ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 2, 1996 TAG: 9603060003
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-9 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: LETTERS
RARELY does the public think about the consequences of strip malls on the environment, except when a Wal-Mart encroaches onto historical land. I refer to your Feb. 19 news article, ``Wal-Mart, historians square off over farm,'' about Wal-Mart's plan to build a new store at Ferry Farm, George Washington's boyhood home, in Stafford. This has inflamed historians because they feel that the sense of the place and its historical value is too precious to be lost to another shopping center. Wal-Mart officials claim that since the land isn't an official park and is zoned for commercial use, if this ``chain does not build in the site, someone else will.''
Why must anyone build there? Have we devalued our heritage so much as to sacrifice the home of one of America's founding fathers for a warehouse of the founding father of Sam's Club and Wal-Mart? Can a building fashioned with a ``colonial-style'' facade really apologize for what was lost?
Yet we allow these warehouses to randomly site themselves outside our towns and cities, pushing aside whatever stands in their way. Each supercenter consumes more than 30 acres of land - not to mention highway ramps, traffic lights and turning lanes required to accommodate new traffic loads. These substantially alter our environment and our social constructs, displacing activities and monies from our towns and communities. Society's greed leads us into a consuming trend that devalues our natural resources, our history, and our downtown commercial and social districts. The supercenters of today will never serve as communal centers because they aren't designed as such. No one goes there to commune, only to consume.
I sense that one day we may feel guilty for letting our land and ourselves become manipulated by factors that we can control now. All of our goods and technologies will not mask the exploitation of our natural resources and the placelessness of the suburban landscape.
DANIELLE DiLEO
Architecture student
Virginia Tech
BLACKSBURG
Colleges need sober role models
REGARDING Valerie Cole, the student who died at Radford University:
I didn't know her, but I'm still saddened by her untimely death at the age of 18. At the time of this writing, the official cause of her death hadn't been determined, but alcohol supposedly has been linked to her death. Many students will think about it, but will continue to drink and believe that what happened to her won't happen to them. Campus partying will continue, as will off-campus partying. For many of the students, drinking is the "in" thing. It's the rite of acceptance.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if many of the upperclassmen in fraternities and sororities decided to become better role models for incoming students? Why not start now?
Don't forget the tragic death of this young student. Don't think it can't happen to you.
Life is a gift, and a college education is a privilege, not a license to party your life away.
MICHELLE ALDERMAN
RADFORD
Letters to the editor brighten the day
IF I READ nothing else in The Roanoke Times, I always make a point of trying to read at least the letters to the editor. On Feb. 13, I was once again reminded of the primary reason for doing so: through the shared insight of others, to renew my faith in my brother and sister human beings.
Consequently, I'm grateful to Julie Grady (``Inclusion will benefit society'') and to Thomas Brobson (``Moral concern is applied selectively'') for offering their personal perspectives on our crazy existence. Their thoughts on hopes and dreams, morality and diversity are so well-expressed and so carefully crafted that through them I do discern some sanity in our wild world.
Those two letters certainly brightened my morning! From such meaningful letters, we're all able to learn and expand our horizons. Then, too, they bring us in touch with otherwise anonymous co-travelers on our planet. From time to time, I write to or call letter writers to respond to their words with my own, and I've been heartened to hear from others in response to letters that I've written over the years. We thus may realize more fully that we're participating along with other kindred souls in our democracy and our society.
ROGER O'DELL
ROANOKE
Longer cord could reduce safety risk
THE NUMBER of fires and loss of life recently attributed to electric space heaters needs attention.
There's no way you can keep a person from purchasing an electric space heater, but consider:
Most of these heaters have a No. 16 American wire-gauge size. The ampere rating of a 6-foot-long No. 16 wire is 8 amperes for regular covered insulation. A 1,500-watt heater draws 12.5 amperes of current. This is 4.5 amperes over its rating. The line cord that comes with these heaters has a special insulation rated at 105 degrees centigrade temperature (equal to 221 degrees Fahrenheit), and will safely carry the 12.5 amperes.
If the makers of these heaters would make the line cord 12 feet long, it would reach most house receptacles. This would eliminate the use of a No. 18 zip cord with rubber insulation and rated at 6 amperes. The 105-degree centigrade cord can be purchased at electrical supply houses, and make an extension cord that's safe. This suggestion may not be perfect, but it will reduce this fire hazard.
RUDOLPH P. HENSLEY
BLACKSBURG
LENGTH: Long : 105 linesby CNB