Letters to the editor Jan. 6

Social Security not doomed; see for yourself

Carol Perry recently wrote to chastise Velda Kennedy and say that Social Security is broke. She stated that you could go to the Social Security website and see for yourself.

I did so and found that her conclusion is not accurate. While the Social Security net assets are diminishing as income diminishes, the program is not broke. According to the Annual Report, Social Security is adequately funded until the year 2040. The report is there for all who wish to review it themselves instead of taking Ms. Perry's or my word for it.

Yes, Social Security will not last forever and the retirement age may need to be extended. Those of us who are currently on Social Security, though, should not see any decrease in our benefits, barring some cataclysmic event to our economy or a continued misuse of funds by our government representatives.

The sky is not falling yet, and it is up to each citizen to let their elected representatives know that this is a priority that needs action and not words.

David Knighton

Carson City

Are school solar panels worth it in the long run?

I am writing in response to the article titled, "Schools prevail in courts over solar project" in your paper dated Dec. 31. Information given in the article indicated that the $11 million project will only cost the school district $975,000 and will save the district $400,000 a year. That is a good deal for the school district since it will take them less than three years to pay back their investment.

What bothers me is that the total project will cost $11 million. A $400,000 a year savings would take nearly 28 years to pay back the total cost. When I considered installing solar panels on my house, the contractor indicated that the useful life of the solar panels is only about

20 years. Based on solar panel useful life, the school district solar project does not seem to make economic sense.

Granted the school district will not have to pay the balance of the total project cost of more than $10 million since the power company will provide rebates.

Where does the power company get the money to pay for the rebates? Is the answer from the federal government - taxpayers - or the power company - ratepayers? It is not free money.

Bruce Monteith

Minden