Letters 2/9/06

Feb. 8, 2006

LETTERS


Climate control
I try to keep up with the latest on global warming (or, as I prefer, global climate instability). So I read with interest the ‘technology’ article in your January 12 issue, “The Latest on Global Warming,“ by Harley Sachs. 
I tried to find some corroboration for his assertion that CO2 emissions as a cause of climate change has been discounted as a computer error, and that the “[Montreal] conference on climate change concludes that even a 400 percent increase in CO2 emissions will have such a small impact on world temperature that it can hardly be measured...” 
Finding nothing about it in a quick search of the Internet (this should be big news in some circles, anyway) I posted the question to http://realclimate.org/ where climate scientists discuss these issues. A reply from Gavin Schmidt,  a climate modeler at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York, replied to my question about where this story came from as follows: “Absolutely no clue!.. That the latest Montreal meeting concluded that a 4xCO2 emissions will not affect climate is just incredible. There is no way that such a claim could have justifiably been made.”   
We have corresponded a bit and I think the bottom line (Harley will need to comment on this, too) is that the report of a computer error, and especially the assertion that “the CO2 theory is as dead as the flat earth myth” is premature. My correspondence with a climate specialist suggests that in fact, “the reference to the latest ‘super-computer’ results is odd, because all of those ‘latest’ results show big warmings as a function of CO2...and the perception that CO2 is less important than before is probably a reflection that other forcings also play a role: methane, land use, aerosols etc., (which is  pointed out in Sach‘s article) but none of that means that the estimates of what CO2 does on it’s own have changed - they haven’t. And going out into the future, CO2 is still the one that counts.”

 Jim Sluyter  •  Bear Lake

(Sachs responds: A  resident at the plaza where I live is a retired engineer who keeps a close watch on energy issues. He provided me with copies of technical reports on the subject that was the basis for the conclusion that CO2 emissions aren’t as big a factor as earlier believed. 
As our resident explains it, the early computer models had an anomoly, a “hockey stick” shaped turn that showed huge impacts of CO2 on global warming. That was before the latest super computer was employed on the data and the anomaly disappeared. Of course, it is almost at the point where it is politically correct to accept CO2 as the cause of global warming. Our resident engineer searched the Internet for reports of the new conclusions and found only the London Times made any mention of it.
Making mathematical projects based on limited data is fraught with difficulties. For instance, if we projected future size and weight of a child based on the first two years‘ growth, by the time the kid was 18  he’d be about 20 feet tall and weigh about a ton. Taking the increases in global temperatures over the last 30 years probably doesn’t project in a straight line to the point of boiling, but may instead be nearing the top of a cyclical curve.)

Pricey purse
One of the amusing items in the Northern Express is the “My Style” section, which picks a young fashionista and lists the cost of everything she (or he) is wearing. One was styling with a $500 “Coach” purse. 
I feel like Andy Rooney from “60 Minutes” when I ponder why a purse would cost more than anything inside it. My leather wallet cost $3 after a $10 rebate from JC Penney. I am so not cool!
On a serious note, a co-worker just came back from the Dominican Republic where she worked in a health clinic. She described a situation where she nearly caused a riot by attempting to hand out 50 pairs of USED shoes to 250 desperate residents. I don’t know what to do with this knowledge, other than pass it on. Maybe some of us will think about it the next time we look in the mirror. I know I will.

                Dennis Latuszek • TC

Heck of a job
President Bush has done one heck of a job in Iraq. We have a heck of a health care system and one heck of an educational system. Our Social Security system and public debt are in a heck of a lot better shape.  He has done one heck of a job containing terrorism and the “nuculer“ threat.  We can thank the president for the heck of a job he is doing promoting his religious agenda, his faith-based values and his wiretaps, and for the secrecy necessary to secure our civil liberties. We are headed to heck with every pat on the back from the “trust-me” administration.

                       Karla Smith • Cadillac
Misguided liberals
Why is the rhetoric among liberals so hateful?  In a time when the country should be working together in an effort to present a united  front against terrorism and the fundamentalist Islamic threat, instead we speak of those as the enemy who believe in a different  approach than the one we ascribe to.    
Many times in the history of this country we have faced formidable enemies and time and time again we have come together to defeat the enemy.  The surveillance  by the NSA of phone calls from an overseas source is necessary to combat the terrorist threat we face. 
It is not inappropriate to challenge the NSA surveillance in court because it is always  fair to question and debate and if necessary to legally challenge the acts of our leaders, but to hear the hatefulness of those who  speak against President Bush’s directive to the NSA is troubling. 
In the past in the face of an enemy, we violated the Bill of  Rights (Japanese internment in WW II). The decision to place the  Japanese in camps on the West coast, and the legality of that decision was made by reasonable men trying to make the best decision they could at the time. Later when the war was over and the Japanese were released those same men may have had second  thoughts but all knew they had tried to make the best decision they could at the time. Leave these issues to be decided in our courts. 
The strength of our democracy is demonstrated every time one  branch of our government is put in check by another.  We have weathered many more difficult storms in the past.   A wise man once  said:  We should cut off the arm to save the man’s life or if we  leave the arm and lose the man‘s life, what have we gained?
Now we  are looking into the face of a hithertofore unimaginable world religious war, and instead of remembering the lessons of the past some among us are allowing our enemies to use the tactic of divide and conquer. 
Abraham Lincoln said: “A house divided against itself  cannot stand.”  Do any of the liberals remember Chamberlain‘s  comments upon  his return from visiting Hitler after Hitler  occupied Poland?  Appeasement is a recipe for disaster.
If it seems to you that the Democrats, on a regular basis  try to  find another issue to blow out of proportion, you are right.  Why  is this?  Maybe because on a regular basis the Democrats are waking  up to the reality that they are on the wrong side of history.
 
         Kenneth Frazier • via email

Wiretaps over the line
Wiretapping U.S. citizens without a warrant is illegal. It does not matter the reason, it is illegal. If you or I did it we would be arrested and prosecuted. Even the President of the United States is not above the law. Please call and write your legislators and demand that this crimimal be impeached. No one is above the law, no one.

Gerald Gertiser • Johannesburg

Explore impeachment
A January, 2006 poll found 52% of Americans agreed that Congress  should hold President Bush accountable through impeachment if he wiretapped American citizens without approval of a judge. President Bush has admitted that offense and he should be called to task because of it. 
The list of impeachable offenses that should also be explored include an illegal war of aggression against Iraq; gross incompetence or reckless indifference to the health and safety of US soldiers and Iraqi civilians; the use of torture, rendition and illegal detention of citizens and non-citizens; and unauthorized surveillance of constitutionally protected activities of individuals and organizations.  If our current Congress doesn’t have the guts to stand up for our constitutional rights then we should be about finding and supporting U.S. House candidates for the November 2006 election who will.
 
Marian Kromkowski • Suttons Bay

 Why Alito?
Where are all the good candidates? Judge Alito is clearly not the best person for the Supreme Court.    He‘s a company man who will restrict access to the court for the average citizen. Is this the best we can do?

Brian Frayer • TC

Embezzlement 101
Your “Embezzlement 101” Random Thoughts column in the January 18 issue of Northern Express was very accurate. You didn’t mention them, but those two that bilked elderly clients out of several hundred thousand dollars did it in a civilized way; however, it’s little different than using a gun (Woody Guthrie‘s analogy). Shameful.
Another common and sadly accepted abuse is working for “cash.” Not the occasional yard sale or cord of firewood. There are many taverns, restaurants, maintenance services, cosmetologists, massage therapists and contractors that do not take credit cards. Many have never reported any earned income. 
I see them living very comfortable lives. And why are our taxes as high as they are? We have to pay for the artful dodging scoflaws. If everyone paid what they should, our taxes would go down by an unknown but welcome amount. 
Nunzio the plumber has a new $50,000 truck, doesn’t advertise and takes lavish European vacations; on us. The underground economy is thriving. We do not know how big it is. I would love to see you give the underground economy a little tickle.

Tom Mountz • Honor

Illegal & immoral
The National Office of Veterans for Peace sent an appeal to each member of Congress last March, to remove George W. Bush and Richard Cheney from office.  David Cline, president of the National VFP, explained that, “when we believe that our government has committed an appalling series of what must legally be considered war crimes and crimes against humanity, it violates Article VI of the U.S. constitution and numerous international treaties which are legally binding on our nation.”
Included with the letter was a detailed listing of the treaties, charters, and resolutions that this administration has blatantly ignored and disobeyed, including the U.S. Constitution (Art. VI paragraph 2), the U.S. War Crimes Act of 1996, Nuremberg Tribunal Charter Principals, and Geneva Convention Protocols.   Congress did nothing.
It is becoming clearer each day that the reasons given for this illegal and immoral war were half-truths, misleading, and lies.  Veterans for Peace is seeking individual and organization support to work jointly on the effort to impeach the President and Vice-President.
Although our President repeatedly expresses the view that to criticize the President in time of war is unpatriotic, the truth is that is is unpatriotic NOT to take whatever legal, moral and peaceful steps necessary to end this calamity.  Requests to begin impeachment proceedings are properly addressed to our representatives in Congress. For most of us in this area, that is Republican Dave Camp.  His Washington number is (202) 225-3561.  His local number is (231) 929-4711.

John Lewis, President, Chapter 50, Northern Michigan Veterans for Peace • TC