Letters to the Editor 12-31-2002
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- Reason For Season - Serving God And Country - Praise For Virtue - Biased Opinion - Anonymous Giving - Grace Coverage - Snow Removal
Reason For Season
Editor, Times-Union:Every year my husband does something very special for our family and others. At work they even call him Ronny Griswald. We all look forward to it and wonder how spectacular it will turn out. He spends many hours in the rain and in the cold so we will not be disappointed, and this year he even had to add a couple of extra breakers to get everything working. I know that Christmas is his favorite time of the year because we get to spend time with family and friends and that makes it worth all the hard work. We have been very blessed with the life God has given us and hope that everyone that drives by will remember "the reason for the season."
You can see his hard work on Ind. 25 between CR 100S and CR 150S (one-fourth mile south past Rozella Golf Course).
God bless every one and drive safely! We love you very much, Ron!
Deborah, Kalya, Ryan Shelton and Kara Poe
Warsaw
via e-mail
Serving God And Country
Editor, Times-Union:I am sending this e-mail in response to a recent opinion stated by D.R. Miller of Warsaw. Mr. Miller wrote an opinion letter to my commander in chief as well as Senator Bayh and Rep. Souder. The purpose of my letter is not to attack Mr. Miller, rather to satisfy a curiosity. Some who know me know that I have been a Marine for going on my fifth year now, and have proudly served my God, country and corps, through 9/11 and other unpublished engagements. While I feel Mr. Miller's intent was more directed in addressing his feeling on the government and their spending, I must question why he chose to do so by addressing homeland security. If the government of the United States is not spending its funds correctly, I can assure you that it is not due to homeland security. Mr. Miller stated, "Do you really think you should attempt to police the world, when performance shows you not even capable of executing your constitutional duty to protect the borders of the United States?" Well, Mr. Miller, unless I am mistaken, you are not currently holding a loaded weapon in your arms on domestic or foreign soil defending anything. Now, Mr. Miller, part of the homeland security funds go to providing myself and my fellow brethren with the weapons, supplies and training to successfully defend my home and yours from enemies both foreign and domestic. So I commend those you criticize, because the performance of their constitutional duties allows me to uphold mine, thus allowing you to sleep in a warm bed with a loving family and friends who are not currently being killed by more frequent militant activities.
So to conclude my letter, I would like to utilize a movie line that I believe fits this situation: "Sir, we live in a world that has walls, and these walls are guarded by men with guns, who's gonna do it?" You, Mr. Miller? We have a greater responsibility than you could possibly fathom. You weep for your tax dollars and you curse the government and the military. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know. The government spending, while tragic to you, probably saves lives, and our job, while grotesque and incomprehensible as it may seem, saves lives. And you know deep down and places that you don't talk about at parties, that you want us on that wall,you need us on that wall! I have neither the time nor the inclination to listen to the grumbling of someone who rises and sleeps under the very blanket of freedom we provide and then question the manner in which we provided it! I would rather you just said thank you and went on your way, otherwise pick up a weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't care what you think the defense department should spend their money on.
Cpl. Jerry D. Wilkins
Military Police Dept.
Plt. 2/B Patrol Supervisor
via e-mail
Praise For Virtue
Editor, Times-Union:Let us pray that our president and the other leaders of our nation pause to consider our future.
In seeing, think about clarity; in hearing, think about distinctness; in facial expression, think about gentleness; in appearance, think about respectfulness; in speech, think about wholehearted sincerity; in duties, think about reverence; in doubt, think about inquiry; in anger, think about its aftermath; on seeing gain, think about righteousness.
Let us seek praise, not for our strength, but for our Virtue.
Larry Hill
via e-mail
Biased Opinion
Editor, Times-Union:Once again, we have the spectacle of the Times-Union Managing Editor spending his limited editorial space promoting the Republican party. In his editorial of Dec. 21, Gary Gerard complained about what he sees as the double standards in dealing with Trent Lott's recent escapades.
It always amuses me when a clearly biased member of the media complains about the bias of the media. Let me illustrate. On several occasions, Mr. Gerard has poked fun at Hillary Clinton's assertion a few years ago that a right-wing conspiracy was out to get her husband. I assume in the spirit of fair play he will be poking fun at Trent Lott's statement that "a lot of people" didn't like him, and were working for his departure. Paraphrasing, Trent Lott also believes a conspiracy was out to get him. I look forward to Mr. Gerard's abuse of Trent Lott on this issue with relish.
But let's look further at all of the other issues that Mr. Gerard has raised in the past. Do you think we will see a word of complaint about our Republican president or Republican Congress engaged in deficit spending? Not at all. We will be adding hundreds of billions of dollars of debt this year to the backs of our children and grandchildren, the vast majority of which has been placed there in the deficit-spending budgets of Republican presidents, and there will not be one word of complaint. Apparently, only poor spending habits of Democrats are worth mentioning in the Times-Union.
With regard to Mr. Gerard's specific charges about Senator Byrd, I would point out that when Sen. Byrd used a racial slur in March 2001 he apologized almost immediately. He did not wait to apologize until several days after the event, only under the pressure of the spotlight, as did Sen. Lott.
The more accurate parallel would be a Democrat office-holder, while in saluting Sen. Byrd, saying that his performance as a member of the Klan was one that should be emulated. After all, this is what Sen. Lott did with Sen. Thurmond, telling all that if Strom Thurmond had been elected in 1948, the country would be better off.
Incidentally, Mr. Gerard might also want to review the history books regarding Strom Thurmond's presidential run. Strom Thurmond did not just have a "big pro-segregation plank in his presidential platform" as stated by Mr. Gerard; segregation WAS his political platform. The only reason Strom Thurmond ran for president was to make sure that all non-Caucasians in this country would have the privilege of second-class schools, inferior hospitals and a view from the back of the bus. I don't want that kind of world for my children, and I am confident that Gary Gerard does not want that kind of world for his children either.
The plain fact is that an offhand use of a negative racial description, while deplorable, is not as significant as a statement that segregation would have been a good idea. One is an expression of one man's ignorance; the other is an expression that one man's ignorance should be written into law.
Finally, I can assure you that if any Democratic political figure stands up and says that we should have elected a president who wanted to assure "segregation forever," I will personally and publicly state that that Democrat figure should not be in a position of political leadership. I regret that Mr. Gerard is not willing to say the same regarding members of his party.
Jay A. Rigdon
North Webster
Anonymous Giving
Editor, Times-Union:Early in the evening on Christmas Eve we received a message from an anonymous caller. She told us to go look in our front yard and to have a very Merry Christmas. Puzzled and wondering, we dashed out to see what the call was about. Outside there were two large bags of wrapped presents bedecked with Christmas greetings. Each gift was carefully wrapped and obviously chosen with great care, as they each were tailored to our ages or interests. No clues were left as to who put such love and care in the packages, such generosity needs to be acknowledged. By leaving the gifts anonymously, the givers missed out on all the joy their efforts generated. Words cannot express the emotions we all felt or our overwhelming sense of gratitude to them and God, in knowing we had been touched this night with a Christmas miracle. We thank our Secret Saints and want them to know that just as Mary did on that first Christmas, we too shall ponder and treasure this in our hearts forever. May God bless you richly.
The Brown Family
Claypool
via e-mail
Grace Coverage
Editor, Times-Union:As a fan of the Grace College men's basketball team, I am disappointed with the untimely coverage of the last couple of tournaments in which Grace has played. Both tournaments were Friday and Saturday games, neither of which were reported on until the following Tuesday or later.
I'm actually surprised scores from a game played on Friday is still "news" on Tuesday of the next week. Personally, I don't rely on the Times-Union in a case like this. I get on the Internet, look in another paper or make a phone call - all sources that I can depend on to give me the score. I do read the Times-Union daily and would be just as happy to rely on it for my timely coverage of the Lancers.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Kim Dawson
Winona Lake
Snow Removal
Editor, Times-Union:Cheers to all the city, county and state workers who were away from their families on Christmas removing snow from the roadways. Thank you for the excellent snow removal. Our families traveled to Warsaw from Fort Wayne and Huntington to celebrate Christmas and we were pleased with the improvement of the road conditions Christmas Day in Kosciusko County.
Jeers to the gas suppliers (aka Scrooge) forcing the retail station owners to raise the price of gas over the holiday. Yes, there have been recent increases in the price of crude oil. Problem is that much of the current gas sold at the station was contracted several months ago at lower prices. A profit was made at $1.26 a gallon, hence, a Christmas bonus made at $1.46 a gallon. Thanks for capitalizing on speculation during the holiday season!
Duane and Angie Burkhart
Warsaw
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- Reason For Season - Serving God And Country - Praise For Virtue - Biased Opinion - Anonymous Giving - Grace Coverage - Snow Removal
Reason For Season
Editor, Times-Union:Every year my husband does something very special for our family and others. At work they even call him Ronny Griswald. We all look forward to it and wonder how spectacular it will turn out. He spends many hours in the rain and in the cold so we will not be disappointed, and this year he even had to add a couple of extra breakers to get everything working. I know that Christmas is his favorite time of the year because we get to spend time with family and friends and that makes it worth all the hard work. We have been very blessed with the life God has given us and hope that everyone that drives by will remember "the reason for the season."
You can see his hard work on Ind. 25 between CR 100S and CR 150S (one-fourth mile south past Rozella Golf Course).
God bless every one and drive safely! We love you very much, Ron!
Deborah, Kalya, Ryan Shelton and Kara Poe
Warsaw
via e-mail
Serving God And Country
Editor, Times-Union:I am sending this e-mail in response to a recent opinion stated by D.R. Miller of Warsaw. Mr. Miller wrote an opinion letter to my commander in chief as well as Senator Bayh and Rep. Souder. The purpose of my letter is not to attack Mr. Miller, rather to satisfy a curiosity. Some who know me know that I have been a Marine for going on my fifth year now, and have proudly served my God, country and corps, through 9/11 and other unpublished engagements. While I feel Mr. Miller's intent was more directed in addressing his feeling on the government and their spending, I must question why he chose to do so by addressing homeland security. If the government of the United States is not spending its funds correctly, I can assure you that it is not due to homeland security. Mr. Miller stated, "Do you really think you should attempt to police the world, when performance shows you not even capable of executing your constitutional duty to protect the borders of the United States?" Well, Mr. Miller, unless I am mistaken, you are not currently holding a loaded weapon in your arms on domestic or foreign soil defending anything. Now, Mr. Miller, part of the homeland security funds go to providing myself and my fellow brethren with the weapons, supplies and training to successfully defend my home and yours from enemies both foreign and domestic. So I commend those you criticize, because the performance of their constitutional duties allows me to uphold mine, thus allowing you to sleep in a warm bed with a loving family and friends who are not currently being killed by more frequent militant activities.
So to conclude my letter, I would like to utilize a movie line that I believe fits this situation: "Sir, we live in a world that has walls, and these walls are guarded by men with guns, who's gonna do it?" You, Mr. Miller? We have a greater responsibility than you could possibly fathom. You weep for your tax dollars and you curse the government and the military. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know. The government spending, while tragic to you, probably saves lives, and our job, while grotesque and incomprehensible as it may seem, saves lives. And you know deep down and places that you don't talk about at parties, that you want us on that wall,you need us on that wall! I have neither the time nor the inclination to listen to the grumbling of someone who rises and sleeps under the very blanket of freedom we provide and then question the manner in which we provided it! I would rather you just said thank you and went on your way, otherwise pick up a weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't care what you think the defense department should spend their money on.
Cpl. Jerry D. Wilkins
Military Police Dept.
Plt. 2/B Patrol Supervisor
via e-mail
Praise For Virtue
Editor, Times-Union:Let us pray that our president and the other leaders of our nation pause to consider our future.
In seeing, think about clarity; in hearing, think about distinctness; in facial expression, think about gentleness; in appearance, think about respectfulness; in speech, think about wholehearted sincerity; in duties, think about reverence; in doubt, think about inquiry; in anger, think about its aftermath; on seeing gain, think about righteousness.
Let us seek praise, not for our strength, but for our Virtue.
Larry Hill
via e-mail
Biased Opinion
Editor, Times-Union:Once again, we have the spectacle of the Times-Union Managing Editor spending his limited editorial space promoting the Republican party. In his editorial of Dec. 21, Gary Gerard complained about what he sees as the double standards in dealing with Trent Lott's recent escapades.
It always amuses me when a clearly biased member of the media complains about the bias of the media. Let me illustrate. On several occasions, Mr. Gerard has poked fun at Hillary Clinton's assertion a few years ago that a right-wing conspiracy was out to get her husband. I assume in the spirit of fair play he will be poking fun at Trent Lott's statement that "a lot of people" didn't like him, and were working for his departure. Paraphrasing, Trent Lott also believes a conspiracy was out to get him. I look forward to Mr. Gerard's abuse of Trent Lott on this issue with relish.
But let's look further at all of the other issues that Mr. Gerard has raised in the past. Do you think we will see a word of complaint about our Republican president or Republican Congress engaged in deficit spending? Not at all. We will be adding hundreds of billions of dollars of debt this year to the backs of our children and grandchildren, the vast majority of which has been placed there in the deficit-spending budgets of Republican presidents, and there will not be one word of complaint. Apparently, only poor spending habits of Democrats are worth mentioning in the Times-Union.
With regard to Mr. Gerard's specific charges about Senator Byrd, I would point out that when Sen. Byrd used a racial slur in March 2001 he apologized almost immediately. He did not wait to apologize until several days after the event, only under the pressure of the spotlight, as did Sen. Lott.
The more accurate parallel would be a Democrat office-holder, while in saluting Sen. Byrd, saying that his performance as a member of the Klan was one that should be emulated. After all, this is what Sen. Lott did with Sen. Thurmond, telling all that if Strom Thurmond had been elected in 1948, the country would be better off.
Incidentally, Mr. Gerard might also want to review the history books regarding Strom Thurmond's presidential run. Strom Thurmond did not just have a "big pro-segregation plank in his presidential platform" as stated by Mr. Gerard; segregation WAS his political platform. The only reason Strom Thurmond ran for president was to make sure that all non-Caucasians in this country would have the privilege of second-class schools, inferior hospitals and a view from the back of the bus. I don't want that kind of world for my children, and I am confident that Gary Gerard does not want that kind of world for his children either.
The plain fact is that an offhand use of a negative racial description, while deplorable, is not as significant as a statement that segregation would have been a good idea. One is an expression of one man's ignorance; the other is an expression that one man's ignorance should be written into law.
Finally, I can assure you that if any Democratic political figure stands up and says that we should have elected a president who wanted to assure "segregation forever," I will personally and publicly state that that Democrat figure should not be in a position of political leadership. I regret that Mr. Gerard is not willing to say the same regarding members of his party.
Jay A. Rigdon
North Webster
Anonymous Giving
Editor, Times-Union:Early in the evening on Christmas Eve we received a message from an anonymous caller. She told us to go look in our front yard and to have a very Merry Christmas. Puzzled and wondering, we dashed out to see what the call was about. Outside there were two large bags of wrapped presents bedecked with Christmas greetings. Each gift was carefully wrapped and obviously chosen with great care, as they each were tailored to our ages or interests. No clues were left as to who put such love and care in the packages, such generosity needs to be acknowledged. By leaving the gifts anonymously, the givers missed out on all the joy their efforts generated. Words cannot express the emotions we all felt or our overwhelming sense of gratitude to them and God, in knowing we had been touched this night with a Christmas miracle. We thank our Secret Saints and want them to know that just as Mary did on that first Christmas, we too shall ponder and treasure this in our hearts forever. May God bless you richly.
The Brown Family
Claypool
via e-mail
Grace Coverage
Editor, Times-Union:As a fan of the Grace College men's basketball team, I am disappointed with the untimely coverage of the last couple of tournaments in which Grace has played. Both tournaments were Friday and Saturday games, neither of which were reported on until the following Tuesday or later.
I'm actually surprised scores from a game played on Friday is still "news" on Tuesday of the next week. Personally, I don't rely on the Times-Union in a case like this. I get on the Internet, look in another paper or make a phone call - all sources that I can depend on to give me the score. I do read the Times-Union daily and would be just as happy to rely on it for my timely coverage of the Lancers.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Kim Dawson
Winona Lake
Snow Removal
Editor, Times-Union:Cheers to all the city, county and state workers who were away from their families on Christmas removing snow from the roadways. Thank you for the excellent snow removal. Our families traveled to Warsaw from Fort Wayne and Huntington to celebrate Christmas and we were pleased with the improvement of the road conditions Christmas Day in Kosciusko County.
Jeers to the gas suppliers (aka Scrooge) forcing the retail station owners to raise the price of gas over the holiday. Yes, there have been recent increases in the price of crude oil. Problem is that much of the current gas sold at the station was contracted several months ago at lower prices. A profit was made at $1.26 a gallon, hence, a Christmas bonus made at $1.46 a gallon. Thanks for capitalizing on speculation during the holiday season!
Duane and Angie Burkhart
Warsaw
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