ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, April 21, 1997 TAG: 9704210092
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
Look upon cellular towers as a benefit
I WOULD like to give another perspective regarding your April 13 news article, ``Cellular tower's scenic intrusion prompts push for new restrictions.''
Do we want Roanoke to be known as a city that still has crank telephones or as a city that is technologically advanced and can offer the same communication services as competing geographical areas? Part of the process in keeping Roanoke competitive is the ability of the government and private sector to offer new and modern services.
The risk capital invested by the private sector in physical plants such as towers, fiber-optic cables and other infrastructure is an investment in our community, and also pumps many thousands of dollars into the local economy. These new enterprises also bring competition for services to consumers, while also keeping the Roanoke Valley electronically connected to the outside world.
I love our Blue Ridge Mountains and all their beauty. I also enjoy seeing our valley stay up with the rest of the world in technological advances. So perhaps instead of looking at these towers as unsightly, look at them as a modern convenience offering all of us a 1997-and-beyond lifestyle.
I am not ready to start cranking the magneto telephone again before I saddle the horses to travel to Big Lick!
ROGER BAIERS
MONETA
Pregnant teens need their parents' support
RECENTLY I discussed with a public-health nurse the resources offered to women when they learn they are pregnant.
The nurse said young girls are usually so distraught that she asks them to return in 24 hours to be advised about resources. Usually she says it would be best if parents were told of the pregnancy.
Most parents support their daughters in a crisis. As parents, we may tell a child of dire consequences should they become pregnant out of wedlock - an ineffective means of preventing it from happening. Should a daughter become pregnant, all our parental love and concern is directed toward her.
The nurse said that the emotional fallout from an abortion is long-lasting in young girls. Unless parents are aware their daughter has had an abortion, they wouldn't know what to look for, should the daughter need counseling to overcome the emotional scars. And in a worst-case scenario, should a young girl fail to tell her parents of an abortion and suffer complications: The parents might just put her to bed, thinking that she had the flu, and she might hemorrhage to death.
Whose responsibility is it to assist a young girl in making decisions that can affect the rest of her life - the state's or her parents?
It seems the state has been stepping in where it ought not to be - all in the name of the few situations where state intervention might be necessary. I thank Gov. George Allen and legislators who stood their ground to see an uncompromising parental-notification bill become law (March 23 news article, ``Parental notification bill signed'').
AMANDA DAVIS
BOONES MILL
Civic center traffic is a turnoff
MY WIFE and I had a most frustrating experience in Roanoke on March 24. We had bought tickets weeks before to take our granddaughters, who live in Roanoke, to the ice show. We never made it. It took us 40 minutes to go three blocks on Interstate 581.
When we finally arrived at the entrance to the Roanoke Civic Center parking lot, we were told it was full and that we could go downtown and take the shuttle. We don't know anything about the streets in Roanoke, so we let the girls out and returned home, wiser if not calmer.
As far as we're concerned, Roanoke is a bush-league town. It shouldn't try to schedule events it cannot handle. And it was evident from the number of cars turned away from the parking lot that a lot of people were in the same fix as we.
What we had hoped to be a pleasant time became a very tiring and expensive experience. We will never venture another sample of what we consider to be incompetence on the part of those responsible for planning and handling crowds and traffic.
MAURY HUNDLEY
LYNCHBURG
LENGTH: Medium: 82 linesby CNB