Firefighter record speaks for itself
To the editor:
In response to the Tuesday letter from Kathleen Jimenez, “Petty findings,” questioning how exorbitant salaries and unjustifiably numerous sick days “take away from the fact that the Clark County Fire Department is still one of the best in the nation”:
I think I have the answer.
Compared to other firefighters, they’re incredibly well-rested. Lounging around on all those “sick” days, sleeping like babies, with no financial worries, blissfully missing a conscience condemning criminal conduct that cheats the public.
No wonder they can perform well when they actually do show up.
As to the assumption that there are but a few guilty individuals, it strains credulity to think that this conduct went unnoticed by fellow firefighters (and supervisors), who are morally if not criminally complicit in this fraud. If you’re not a part of the solution …
Ms. Jiminez asks “Shouldn’t (the Clark County Fire Department’s) record speak for itself?” I think it does.
Pam Sonaco
Las Vegas
Dim bulbs
To the editor:
In Tuesday’s newspaper you had a good article and an editorial about these new light bulbs, which contain mercury. I changed most of my bulbs to that type.
During the process, I took a package of bulbs down and one fell out and broke in the washing machine. The label on the package said to go to the EPA website, which I did. It said that I should:
1. Have people and pets leave the room.
2. Air room out for five to 10 minutes.
3. Shut off air conditioning or heat.
4. Collect clean-up material (whatever that consists of).
Need I go on? The recommended procedure goes on and on for three pages of small type.
Well, if this is the way to save on energy or electricity, this takes more in energy than what I’d save.
Now what about those people who break a bulb but don’t have a computer to reach the EPA website?
Vernon Pechous
Henderson
Not decided
To the editor:
The headline on your Wednesday editorial reads “Unconstitutional.” It refers to one federal judge’s ruling on the so-called “ObamaCare” legislation.
In fact, earlier, another judge similarly ruled the law as unconstitutional. But where was the headline “Constitutional” when two other federal judges ruled that the law is constitutional?
Oh, you get to ignore those rulings because you don’t agree with them.
Pretty near everybody understands that these rulings don’t mean a thing. Everyone knows that the law will eventually come before the U.S. Supreme Court, and it is those justices who will have to rule on the constitutionality of the law. Until then, there is no cause to celebrate, regardless of which side of the issue you favor.
What really bugs me is that there is no method in existence whereby the Supreme Court can simply take up an issue like this and make a ruling one way or the other.
Instead, the American people have to suffer through the needless meandering of the law through the lower courts, taking months and even years before the issue is finally brought to the Supreme Court, where it should have gone the day after the law was passed and before any of its provisions went into effect.
Let’s stop gloating over some meaningless court decision that favors our personal viewpoint, and let’s wait until the nine old fogies finally decide the issue once and for all.
Frankly, I don’t care which way they decide, I just long for a final decision.
David Adams
Las Vegas
Status check
To the editor:
Thank you for pointing out the major problem Nevada has with illegal immigrants in your Wednesday editorial, “Without papers.”
You point out that based on the most recent census, 12.2 percent of Nevada’s 1.393 million workers are illegal immigrants. This works out to 169,946 jobs that should be filled by legal employees.
Assemblyman Pat Hickey, R-Reno, has a bill draft request requiring Nevada to implement a mandatory E-Verify system that he hopes will become law.
E-Verify is a free, government-run system that is currently voluntary in Nevada. As of now, each state has various levels of commitment to the program. Many states have legislation pending approval this year.
U.S. law requires companies and government entities to employ only individuals who may legally work in the United States. They must be either U.S. citizens, or foreign citizens who have the necessary authorization.
E-Verify is an Internet-based system that allows businesses to determine — in a fast, free and highly accurate way — the eligibility of their employees to work in the United States.
More than 1,000 companies sign up for E-Verify each week, and more than 16 million queries were run in 2010.
Please show your concern for Nevada’s unemployed legal residents by contacting your legislators and encouraging them to move Mr. Hickey’s bill forward.
Dean Meek
Henderson
Too crowded
To the editor:
The main sources of our city’s revenue are tourism and conventions.
The main traffic corridor for these activities is the Paradise- Swenson area (unless you get long-hauled as described in a recent story about cabdriver abuse).
Now UNLV wants to build a stadium capable of causing far more traffic gridlock than currently exists with events at the Thomas & Mack Center. How are our millions of monthly visitors going to get to the Strip and convention locations? Perhaps by the monorail? Oops, I forgot — it doesn’t connect to the airport.
Yes, it would be great to have a real stadium here, and it would be wonderful to be able to have some pro sports. But let’s get real about the ability to get there.
Why not build something along Interstate 215, where there’s plenty of room and much easier access?
David Lyons
Las Vegas
