THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 10, 1996 TAG: 9603090158
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines
In the Sept. 8, 1995, Beacon, I wrote a letter about the use of jetties along our oceanfront as opposed to building a $92 million seawall. I explained how jetties work on the East Coast and how we need to make better use of them.
On Feb. 8 of this year, a brand new 60-foot sport-fishing boat hit a sandbar and sunk in the mouth of Rudee Inlet. If those jetties were not there neither would the sandbar. Hello! The only problem is the jetty needs to be lengthened to keep this from happening again. The sand has built up around these jetties, so much on all sides that the city constantly has to dredge it. However, it doesn't.
As a result, not only have we taxpayers not gotten what we paid for - again - but we have just bought a million dollar yacht because our city broke federal laws that state unless the inlet is closed, it must be kept to a certain depth.
If jetties were properly used we would not have to spend $92 million on a project that will not work. Our beaches would naturally grow wider as they have around the current jetties. We would not need to constantly dredge the inlet, and we could all save some money, which we badly need for our school system.
We citizens have paid our city to keep this major East Coast inlet open and it has not. These same citizens have paid our city to raise Rudee Inlet Bridge, which it has not done. Wake up, folks! You just spent another million dollars and what did you get?
Robert Halstead
Shadowlawn Wake up columnist Reed
I was a little surprised in reading Bill Reed's column in the Feb. 18 edition of the Beacon. It was not about local events but a rambling discourse about truth on the national level.
I get the impression Mr. Reed feels that all the words spoken about the Presidents Clintons are lies. I guess the Travelgate episode with the firing and persecution of seven innocent people were lies. Similarly, the miracle finding of files that had been sought for two years, the $73 million pillaging of a savings and loan in Arkansas which has resulted in the indictment of the governor, the sexual harassment lawsuit brought against Mr. Clinton, his dodging of the draft, Hillary's commodity future trading, etc., are all lies.
Mr. Reed then resorts to personal attacks on popular syndicated talk show hosts for telling the ``truth'' as the hosts see it which is a common tactic of a disgruntled liberal. He left out mean spirited and right wing extremist, which would cover most of the citizens of Virginia Beach.
Mr. Reed says truth often isn't what it seems and he is right. There is another saying that the truth hurts, and I believe Mr. Reed has been badly gored by the multi-headed monster of liberalism which is lies, fraud, failure and disgrace. Let's hope he recovers.
C.W. Carr
Bunker Hill Lane Assessment (EQ) tax hike
The Feb. 28 article by Karen Weintraub on property assessments going up but not raising taxes, leaves we taxpayers dumbfounded. If raising property assessments is not raising taxes, what is it?
Does City Council think we will buy the idea that when property assessments are raised there is no tax increase?
This not only shows the mentality of City Council, but it shows what they think of the taxpayer's mentality.
What better way to put it than, ``You can fool most people some of the time, but you can't fool all the people all the time!
Richard C. Schuler
Virginia Beach by CNB