Letters to the Editor (8/20)

Help a fallen hero's child

Dear Editor:

On Aug. 21, approximately 250 or more motorcyclists of The American Legion Riders will arrive in Tempe to raise public awareness and support for the American Legion Legacy Scholarship.

The riders, comprised of wartime era veterans from across America, are traveling 1,800 miles along Route 66 on their motorcycles to make possible a college education for the children of those who have died defending our freedoms since Sept. 11, 2001.

Beginning their journey in Indianapolis, Ind., the group is heading to the 90th annual National American Legion Convention that will be held in Phoenix Aug. 26 through 28 to raise public awareness and support for The American Legion Legacy Scholarship Fund.

Legionnaires are coordinating fundraising events at Legion posts along the route.

Post 2 will host an arrival social for the community and lunch for riders from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.

The American Legion Legacy Scholarship Fund was established to provide scholarships for the children of our fallen heroes. Today this trust fund has a balance of more than $2.1 million. Each day the need for this scholarship grows.

Meeting the financial burden for a college education today can be difficult for the average household, but in a one-parent family it is a major undertaking. Many of these families whose loved ones paid the ultimate price will struggle to provide for their children's daily needs. They shouldn't have to struggle to put money aside for college. We can ease family worries and help these children have the chance to attend college and, at the same time, honor the memory of those who made the supreme sacrifice.

Residents of Phoenix/Tempe can play an important role in providing the gift of knowledge to these children who have lost a parent in the war on terror. Please send your tax-deductible gift of $5, $10, $25, $50, $100 or whatever you can afford to the American Legacy Fund, The American Legacy Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 1055, Indianapolis, IN 46206 or stop by Post 2 and join us as we help a fallen hero's child.

Marty Conatser

National Commander

Confusion over JCPenney closing signs

Dear Editor:

Recently Ahwatukee residents may have noticed "JCPenney Closing" signs posted along roadways around Ahwatukee Foothills. These signs are referring to our Furniture Outlet Store on Elliott Road. Unfortunately, that store will be closing Nov. 1.

The good news is that our Ray Road and Interstate 10 JCPenney Store will NOT be closing. Our store has been very successful since the day we opened more than three years ago.

We thank the community it's loyal patronage and I apologize for any confusion the closing signs may have caused.

Bill Ahern

Store Manager

We need to pursue all energy sources

Dear Editor:

Joe Debbins, "Transportation assumptions need to change, now" (AFN, Aug. 1), is absolutely right... negativism, and deep recession (maybe even depression) is exactly what you're going to get if you vote for the "Party of NO," otherwise known as the Democrats.

If you sit with your head in the sand and say "no drilling" and believe in the tooth fairy, you're most likely to not even have a job, let alone the need to bicycle to work.

We need to pursue all energy sources, including oil drilling if we are to survive. If you believe in ethanol from corn, please go the bottom of the class... you qualify for total scientific ignorance.

Around the first of June, I asked, in a letter to the editor, a number of technical energy questions directed at our liberal-leftists. To date there have been zero responses. I think that proves my point that liberal-leftists don't understand science at all... they prefer to follow that charlatan-of-all-times, Al Gore (the Pied Piper of Climate Change). Gore persists in alarming you with unsubstantiated BS, so you won't notice that he is quietly sucking the IQ out of your, and your children's heads. Better read up on what the Pied Piper later does to the children.

I'll lay you dollar to doughnuts that Debbins is a Democrat... he hangs his hat on the mass transit tooth fairy. He fails to note that the population density of New York City is 26,403 per square mile, while Phoenix is 2,938 per square mile, almost a factor of 10 difference. I'm sure it's a much larger ratio for Ahwatukee.

I know, I know. I shouldn't be ranting like this. Recession and layoffs are really good for my consulting business. It's already starting to pick up... the market is already reacting to the nightmare-vision of an Obama presidency.

So make my day... vote Barack and help make America a third-world Obama-nation.

Jim Thompson

Let's change state freeway laws

Dear Editor:

My wife and I just spent a couple of weeks in Southern California. We used the freeways at all hours of the morning and, to our amazement, they seemed to move faster then our own Interstate 10.

The reason for this is all trucks and cars pulling trailers are restricted to the first two lanes. When the trucks have to stop, they take longer to get rolling, causing more back up. Also motorcycles are allowed to split lanes, which takes them out of the equation. The three-car lanes moved a lot faster. The HOV lanes do not have time limits like ours.

I feel every little bit helps, so how do we get the ball rolling and change these laws? Since I've been back and traveling I-10 between the Loop 202 and the Broadway curve I notice that all the over passes have enough room to add a lane. These are small and less costly solutions that would bring relief a lot faster than waiting five-plus more years on the completion of the Loop 202.

As a motorcycle rider of 45 years, I would gladly give up the right of not wearing a helmet to be able to split lanes.

Jeff Ludwig

This fall.... Dump the Hump!

Dear Editor:

On July 30 (AFN) there was a half-page commentary by Sen. Huppenthal about how much he has done for Corona air quality problems and that people are engaging in "dishonest political mudslinging" against him. He stated that he never voted against any budget that included help for Corona.

Well John, that may be true but what the self-proclaimed "clean-air" champion of Corona failed to mention is that his original involvement was voting against helping Corona through funding by the School Facilities Board. Also, your attempts at requesting the governor provide help to Corona were for amounts of loans that didn't even cover 25 percent of the estimated costs of what needed to be done.

It's an election year and this career politician is trying to look pretty for the voters. He panders to the Pecos Road homeowners and helps more with facilitating public money flow for private educational purposes than he does public money for public educational purposes.

Sixteen years of bouncing back and forth between the State House and State Senate in order to avoid term limits is too much.

This fall.... Dump the Hump!

Thomas P. O'Reilly

City needs to better maintain traffic lines

Dear Editor:

Recently, I received a photo radar red light ticket for the westbound 40th Street and Pecos Road intersection. It was one of those unfortunate situations where I was being tailgated and I either was going to be rear-ended or had to try and make the light.

The ticket states that I was .2 seconds late, which is within the margin of error for photo radar. It also shows that my car was clearly not "behind" the painted curb line but, in fact ,was "past the line" when it turned red, which makes it legal.

Here's the problem. The clearly-painted curb line that I was past turns out to not be the "actual" curb line because the actual curb line has been worn away and is barely visible from driver level at 50 mph.

So, even though the ticketing agency's rep agreed with my objection, I would have to just roll the dice that the traffic court judge would be a reasonable and judicial Judge. And from what I have researched, that isn't likely.

It's disappointing to learn that our judicial system does not allow for reasonable arguments to be presented when accused of a violation. In the meantime, how many tickets will the city of Phoenix issue and get paid because they have not maintained traffic lines?

Kay Ballard