Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 3, 1993 TAG: 9310150363
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: D2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Just after halftime, I pointed out to a fellow standing near me, who had lit up perhaps his 12th cigarette, the item on the last page of the game program regarding the no-smoking policy.
The response was less than polite, basically conveying the thought that I could take my game program and stuff it in a place where it would receive little sunshine. Additional words were exchanged, then the incident subsided somewhat as he smoked and I fumed.
A few minutes later, a buddy of the first man came up and began to light up. That's when I took the next most difficult step for a nonsmoker by calling for the authorities, since a polite "please don't smoke" was met most ungraciously. I got an usher, and I'm very appreciative of him for doing his job.
As the usher and I walked up the stands, the second of the two smokers started walking down after seeing me retrieve the usher. As the man and I passed, and perhaps encouraged by the on-the-field first-half fisticuffs, he looked me squarely in my face and said, "I oughtta step on you."
While I'm sure that these two smokers' actions and response do not represent all smokers, and that some are much more considerate of nonsmokers, this kind of vicious outburst clearly points out why most nonsmokers have difficulty saying anything to smokers over their obnoxious and unhealthy habits - even when no- smoking policies or laws are in place. We despise these nasty confrontations, and many are fearful of bodily harm. Moreover, such things can spoil what otherwise would have been a perfectly lovely day.
THOMAS ADAMS
BLACKSBURG
Enough about the deck
IF YOU'RE driving out U.S. 220 and you come to Boones Mill, don't look for McDonald's, Hardees or any other fast-food restaurants. There are none. In fact, if you bat your eye, you have missed Boones Mill.
But if you take a close look, you'll see the Easy Street Cafe with its deck that has been the main issue before the Town Council for more than a year, with the charge that it's in violation of the floodplain ordinance.
Since Judge W.N. Alexander concluded that the town selectively enforced this ordinance against Tom Roucek, the owner, and dismissed the charge, I hope this is the end of the deck issue and that Town Council can get on with other business.
NORMA JEAN S. BECKNER
CALLAWAY
Health plan is socialism
ABOUT President Clinton's proposal to reform the health-care system:
The federal government has no right to tell private companies what they must provide for their workers. All types of government intervention into any private industry are immoral and tyrannical.
If n individual is going to be guaranteed medical or any other kind of benefits, everyone is going to be forced to provide them. That's exactly what happened in the socialist countries - every citizen was guaranteed everything, and every citizen was also taxed at a confiscatory rate.
Experiments with socialism always end catastrophically, as history has demonstrated many times. This country does not need any socialist ideas - including "guaranteed" access to health care.
ILYA BELOOZEROV
BLACKSBURG
First, address the domestic issues
I WONDER which presidential administration will address the serious domestic issues facing this country, rather than continually send aid to foreign nations?
I realize the need for most of the humanitarian aid being sent overseas, although at times it seems the United States is sending an unusually high amount. I feel some of this money could be better spent in this country to help eliminate problems like homelessness, unemployment, environmental abuse and educational shortfalls. This country should have its affairs in order before we show other nations how to structure their priorities. Lead by example, so to speak.
We need an administration that's willing to deal with these internal problems before looking somewhere else for problems to solve.
CRAIG J. BRADLEY
SALEM
Let landowners sell their property
AS CONCERNED citizens and friends of the Beasleys, we feel compelled to support them in their right as property owners to sell the land they have owned for four generations, if they so desire.
The fact that the Blue Ridge Parkway cuts through this piece of property, and that a small interest group's scenic view might be altered, is not justification to prevent the landowner from selling. If this small interest- group were to put itself in the Beasleys' shoes, it might see things from a different "view."
We have watched the Beasleys over the years work hard to maintain this farm. But due to economics and overall taxes, it's become essential for them to sell. This decision did not come easily or without extreme anguish. They have faith in Len Boone's ability to develop the property with pride, therefore enhancing one's viewshed and providing others the privilege of enjoying the surrounding beauty.
Was Fuzzy Minnix elected to represent the landowner of the Cave Spring District, or the special-interest group and the parkway travelers?
RANDY and LINDA BROOKS
ROANOKE
Radical feminists are backing Beyer
IN HIS CAMPAIGN for lieutenant governor against Mike Farris, liberal Democrat Don Beyer has gone from inept to pathetic. He has now enlisted the help of Women for Beyer, a small group of loud, angry, radical feminists who have agreed to put their faces on television and say stupid things.
These liberal feminists are not launching an attack on Farris but rather an attack on me and thousands of women across the commonwealth who support Farris. For 10 years, he was the legal counsel for the nation's largest women's organization, Concerned Women for America, which has a membership of more than three times that of Beyer's beloved National Organization for Women.
Fortunately for society, most women do not identify with the radical feminists who endorse Beyer. We are not at war with men, but instead love our husbands and struggle to raise our children in a culture increasingly hostile to families. Farris understands and clearly deals with the issues that I feel are important, such as educational choice and lower taxes for families with children. I wholeheartedly resent the sexism and hatred that Beyer has shamelessly injected into the campaign.
This woman will vote for Mike Farris.
CATHERINE M. WALLIN
ROANOKE
Poets, too, do public service
HAVING read your five-part series (Sept. 12-16, "A college education at what cost?") about Virginia's colleges and universities, I feel compelled to support Michael Squires' contention (Sept. 22 letter to the editor, "Series filled with half-truths") that this newspaper omits the good work that many dedicated professors do, not just at their own institutions but also in the public schools.
Two of the finest poets writing today, Nikki Giovanni, who teaches at Virginia Tech, and Eric Tretheway, who teaches at Hollins College, have been to the school where I teach to share their poetry and to talk with students.
I didn't know these poets personally before I called to ask them to come to my school, but I had heard from other teachers and college students that they enjoyed getting out into the schools. As soon as these poets began sharing their experiences and reading, I knew they would have an impact on my students, who sat spellbound and awed that well-known writers would take the time to visit them. Neither poet, by the way, would hear of accepting money for these visits, and both expressed a desire to return.
No doubt, in Virginia's colleges and universities, there is a need to improve but much to commend. In calling for one, we shouldn't lose sight of the other.
DEE SHEFFER
SALEM
by CNB