Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, September 12, 1993 TAG: 9309220316
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
On Sept. 14, the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors will vote on whether to give developer Boone, Boone & Loeb a go-ahead to build a subdivision on one of the most visible roadside tracts adjoining the parkway in the entire Roanoke Valley. This site is described by a representative of the parkway superintendent as one where protection of the parkway requires a "no-build" policy.
If the developer gets the go-ahead, not only will the parkway be badly damaged in that vicinity, but the entire run of the parkway through the valley will be equally beyond protection. In fact, another developer has announced his intention to build a subdivision along the parkway in the Bonsack area.
The supervisors are poised to approve rezoning this very visible site for higher-density construction than it is now zoned for. They deserve some credit, however, for apparently lowering their earlier aim of even higher density!
This is truly a regional (and even national) issue, but the county Board of Supervisors will decide. This puts a special responsibility on county citizens because supervisors need public backing for any measure of parkway protection they might retain.
Remember, those who do not express objections or preferences are usually counted as having none and agreeing with any outcome. If you don't "vote" for the parkway, you are counted as indifferent or against it.
BOB CRAWFORD
ROANOKE COUNTY
\ Jordan's price for being best
ROGER Church, Joe Blow, Michael Jordan, John Doe and (your name): all gamblers.
Well, we've laid the cards on the table (no pun intended), so next week which of the five names above will we remember?
I'm proud to be an American where the Constitution guarantees "equal rights for all." Or is it just equal rights for us normal folks? Should those lucky enough to be blessed with the talent to achieve greatness be treated differently? I don't think so.
It's been a sad time for those of us who know of and have been blessed by Michael Jordan's abilities, both on and off the basketball court. For me and many others, the sadness extends back long before James Jordan became another John Doe, floating in a creek in Bennettsville, S.C.
The media have been unbelievably callous in statements before and after this tragedy. As soon as his body was found, the media assumed it was because of a retaliation over Michael Jordan's alleged gambling debts.
At what stage of Michael Jordan's career did he assume the role of the pope? Was it his senior year at the University of North Carolina, during the first NBA championship, the second or even the third?
It's a sad world we live in when media scrutiny could cut short the career of perhaps the greatest player to ever pick up a basketball. But I think it could come down to that. What a shame that would be!
What price does Michael Jordan have to pay to be the best? I think it's too much to ask of a normal human being. Underneath all that hype, he is a normal person who laughs, cries, feels good some days - and some days probably would rather just stay in bed.
I'm amazed, as are most people, when Jordan performs his magic on the court. But whenever the game is over and he disappears into the locker room, I forget about him until the next game.
In a perfect world, that is the way it would be! But if this were a perfect world, I'd ask James Jordan tomorrow. I think he would agree with me.
ROGER L. CHURCH
ROANOKE
\ Will's theory is a stretch
ONE HAS to wonder about George Will's motives when he holds the activity of deconstruction responsible for Holocaust revisionism (Aug. 30 commentary, "The lunacy of historical amnesia"). Does he really think there is any common ground between liberal professors and white supremacists?
Deconstruction is a term you might hear if you hang around long enough in an English or philosophy department. I genuinely doubt that Ku Klux Klan members are sitting around discussing "epistemological indeterminacy."
One could just as easily make the case that old television shows are to blame for Holocaust revisionism. Take "Hogan's Heroes" for example: The Nazis are portrayed as good-natured figures of fun, and absolutely no references are made to the murder of Jews.
Clearly television shapes our world view far more than abstract French philosophical concepts.
SCOTT BARBER
ROANOKE
\ Bowers battles the status quo
IN RECENT weeks, the letters and commentary columns of the Roanoke Times & World-News have carried several subtle, as well as several not so subtle, jabs at Mayor David Bowers. He has been likened by letter writers to a land-hungry king. He has even been compared to Adolf Hitler.
Politicians are elected to serve their constituents. I would challenge anyone to dispute that, during his term thus far, the mayor has worked very hard and creatively to improve Roanoke and keep it moving forward.
He is not content to sit still and seems very willing to ruffle a few feathers, if that is what is necessary to further the causes that are important to the growth of Roanoke. Perhaps it's just that people have gotten too used to politicians who get elected and then accept the easy avenue of the status quo.
I respect the courage and effort that Bowers puts into his elected position.
The city is most fortunate to have a hard-charging, no-nonsense leader of their government. I'm confident that at the end of Bowers' term, Roanoke will be a better place to live, work, visit or start a business.
DONALD R. KELLY
ROANOKE
\ a conned solution for vmi's problem
ONCE AGAIN our selfless governor, in his never-ending struggle to ensure a brighter future for the commonwealth and higher ratings in Financial World magazine, is proposing to slash budgets at state colleges and universities.
The money is, after all, needed to meet the rising costs of prisons and Medicaid.
Wilder's two would-be replacements, George-son-of-George and Mary Sue, are both campaigning on platforms calling (at least in very fine print) for more huge increases in prison costs, due to elimination of parole or stiffer sentences or both.
Meanwhile, all three of the above politicians carefully avoid involvement in what must be the most difficult and heart-wrenching problem faced by the state: how to keep Virginia Military Institute all male!
I offer at least a partial solution to all these problems. Why not turn VMI into a state prison?
As a prison, it could remain all male (at least until women demand equal access to jails).
Let's face it, the architecture and lifestyle are already perfect, and what could be better for the inmates than to be right next to a school full of would-be lawyers?
Since the cost per pupil of an education at VMI is among the highest in the state, this change would optimize cuts in the higher-education budget.
Yes, such a change would be difficult for all those loyal VMI ex-rats, but perhaps the promise of a better possibility for a winning football team will help compensate.
Meanwhile, we can all look forward to a brighter future for Virginia as we squeeze young people out of our colleges and universities and into our prisons.
JIM MARCHMAN
BLACKSBURG
\ Eddy is tops at communicating
SINCE YOU are in the communications business, you know the value of keeping your readers informed. There is a member of the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors who goes out of his way to let county citizens know what's going on.
Lee Eddy writes and distributes a monthly newsletter called the Roanoke County REPORTER. He does this at his own expense; it costs taxpayers nothing. In it, he itemizes all significant actions of the Board of Supervisors.
There is no better way the average resident can keep abreast of all that the county is doing for us or to us without this monthly update. Having been on his mailing list from its inception, I have been very impressed with the completeness, objectivity and clarity of this publication.
I hope voters of the Windsor Hills district will recognize the valuable service he provides and will return Eddy to office on Nov. 2.
JOE YOSAFAT
ROANOKE
\ Response under opposition
DEL. RICHARD Cranwell has, after much protest by his constituents, finally relented and given up his position as a member of the board of directors of a mortgage-insurance company that is regulated by the state.
The question voters must ask is this:
Would Del. Cranwell have been as responsive to the people he represents if he were not involved in a contested re-election bid?
MARK A. TRENOR
SALEM
by CNB