Rick Dean
Registered
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/Stories/0%...60686%2C00.html
Kerry fails voters
John Kerry is at it again complaining to the media that he was not allowed to vote for the military benefits.
This is the same guy that voted "no' on the $87 billion for the same military. He has not shown up to work for a whole year. Can you do that and still have a job? Just a month ago he missed a huge vote for extensions for unemployment insurance. He was the deciding vote for it to pass; unfortunately he did not make it and it did not pass.
Other representatives had ru
for president and always performed their jobs while running. John Kerry forgets who is the most important part of this voting procedure. It is all of us, and he has failed.
Ron Agalsoff
El Mo
nte
Support HR 2671
Rep. Charlie Norwood of Georgia has introduced le
gislation that will give power to more than 600,000 local and state police to arrest illegal aliens. Apparently police do not have that power now. It will also force the federal government to pick up every illegal and send them out of this country. Most unfortunately, even in this day of terrorism, the federal government ignores most illegals unless they commit a crime.
HR 2671 will end the outrageous use of the Mexican government's "Matricula Consular' ID card that is designed to give illegal aliens full legal rights in this country.
HR 2671 will stop American cities from setting up illegal alien sanctuaries where certain liberal mayors and city councils are allowing illegals to live without fear
of arrest.
Think about it. Illegal aliens are in this country against the law. Illegal aliens are causing severe financial hardship to American schools and hospitals, causing many to close, deny
ing legal Americans vital services. Illegal aliens are costing American taxpayers more than $30 bi
llion per year in increased welfare. Illegal aliens are responsible for higher crime rates and increased drug smuggling. And, illegal aliens are a danger to U.S. National Security.
There is strong opposition to HR 2671 by large corporations who want cheap labor at our expense. And some Republican and Democrat politicians are pandering to illegals for votes.
So, it's up to us. If you really want to do something to help turn this crisis situation around, then pick up your phone and call your representative today. Ask him/her to support Senator Norwood's bill HR 2671. Your voice does count!
Jean Simpson
Glendora
Get it right
I was reading the article on July
3 about the up-and-comings in politics throughout the San Gabriel Valley.
Gayle Pacheco is not co-chairwoman of the Los Angeles County Republican Party; in fact, Gayle is just a defeated candi
date for Assembly and doing volunteer work as Los County co-chair for Bush-Cheney, like the rest of us in the Bush-Cheney efforts in
Los Angeles County.
Furthermore, I am Diamond Bar town chairperson for Bush- Cheney 2004. Linda Boyd is the chairman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County. I know this, because I am a member of the 60th Assembly District Republican Central Committee of Los Angeles County.
The Tribune should check facts and verify sources for accuracy more often.
Allen J. Wilson
Diamond Bar
Take a stand
Do we need a Federal Marriage Amendment? Without it, states will be forced to recognize same-sex marriages that were conducted in Massachusetts.
We have to remember that the decision was not made by the majority of people but by four activist jur
ists. It is only fair for all the citizens in the United States to decide whether they want to keep the definition of traditional marriage. Let your representatives know where you stand by callin
g them before their vote on July 15.
Eleen Choi Lee
Monterey Park
End illegal immigration
For the sake of argument, let's agree with National C
ouncil of La Raza's charge that the Border Patrol is "targeting members of the (Latino) community based on their ethnic appearance.'
California is awash with thousands of day laborer hiring sites. It's probable that most of those looking for work at these locations are illegal immigrants. Why not target these sites for legal identity verification? We'd not only arrest thousands of illegal immigrants, but also begin to make a dent in illegal hiring practices. No illegal immigration activist could then make a credible claim about ethnic appearance at these day laborer sites, since every one there, regardless of appearan
ce or ethnicity would be questioned.
Having seen the extraordinary lengths to which some governmental officials have gone to avoid enforcing our immigration laws over a period of many
years, I'm not certain how such a proposal would fare in the Beltway's inner sanctum of denial. But sooner or later this whole rotten lot of federal malfeasance, like that which forced the Border
Patrol to rescind its illegal immigrant sweeps in Southern California, under the lame excuse of "not authorized by higher authorities,' will collapse from the weight from its own shabby deeds.
Our borders must be sealed and the inland sweeps expanded. This is too serious a crisis to be stonewalled by political opportunists. Lacking this grit and focus, an aggrieved electorate will use their own brooms for different kinds of sweeps. The age of American innocence with illegal immigration has ended and these tampering machinations must end.
Mike Scott
Glendora
Dollars or buckets?
Before anyone begins criticizing the pay for overtime firefighters working for Los Angeles County, I would like to remind them that the money is hard-earned.
The sacrifice of time
spent away from their families is much greater than most people realize. How many of us would like to spend nearly half a month sleeping in a bed other than our own, getting up over and over during the night? How many are willing to
share in the grief of loss of limb, life or home of strangers?
Arriving home after a 24-hour shift, and even more so after a long, drawn out fire such as last seasons' infernos, my toddler granddaughter becomes an appendage to my son when her father returns.
The smiles don't stop when my other granddaughter of 11 months hears her daddy's voice and sees his face. My daughters-in-law are great women in that they accept the odd hours of work, birthdays and holidays spent without their husbands at their side. And I, as their mother, hold my breath each time I hear a siren, sa
ying a little prayer for the crew responding, as well as the victims.
Many people tell me my sons have it made with great pay and many days off; but they fail to see that other
counties such as San Diego, are ill-prepared for such disasters as occurred last fall, putting the responders in great danger. Adding insult to injury, a small tax hike to provide the necessities to prevent more tragedies was voted down in that coun
ty.
We can't have it both ways. Either we are well prepared or we are not, and if that means money spent on overtime, so be it. The only other option is to go back to bucket brigades.
Rebecca A. Barbosa
Irwindale
El Monte get with it
El Monte has a motto: "El Monte, where the future meets the past' but the reality is it should be: "El Monte, unaware of the present stays stuck in the past.'
Located in the very heart of the San Gabriel Valley, with easy access to four major freeways, this town should be booming, businesses
should be clamoring to locate here, 30 minutes from the beach, 25 minutes to Hollywood, within an hour you can be in the mountain resorts; this place has tremendous potential.
Why do our civic leaders allow it to look so tacky and run down? A glaring example of the backward thinking going on are those ugly fireworks stands they continue to allow to ubiquitously proliferate.
This is the 21st century folks, not the 1800s. The hanging tree and the vigilantes are l
ong gone, it's time to get rid of those ugly eyesores that make El Monte look like it's stuck in a time warp. Perhaps it has not occurred to city leaders, but there is a good portion of this population that has a rather low consciousness; they really can not differentiate between a sparkler and a cherry bomb; to them one firework is like another. To allow the sale of any kind of firework is only to encourage this easily entertained mentality.
El Monte should be leading the way, why isn't it?
Bill Perron
El
Monte
Kerry fails voters
John Kerry is at it again complaining to the media that he was not allowed to vote for the military benefits.
This is the same guy that voted "no' on the $87 billion for the same military. He has not shown up to work for a whole year. Can you do that and still have a job? Just a month ago he missed a huge vote for extensions for unemployment insurance. He was the deciding vote for it to pass; unfortunately he did not make it and it did not pass.
Other representatives had ru
for president and always performed their jobs while running. John Kerry forgets who is the most important part of this voting procedure. It is all of us, and he has failed.
Ron Agalsoff
El Mo
nte
Support HR 2671
Rep. Charlie Norwood of Georgia has introduced le
gislation that will give power to more than 600,000 local and state police to arrest illegal aliens. Apparently police do not have that power now. It will also force the federal government to pick up every illegal and send them out of this country. Most unfortunately, even in this day of terrorism, the federal government ignores most illegals unless they commit a crime.
HR 2671 will end the outrageous use of the Mexican government's "Matricula Consular' ID card that is designed to give illegal aliens full legal rights in this country.
HR 2671 will stop American cities from setting up illegal alien sanctuaries where certain liberal mayors and city councils are allowing illegals to live without fear
of arrest.
Think about it. Illegal aliens are in this country against the law. Illegal aliens are causing severe financial hardship to American schools and hospitals, causing many to close, deny
ing legal Americans vital services. Illegal aliens are costing American taxpayers more than $30 bi
llion per year in increased welfare. Illegal aliens are responsible for higher crime rates and increased drug smuggling. And, illegal aliens are a danger to U.S. National Security.
There is strong opposition to HR 2671 by large corporations who want cheap labor at our expense. And some Republican and Democrat politicians are pandering to illegals for votes.
So, it's up to us. If you really want to do something to help turn this crisis situation around, then pick up your phone and call your representative today. Ask him/her to support Senator Norwood's bill HR 2671. Your voice does count!
Jean Simpson
Glendora
Get it right
I was reading the article on July
3 about the up-and-comings in politics throughout the San Gabriel Valley.
Gayle Pacheco is not co-chairwoman of the Los Angeles County Republican Party; in fact, Gayle is just a defeated candi
date for Assembly and doing volunteer work as Los County co-chair for Bush-Cheney, like the rest of us in the Bush-Cheney efforts in
Los Angeles County.
Furthermore, I am Diamond Bar town chairperson for Bush- Cheney 2004. Linda Boyd is the chairman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County. I know this, because I am a member of the 60th Assembly District Republican Central Committee of Los Angeles County.
The Tribune should check facts and verify sources for accuracy more often.
Allen J. Wilson
Diamond Bar
Take a stand
Do we need a Federal Marriage Amendment? Without it, states will be forced to recognize same-sex marriages that were conducted in Massachusetts.
We have to remember that the decision was not made by the majority of people but by four activist jur
ists. It is only fair for all the citizens in the United States to decide whether they want to keep the definition of traditional marriage. Let your representatives know where you stand by callin
g them before their vote on July 15.
Eleen Choi Lee
Monterey Park
End illegal immigration
For the sake of argument, let's agree with National C
ouncil of La Raza's charge that the Border Patrol is "targeting members of the (Latino) community based on their ethnic appearance.'
California is awash with thousands of day laborer hiring sites. It's probable that most of those looking for work at these locations are illegal immigrants. Why not target these sites for legal identity verification? We'd not only arrest thousands of illegal immigrants, but also begin to make a dent in illegal hiring practices. No illegal immigration activist could then make a credible claim about ethnic appearance at these day laborer sites, since every one there, regardless of appearan
ce or ethnicity would be questioned.
Having seen the extraordinary lengths to which some governmental officials have gone to avoid enforcing our immigration laws over a period of many
years, I'm not certain how such a proposal would fare in the Beltway's inner sanctum of denial. But sooner or later this whole rotten lot of federal malfeasance, like that which forced the Border
Patrol to rescind its illegal immigrant sweeps in Southern California, under the lame excuse of "not authorized by higher authorities,' will collapse from the weight from its own shabby deeds.
Our borders must be sealed and the inland sweeps expanded. This is too serious a crisis to be stonewalled by political opportunists. Lacking this grit and focus, an aggrieved electorate will use their own brooms for different kinds of sweeps. The age of American innocence with illegal immigration has ended and these tampering machinations must end.
Mike Scott
Glendora
Dollars or buckets?
Before anyone begins criticizing the pay for overtime firefighters working for Los Angeles County, I would like to remind them that the money is hard-earned.
The sacrifice of time
spent away from their families is much greater than most people realize. How many of us would like to spend nearly half a month sleeping in a bed other than our own, getting up over and over during the night? How many are willing to
share in the grief of loss of limb, life or home of strangers?
Arriving home after a 24-hour shift, and even more so after a long, drawn out fire such as last seasons' infernos, my toddler granddaughter becomes an appendage to my son when her father returns.
The smiles don't stop when my other granddaughter of 11 months hears her daddy's voice and sees his face. My daughters-in-law are great women in that they accept the odd hours of work, birthdays and holidays spent without their husbands at their side. And I, as their mother, hold my breath each time I hear a siren, sa
ying a little prayer for the crew responding, as well as the victims.
Many people tell me my sons have it made with great pay and many days off; but they fail to see that other
counties such as San Diego, are ill-prepared for such disasters as occurred last fall, putting the responders in great danger. Adding insult to injury, a small tax hike to provide the necessities to prevent more tragedies was voted down in that coun
ty.
We can't have it both ways. Either we are well prepared or we are not, and if that means money spent on overtime, so be it. The only other option is to go back to bucket brigades.
Rebecca A. Barbosa
Irwindale
El Monte get with it
El Monte has a motto: "El Monte, where the future meets the past' but the reality is it should be: "El Monte, unaware of the present stays stuck in the past.'
Located in the very heart of the San Gabriel Valley, with easy access to four major freeways, this town should be booming, businesses
should be clamoring to locate here, 30 minutes from the beach, 25 minutes to Hollywood, within an hour you can be in the mountain resorts; this place has tremendous potential.
Why do our civic leaders allow it to look so tacky and run down? A glaring example of the backward thinking going on are those ugly fireworks stands they continue to allow to ubiquitously proliferate.
This is the 21st century folks, not the 1800s. The hanging tree and the vigilantes are l
ong gone, it's time to get rid of those ugly eyesores that make El Monte look like it's stuck in a time warp. Perhaps it has not occurred to city leaders, but there is a good portion of this population that has a rather low consciousness; they really can not differentiate between a sparkler and a cherry bomb; to them one firework is like another. To allow the sale of any kind of firework is only to encourage this easily entertained mentality.
El Monte should be leading the way, why isn't it?
Bill Perron
El
Monte