Don’t feel sorry for real estate agents

In response to your Monday story on real estate agents leaving the business:

Yes, the housing market is cooling off, and we are going through what is called a market adjustment. It would seem that the speculators and real estate agents have made their money and have left us with grossly overpriced housing and higher taxes.

At the moment, buyers are waiting for the market to bottom out, so sales are slow. If you can believe it, the real estate agents claim they are starving and are leaving the business. Believe me, when I look at my property tax bill, I don’t feel sorry for any of them.

When I think of a new family attempting to make it in Las Vegas today, I confess that I do feel angry with those who plundered the Las Vegas housing market.

I do hope that some form of justice exists for those who have ruined the affordable housing market in Las Vegas.

JON HAMEL

LAS VEGAS

Volunteer firemen

To the editor:

I agree with John L. Smith that volunteer firefighters should be covered by usual and customary worker compensation benefits (Wednesday column). However, the package should be complete. It should require pre-volunteer and annual physical fitness standards and medical exams performed by certified physicians — much like Federal Aviation Administration requirements for pilot licenses.

I realize this would shrink the pool of qualified volunteers. However, it would protect the firefighters through preventive health examinations and care, as well as remove insurance industry resistance to offering such coverage.

Leonard Kreisler

LAS VEGAS

Head gear

To the editor:

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi sashayed off to Syria, against the advice of the State Department, to kiss the ring of President Assad — safely surrounded by Secret Service agents at U.S. taxpayers’ expense.

But it seems Ms. Pelosi — an advocate of women’s rights — wore a head scarf in order to be politically correct.

I am fully expecting to now hear from the adoring U.S. media that she has solved all the problems in the Middle East. Great. But she shouldn’t have gone in the first place.

What really angers me is seeing on TV U.S. women reporters — broadcasting from Iran during the recent British hostage flap — also wearing head scarves.

All right. Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt and say these women were threatened and either forced to cover their heads or risk not getting to interview the great one, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

But just once, wouldn’t it be refreshing to know that just one of our lady broadcasters had the guts to say: “Hell, no. I’m not wearing that. This is not my custom, as an American.”

Jane Ham

LAS VEGAS

Gibbons bashing

To the editor:

It is blatantly obvious that the Review-Journal is a Gibbons basher. Almost every day there are front-page headlines attacking Gov. Jim Gibbons.

On April 11, you ran the story, “Gibbons’ comments elicit incredulity.” This was an absolute non-story that — if it was printed at all — should have been on the bottom of the last page. The story: Gibbons said that he had heard a rumor that the Democrats paid to have stories printed in The Wall Street Journal. It’s a complete non-news story.

Why doesn’t the Review-Journal print stories about the Democrats? Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., recently resigned from a Senate subcommittee that she headed when it was reported that her husband owned shares in companies that made millions from contracts approved by the committee.

Your bias is very apparent.

DON SAVAGE

LAS VEGAS

Lottery funds

To the editor:

After reading Daniel J. Bell’s letter to the editor and his “kudos” to letter writer Dick Laird, who opposed a possible Nevada state lottery, it made me wonder.

Mr. Bell talks of the potential for corrupt lottery officials. My lord, Southern Nevada has proved to only be “corruption central” for Nevada — and now our new governor and his wife are under scrutiny.

I spent 24 years in British Columbia, and saw many a project funded and built by Lotto funds, schools and otherwise. As far as the poor spending their limited funds on Lotto tickets? These same poor already have every opportunity to gamble. Oh, and you can bet they do spend $20 in hopes of making $1,000 or maybe $2,000 — which will go for what? Maybe the promise of making $2 million to $20 million will keep them out of the casinos and local bars — or keep them from throwing away good money after bad.

Truth is, that’s all gaming is about.

If a lottery is run strictly and properly, the funds will go to the betterment of the poor’s children. Lotteries can be good things if run properly and the money is directed where it belongs.

Gerald Covington

LAS VEGAS