Stop the madness — no more adding to nuclear arsenal
We watch wide-eyed as two childlike leaders brag about the size of their nuclear buttons. We and our representatives should also consider our own responsibility. We are still increasing nuclear production when this kind of warfare would not only be horrific but useless. In the meantime, pouring more resources into its manufacture devastates us not only financially but continues to add to the growing “legacy” poison that no one knows what to do with and that threatens all of us.
We are all aware of the constant series of accidents that have continued to occur at Los Alamos National Laboratory that no directors seem to be able to control. Let us come to our senses and stop adding to the nuclear arsenal with more plutonium “pit” production. We, in New Mexico, have a rare and beautiful land to lose. We bear a responsibility not to permit our representatives to continue this madness. Barbara Olins Alpert
Santa Fe
More critical thinking
Civics classes (“Can civics classes improve America?” Jay Mathews, March 5)? I suggest classes in logic and critical thinking, grades K-12, would do more to return this country to a state of at least semi-sanity. John Smailer
Santa Fe
A raise instead
For many years, I have dealt with City Clerk Yolanda Vigil directly and indirectly, requesting information and records from her office, and observing her at meetings of the governing body and various committees (“Mayor’s first act should be firing city clerk,” Ringside Seat, March 8). Not only is she unfailingly knowledgeable and diplomatic, she has trained her staff thoroughly; one need not ask directly for Vigil to receive first-rate customer service. Telephone calls are answered promptly, and messages are returned swiftly.
In my experience, Vigil sets the standard for responsible, transparent public service. Certainly, the results from Tuesday’s election were slow in coming. I assumed at the time, and it has been confirmed to my satisfaction, that the delays were due to a combination of logistical and technical difficulties, as well as to Vigil’s accustomed meticulous, systematic approach to getting the job done right the first time. Fire her? How about a raise instead? Jody Larson
Santa Fe
Get a grip
Your newspaper’s twice-yearly anguish over the transitions to and from daylight saving time is becoming tedious (“No, let’s not spring forward,” Our View, March 9). You seem to suggest that New Mexicans’ bodies and minds are so delicate that they cannot tolerate a time change of one hour. The implication is that if, heaven forbid, a New Mexican should have to travel to, say, Amarillo, his or her health would be severely impacted by the one-hour time change. What could such a traveler experience if he or she should travel to (gasp!) Europe? Intensive care unit after landing in Paris or Vienna with an eight-hour time difference?
The fact is that most people enjoy having extra daylight in the evening for outdoor activities when more daylight is available without sacrificing early morning sunrises. Outdoor workers may appreciate an hour’s head start for a cooler day. I think God will forgive those who oversleep on the second Sunday in March. Get a grip, New Mexico. You’re tough enough to withstand a one-hour time change. Norman Williams
Santa Fe
Keeping the magic
Thank you, Santa Fe, for recognizing the value of the film education we provide at the Santa Fe University of Art and Design (“Survey urges city to expand SFUAD studios,” March 9). For the past two years, Variety has named our film school one of the top 20 in the nation. Along with embarking on professional careers, our student accomplishments have ranged from regional Emmy awards to inclusion in the Cannes Film Festival. As chair, it has been my honor to work with the most dedicated instructors I have ever met — award-winning directors, documentarians, screenwriters and scholars — and it is my hope that our community can find a way to keep our film school going beyond the end of this semester. We strive to turn out artists who will use their voices to implement positive social change, and the closing of the film school would be a tremendous loss for our youth and the future of Santa Fe. We need your help to keep the film school — and the future of film in Santa Fe — alive and growing strong. Liam Lockhart
Santa Fe
Helping the homeless
I have to wonder why, after my numerous conversations with businesses and residents, there has been virtually no open dialogue regarding the persistent issues concerning the homeless shelter on Cerrillos Road and a possible relocation to a safer and less problematic area. Is it just me who thinks, “We need to talk?” Mark Stair Santa Fe
Stewarding the planet
Last week, I drove by a man spraying something on the gravel “lawn” of a public building on the corner of St. Francis Drive and Alta Vista Street. I asked him if he was spraying Roundup (glyphosate, classified as a probable carcinogen), and he said yes. Sometime during the last year, more than 40 elms were cut down by the river adjacent to East Alameda Street and Camino Escondido, destroying an urban oasis. Several times per week, the pollution from air traffic partially and often totally obscures our precious blue skies. Why is the public excluded from decisions regarding issues that affect our health and our well-being? Our local tax dollars must be accounted for with more oversight. We have a planet to steward. Nodiah Brent Santa Fe
Name taken
Great idea by Herman I. Morris (“Naming opportunity,” Letters to the Editor, March 11), to call the president “Big Fat Liar Donald.” Regrettably, “Big Fat Liar” already has been assigned to Hillary Clinton. Hartley Baker Santa Fe
True measure
I was pleased that the city was looking for public input about future uses for the Santa Fe University of Art and Design campus (“Survey urges city to expand SFUAD studios,” March 9). But when I heard that only 17 percent of the respondents to the survey were Hispanic, that is a big concern. Do we want to further the divides in our city by allowing an Anglo-heavy survey to guide decisions? I would recommend that those responsible for the survey take it to Hispanics for greater input until the percentage of Hispanic respondents equals the percentage of Hispanics in our population, which I understand is just over 50 percent. Then it would be a true measure of what our community would like to see happen at the campus. Pelican Lee Santa Fe