A blocked view, war of words, a.m. delivery and wake up

Trees and bushes block a lovely view

To the editor:

Danville has an attractive piece of architecture with an historic background — the Sutherlin Mansion, also known as the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History.

I attempted to get some snapshots of the structure, but the high hedges blocked the view. There were some out-of-town visitors there with the same problem. People riding by can hardly see the building.

Could the bushes be removed — and lower ones planted?

VINCENT C. BEYER

To the editor:

Words and insults are flying between presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama.

One of the words used to try to knock a person running for president is to call them a flip flopper. I wouldn’t think there is a person living that doesn’t change their minds, if after thinking it over they find a better way to go. It seems like any person could be called a flip flopper. But we all have the right to change our minds.

I would like to see something done about health care in this country.

A country is only as strong as the health of its people. It has been stated that 174 million Americans have health care paid for by their employers and I suppose the government, etc. I hope that one day everyone has a right to a national health care system’s benefits.

There will have to be changes made. Everyone who works will have to pay into it like Social Security. Maybe some of the hospitals will have to be taken over by the government. In a lot of cases, the private rooms — with TV and telephone — will have to go and more use made of hospital wards. The rich folks, of course, would be able to afford their own private rooms, etc. Personally, I have experienced both private rooms and a hospital ward, and I prefer a ward anytime. The company of other people I found quite interesting, and I didn’t get bored like being in a private room.

Who would be most likely to put in a system like that where everyone would get a fair shake, Obama or McCain? I watch both Obama and McCain very closely. Obama seems to speak his mind. McCain seems to be reading someone else notes. Will the people of this great land make the right choice? Only time will tell.

HARRY WARD

To the editor:

Change is defined as to make different. Change can be good, but it is never easy. As we get older, change is not as easily accepted and we usually struggle to accept it.

There has been a change in our daily morning newspaper. Many of today’s newspaper subscribers are early morning risers and enjoy sitting with their morning cup of joe and catching up on the local and world events. Their habits of waking early are complemented by an early morning delivery of the paper. In the past, the paper’s delivery by 5:30 a.m. usually gave these readers ample time to read through the paper for the information they desired.

Recently, the Danville Register & Bee underwent a major change. The printing went out of town and the layout was revamped. Many of us are now faced with the challenge of accepting this change in our local daily paper. Will getting the paper as late as 7:30 a.m. meet our needs? Can we get used to the new layout, a paper with fewer articles of local interest, one that is confusing to follow and full of misprints? Perhaps, as we have been told, we are going to be a paperless society and we can just glean the news from the Internet.

There was once an older couple that loved to go to their favorite restaurant. They received good and reliable service from all of the restaurant staff and they always felt welcome. They usually enjoyed an appetizer of cheese and crackers before their meal and although small, it was a part of the whole experience. One day, new management decided that the restaurant needed to combine with other restaurants and have just one big kitchen. With one kitchen, the staff could be reduced and the menu changed slightly.

Wow, won’t that be great for everyone! Well, not everyone was happy, because change does not come without sacrifice. The couple now finds that service is much slower, the menu does not include past entrees and their appetizer has been eliminated. The choice is now quite simple for them. They can accept the change and continue to spend their time and money at their old restaurant, or look for another one. Whatever happened to the customer is always right?

Can our paper make the transition to meet the needs of the customer and community? Many of us are waiting and hoping for an improvement. For my wife and me, an early morning paper is our only option.

DAVID K. VERNON

To the editor:

We’ve had a global warming, because if we didn’t, we would still be in an ice age. In 1816, there was no month in the New England states without frost. It was called the year without a summer. In 1911, Niagara Falls froze over. Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, releasing 1.5 million metric tons of sulfur dioxide, which when combined with water forms acid rain.

We used to talk a lot about acid rain when the press had an agenda to promote. In 1991, Mount Pinatubo threw 22 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere. Speaking of acid rain, that did not come from cars and factories. We need to plug these global-warming volcanoes. We need to get the fear peddlers to plug all those volcanoes that are messing up our planet.

It seems there has been global warming and cooling taking place throughout history — even when there were no autos and no factories. Still, the ice melted. When I study history, I find terrific change that produced all the oil in the Gulf of Mexico and off the eastern seaboard. It seems to me that as we save the environment by sending all of our oil dollars to Saudi Arabia, bin Laden has enough of our cash to destroy us in one big blast. Maybe we should just drill like mad in Alaska and off the eastern seaboard and just take care of America. It seems to me that so far, illegal immigrants are costing us more than the Iraq War.

Reagan’s space-based weapons plan was ridiculed by the liberal press. The press never mentioned the fact that the Soviet economy was destroyed by their spending to try to match our military strength. A leader should lead, follow, or get out of the way.

Nor did the press make three-inch headlines when one little old ship with one little old shot brought down one little old satellite. But it made three-inch headlines in the minds of our enemies. I am sure they consider this in their war planning.

As one great leader said, “Speak softly and carry and big stick.” Believe you me, the big stick makes for eager, good attention, motivation and a change of attitude. Fear of destruction is a good motivator. Japan would not surrender until it realized by our show of will to annihilate that nation. War is hell, and the one that kills enough to change the attitude and mind of the enemy wins.

Tolerating all beliefs is destroying the foundation of this great nation. It blows my mind that our next president may have no respect whatsoever for the American flag or the pledge of allegiance. His wife is bitter about her American experience.

I am not bitter that I had to milk my own cow, bring my own water from the spring, weed my own garden, use an outhouse, go to a school with a potbelly stove and pledge allegiance to the American flag. I still know — with all of our problems — that we are the best in the world. The change we need is to turn to truth and to turn the spotlight on those terrorists that preach murder of anyone to advance their cause.

When you have to build fences to keep people out, you know where the greener grass is growing. Turn off the liberal news. Open your eyes and look around. This is America, the greatest nation on God’s green earth — or blue earth, if you prefer.

I am so blessed to have been born in America.

DELANO THOMASSON

Collinsville