Letters to the Editor

Editor:

After reading the letter to the editor from Mr. Hibbs in the May 9 Record-Courier, I had to chuckle. I too attended Alpine County Candidates' Night. We were all given a piece of paper with the "rules" of the evening, along with small index cards to write down our questions to the candidates. All questions had to pertain to both candidates or they would not be read by the moderator.

The question Mr. Hibbs wrote about, struck me as odd. It's not a question you would normally hear at a candidates' night and it was typed out on the index cards. I do not recall seeing a typewriter being available for us to use. As far as temperament goes, I did not see Ms. Dustman react "in apparent anger." If this is the way she displays anger (calm, her voice not raised, though maybe a little flustered by the question), we could all learn a lot from her.

Barbara Thomson

Markleeville

Editor:

Lee Johnson's letter to the editor published in The R-C on May 9 surely proposed a novel and convoluted way of doing a flip-flop from one political party to the next in the interest of being heard. Lee professes to want a voice in the selection of Republican candidates for county commissioner while admitting that he is either "non-Republican" or Democrat.

He, and everyone else, needs to understand that political parties are intended to gather together people who are politically like-minded. Affiliating oneself with a party, be it Democrat, Republican, Green, Libertarian, or yes, in this country, even Communist, is the epitome of having your voice heard and gives you rights and privileges afforded only to its members. In this case, it's the right to select one of your own to represent your party in the election. So, if Mr. Johnson feels so strongly about having a voice as to which Republican he would like to see in office, registering as a Republican would allow him to do so.

But to advocate formal registration as a Republican and then later disassociate with that party and re-register with the party where one's true political allegiance lies is the acme of vacillation and the death knell of party politics, with all that that implies. I might add that if anyone can get 11,531 people to go through that flip-flop scenario, they have the basis of their own political party here in Douglas County and have no need of participating in the Republican primary. You could field your own candidate in the Johnson party.

I would suggest that if Mr. Johnson wonders about the absence of a Democrat representation on the primary ballot for county commissioner, then running for office himself would be a better approach. He might also contact the local Democrat party and ask why there was no Democrat on the ballot.

With reference to Rush Limbaugh's "Operation Chaos," I disagree with that tactic and further believe that it has appeal only to a small percentage of the people. Attempting to increase chaos in this situation satisfies the feelings of that minority and adds little or nothing to further increase the chaos in an already chaotic Democrat primary process.

Walter Nowosad

Sunridge

Editor:

On the 11th day of this month, we pay honor to those in whom humankind has given the greatest responsibility of the human race. Referring, of course, to the task of bearing and rearing the next generation, since without whom, well, there simply would not be a next generation.

Well, some of the gender honor and perpetuate the full-time task of motherhood, but as social norms change, and after an infamous Supreme Court decision some 48 million babies in this nation have never seen the light of day, and that speaks ill of society's values.

Since the time of recorded history, governments, societies have risen to leadership heights, and then fallen into decay. America has reached those heights, and to those of us who are old enough to remember a different set of social values, we must now wonder if killing of the unborn might not be a precursor of social decay. Some of us are too far along in life to have a span of sufficient length to make that judgment, but in the meantime we do pay homage to the core strength of our society " the mother.

Vernon Latshaw

Gardnerville

Editor:

Several months ago the Douglas County School District was provided with a grant to implement a program called Safe School Ambassadors at each school. This program has had proven results in making schools safer and more welcoming places to attend.

Safe School Ambassadors works by taking a diverse group of students from different ethnic and social backgrounds and having them intermingle amongst themselves to build skills together to reduce violence and intimidation at school. In turn they influence others in their respective social groups to be more accepting and tolerant of others.

At Douglas High School, we had 38 students sign up for this undertaking but we needed a large enough facility that was free from the distractions (bells, announcements, etc.) of a school environment. In addition, the trainer needed audio visual equipment, easels, and six tables in a very large room to allow for these students to build connections. It was also recommended that to make the students feel more special we supply lunch and snacks.

I approached Bill Henderson, director of sales and marketing at Carson Valley Inn, to see what they could do and was overwhelmed when he said Carson Valley Inn would provide two conference rooms with everything the contractor said was needed for the perfect training environment. Through the generosity of the owner and managers at the Carson Valley Inn, the red carpet was rolled out for our staff and students. We were all truly impressed with the treatment and attention we received.

Thanks to Dave and Shawn for attending to our food and drink needs, the cooks and wait staff who provided a culinary feast (even managing to feed 38 ravenous teenagers and 14 staff members with all we could eat). Also, thanks to Carrie and Veronica in the sales department for their handling of our needs - even the last minute requests that were made. And finally, to Bill Henderson who took the first step in making this all happen.

This experience was life changing for many of these students and we're all excited at Douglas High School as we start to reap the benefits of having these students trained. The students are still fired up from this training and talk about how special they were made to feel. This couldn't have happened without such great neighbors that embrace the concept of building partnerships to make this community a better place to live. The changes that will take place will expand beyond the halls of our schools and out into the community to make not only our schools safer, but Douglas County as well.

Thanks again to the management and staff at our Carson Valley Inn.

Michael Caughlin

Douglas High School