BishopAccountability.org
	March 12: Getting a New High off the O.C. Water Supply? Letters to the Editor OCRegister March 12, 2008 http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/water-march-people-1997133-drugs-one My blood pressure at first soared when I read that so many pharmaceutical drugs were floating around in my drinking water, including various toxins to reduce my blood pressure and enhance my mood ["Drugs found in water," News, March 10 ]. But then my blood pressure dropped, and my mood was elevated when I realized, upon further thought, that this drug-water combo was actually a blessing in disguise. These drugs in the water are, after all, entirely legal whatever lethal side-effects they may, and often do, have. This is in contrast to nondrugs like medical marijuana which, although often very effective, can easily lead one to the slammer. And although the drugs are involuntarily ingested by many who drink tap water, they are at least entirely free of charge, unlike their counterparts, which for many are unaffordable. Most importantly, with this new concoction in our beverages, we may all eventually become gods and goddesses. Side effects, meanwhile, will probably become a thing of the past. With such a generous mixture of potions in the brew, there will be something, somewhere, there to handle each new unintended symptom as it pops up. Best of all, we can still strive eventually, to become a "drug-free" nation since most of the drugs in the water are government sanctioned and legal in some cases even mandatory, like Ritalin and therefore don't really count as "drugs." Gordon Wilson Laguna Niguel ••• So now, as if we don't have enough problems, there are prescription drugs in our water supply. Antibiotics, birth control what I want to know, where is the Viagra? Edward Klopfenstein Anaheim How the mighty have fallen Democrat Gov. Eliot Spitzer of New York has been identified as "Client No. 9" in a criminal complaint involving a prostitution ring ["Tarnished reputation," Front Page, March 11]. Let's see, a former state attorney general, with a huge narcissistic ego, involved in sex crimes? Further, a person who strongly believes that "private" behavior should have no effect on one's political career? Hmm, it sounds strangely familiar. The only question remaining is how long it will be before Mrs. Spitzer runs for governor of New York. Bob Elliott Anaheim Hills Persecuting Msgr. Urell? What's with Frank Mickadeit's umbilical fascination with attorney John Manly ["Urell back; Buckley fondly remembered," Local, March 7]? This tag team's tedious attempt to dismantle Monsignor John Urell's reputation has become exhausting. The fact that Roman Catholic Bishop Tod Brown's and Urell's respectability remain intact reveals their surplus courage, while these other two clowns mothball human decency. Better yet, Mickadeit finishes his column with an ode to William F. Buckley. Buckley had championed the clergy and Catholicism his entire life. I'm sure I wouldn't be able to pronounce most of the words Buckley would use to scold these haranguers who consider facts a nuisance. Patrick Redmond Newport Beach A mental health conundrum While government legislation that forces insurers to provide "equal" coverage for mental health treatment presents many practical problems, such as the less objective and measurable evaluation of the cost and results of such treatment, the more important objection is what such coercion does to the moral and mental health of Americans whose rights are run over by the government ["The misnamed 'Mental Health Equity act,'" March 10]. Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once described the virtue of socialism as "the equal sharing of miseries," which certainly describes this act. There is no consideration of the stress and mental strain such legislation will impose on those who now struggle to pay for health insurance whose premiums will increase if these proposals become law. Richard E. Ralston Newport Beach executive director, Americans for Free Choice in Medicine Energize Ladera's options As I read about the Ladera Ranch residents' opposition to the proposed "peaker" power plant ["The price of power," Front Page, March 8], I wondered how everyone seems to be missing the big picture here. Let's do the math. Option one: build the proposed plant, which would provide 48 megawatts of power to 30,000 homes while emitting nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter, and depleting our valuable natural resources. Option two: install a modest, 1.6-kilowatt grid-tied photovoltaic solar-panel system on each of the 30,000 homes. Zero-emission renewable power is readily available here in sunny Southern California, and during the day when the grid is taxed. Ladera residents, I support your saying no to the plant, but offer the alternative. Unite as a community and enjoy clean, quiet, environmentally responsible energy while you realize dramatically lower electricity bills and nearly 100 percent reimbursement of your investment via increased property values. John M. Knox Costa Mesa Failed system cheats voters Watching the mess the Democrat Party has gotten itself into by trying to understand caucuses versus primaries, wondering how superdelegates can play into electing their candidate for president instead of using mandatory, committed delegates who vote the popular vote of the people, I question if this process is "of the people, by the people and for the people." It seems to me the Democratic National Committee rules supersede our Constitution in the area of equal representation one person, one vote. What a travesty of logic and fair voting the Democrats have made of our so-called "democratic process." Whatever happens to the currently disenfranchised voters in Florida and Michigan, the Democrats will reap what they have sown. All the states should hold standard primaries, if not on the same day, then within the same month. There should be no "superdelegate" games just count the people's votes. It's time to get back to the basics of what our founding fathers intended and it sure ain't what's going on in this election, especially from the Democrats. Colleen Campbell Westminster The Palestinian context One must not treat the horrific attack on the Jewish seminary in Jerusalem, which killed eight people, as an isolated incident ["Family says killer was upset over Gaza deaths," World, March 8]. Perhaps the murder of more than 130 Palestinians in Gaza had something to do with it. Gaza is undergoing the worst humanitarian crisis since 1967 as a result of a brutal occupation, and people need to quit blaming Hamas' rockets. These rockets have killed few Israelis in seven years, many less than the number of Palestinian deaths by Israel's occupation forces. The problem is not the rockets, it's the occupation. If the occupation ends, the rockets will stop. Rashad Al-Dabbagh Anaheim The fireplace frenzy Regarding, "Keep the home fires burning? Not after 2013" [Front Page, March 7]: What's next? Banning candlelight dinners? How about banning brush fires? Unlike fireplaces, which are used only during the winter, brush fires occur in the summer at the peak of the smog season. The fires in 2003 spewed more than 45,000 tons of particulates into the air, according to CARB and the University of California, Berkeley. That's more than 20 times as much as all the fireplaces in the Los Angeles basin. If there are an estimated 5,000 premature deaths each year from smoky fireplaces, then last year's brush fires will cause 100,000 premature deaths. Maybe the fireplace danger is grossly exaggerated. Richard J. Stegemeier Anaheim
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