Unions have only themselves to blame

To the editor:

There was quite an apparent conundrum in the pages of the March 24 Review-Journal regarding coverage of unions.

Page 9A had a photo caption in which a UAW union president speculated “Unions don’t have the leverage and power that we used to. … The image is terrible right now. … The media spins us as hurting business and the nonunion workers.”

Then over in the weekly recap section was a photo of the local union members who last week blocked Las Vegas Boulevard by sitting in the middle of the street in front of the Cosmopolitan — an action that not only was unlawful and blocked traffic, but also came at a time when our city was welcoming hundreds of visitors for the March Madness basketball season. What a great way to meet and greet them, eh? Whatever happened to peaceful and law-abiding protests?

There is no media spin casting unions as hurting business and others; the only terrible image inflicted on unions is that they inflict on themselves with their typical strong-arm tactics.

GEORGE PUCINE

LAS VEGAS

Another Prohibition

To the editor:

Yes, Nevada politicians are considering the legalization of marijuana. Apparently Mr. Reyes (letter, March 24) is like a great many people who believe that if marijuana is illegal, no one actually uses it.

Look around. People are using marijuana, some for medicinal purposes and some for recreational purposes. Of course, by keeping it illegal we promote the wealth of drug cartels who supply it.

If you really know history, this is no different than Prohibition. The only benefactors of Prohibition were the criminal enterprises that continued to supply alcohol to U.S. citizens.

Whether or not marijuana impairs drivers to the extent alcohol does is open to debate. But regardless of the law, there are still drivers out there who are under the influence of all sorts of illegal drugs, including marijuana. If this country would legalize it, tax it and supply it at a reasonable price, the same as alcohol, the drug cartels would be crippled.

Apparently, that’s not a priority with a lot of people.

MICHAEL R. STILLEY

MESQUITE

Make them hurt

To the editor:

Another example of the corrupt practices of this administration and the Democratic Party was on display as U.S. Sen. Harry Reid made the call to stop legislation that would have restored funding for the Transportation Security Administration from previously allocated unspent funds.

Why would Harry Reid do such a thing? Because it’s the goal of the Democratic Party to inflict as much pain as possible from the recent sequester cuts. By doing so, Harry and his political cronies can “teach us a lesson” about the importance of government spending and how important it is in our lives.

Yet as we saw in a recent letter, the drumbeat from Harry Reid to build a billion-dollar train from Vegas to Victorville goes on. Stop unspent funds from being used to keep airport control towers open and airport screeners on the job, while trying to jam through a cool billion for a politically driven wasteful project. Could it be that Sen. Reid owns some land on or near the train route?

Why is it that none of these political machinations are brought to light about Sen. Reid? Is the media so cowed by Harry that he can virtually do anything he wants? We need answers now, before this fast train to nowhere is built.

JOSEPH SCHILLMOELLER

LAS VEGAS

Unconscionable

To the editor:

I was saddened and appalled to see that the Clark County Commissioners want to give themselves a 10 percent pay raise. Their insensitivity and tone-deafness boggles the mind. Thousands of public safety employees in Clark County have had their salaries and benefits cut severely since 2008 in order to balance department budgets and I’m told by reliable sources, they’re being asked to make more sacrifices in the latest contract negotiations.

When John Moran and I headed Metro, our firm policy was that management got the same salary and benefits the rank and file got not a penny more. That’s the fair and ethical thing to do. I believed it then and I still believe it. The only fair thing for the commissioners to do is give a 10 percent pay raise to the employees under them as well or forego the raises for themselves. Any other action would be unethical and unconscionable.

ERIC COOPER

GARDNERVILLE

Ridiculing a right

To the editor:

What an incredibly insensitive and unfunny column (“A modest proposal …” March 26) on guns and the right to defend ourselves. I would have Mr. Sebelius ask any of the “universally opposed” law enforcement officers if they believe that a 20-minute response time is considered adequate to provide protection?

The term “gun free zone” translates more accurately to “free fire zone” or “kill zone” because the only person there with a gun is the bad guy. Why am I allowed to protect myself on a public street, but not on public property?

If a business chooses to not allow guns on their private property, that’s fine. I can choose to not do business there. But what makes a college campus different from the public property across the street other than anti-gun liberals being in charge?

He argues the police might not be able to determine who the perpetrator is or who the law-abiding citizen is. He’s right, that is a concern and at some point the cops might just shoot the wrong person. But the current system is to allow the perpetrator to indiscriminately kill at will until the police arrive. They aren’t going to be at your home or standing next to you when some nut case on a college campus starts shooting.

TERRY OSTLUND

LAS VEGAS

For the veterans

To the editor:

A notice in the March 22 Review-Journal spoke of a meeting to be offered for veterans, assisting them with may problems. My husband is disabled and I believed this might be helpful to me since he is entitled to benefits due to exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. He served 22 years in the Air Force and just recently has developed many effects from his exposure.

It was difficult finding the place but finally I noticed a shack on a dirt parking lot on Bonanza Road that had “US Vets” written on the wall. What a disgrace! A dark dreary room with metal chairs, holding about 75 people, was “our place to hang” said one young vet.

Is that what we offer our vets? How shameful! I was so disgusted and embarrassed for our state that this trashy place was all we had to offer. I left teary eyed without getting the information I came for.

MRS. BILL BRENNAN

LAS VEGAS