S. Olympic figure skater Sasha Cohen as she fell in her final program. Is this how The Star treats those who have achieved greatness? With all the unpleasant things happening in the world, can we not enjoy the positive without twisting it into a negative? As our Olympic Silver Medalist, she deserved The Star’s praise after such an impressive award was earned.

— Julie Tan, Newbury Park

When is this going to end about the death penalty executions? Just enforce the law! The same goes for border patrol laws. Just enforce the law!

— Don Schweltzer, Ventura

I believe that if Michael Morales is truly remorseful for his crime, then he should have no problem meeting with the Lord. He’ll be sent to a much better place in the hereafter, which would be much nicer than death row, where he is now. My question is: What does he have to worry about?

— Alfredo Alvarado, Thousand Oaks

California should not allow death row appeals to go on forever. Why should convicted felons be permitted to live for many years past a reasonable time after being sentenced? A limited time for appeals is needed.

Michael Morales has been on death row for 23 years, six years longer than Terri Winchell lived. Why must we, taxpayers, support him and others while they live long lives. If California does not put to death these offenders, then they should be sentenced to life without parole. It is cheaper to house felons in “regular� cell blocks than on death row.

I am a left-wing, semi-socialist, tree-hugging liberal, following the “humanist� dogma of anti-capital punishment for years. Recently I have changed my mind. Let me list some reasons:

— There are indeed evil people in this world, people who do unthinkably cruel deeds like Michael Morales. Given a fair trial and plenty of time for appeals, he’s guilty, guilty, guilty.

I could not help but notice that the gurney Michael Morales would would lie upon during his execution is not made of Memory Foam. Is this not cruel and unusual punishment for someone whose only crime was to strangle a person and then beat them on the head with a hammer 23 times and stab them four times in the chest? What is this world coming to?

— Michael J. E. Burge, San Buenaventura

Re: Dr. Robert Dodge’s Feb. 19 commentary, “Real doctors don’t monitor state executions�:

The anesthesiologists who will make Michael Morales unconscious are not the ones who are putting him to death. He will not feel any pain, and to me, that is a very humane thing to do. It’s too bad that there wasn’t an anesthesiologist to place Terri Winchell in an unconscious state prior to Mr. Morales torturing, raping and killing her.

I moved to Moorpark in early 1979. The population was barely 5,000. Schools were adequate, but hardly award-winning. Shopping consisted of Spencer’s and Central markets and Whitaker Hardware. The only park was about an acre by the college.

My husband and I came primarily because it was the only place in Southern California we could afford, but also because of its beautiful surroundings. It wasn’t unusual to run across rabbits. We occasionally had to wait while sheep crossed Tierra Rejada Road. Crows, ravens and occasional hawks and turkey vultures were the only birds.

Re: Chad Sourbeer’s Feb. 21 letter, “Fire station big benefit�:

Mr. Sourbeer states that he was “attacked� by local firefighters for not working locally and voicing his opinion on the North Park development as a firefighter.

He was not “attacked.� The method in which the developer portrayed Sourbeer was questioned. The developer and Councilman Clint Harper implied firefighters were in favor of the North Park development.

It simply amazes me that there are lawyers out there, Ken Starr included, who feel very badly about the execution of Michael Morales, still living 20 years after the murder of 17-year-old Terri Winchell.

The claim of inhuman punishment by a lethal injection that may cause excessive pain is very interesting!

Are we causing pain with the lethal injection? Are we causing death “from whose bourne no traveler returns?�

First of all, how do we know we are causing pain?

Second, did the victim suffer pain while she was being strangled with a belt, then hit with a hammer, then stabbed with a knife?

Should we allow clemency to this criminal because he said he was sorry and because he promises to be good for the rest of his life in prison?

As the old saying goes, “There are no atheists in foxholes.�

Many death row inmates and life sentence prisoners have “found Jesus.� This includes former Manson Family member Susan Atkins, who has been denied parole 11 times.

— Kerrie L. Cortez, Ventura

Do I have this right? Michael Morales and his attorneys think a lethal injection is a “cruel and unusual� punishment. OK, why not execute him in the same manner he killed Terri Winchell? Start by choking him with a belt. When the belt breaks, hammer his head repeatedly until he begins ripping out his own hair by the roots. Oh, then have him raped and stabbed until he’s no longer breathing.

Is everyone as sickened as I am to read about what he did and the claim that a lethal injection is “cruel and unusual?�

Re: Richard Larsen’s Feb. 14 essay, “Go ahead, get a bit angry�:

Once a week, I can entertain myself beyond the cartoon section by reading the adventures of Richard Larsen.

Larsen must be a most informed individual, privy to what is said at Cabinet meetings, GOP board meetings, and gatherings of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He knows what has been said and also their attitudes and ambitions. He writes on the editorial page, which gives him the freedom to speculate without stating that what he writes is his opinion and utilizes the forum to make statements implying his writing is fact.

With the continued right-wing majority in government and the two recent disastrous Supreme Court appointees, women's rights are seriously threatened.

Our hard-won civil liberties, a gift from the fearless women who came before us, are in danger. To do our part to help protect these rights, it's important that we, as women, increase our involvement in the local political process. Even within our own political party, we cannot be complacent.

Re: Richard Larsen’s Feb. 14 essay, “Go ahead, get a bit angry�:

Mr. Larsen is in good company. It was in the 5th century that St. Augustine had this to say: “Hope has two lovely daughters: anger and courage. Anger at what is wrong; courage to set it right.�

Re: Richard Larsen’s Feb. 14 essay, “Go ahead, get a bit angry�:

I thank The Star for the nice valentine in the form of another missive by its pathological “whiner-in-chief,� Richard Larsen.

In a recent rant, Larsen bemoaned the idea that America was in danger of sinking like Atlantis. If only his dream for America would go that way!

Re: Clara Allen’s Feb. 6 letter, “Planned Parenthood welcome�:

Ms. Allen states that the Thousand Oaks Planned Parenthood office does not do abortions, but if you call them, you will get an abortion option. So if the Thousand Oaks office does not actually perform abortions as yet, they are a conduit to abortions. In fact they are the nation’s largest abortion providers, making millions of dollars in doing so and receiving taxpayers’ money as well. They have an agenda!

I just wanted to take a moment to say that I am very proud of the fact that I had the chance to work with Dave Ciniero for more than 15 years at KVEN, from a time before the “Dave and Bob Show� started, until they left for KVTA in 1999.

Dave was a very special man and a hard one to get to know on a personal level. He was as shy and reserved at times off the air as he was so outgoing and funny on the air. That changed over the years, though, and when I worked part-time at KVTA in 2002-2003, it seemed to me that Dave was much happier and more at ease. His family was always of primary importance to him, so it was no surprise when I learned that he had moved back to Rhode Island and continued the show through “the magic of radio.�

We’re seeing a David vs. Goliath battle in Moorpark.

The Chicago-based public relations firm for North Park’s developers has already reported spending nearly half a million dollars to persuade us to say yes to their huge project. The local No On North Park campaign has spent $11,000 out of $20,000 collected.

I want to reiterate my support for Measure A6 and respond to a rather sophomoric mailer distributed recently by opponents.

North Park Village is an outstanding land-use proposal. The applicant is very engaged with the community and offers much to meet the community needs.

A major North Park benefit is providing land and funding for a new fire station near Moorpark College, plus a fire helipad in the hills to the north. Without North Park, it will take many years, if ever, to get a fire station in that area where it is unmistakably needed.

In all wisdom, the people of Moorpark defeated the Messenger Hidden Creek Ranch project 2-to-1 in 1999.

Well, the builders are back once again, this time as North Park Village, L.P. Their proposed massive, mostly gated housing project of 1,680 houses on 3,586 acres of land behind a 14,000-student college would introduce negative quality-of-life issues for Moorpark for generations.

Should we put a project of this size in an area where hillsides must be leveled, endangering the health of residents and destroying wildlife habitat?

Re: your Jan. 16 article, “Ventura resident fatally stabbed�:

The story about the death of John “Kunda� Orrantia was against Mexican-Americans and disrespectful to the man and his children. You should be ashamed of yourselves.

— Lupe Trevino, Las Cruces, N.M.

Re: your Feb. 13 article, “Cold comfort�:

In this article, various methods of dealing with the common cold were discussed, and Dr. Woodson Merrell of Columbia University, who has worked diligently to integrate alternative methods into mainstream medical treatment, made the suggestion that “contact lens wearers might want to switch to glasses during cold and flu season� as they may transmit viruses to their eyes and thus infect themselves when handling their lenses.

You don’t have to be Jesse Jackson to recognize when one pot calls the other black, the poison being cooked is laced with racism.

As if clinging to a rooftop in hurricane-force winds wasn’t enough hot air blowing at ‘em, now the Katrina evacuees are being accused of theft. The Government Accountability Office (oxymoron, anyone?) has determined after months of sleuthing that up to 900,000 of the 2.5 million aid applicants had duplicate or invalid Social Security numbers.

One thing that President Bush is good at is that he knows how to cheerlead.

When former CIA Director George Tenet failed to act on known al-Qaida operatives in the United States, the president adorned him with the Medal of Freedom. When former commanding general Tommy Franks failed to capture Osama bin Laden in the critical battle of Tora Bora, the president adorned him with the Medal of Freedom. When the incompetence of Michael Brown, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, made a worse situation for the people of the South Coast devastated by Hurricane Katrina, Bush was there to praise him with, “Brownie, you’re doing a heck of a job.�

Re: your Feb. 15 article, “Madrona students raise $30,000 at jog-a-thon�:

It was nice to hear that the supporters of Madrona Elementary School in Thousand Oaks cared enough about the school to donate $30,000. However, the school — and countless others like it — missed an opportunity to show their children that fund-raising activities can and should be linked to constructive activities, like cleaning up several miles of local roads or beaches, or logging a certain number of 
hours reading to senior citizens, or helping at animal shelters, etc. Sadly, the jog-a-thon activity has come to symbolize the real mentality of public school leadership: run around in circles, go nowhere and ask the public to pay you for doing it.

— Paul D. White, Ventura

Re: Ann Gist Levin’s Feb. 12 letter, “Cartoon shows scary future�:

It was discouraging to read Ms. Levin of Ventura describe seeing out her kitchen window “huge container ships plowing westward from the Port of Hueneme.� As one of the country’s quintessential niche (breakbulk) ports, it is important to know that container ships do not call at the Port of Hueneme. Most school kids, having toured the port, know this.

I am tired of hearing about Dan Quayle and the brunt of jokes he has had to take. Let me enlighten you youngsters.

When I was in sixth grade in 1932-33, our English teacher brought up the spelling of “potato� or “potatoe.� She said the spelling either way was acceptable. She stated the older generation generally spelled it with an “e� on the end. She said she preferred the new spelling without the “e.� However, if we spelled it with an “e,� she would not grade off.

In his role as the ventriloquist with the dummy in the White House, Vice President Cheney shares responsibility for much more than the shooting of a Texas lawyer. The thousands of deaths and injuries resulting from President Bush’s needless attack on Iraq are also Cheney’s fault. He doesn’t seem to have any pangs of conscience about any of it.

— Will Thompson, Ventura

I thought, after the funeral of Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., the Democrats would have realized that funerals are not the preferred venue for political tirades. I was wrong!

After watching the coverage of Coretta Scott King’s funeral, I was appalled at the total lack of courtesy and complete disrespect they showed for President Bush. After the president sat politely, listening to the political jabs and loud standing ovations for the unseemly remarks, I wish with all my heart he would have gone to the microphone — after former President Carter was through babbling — and said “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I really don’t feel I should force you to endure my presence any longer,� taken Laura Bush by the hand and walked out!

The dust has finally settled. Not only has all the information been turned in and examined, but the recent House report explains where failures occurred in the current administration’s and Homeland Security’s response to Hurricane Katrina.

We now know that 1,300 people died in this disaster and that thousands have been displaced from homes which, in many cases, now don’t exist. In response to the House report on the catastrophe, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says that he “has spent a lot of time thinking about things that might have been done differently.�


Re: Jerry H. Dohn’s Feb. 6 letter, “Let Wal-Mart come in�:

Mr. Dohn stated that we who live and pay taxes in Ventura should kiss the hands and wash the feet of Wal-Mart for wanting to put their store in Ventura.

The tax revenue does not outweigh the cost the taxpayers will incur from the burden of Wal-Mart’s employees who are forced to depend on public funds because Wal-Mart doesn’t pay its employees a decent wage or offer affordable medical insurance. Wal-Mart actually tells them how to apply for public assistance.

The School of Arts and Global Education charter is an “unsound education program?� The SAGE charter is the Open Classroom’s attempt to become independent. If it is “unsound,� then why has the Open Classroom prospered for the past 30 years, educating well over a thousand Ventura children, including the children of Open Classroom alumni? It offers a true alternative to test-driven curriculum found in the traditional classrooms. It includes thematic, integrated curriculum, utilizes authentic assessment and is based upon highly regarded and well-researched Constructivist Learning Theory. I fail to see just what is “unsound� about it.

How interesting it is that there is so much controversy regarding the method of execution for Michael Morales. I don’t recall hearing so much hoopla about the sordid details regarding poor Terri Winchell’s murder. Michael Morales is a monster!

— Darr T. Rodriguez, Oxnard

The network coverage of the shooting accident is hilarious. The anguish on the faces of the press corps because the White House didn't run to their phones to notify them of the incident is heartwarming. Their hatred for the president and his administration has never been disguised, and I have a feeling that the vice president purposely notified the local newspaper so that it could “scoop� his “friends� in the press.

It is also sad watching their reactions because they don't understand Americans. Dick Cheney is living the American dream. Americans can hunt and fish and own property. We don't have to be Europeans. In America, I can enjoy my freedoms right next to “royalty."

Re: your Feb. 11 article, “Dealership has new grand plan�:

Only in Southern California — aka La La Land, Fantasyland, Tinseltown — could an auto dealer’s parts department be described as a “parts boutique.�

There’s that word again: upscale. Whatever happened to being concerned about the middle-class Joe Blows or the working-class Johnny Lunchbuckets of this area? I consider myself in the former category and know about Neiman Marcus only from having lived in Houston and seen their Christmas catalogs featuring gifts such as his and her expensive cars, airplanes and the like. In the free-enterprise system, a business can choose to cater to whomever it pleases, and obviously there is a strong customer base in this area for anything that is boutique and up… (I can’t finish that word!).

President Bush's latest devastating environmental proposal is the “last straw� for me. He proposes to sell 85,000 acres of national forests in California, including 430 acres in the Los Padres National Forest. This funding will go to pay for rural schools and roads.

The funding for rural schools and roads should come out of the general fund, not public land sales. The administration can fund Bush's war in Iraq, lower the taxes of millionaires and subsidize energy companies, so why must it buy up public land to fund this program?

The taking of our personal private information has gotten out of hand.

To focus on just one critical area of concern, the tri-counties now boast a number of grassroots-based organizations which are trying to alert students, parents and high school administrators on the subject matter of military recruitment in the high schools. Code Pink chapters, the Coalition Against Militarism in Our Schools and the diverse Veterans for Peace chapters are three such assisting organizations. Each are supplying the educational, freedom of speech and alternative career-based informational materials necessary to counter the insidious default release of high school student directory information to the Armed Forces, an organization which incessantly contracts with outside subcontractors, accreting data upon data on our minor-aged youth. They already possess the names, addresses and telephone numbers of our youth.

Would Vice President Cheney file hunter Harry Whittington’s shooting under “collateral damage�? Had someone, reportedly the owner of the Armstrong Ranch, not notified a local newspaper, this, too, would probably be hidden from the public, as is the vice president’s style.

It would appear that Cheney finds killing members of any species a nice way to relax and enjoy time away from Washington. A few years ago, he slaughtered about 70 pheasant at a canned hunt in Louisiana. It is a small man or woman who participates in this activity. What sort of thrill does one get in taking the life of another creature, and how much killing will satisfy their “blood lust?�

Indoctrination into any supernatural belief can and will create irrational responses to any rational challenge to that belief’s claims and/or demands, and sometimes violently. Historically, it doesn’t matter whether it is Muslim, Christian, Jew, or followers of most any other religion past or present, their dogma cannot be reconciled with rational inquiry or thought. It then becomes a threat to the religious tribe.

Re: your Feb. 11 article, “Trustees reject charter school plan�:

This article regarding denial of the charter school petition by the Ventura Unified School District board is disconcerting, to say the least.

On Friday at a special meeting, the Board of Trustees of the Ventura Unified School District voted in favor of a resolution denying the charter petition of the School of Arts and Global Education.

As one of the founding parents, this process has been an eye-opening experience for me, and I’d like to share some of my frustrations with the public.

First of all, I am disappointed that the district presented the board with a resolution filled with misinformation, including a statement that the closure protocol “consists of a scant three lines,� when, in actuality, the closure protocol is 36 lines long and specifically details closing procedures.

The widely advertised Ventura County Chocolate Festival was a sad joke.

Chocolate? There was none or very little. As I walked up to the entrance, I saw dozens of people leaving at 11.30 a.m. I looked at the brochure and saw only a few chocolate vendors. I went in anyway, trusting the festival officers.

What a waste of $12 and 45 minutes of traffic! Of the 90 or so vendors, I counted four with any chocolates at all. What have corn dogs and fries, T-Mobile, Coastal Softub, etc., got to do with chocolate?

I wanted to comment regarding last weekend’s Ventura County Chocolate Festival.
They should have called it the “Prepare To Be Disappointed Because There Isn’t Much Chocolate Festival.�

Ninety percent of the fair consisted of booths that were non-chocolate related or had a secondary chocolate theme defined by a bowl of Hershey’s Kisses or whatever wrapped candy could be thrown in a bowl.

The one exciting concept of getting a strawberry, banana or Rice Krispie dipped in chocolate required a one hour-plus wait in line.

Re: your Feb. 9 article, “Gang signs alarm Ojai residents�:

I don’t understand what all the fuss is about. Several months ago, Oxnard implemented a gang injunction. While the people of Oxnard were happy with this arrangement, it seems to have upset the liberal citizens of Ojai, who made it their business to come rushing to the aid of the derelicts. As I recall, it was the people of Ojai and the American Civil Liberties Union who led a march to protest the perceived threats to the gang members’ civil rights.

I’m a little sickened by the violence that is erupting from allegedly devoted Muslims. This violence, they say, is justified because someone drew and then published a cartoon with a caricature of Prophet Muhammad — a prophet by the way, not their god — wearing a bomb instead of a turban.

I don’t have any sympathy for a religious group that claims it has been wronged and then sets out to do as much damage as possible to anything or anyone in its religious zealot path to protest that perceived wrong. All I hear are a bunch of grown children whining about how they don’t get any respect.

Re: Tom Lazarich’s Feb. 13 letter, “Stick with The Star,� and Carolyn Crandall’s Feb. 13 letter, “Conservatives aren’t funny,� both of which were in response to Gary Marshall’s Feb. 5 letter, “Cartoons show liberal bias�:

Mr. Marshall complained about his perception of a liberal bias in the cartoons shown on The Star’s editorial page. In response, Mr. Lazarich defended The Star and accused Mr. Marshall of relying on information from “unobjective� and “obviously biased� sources such as Fox News and Rush Limbaugh. Ms. Crandall angrily replied that all the conservatives she knows don’t have a sense of humor and are a bunch of “mean-spirited bullies who spend most of their time fighting against civil rights for women, gays, minorities, fair wages, health insurance and properly funded education.�

Re: David Sveiven’s Feb. 13 letter, “Public funding wrong plan�:

Mr. Sveiven apparently hasn’t read the actual proposals to bring clean money to California politics.

His first objection is that people can’t give money to the candidate of their choice. Participation in a clean money campaign is entirely voluntary. If you think the only way you can get elected is to buy your way into office, you have the option to do just that.

I’m often asked how I, as both a veteran of the Iraq War and an American-Muslim, feel about the Danish cartoon controversy and whether such controversy proves Muslims are trying to force their world view on others to the detriment of values like freedom of speech.

I am reminded of recent efforts to ban the burning of the flag here in the United States by many patriotic, mostly conservative Americans, who feel such a violation of this nation’s symbol is so offensive that it should not be considered a protected form of speech.

Many folks might think that President Bush bumbled again with his bombing speech concerning the very tall U.S. Bank Tower in Los Angeles. However, our president should certainly not be berated for renaming it the Liberty Tower.

I have inside information that the FBI just arrested a potential terrorist from Kuala Lumpur who was wandering around a beach town in Delaware near Jack Abramoff’s summer house trying to rent a small plane to fly to Philadelphia, which is only 35 miles away.

Re: your Feb. 12 article, “Health insurance condition critical�:

Congratulations to The Star for focusing on the growing health insurance crisis.

The crisis has definitely reached a “tipping point� for us. We’re retired with no pension health plan benefits. We’re short of the qualifying age for Medicare. We’re among those who have to choose between costly private insurance or no coverage at all, and that choice is becoming harder as skyrocketing premiums and out-of-pocket costs take a greater share of our household budget.

When I read the articles and letters to the editor against an offshore liquefied natural gas terminal, one of the points they always raise is the “danger� of the pipeline that would carry the natural gas from an offshore regasification plant to an onshore distribution facility. I wonder if the people who write these articles know where the natural gas they use in their home comes from and how it gets to California.

Re: your Feb. 7 article, “Town Center changes its policy on smoking�:

I applaud Simi Valley Town Center General Manager Greg Lenners and the mall’s parent company, Forest City, for listening to the voice of our community with their decision to change the Town Center’s policy on smoking. It will make the Town Center a much more enjoyable and healthier place to visit. Thank you!

— Julie Honda, Simi Valley

I am confused by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

First, he made it quite clear publicly that his office was not contacted by President Bush with the announcement concerning the U.S. Bank Tower of Downtown Los Angeles. The next day, it seems his office was contacted about the news conference, but not him personally. Was this an imminent threat to Los Angeles? No, but an announcement about a foiled plot two years prior. Was this more about the fight against terrorists or somebody’s self-inflated ego? He looks like he needs the constant attention of a news camera in front of him.

Re: Beverly Kelley’s Feb. 6 commentary, “Time for Hueneme to take over port district?�:

Ms. Kelley's recent column suggesting that, perhaps, it is time for the City of Port Hueneme to take over the harbor and abolish the Oxnard Harbor District raises an interesting legal question regarding prior ownership.

Re: Bud Hall’s Feb. 5 letter, “Are illegal immigrants slaves?�

No one with knowledge of American history would compare illegal immigrants to African American slaves.

We just returned from a two-week vacation to the auld sod. I have to tell you that the Celtic tiger is for real. The population of Ireland has grown by a million over the past five years — that’s 25 percent! Half of that growth is from immigration. We met people in Dublin from Estonia, Poland, Italy and Africa.

The minimum wage in Ireland is 7.50 euros per hour. That’s about $9 an hour — more than Eastern Europeans can earn in a day. They hope to attract another half million immigrants in the next five years to keep the economy exploding.

Re: Ann Levin’s Feb. 12 letter, “Cartoon shows scary future,� referring to a Feb. 5 Steve Greenberg cartoon:

The cartoon showed completely blank land adjacent to the oil rigs. A balanced picture would have shown the thousands of automobiles, homes and industries on the land. This is where the oil is used.

Re: your Jan. 30 article, “Religious groups get 25% of AIDS grants�:

I am appalled at the ignorance, greed and political maneuvering of a government that hands out money — my money — to religious groups and others that have no background in treatment of AIDS or in the cultural structure of the nations that currently need the most help with this serious problem.

Was anyone else as amazed as I was by the level of stonewalling offered by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales during the recent hearings on the president’s warrantless spying program?

By refusing to work with Congress to develop an electronic surveillance program that contains oversight to prevent abuses, President Bush does harm and disservice to America. This arrogant approach both threatens our constitutionally protected freedoms and robs the surveillance efforts of much legitimacy — with the potential consequence of limiting their future development as tools to combat terrorism.

Re: Ellie Peck’s Feb. 9 letter, “It’s a funeral, not a rally�:

Does Ms. Peck have a clue as to what Dr. and Mrs. Martin Luther King stood for, non-violently fought for and died for? They wanted peace, freedom and equality. They used the “political� process to try and bring these lofty goals to fruition.

The majority of speakers at Coretta King’s funeral who brought up the subjects Ms. Peck rails about were fellow religious and civil rights leaders, contemporaries, and/or friends of the Kings. Their remarks were applauded by the mourners in attendance.

I find it almost hilarious that President Bush’s new budget calls for a cut in student loans.

As a graduating senior at California Lutheran University, I am one of many students who will graduate asking one simple question: “Where is a job that pays enough for me to live and still pay off my student loans?�

Deny, deny, deny, and when the wiretaps show evidence to the contrary, hide.

Some wives like to shop for a new pair of shoes they really don't need, some like to drop $75,000 on the Super Bowl. Some wives like to spend a year getting in shape or redoing the kitchen, some like to throw $500,000 at various games throughout the year.

Through the authorized wiretaps (by President Bush?), it appears Wayne Gretzky was lying through his dentures when he said he didn’t know anything about it. As owner and coach of a professional sports franchise, good luck explaining that, Great One.

— Jeffrey Bellamar, Ojai

Re: Timm Herdt’s Feb. 8 essay, “Private money, public duty�:

Mr. Herdt asserts that if elections were funded by tax dollars, then the politicians would be beholden only to the public.

While Mr. Herdt’s goal is admirable, the end result of this policy would be much worse than the system we enjoy currently. The U.S. Constitution guarantees free speech to all Americans. If individuals are unable to give contributions to candidates of their choice, then their ability to speak has been limited. We already have laws on the books to deal with the problems Mr. Herdt mentions in his article. Let the courts clean things up.

Re: Clara Allen’s Feb. 7 letter, “Welcome organization�:

With all due respect to Ms. Allen, whose letter claimed that Planned Parenthood is not doing abortions, the opposite is, in fact, true, as my Feb. 3 letter stated. Planned Parenthood is doing abortions, both medically and surgically. How do I know? I simply called the clinic.

I stand by my first letter, in that Thousand Oaks cannot be considered one of America’s safest cities as long as abortions are being done in this town.

— Noel D’Angelo, Thousand Oaks

Re: David Jensen’s Feb. 10 letter, “Opposing viewpoints silenced�:

Mr. Jensen’s rant about Cindy Sheehan being the sole person ejected from the State of the Union address was inaccurate. Jensen implied that anybody wearing a shirt that supported the troops would not have been thrown out.

Another woman was ejected from the gallery. She just happened to be Beverly Young, wife of Republican Rep. Bill Young of Florida, for wearing a shirt that read: “Support the troops defending our freedom.�

Re: Gary Marshall’s Feb. 5 letter, “Cartoons show liberal bias�:

Mr. Marshall is writing to the wrong paper. Whatever his source of “unbiased� news is — and I think I know — he trusts them way too much. In fact, there is no evidence whatsoever of any Democratic involvement in the Jack Abramoff scandal.

If Mr. Marshall truly wants to have only objective and unbiased sources, he can get much closer to that by reading only The Star and by not listening to Rush Limbaugh, Fox News and whatever his other sources are of obviously biased and unobjective news.

— Tom Lazarich, Oxnard

Re: Gary Marshall’s Feb. 5 letter, “Cartoons show liberal bias�:

I would like Mr. Marshall to name one Democrat who has been indicted in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal. Scandals have always been great material for cartoonists. Does he not remember the cartoons about Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal? But then, he more than likely enjoyed those cartoons.

Shouldn’t a psychiatric hospital or psychiatrist be culpable for incorrectly evaluating, diagnosing and treating a patient?

If I take my car in to be fixed and it later explodes, I would say the car was not fixed. If a person enters into psychiatric treatment and subsequently explodes, I would say that person was not fixed.

If the exploding car killed others as a result of poor workmanship, the lawsuits would be flying. If a person killed others as a result of poor workmanship, all we hear about are the pawn shops that sold the guns.

— Tammy Synovec, Camarillo

Re: David Warren’s Feb. 3 commentary, “LNG facility for business�:

This commentary seemed to be a comparison of what expanding the Port of Hueneme would do to diminish the quality of life locally with regards to the type of workers who would come with that, air pollution, water pollution from additional ships, etc., to how wonderful it would be to have the liquefied natural gas facility.

There is a problem in RiverPark!

I want to speak briefly about a serious community problem. We, in Oxnard and El Rio, have a school district that is in a serious crisis. The Rio School District, which serves much of Oxnard and all of El Rio, is currently experiencing very serious financial and leadership problems.

The governing board of the Rio School District, on Feb. 2, essentially fired Superintendent Dr. Patrick Faverty without public hearing or just cause.

Re: Jean Leighton’s Feb. 8 letter, “Respect the presidency�:

Apparently the author of the letter about the latest Cindy Sheehan action of printing the number of fatalities in Iraq on her black T-shirt under her black jacket and her ejection from the State of the Union address — resulting in her arrest, fingerprinting and booking into jail — did not read the entire story.

Re: Jean Leighton’s Feb. 8 letter, “Respect the presidency�:

Ms. Leighton refers to Cindy Sheehan as someone “who has obviously been raised in a barn� because she wore a T-shirt to the State of the Union address. However, she made no mention of Beverly Young, who was also asked to leave and who was also wearing a T-shirt. Young is the wife of U.S. Rep. C.W. Young, who chairs the House Appropriations subcommittee on defense — yes, a Republican, but no barn talk.

Why doesn’t The Star publish the Danish cartoons for those who haven’t seen them on the Internet? Perhaps it’s because people will actually see how inoffensive most of them are and realize what a ridiculous overreaction the “Muslim Street� is giving.

Most of the infamous cartoons — except for the oft-printed one of Muhammad with a bomb in his turban — are actually very mild, including an illustration of Muhammad leading a donkey, one stick figure and one showing a cartoonist hiding out while he draws a tiny image.

Re: Cindy Sheehan’s Feb. 2 commentary, “Mother of slain soldier tells of her arrest at speech":

I wonder if anyone wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan, “Support our troops� or “United we stand� or “God bless America� would have been similarly treated.

With Republicans controlling all three branches of the government, the end of the war will not take place until a government is installed in Iraq that will be favorable to U.S. oil interests, or until the American people take back control of their government from the military industrial complex that now rules behind the facade of religion and patriotism.

— David Jensen, Ventura

The president says that he defends the billions of profits the oil companies are making. I am sure he does, because while the oil companies are making billions, he and many other politicians are filling up their bank accounts.

When are the politicians going to do things for the good of the American people instead of thinking of themselves all the time they are in office?

- James L. Wenzel, Oxnard

Have we not figured out yet that those proclaiming to be Muslim are our enemies?

The book they live by says any infidel not under subjection is to be killed.

Most Americans, though they will not admit it publicly, are weary of and really despise a force that exists to eliminate us.

Fearing that some Muslims won’t buy ads — face it, that is what pays the bills — newspapers will run anti-Christian and anti-Jewish cartoons and editorials but won’t run the Muhammad cartoon.

Three-hundred and twenty four pages.

This is the size of the package of materials available, at no cost, to the citizens of Moorpark explaining, partly, the North Park project. The development agreement alone runs 65 pages.

The package does not contain an analysis of projected city income from North Park residents versus projected cost of services to those residents. We do know that not all of the normal fraction of property tax money would come to the city, more of it being reserved to the county. This is part of the deal.

Our Republican president and his cronies, including our own U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly, are touting their phony fraudulent tax cut plan. Under this plan our president proposes to return to the average American family a bit more than $400 annually. He touts, “It’s your money, you should decide how you spend it,� and the blind and the foolish sheep nod in agreement.

The tax savings will barely let an average American family supersize their fries after Saturday soccer or Little League. This “tax cut� scheme will cost the average American far more than it returns to his or her wallet.

Re: your Feb. 4 article, “Rio district names interim superintendent�:

As a parent of a second grader at Rio Lindo School, I am infuriated by the actions of the “Rio Three,� Rio School District board members Simon Ayala, Eve Acosta and Ken Ortega. I have to ask: What do they have against my kid? Do they hate my child?

There is nothing I am seeing that tells me these three really care about my child or anyone else’s in this district. They are making it harder for learning to occur on the campuses of any of the schools in the Rio district.

What happened to the “Made in the USA� slogan?

It could be that we are not a world potency anymore.

A few years after World War II, we started to see the “Made in Japan� signs, then “Made in Korea� and lately, “Made in China. No matter what type of store you go to, there is always a large number of items made in China. Today I found a very disturbing “Product of China� on a can of strawberries on one of the shelves at the 99-cent store in Camarillo. Camarillo and Oxnard are known as the Strawberry Capital of the World.
The merchandise sold at any 99-cent store is 99 percent made in China. But strawberries produced in China is going a bit too far.

Is there anything we can do to stop this?

— Armando Cardenas, Camarillo

I am very disappointed that, once again, The Star did a great injustice to the hundreds of students who participated in the Ventura County Academic Decathlon.

Moorpark High School did a great job taking first, but there were other schools with success stories besides just Moorpark. For instance, the Oxnard High School Academic Decathlon A team pulled itself up from fifth place year last year to second place this year — for both the A and B teams — as well as scoring the highest number of points ever achieved by any Oxnard Decathlon team.

Re: George Sjostrom’s Feb. 4 commentary, “Strong workers’ unions trump weak management�:

Let’s examine Mr. Sjostrom’s main theme that the Big Three automakers are failing because of union benefits:

— 1. Healthcare costs: Is this the fault of the unions, or the lack of congressional will to institute a national healthcare program ? With a national healthcare program in place, funded by wage taxes and employer contributions, there would be no need for healthcare benefits as a cost to the Big Three.

Let me get this straight. We are going to try and reason with people who object to being characterized by violence, but who voice that displeasure through violence? Yeah, right.

— Robert Ostrove, Oxnard

There are four reasons why Wal-Mart should not build a new store at the Kmart site.

First, Victoria Avenue is currently operating at maximum capacity. During the 5 p.m. rush, it can take up to 30 minutes to travel from Ralston Street to Highway 101.

Second, the Montalvo Square traffic light does not have the infrastructure to move mass amounts of cars.

In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee issued the following article of impeachment : “Using the power of the office of President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon, in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in disregard of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has repeatedly engaged in conduct violating the constitutional rights of citizens.�

If that article of impeachment doesn’t fit today’s occupant of the White House as well — and in fact even better — then we have totally lost our concept of what the Constitution means.

— Barbara Simons, Camarillo

Re: your Feb. 8 article, “10,000 attend funeral rites for Coretta King�:

How sad that Coretta Scott King’s funeral was turned into a political event by anti-Bush people. I am disgusted at the lack of respect these people showed by using their speaking opportunity to rail against the war and the current administration. I don’t care who these people are or what they believe, it is tasteless to use the memorial of this wonderful woman to push any kind of political agenda.

— Ellie Peck, Port Hueneme

Re: your Feb. 7 article, “S. Paula looks over district documents�:

If it takes the Ventura County Community College District three months to find and deliver documents related to Santa Paula’s Measure S bond money, they need to hire a new supervisor for their filing section.

With 48 years of experience in business, I am presuming the district is aware of the importance of maintaining easily accessed records and has a section responsible for just that. I often had to cross-file the same document, as in this situation: one in the bond measure master file, and one in a file for Santa Paula.

Believe me, cross-filing saves a lot more time than it takes to make a copy and file it.

— Marcia Morocco, Thousand Oaks

All the Democratic countries have laws protecting minorities against discrimination. If there is a perception that most terrorists are Muslim, it is an honest one. The governments of the democratic countries cannot legislate against such perception. If Muslims object to such perception, it is up to them to change it. They must root out the extremists within their ranks; they must strongly reject suicidal martyrdom and terrorism as tools to assert their beliefs; they must work with authorities to stop such terrorist acts and make sure that those of their ranks who practice it are punished.

Enough with football referees having to look at replays. If a bad call is made, personnel in the replay booth should catch it, and they should be the ones to signal the referee to overturn the call. They see everything we see and can take less time in making a judgment call. The game would have a much better flow than it does now, and I think most people would then agree that the call decided was the right one.

— Ed Rayas, Port Hueneme

Re: your Feb. 4 article, “To our readers�:

After much thought, I have come to the conclusion that The Star should have printed the caricatures. There are three very important reasons why.

First, this is still the United States of America, and we have something that is called free speech. It is a right that we are to champion at all costs. I may not like what someone says or does, but I am willing to lay down my life for them to have the right to say it. Islam is not in control here — yet — so we must use our freedom while we still have it. You know: Use or lose it.

Twenty-two years ago, when my daughter was a teenager, she asked me, “Dad, are we going to have atomic war with Russia?�

I said, “No, honey, but AIDS is going to devastate this world, and you had better be sure you are not part of it.�

Hard to believe, right? But it’s absolutely true. You can ask her yourself.

How come I, a layman, knew, but the medical brains of this world didn’t? Or, at least, they didn’t do anything about it until it was too late.

I recently took my 12-year-old daughter to the Ventura Aquatic Center on Kimball Road for the first time. While we were impressed with the facilities, I was shocked and disappointed to be charged $5 to stay and watch my daughter swim! The attendant offered me the choice of leaving her there — apparently an option if a child is 10 or older — but, of course, I chose to stay so that I could enjoy the experience with her and so she wasn’t left there with strangers.

This fee for the accompanying adult discourages family time at the Aquatic Center and makes taking my kids there for swimming too expensive. Also, the fee is not even publicized, which is a disservice to the community.

When I was a child in Havana, Cuba, in the early 1950s, I couldn’t wait for the noisy Jeep. It would move slowly, spewing a thick yellowish-white cloud. My friends and I would follow the Jeep, hiding inside the cloud, and we couldn’t see each other or even our own hands. It didn’t smell too bad. It was DDT.

Malaria was eliminated from most parts of the world through the use of DDT. It was so successful that it was being used here in great quantities to dust crops.

Re: Elizabeth Bass’ Feb. 7 letter, “Don’t blame oil�:

I wish I could agree with Ms. Bass that we are in Iraq fighting for American lives. It is our nature to want to believe that we are fighting for a just cause. Our soldiers in Iraq are fighting nobly, but our reasons for being in Iraq are far from noble.
So why did we go to war?

It was clear from the beginning of North Park’s campaign that this would be a major one-sided advertising affair of the developer vs. the citizens of Moorpark. The developer would have lots of money to spend on a professional advertising campaign, and Moorpark would have only volunteers and donations from concerned citizens to counter it. A citizens group is difficult to organize and maintain, and North Park was aware and positioned to take advantage of this.

As a 10-year member of the Moorpark Unified School District board, from 1993 to 2004, I understand education funding issues.

It is no surprise that state funding for local educational needs has been inadequate. This is one reason the Moorpark Unified School District has a 22-acre “school site� in the newly opened Pardee housing development, where a new school will likely not be built for several years due to inadequate funding.

Re: Stephanie Flint’s Jan. 31 letter, “Kids not welcome�:

I could barely sit still when I read this letter regarding children in restaurants.

Re: your Feb. 4 letter, “Despite tragedy, shooting victim doesn’t lose faith�:

Shooting victim?

I was speechless when I saw the headline and the subject of the article. Oliverio Martinez and his wife, Martha Gonzalez, are the victims of a fire, but they are not victims of the Oxnard Police Department — unless you choose to disregard all but Oliverio Martinez’ account of the shooting.

As a Ventura native, I’ve grown deeply concerned about the liquefied natural gas terminals being considered off our coast. Does California really need LNG? There has been no credible evidence to answer this question with, “Yes.� Surprisingly, the State of California has never held a public hearing to answer that obvious and basic question, which is clearly, “No.�

Re: David Warren’s Feb. 3 letter, “LNG facility for business�:

Mr. Warren has his information backwards. Importing liquefied natural gas into California is what will worsen our country’s trade deficit. Australia stands to make in excess of $50 billion if the proposed LNG facilities are located off our coast. That money will come from every California user of natural gas, both residents and businesses.

Re: David Warren’s Feb. 3 commentary, “LNG facility for business�:

Mr. Warren’s commentary ignores the smog-producing gases that will come ashore from Cabrillo Port, the amount of greenhouse gases released that will contribute to our global warming and all the other environmental problems. Or does anyone even care anymore?

Some facts about natural gas:



Re: David Warren’s Feb. 3 commentary, “LNG facility for business�:

Mr. Warren’s comparison of expanding the Port of Hueneme and building Cabrillo Port for liquefied natural gas is like comparing apples and oranges.

His commentary is also loaded with misguided information.

As a former Oxnard harbor commissioner and Oxnard city councilman, I'd like to thank The Star for putting politics aside in its coverage of Channel Islands Harbor.

As an educator for more than 30 years, I was revolted to read about the lack of knowledge regarding school administration matters displayed by the current Villanova Preparatory School headmaster, Anthony Sabatino.

The laws regarding background checks for school employees are not new. Ignoring the laws and putting students in a class with a person who stabbed his father to death is unconscionable.

As a parent of a Villanova student, I cannot sit by and not voice my support for the headmaster, Anthony Sabatino. This is a caring, compassionate man who looks out for the welfare of his students, as well as their families. He may have made a mistake in hiring Shannon McCreery, but he did so in wanting to give this man a chance. I respect Mr. Sabatino, and I respect the teachers at Villanova. I do not want to lose Mr. Sabatino or any of the teachers.

Our youngest son attends Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai, which we chose mostly because of its leadership by the headmaster, Mr. Anthony Sabatino. During the admission interview last year with our son, we were so impressed by the gentleness, spiritualness and intelligence of Mr. Sabatino —enough to bypass all other thoughts of where to send our son despite the daily 94-mile round trip. We were moved by the Augustinian tradition of love, truth and community. During the orientation, we realized the depth of respect Mr. Sabatino holds from talking to parents, students and faculty, including several teachers who were also former students of Mr. Sabatino’s.

Re: your Feb. 4 article, “To our readers�:

The Star’s decision to not print the cartoons that antagonized the Muslim world shows how much power the Muslims have over us. Why is it OK for the Muslim press to daily show Jews as murderers, Nazis and other despicable things and yet Jews don’t go riot in the streets or put out “fatwas� on newspaper editors?

In Lebanon, people were actually killed because someone from their country allowed these cartoons to be printed.

Re: your Feb. 4 editorial, “Just to prove a point�:

The last paragraph states, “We don’t have a dog in this fight.�

The Star’s failure to publish the cartoons in question means that it certainly does have a dog in this fight. The Star chose censorship over freedom of speech. It chose Islam over Christianity. It chose Muhammad over Jesus. It chose fear over courage. It chose terrorists over tolerance.

Re: your Feb. 4 article, “To our readers�:

I would like to thank The Star on its decision to not publish the cartoons of the prophet Muhammad and to commend the editor for the reasons given. Unfortunately, freedom of the press is not something that many Muslim countries enjoy. However, freedom can be abused if the press crosses the line and appears to incite and invite hatred of any group within society. Freedom of the press in Muslim countries is unlikely to be encouraged by this example.

Re: Kathleen Wilson’s Feb. 5 article, “County skirts many pitfalls suffered by pension funds�:

This article was interesting, but several facts were missing.

Are the pensions too generous? Currently there are 97 retirees who are receiving pensions in excess of $100,000 a year, with some reaching $163,000. The number of retirees receiving pensions from $50,000 to $100,000 is unknown, but it is safe to assume it is in the hundreds, if not thousands. Perhaps Ms. Wilson will follow up on this question.

I am concerned about the Muslim reaction to caricatures of Muhammad in Danish newspapers. The drawings have touched a raw nerve, in part because Islamic law is interpreted to forbid any depictions of the prophet Muhammad for fear they could lead to idolatry.

What is interesting to me is that although Muhammad may not be an idol the Muslims worship, it seems more and more apparent that the Molotov cocktail is.

I am very upset at the violence and threats of violence — including murder — aimed at Denmark and other European countries, and also at the lack of statements from the Islamic community condemning these actions taken in the name of Allah. These actions are an outrage against all faiths.

Re: Noel D’Angelo’s Feb. 3 letter, “City no longer safest�:

Contrary to what D’Angelo says, the Thousand Oaks Planned Parenthood does not perform abortion services.

What Thousand Oaks Planned Parenthood does do is reduce the need for abortion by providing much-needed birth control clinics. Family planning methods are provided to men and women of all ages. Education and counseling on sexuality issues is provided to all, regardless of ability to pay.

Re: your Feb. 4 article, “To our readers�:

I am saddened, but frankly not surprised, by what I’ll call “journalistic hypocrisy.� The notice on the front page that The Star would not publish the cartoons that have offended Muslims was most disturbing. My apprehension is not over the paper’s commitment to sensitivity and respect for religion, but because of its glaring selectivity in such matters.

Re: your Feb. 2 editorial, “More modest Bush agenda�:

If we only import 11 percent of oil from the Mideast, why is there a big outcry that we are fighting in Iraq for oil? We are fighting in Iraq for all American lives — for killing 3,000 people on American soil on Sept. 11.

— Elizabeth Bass, Thousand Oaks

To think that some of us actually buy the assertions of President Bush that Americans have never engaged in torture is, in itself, an indication of our mental absenteeism.

Anyone with the littlest knowledge of American history knows of the treatment by Europeans of the natives of this land — occupation, conquest, rape, murder and, yes, torture. As if that were not enough, a significant period of our history involves the kidnap, enslavement, rape, murder and, yes, torture, of Africans.

In a major victory for renewable energy and the people of California, the California Public Utilities Commission recently voted to pass the most sweeping and comprehensive solar legislation in the history of the United States.

The state of California will become the major player in the global solar market with recent passage of the California Solar Initiative. CSI will provide $3.2 billion in funding for installing solar systems on homes and businesses. This program has the goal of installing a total of 3,000 megawatts of electric generation on a million roofs around the state. This $3.2 billion investment is calculated to produce more than $10 billion in savings for California energy users and is a stellar example of excellent long-term public policy.

Expansion of Port of Hueneme operations will have a negative impact on the local quality of life.

While an expansion will bring additional unskilled or semi-skilled jobs to the community, the increased traffic from tractor-trailers will add both air pollution and danger on our roads. In addition, the air pollution and water pollution from additional ships entering the harbor will have a detrimental effect on a fragile marine ecosystem. A harbor expansion will presumably bring cheap processed goods manufactured in Asia through our county to consumers in California and the western United States, further enabling our country’s growing trade deficit.

In contrast, the Cabrillo Port liquefied natural gas concept proposes a high-tech, innovative approach to import a clean energy source into the region. The energy will presumably be used by local and regional residences, businesses and manufacturing. The ships will stay well offshore and away from sensitive marine ecosystems. The product, natural gas, will be transported onshore by underground pipeline, invisible to our community. The construction, operations, and maintenance of the Cabrillo Port will bring high-tech, skilled jobs to the area.

Public opinion on these two issues seems backwards. It’s too bad processed goods cannot be imported by pipeline.

— David Warren, Ventura

The California Fish and Game Commission in Sacramento recently voted in favor of opening an experimental abalone fishery at San Miguel Island. This decision comes at a time when the abalone population at the rest of the Channel Islands is at an all-time historical low. To allow an abalone fishery of any kind in Southern California waters now is outrageous and criminal.

It will take decades for the abalone population to regain the health it had in the 1960s and ‘70s, and it is absurd to allow a commercial abalone fishery at San Miguel Island now. One has to wonder how a state commission dedicated to the health and preservation of our fish and game ever came to such a decision as this.

The requirement to pass a rigorous California high school exit exam should be questioned.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell wants a California high school diploma to “mean something.� What’s wrong with different levels (A,B and C) of high school diplomas for students who scored at different levels (A,B and C) on the exit exam? Why have only a pass or fail mark on the exit exam?

The year is 2006. America is still at war. It is the Islamic Fascists versus the free world. Whoever wins will determine the course of history.

America must continue the fight against terrorism. America is the only nation strong enough to lead this war. Other nations throughout the world are aiding in this fight.

The American public must become better informed. They do not understand how serious this war against terrorism is. This war is not just about Iraq, or President Bush or oil. It is about the effort to destroy the free world and control the world economy.

Re: Patrick O’Malley’s Jan. 17 commentary, “O’Reilly making up issues�:

Perhaps it’s Mr. O’Malley who’s creating the fiction.

As a regular listener and reader of Bill O’Reilly, I find his commentaries to be based on fact. When errors of fact are made, it’s freely admitted and corrections are given.
I’m fairly certain I’ve never heard O’Reilly equate the war in Iraq with “getting� Osama bin Laden. It is a fact that the ACLU is working toward removing all instance of religion, including Christianity, from the public arena. To say this is “manufactured� is simply not true.

First of all, hear my confession: I am an Exxon-Mobil stockholder. Now let me give my perspective on record Exxon-Mobil profits.

We have an economic system called capitalism. Capitalism runs on a basic economic premise called “supply and demand,� and the goal of all corporations is to make a profit by filling demand with supply.

I understand that people resent an oil company’s record profits because America, like the rest of the world, is a slave to petroleum. But that’s not Exxon- Mobil’s fault, no more than it’s Microsoft’s fault that people use Windows or Google’s fault that people choose to use their services.

Re: your Jan. 30 article, “Growing our own work force�:

It is great to see that with the upcoming applied physics program, our new California State University, Channel Islands, is gearing its programs to the needs of our community, not to mention our country as a whole.

By all means, universities should offer a wide portfolio of courses, but this should not neglect science and technology. We owe it to our young people to offer them educational programs that will ensure their success in an increasingly technological and competitive world.

Re: your Jan. 31 article, “Teaching zoo gets new animals�:

The puff piece about Moorpark College’s animal program blithely ignored the cruelty in using animals as if they were chalkboards and overhead projectors.

The “teaching tool� profiled in the article, ring-tailed coatimundi, are shy animals who shun human contact. One student admits, “they didn’t want to be touched,� but that doesn’t stop a stream of students from forcing these frightened animals to learn to sit on their “stations.� Animals in this program are subjected to constant handling and interaction with people and forced to participate in activities that go entirely against their nature.

Once again, I am really scared by the actions of Andy Fox, who is demanding bank statements from future candidates for Thousand Oaks City Council, and Dennis Gillette, who is requesting subpoena power to get these statements.

I feel that these two should provide complete bank statements of their own for the entire time they have been officeholders so we can see where their funds have come from. Otherwise, this unprecedented means of intimidating and controlling membership in the now-exclusive club called the Thousand Oaks City Council should be put in the garbage dump, where I hope the voters of Thousand Oaks will put Fox, Gillette and their other pawns next election!

— Patti Chiarelli, Thousand Oaks

As long as Planned Parenthood is doing abortions in Thousand Oaks, this city can no longer claim to be one of the safest in America. If this city fails to protect the lives of the littlest of us, the unborn, then how can we legitimately claim to be a safe city?

— Noel D’Angelo, Thousand Oaks

Excuse me, but George W. Bush decrying our addiction to oil is like a mugger lamenting an increase in crime.

— Ken Bash, Camarillo

I watched President Bush’s State of the Union speech, hoping he would answer a number of questions that were on my mind.

What can we do to turn around the complete mess in the Middle East? Our soldiers are dying every day. Many others are being seriously wounded, losing legs and arms and sustaining serious head injuries that will disable them for life. The president’s 
answer was simplistic: “Democracy is on the march.� This is a nonanswer. When are we going to catch Osama bin Laden? What about Abu Musab al-Zarqawi or Ayman al-Zawahri? Those people are laughing at us and taunting us. The Iraq war has been a complete failure, a waste of money and a tragic sacrifice of American lives.

At the end of Seaward Avenue in Ventura, just past where the sidewalk ends, a tiny bit of sand is blocked off by driftwood, small art objects, fresh flowers, signs and mementos. It is a memorial to the La Conchita mudslide victims.

As I neared, a woman and four or five children approached. The woman had been friends with Michelle Wallet since third grade. They had worked together. On Jan. 10, 2005, the rain kept both women away.

I grew up in Utah during the bomb tests of the late 1950s and 1960s. At that time, the mantra was, “You have nothing to fear. Just go about your normal business and pay no attention to the glow in the sky or the ash falling all around you.�

With all due respect, the message of the liquefied natural gas proponents seems eerily similar in message. They also say, “You are enduring this for the good of all people.� That, too, sounds familiar.

Re: your Jan. 30 article, “T.O. candidates may have to submit bank statements�:

The 2006 election season has begun early in Thousand Oaks.

Thousand Oaks City Councilman Andy Fox has just asked the city attorney for a legal opinion regarding his proposal to require council candidates to submit bank statements, something never done before and generally uncommon.

Re: your Jan. 31 article, “Teacher says job at Catholic school in Ojai is likely over�:

It is the job of Villanova Preparatory School headmaster Anthony Sabatino to know California law regarding who is eligible to teach. He should have never hired someone in contravention of California law. If he disagrees with the law, he should pursue legal avenues to change the law.

“Legum servi sumus ut liberi esse possimus.� “We are slaves of the law in order to be free.� — Cicero.

So what should Americans believe? Should we accept as true what Bush said in his speech about becoming independent of oil? Or should we look at the obscene oil profits of Exxon, the absolute refusal of Vice President Cheney to divulge who he met with when he crafted America’s energy policy and the invasion of Iraq to grab its oil reserves — then decide what the truth is?

In this case, actions speak much louder than words.

— John Darling, Ventura

President Bush delivered his same old Washington pap in his State of the Union address. Here are some bits:

— “Isolationism.� The North American Free Trade Agreement killed off many of our small businesses. Why are we in Iraq?

— “Competitiveness.� I hear are we being eaten alive by China. Our trade deficit is at record levels.