Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, August 3, 1995 TAG: 9508030015
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Another side of the story is that most of the veterans, their families and friends left the dedication without ever being able to see the memorial. The area was fenced in, with only one entrance. Congressmen and other Washington dignataries entered the area, while the public had to walk (in sweltering heat) to the other side. Then, only a few were allowed to go in. Veterans in wheelchairs or walking with canes and walkers couldn't go the distance. And had they been able, they still wouldn't have gotten in. These men and women were being honored, but in essence they were left out of the event.
I realize the Secret Service has to protect our president, but I believe most veterans and their families would have rather the president not made the appearance so they they could have visited the memorial. We live close enough to Washington to return later to see it. But what about those who traveled thousands of miles to be there? Many will never have the opportunity to return to Washington.
I wasn't the only one thoroughly disgusted with the situation. These veterans deserved better, and I feel that Washington could have done better by them. Korea was the ``Forgotten War,'' and even at the memorial honoring its veterans, they were still forgotten.
MILDRED G. ROLAND
ROANOKE
Prison foes have cause for bitterness
I AM one of the prison's opponents from Wythe County that you referred to in your July 18 editorial ``The walls just get higher.'' I cannot believe that an editorial writer could sit on his/her behind and criticize citizens some 70 miles away, and never give consideration to the reasons behind their actions.
The calming of the waters you referred to never happened. The countersuit to recover money spent on the lawsuit was dropped because, legally, this couldn't be collected. The supervisors knew this, and used the excuse of offering the olive branch as a way to save face.
Maybe you should consider the way this whole issue was handled before you condemn the prison's opponents. To begin with, some supervisors refused to hold meetings with citizens in their districts to see how the citizens felt about a prison being located in their county. One supervisor openly told his constituents that he didn't have to vote the feelings of his constituents, but would vote the way he wanted. Bitterness and vitriol the opposition has shown is nothing compared to the treatment we have received from our elected officials. The result is more than just an honorable difference of opinion. More than 5,000 names have been collected from people opposing the prison. This isn't a small number of vocal citizens as supervisors would have everyone believe.
Perhaps you, the kettle, should taste the stew in the pot before you decide to call it black. If this prison issue were in the Roanoke area, perhaps you might feel differently.
Please give us a break and print something positive about us for a change. If a person does something illegal, then the court is the place to settle the issue, regardless of whether that person holds an office.
NANCY W. CORVIN
WYTHEVILLE
Strategic planning can lead to ruin
I GUESS you could call members of my family modern-day pioneers. We chose to leave our home state in New England in search of life's simple comforts for ourselves and our children. We left our families behind with heavy hearts, but feel very fortunate because most people never get the opportunity to be free to move wherever their hearts lead them.
We had a choice of three areas of the country to which to move. We chose the Roanoke Valley, and finally settled in Botetourt County because of its beauty, schools, lifestyle and people.
Botetourt Center at Greenfield represents what's wrong with the area that we left. Officials there also thought this type of development and growth was good. Companies were given incentives to move into communities. We were promised property-tax relief, jobs and a superior way of life.
After several years, we got sky-high taxes, poor schools and roads, and unemployment. When incentives ran out, so did the companies. We were left with crime, taxes, pollution and traffic. Our children could no longer afford or want to live there. Property taxes rivaled the monthly mortgages. What were once excellent schools began to fail, despite the amount of money we pumped into them.
The population character had changed for the worse. We changed from a community of concerned citizens to one of unconcerned transients. Neighborhoods became fair game for every real-estate speculator who wanted to make some quick money.
I write from experience. We have traveled all over the United States and the world, and this area is the best! Let's keep it this way, with careful planning for ourselves and our children. Perhaps the county supervisors should take a trip to what was once a lovely New England town and see the results of ``strategic planning''!
NANCY PAPARO
DALEVILLE
Proud of service in race to the moon
I MUST respond to Douglas Chandler Graham's July 25 letter to the editor (``Name-dropping for political advantage'') concerning the July 15 article on my connections to the Apollo 11 mission (``25 years ago, he helped catch man from the moon'').
I don't believe either I or staff writer Sarah Huntley implied any great importance to my role in that great endeavor. I was a very small piece in a drama that captured the imagination of the whole world. Like service in Vietnam, involvement in the race for the moon wasn't very popular for a number of years. I'm pleased the Apollo program and duty in Vietnam have been rehabilitated. That's why I agreed to her interview.
I don't wish to belittle Graham's service to his country. He has every right to be proud of his military record. My father and father-in-law served during World War II, and I'm proud of both of them.
SPIKE HARRISON
ROANOKE COUNTY
Lights! camera! Mouths in motion!
I HAVE heard that some brave entrepreneur is planning to open an establishment to serve food, provide an atmosphere for conversation, and coincidentally show movies (July 13 Business section article, ``Theater in the works'').
Surely this entrepreneur is aware that already in the fair Roanoke Valley there are at least six locations where this exact opportunity is currently and thoughtfully provided. Or is it really possible that he hasn't had the dubious benefit of sitting in a movie theater in the midst of the incessant yap-yap-yap, interrupted frequently by the very loud rustling of popcorn bags and boxes of candy, not to mention the chomping of popcorn and candy, and the chattering, clattering and clanking of iced drinks?
On the other hand, it may be the brave entrepreneur is on to something - that there's a very real, not insubstantial niche for those yapping, chomping, chatterers and clunkers who want to be in the same room where an actual moving picture is being shown, but with the lights on!
Hope springs eternal. Maybe, just maybe, the darkened theaters will be left to those who wish to simply and quietly enjoy the experience of a motion picture.
JOHN A. SABEAN
CHRISTIANSBURG
by CNB