ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, April 22, 1997 TAG: 9704220030
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: LETTERS
Other cities want what Roanoke has
MY GRANDPARENTS and parents raised families in the shadow of Mill Mountain. We, with our children, lived 30 years within sight of it. Compared to neatly planned parks, Mill Mountain was beautiful, undisturbed nature. It allowed us recreation, a glimpse of creation and a place for picnics and solitary walks, and of pride.
Our roots are deep in Roanoke. We expect to someday move back. We visit often to enjoy the City Market, restaurants and special events. However, it's the mountain that defines and distinguishes the city, and is one reason we bring our visitors to Roanoke.
Other cities are spending large sums of money to establish or reclaim natural areas for their residents' recreation and as lures for tourists. Roanoke already has Mill Mountain. Development for additional areas for dining, shopping and amusement is possible at other local sites.
Many residents have written letters to the editor to say how much Mill Mountain means to them. We hope Roanoke's leaders will heed their voices. We urge them to choose to maintain, in its present state, this treasure that's unique to Roanoke
JUDY FURR
RADFORD
Complicated laws invite violation
IGNORANCE of the law is no excuse for breaking the law. We have all heard this, and probably most of us agree. But what is an honest citizen to do if the law becomes so complicated that a reasonable and prudent individual cannot determine what is and is not lawful?
Can I put a coin in an expired parking meter while an officer prepares to write a parking ticket? Can I build any structure I wish on land that I own? Can I contribute any amount of money to any organization that I wish? Can I say anything I want to my acquaintances, even over electronic networks? Can I worship my God in whatever manner I find most spiritually fulfilling?
Why is the law so perplexing? Ayn Rand suggests that the only real power government possesses is the power to incarcerate, thus government has no power over the law-abiding. A repressive government will make so many things illegal that the well-meaning citizen has no idea whether he or she is breaking the law. Of course, ignorance of the law is no excuse, even if the law is needlessly enigmatic.
One need not agree with Rand on this or any other point. But we as citizens should ask ourselves and our legislators this question: If America is the land of the free, why are there more laws restricting our freedom than there are laws protecting our freedom?
Perhaps a more important question: Where does our ignorance really lie?
TODD PUKANECZ
BLACKSBURG
Albright's discomfort sent the wrong message
THE ISSUE facing Secretary of State Madeleine Albright isn't whether she is Jewish or Catholic. She is Catholic, which is neither better nor worse than if she were Jewish. It's her choice of a path to spirituality - a choice I respect.
The question is whether she dealt with her family background in a forthright manner. It's her behavior that should be judged, not her beliefs. Based on media reports, it appears that she knew more than she initially acknowledged. Is that grounds to condemn her as secretary of state? I doubt it.
But it bothers me as a Jew that she initially appeared uncomfortable and embarrassed at the exposure of her family's background. That's where the danger lies.
In this country, it can still be difficult - and at times dangerous - to be Jewish. Those who express discomfort with Jewishness marginalize us as if we're less than worthy citizens. Their reaction contributes to an attitude that some Americans are still hyphenated Americans. They put out a message, intentionally or not, that feeds the attitude of hate groups and fundamentalist zealots that it's not really all right to be Jewish.
Regardless of Albright's intentions, which I assume are good, I believe that her initial public reaction to her family's past did a disservice to the Jewish people and to the memory of her martyred grandparents.
FRED SACHS
ROANOKE
If purchases are made, let taxes apply
I CONGRATULATE Glenn Rose for one of the best thought-out, well-reasoned letters to the editor (April 2, ``Don't ask business to draw lines between church, state'') that I've read in a long time. If I were in the Virginia Department of Taxation, I would slap myself on the forehead and say: ``Of course! Howard Semones is off the hook!''
In my opinion, the best, cleanest way to ensure the separation of church and state is for the state to not even know or care if the entity is a church. If purchases are made, sales taxes apply. If property is owned or money is made, taxes apply.
I don't expect this to happen, but it makes sense to me.
GENE GALVIN
ROANOKE
LENGTH: Medium: 96 linesby CNB