Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 15, 1995 TAG: 9511150014
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
``But anyone who reads into Democrats' mixed results a mandate for obstruction or against change is probably a Democrat, and certainly mistaken (italics mine).''
``Now is a good time for Democrats to start taking Republicans' rough parity into consideration, in such matters as committee appointments and the fate of GOP-sponsored legislation.''
I greatly fear you are overly optimistic, wrote tongue-in-cheek, are somewhat naive, or affected by a bit of each. I seriously doubt if the personal or party characteristics of Democrats have changed.
RICHARD K. CULBERTSON
BLACKSBURG
More handouts, higher taxes
CONGRATULATIONS. I woke up Nov. 8 to the headline, ``Democrats hold on.'' It was a close one; you almost had to accept some responsibility for yourself. And you know I was thinking - all of those who voted Democratic should show their solidarity by going to their local government office, on a specific day they choose, of course. At a prearranged time, say 6 o'clock, everyone stick their hands out. In the meantime, the rest of us will be gearing up for higher taxes.
I guess I shouldn't be too hard on them, because I too was a liberal once. But then I learned to read.
I know it's worthless to tell them to examine the true facts so, go ahead, make yourself feel good and call me some names.
JOSEPH E. SCHROER
ELLISTON
Trivializing a serious women's sport
AS COACH of the Virginia Tech Women's rugby team, I'm embarrassed and shocked at the article written by Mary Bishop (Oct. 30, ``Still scuzzy after all these years''). Her article has set women's rugby, which is a serious collegiate sport, back 20 years.
She quoted me on the growth of women's college rugby in Virginia, which was the only factual thing in the article. And yet she was able to trivialize it with a silly metaphor using a serious injury suffered by my starting winger. She didn't mention the other things we discussed. I told her of the good competition and athleticism in women's rugby today. I told her that we worked hard to get to the championships. Did she use this information? No! Instead, she writes about a player's joke about training using "potluck dinners.''
My team practices three days a week, 21/2 hours each practice. We played a long, hard season, and have worked extremely hard to become a championship-caliber team. The club has sponsored the annual American Diabetes Association Walk-A-Thon for the past two years. My players are student athletes who take their studies and their representation of Tech very serious. This club is a women's club; we're not "all-male.''
This article shouldn't in any way be condoned as a representation of women's collegiate rugby, and I'm embarrassed that my name is associated the article. I hope this newspaper's editors will respond accordingly, and give my team back the good name that we have worked so hard to attain.
BOB URBAN
Coach, Virginia Tech Women's Rugby Football Club
BLACKSBURG
The cost of negative campaigns
THE VOTING is over. Let us assess the cost. I write to the attention of the candidates who engaged in negative campaigning rather than in the issues at stake. It makes no difference as to how gentle or how vicious their attacks were upon the character of their opponent. They varied in degree, not in principle.
There are others like them who attacked the character of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Is there a difference? If you think there is, don't try to explain it to me. I'm of little importance. Explain it to Leah Rabin.
JAMES P. WEBB
ROANOKE
by CNB