Sunrail-car crashes
Another car is caught in a railroad crossing while traffic engineers continue to “educate” the public or try to change long-existing traffic patterns (“SunRail train runs into SUV— no one injured,” June 28). Whatwe are doing is notworking.
The problem is not that drivers are stupid or careless. What is happening is that while drivers aremoving through the crossings, the traffic suddenly stops. Many times this is because there is a traffic light just after the crossing that has remained red for an interminable time. A driver becomes hemmed in with no place to go.
It is time towork on a new solution. The simplest that comes to mindwould be to synchronize the traffic light immediately after each railroad crossing to turn green for 45 seconds to a minute, thus allowing all cars to clear the crossing.
Having three car-versus-train crashes in several months without serious injury is luck beyond belief. Our luck cannot last much longer; a tragedy is surely around the corner if something is not done quickly.
Curley BowmanMaitland due to development on floodprone lands.
Amendment1would provide funds to acquire conservation lands, includingwetlands and forests protecting ourwater resources and drinkingwater sources, including land in the Everglades Agricultural Areas and the Everglades Protection Area. At one time, the Corkscrew Swamp, a part of the Everglades, held the largest reported colony ofwood storks.
Because the funds that Amendment1provides come from 33 percent of existing real estate documentary fees, that means that no new taxes are required.
Amendment1 is a win-win-win vote for keeping Florida awonderful place for us to live, for tourists to visit, and to balance commercial and residential growth that’s so important to a vibrant Florida economy.
RalphHudsonWinter
When religious beliefs over-reach
In AlKoller’sWednesday letter to the editor, “Marriage is holy sacrament, not a right,” he provides supporting evidence that same-sex marriage should not be legalized by quoting from the Bible.
He not only calls marriage a “Holy Sacrament”, but expands this by quoting “it’s purpose is outlined as follows: ‘The union of husband and wife is intended by God .... for the procreation of children and their nurture and knowledge of the Lord’.”
If this purpose of marriage excludes gays from matrimony, should it not also excludewomen beyond child-bearing age?
Let’s take this a step further: Shouldwe also deny marriage to atheists and agnostics, or just anyone who believes differently?
Koller’s apparent view of matrimony as exclusively a “Holy Sacrament” that otherwise will lead to the eventual collapse of our society simply points out the dangers of taking the Bible too literally— and then trying to apply it to everyone else.
Karilyn Rust
One small book; one giant disappointment
Tuesday’s article, “Friend’s new book tells howtragedy pushed Armstrong to head to space,” focuses on Jay Barbree’s new book, Neil Armstrong: A Life of Flight. It’s ironic that Barbree says hewas “one of the few reporters [Armstrong] trusted,” because Armstrong “never believed in ingratiating himself or enriching himself from the experience, frommaking money off it.”
A relative, who served inNASA management for 30 years, took part in every manned spacecraft program: Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Shuttle, and Space Station. We have all met and spoken with Armstrong and other astronauts assigned to those missions. We have not written books about any of them.
We are offended that Barbree has decided to to make money for himself from his association and “friendship” with Armstrong. We hope he, at the very least, will donate any proceeds from his book to the Astronaut Scholarship Fund.
Joyce Giesler Bowden