Don’t count on solar as a jobs program

I just read the Friday letter sent to you by the president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association. In it he states, “The industry comprises 5,000 companies across every state in the country and employs more than 100,000 Americans. … It has grown by 69 percent in the past year.”

Wow, that computes to each company having 20 employees.

The U.S. Department of Energy recently completed two solar loans worth more than $1 billion that will create 900 temporary construction jobs and 52 permanent jobs. Is this really putting people back to work? Or is it another excuse for the unemployment rolls to grow when those temporary jobs end?

It would be better to take that billion dollars and distribute it to companies that are expanding the natural resources that we have survived on for the past 300-plus years. That will put people back to work.

Solar energy may have a use — it heated my swimming pool 40 years ago — but it sure is costly to the taxpayer when only a few people are put back to work.

Dave Seyler

Henderson

Tolerance of Islam

To the editor:

In his Sept. 29 letter, Gard Jameson of the Interfaith Council of Southern Nevada is very critical of the Review-Journal for publishing two commentaries that he felt expressed a negative view of Islam. Perhaps he does not realize that “the fires of anti-Islamic sentiments” were lit for the majority of Americans on 9/11 and not by a few books or newspaper articles. For me, many of my friends and most Americans, the only Muslims we hear rejecting jihad and terrorism — along with espousing religious tolerance and live and let live ideals — are those Muslims enjoying life in the United States. We are also well aware of the No. 1 reason the Islamic world has hatred toward the United States.

So to Mr. Jameson — and others who participate in all of these various councils — get some prominent Muslims living outside our country to publicly express tolerance for our ideals, rather than rail against people who are critical of Islam. Having the chief cleric of the mosque in Mecca, Medina or Jerusalem publicly reject terrorism and jihad would be a great start.

Have them bring Islam out of the 5th century. Public executions, floggings and stonings were once common in our culture, along with the subjugation of women. We have had more than our share of religious wars. But we have gotten past that. Can’t Islam do the same in the 21st century?

Hearing of Muslims living in our country supporting terrorism and wanting to impose Sharia law does not make us more tolerant. So, Mr. Jameson, you and your fellow council members really need to remember the old saying about living in a glass house.

Jack Corrick

Boulder City

Listing game

To the editor:

I’ve tried to buy more than one of the thousands of foreclosed homes owned by banks. It is most discouraging to be forced into the Realtor’s game of being pitted against other buyers to submit my “highest and best offer” and being told by listing agents that my offer of listed price and above is too low and the bank simply won’t accept my offer so don’t waste our time.

Do the banks know listing agents and Realtors are not submitting all offers? My credit history is excellent. My income is valid, but the conniving, deceitful profit-mongering Realtors really control the market. They, I believe are responsible for the big gouge of ’05-’06 making home sellers think their medium-priced homes are worth mansion prices.

A few fell for this ploy and profited while others got left holding an empty bag. Now foreclosures abound and Realtors are not helping banks lift the foreclosure burden.

David Ross

Henderson

Political change

To the editor:

Greece’s economy is about to implode because the country’s politicians borrowed and spent large sums of money without any regard as to how it would be repaid. This is exactly what the U.S. Congress has done over the past three decades.

We can’t do anything about the Greek politicians who bankrupted their country, but we can do something here in our country. We need politicians who are not obligated to large donors, not obligated to their party ideology and not concerned about getting re-elected.

Fortunately there is a solution to finding such citizens who will really represent the people who voted for them. Take a few minutes to learn about Get out of Our House at www.goooh.com.

Billy Clifford

Austion, Texas