Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 28, 1995 TAG: 9505310007
SECTION: EDITORIALS PAGE: G-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The monied interests, which really control our government, and the media, which uphold it, are apparently using this tragedy to generate public support for a series of laws that will further erode our freedom to openly scrutinize every governmental action when the action is nothing less than unequivocal brute force and coercion.
Because the South lost the War of 1861-1865, our national government has virtual, if not actual, control over all the states, and would have us fear the rise of citizen militias. This is a red herring designed to intimidate and discourage citizens from acting upon this long-dormant constitutional right and protection. The truth is that Washington fears any potential resistance to its absolute control over the states and their people.
If America is freer than any other country, it's because of our Bill of Rights. If we allow government to rationalize any of them away, we're free no more. Why are we so suspicious of those most interested in protecting rights? The greatest dangers to our freedom are cupidity, godless hedonism and apathetic vigilance to maintaining a healthy skepticism of one's government.
Without citizen militias not controlled by the government or its military, how are we as a people supposed to be able to resist possible usurpations of an all-powerful government? This was the reason for the states' insistence on the Second Amendment. I'm not a member of any militia organization, though that fact doesn't preclude the possibility that I should consider it as a matter of civic duty and loyalty to the Constitution and its greatest principles.
To protect our rights as a people and as states, the Declaration of Independence declared: "Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government.''
Is this treason, asked Patrick Henry, in his response to criticisms that he was openly voicing his dissent against his government's actions? How would you respond?
WAYNE D. CARLSON
DUBLIN
In Waco tragedy, there was no justice
WHAT could possibly be troubling our nation's citizens? The Waco tragedy is only one of a number of incidents.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms didn't bother to pick up David Koresh while he was jogging or in town. It's been reported that he had invited lawmen to visit the Waco compound, and to see that there were no illegal weapons. BATF agents trained for several weeks preparing for their attack on the compound. The agents had information on floor plans, where materials were stored, and daily routines of the occupants.
The Oklahoma City premeditated mass murder calls for trial and execution. The Waco premeditated murders have been swept under the rug for two years by the Justice (?) Department.
RALPH G. DARLING
SALEM
Salvage-logging bill should be vetoed
CONGRESS is now revising, and President Clinton will soon consider, legislation to permit salvage logging of our national forests.
For jobs, salvage logging is a temporary fix, at best. The loss of logging jobs is directly attributable to increased automation of mills, sending logs to Japan, and senseless overcutting practices of the past. Short-term jobs that will be created by salvage logging only prolong the agony of many communities, while they mine the little remaining resources available for future rebirth.
Healthy forests are a mix of seedlings, growing and maturing, and dead trees. This cycle provides nutrients necessary to replenish the soil and support life, and keeps our streams flowing clear and our fisheries healthy. The proposed salvage legislation would undermine our forest ecosystem beyond repair by robbing it of nourishment needed for its recovery.
Salvage logging is a step backwards in an important quest to find solutions to the forest issue by doing away with all environmental laws dealing with logging. President Clinton should veto the Timber Salvage Rider Act.
JOEL WOOTEN
ROANOKE
Playing golf for a good cause
IT WAS my privilege on May 4 to participate as a volunteer in the first annual Lifeline Foundation Golf Tournament to benefit the Roanoke Rescue Mission, and I commend the planners and participants. To my knowledge, this is the only alcohol-free charity golf tournament in the Roanoke Valley. Having worked other tournaments, I can truly say that this was also the very best.
Thanks to Joy Sylvester-Johnson and the committee for all their hard work to benefit a truly great cause. I look forward to participating in next year's tournament.
ANNE WEAVER
ROANOKE
Some doctors have become the targets
HATE SPEECH is speech that tries to demonize or dehumanize an individual or a group of individuals. Such propaganda is a catalyst for violence. I've seen no evidence that what Rush Limbaugh says leads to violence. His rhetoric is mildly offensive.
The only real examples of hate speech in the Roanoke Valley come from some (not all) anti-abortion groups. If you call a doctor a ``baby killer'' often enough, somebody is eventually going to believe it and will begin using violence to stop it. That's why more than 40 clinics in America have been bombed in the past decade.
Timothy McVeigh is a baby killer, not the obstetricians in Roanoke. The last thing we need is to turn this valley into a mini-Oklahoma City.
ELIZABETH CREAMER
BLACKSBURG
Radford U has three nursing programs
YES, there's an ever-increasing need for professional nurses in Southwest Virginia as stated by Gayle Boyette in her May 3 letter to the editor, ``A nursing school-university alliance?''
Radford University already offers three university-level professional nursing programs convenient to individuals in the Roanoke area:
A basic baccalaureate program for those desiring to become a registered nurse.
An accelerated RN to bachelor of science track for RNs without a bachelor's degree.
A master of science program for advanced-practice nursing in home health care and advanced adult nursing.
All the programs are fully approved and accredited by the Virginia State Board of Nursing and the National League for Nursing. The basic program is located on the campus of Roanoke Memorial Hospital as well as on-site in Radford. The RN to BS and MS classes are offered at a variety of sites in Southwestern Virginia, depending on demand.
The RN track in the bachelor's degree curriculum is designed specifically for nurses with associate degrees or diplomas in nursing who already work and probably also have family responsibilities. The graduate program, though rigorous, is also scheduled to facilitate attendance by nurses who work full time and manage a family. Since home health-care is one of the most rapidly growing areas of health care, that major is particularly attractive to nurses desiring a change from the acute-care hospital setting.
JANET HARDY BOETTCHER
Chair and Associate Professor
School of Nursing, Radford University
RADFORD
by CNB