Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 18, 1994 TAG: 9402190002
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Drive down streets and you'll see power lines with tree limbs growing over them and running through the middle of tree branches. If management had made sure that rights of way were maintained, the customer power-outage figures would have been less than 2 percent (5,000) of the 250,000. Those responsible are derelict in their duty. They need to be severely reprimanded and/or terminated. Replace them with those who'll do the job correctly.
What did it cost us? If each customer lost $50 in perishable foods, that's $12.5 million. How about businesses that couldn't operate? Lost sales and wages. Was there loss of life because of the loss of power? What value do you put on this? What value on the inconvenience and misery because of the loss of power?
Power-company managers, there's no excuse for what you've allowed to happen to your customers. Shame on you! Who'll critically investigate what's happened and not sugarcoat the findings? Who'll take action to punish the guilty and implement permanent changes that prevent this from occurring again? When will this action take place?
JOHN C. LEAKE
BLACKSBURG
Untruths demean city politics
SINCE my opponent's treasurer elected to personally attack my record of service to the citizens of Roanoke in a Feb. 13 letter to the editor (``Harvey's record is shameful'' by Gary Waldo), I feel compelled to reply. Most of his letter was inaccurate and showed a complete lack of knowledge on the subjects mentioned.
First, I wasn't a Roanoke City Council member in June 1989 when the two-for-one matter was enacted. Therefore, I didn't vote to initiate this program. He mentioned three-for-one benefits for administrators, which is also inaccurate. There are no three-for-one benefits.
As for the handling of former Finance Director Joel Schlanger's situation, council took the proper administrative action in dealing with the situation when all the facts were known. To try and place blame on council in this matter is ludicrous.
Waldo mentioned ``secret meetings'' council had concerning Roanoke Gas Co. We have no secret meetings, according to the law. We did have executive sessions to deal with a contractual matter, that being the terms and conditions of a franchise agreement. To set the record straight, all seven members of council agreed to ask our administrators to research the city's options since we couldn't get the gas company to agree to a franchise-agreement extension. At no time in the past has f+ianyo council member either voted or agreed informally to acquire Roanoke Gas Co.'s assets.
Waldo is not only my opponent's campaign treasurer. He is also an employee of hers via his position in the Roanoke Education Association of which she's a member. It's letters such as his, full of untruths and inaccurate information, that are indeed shameful and have no place in Roanoke politics.
JAMES G. HARVEY II
Roanoke City Council member
ROANOKE
City got no help from the state
DURING the recent ice and snow storms in this area, I heard numerous complaints as to how poor the removal of ice and snow in Roanoke city was, as compared to Roanoke County and Vinton.
If I'm not mistaken, the allowance for ice and snow removal for the city is covered entirely by city funds. The ice and snow removal for the county and Vinton is, I believe, at least partially funded by the Virginia Department of Transportation, which would certainly be of great assistance to any area in accomplishing quick snow and ice removal after storms. Perhaps this would, to some degree, explain the inability of the city to accomplish this removal as quickly as the county.
MARY PAT SHANK
ROANOKE
Big line didn't help Indiana
IN MARCH 1991, 25 miles of a 765-kv power line in Indiana toppled to the ground after an ice storm. That power line belonged to Appalachian Power Co.'s parent company, American Electric Power. Ninety-five towers went down, necessitating six months and millions of dollars to complete repairs.
How long did you sit in a cold, dark house listening to that busy signal at Apco f+ithiso time? Do you really want to bet on one big line along one single route to shorten the duration of future power outages?
If you still believe that it will, may all your winters be very, very uneventful.
GEORGE M. O'NALE
NEW CASTLE
Fear tyranny of government
THERE can be no doubt as to the intent of the authors of the U.S. Constitution when they penned the Second Amendment. Yet its meaning continues to be hotly debated. Just why this question should be shrouded in mystery is a mystery to me.
Thanks to R. Edward Mitchell (Jan. 22 letter to the editor, ``Second Amendment: insurance policy against tyranny''), your readers were treated to a remarkably clear, logical and persuasive discussion on the subject.
Much to my surprise, his lesson was lost on one letter writer, E. Jacques Miller, in his challenge (Jan. 30, ``Writer provides formula for chaos''). Miller gets lost in minutia, losing sight of the root cause of the need for militia. The evidence is irrefutable. History speaks out loud and clear: The tyranny of government is the worst enemy of a free people. This is the villain to be most hated, most feared, by all citizens.
ROGER W. O'DELL
ROANOKE
by CNB