Letters to the Editor 2/07

Financial meltdown fault

President Barack Obama, with Democrats in lockstep, persistently offers the diatribe that the meltdown and bailout of the financial world is the fault of President George Bush and Republicans. Who are they talking to when engaged in this propaganda?

The meltdown of the financial industry was caused by legislated deregulation of that industry. The deregulation came from a Republican Congress and was signed into law in 1998 by President Bill Clinton. The catalyst for the legislation was a massive lobbying of the Congress and the president by Citigroup executives. Coincidently, Bill Clinton’s Secretary of Treasury, Robert Rubin, became a high level Citigroup executive after leaving the government.

A direct byproduct of deregulation was easy credit for the real estate boom and bust. That was welcomed in Congress by Democrats and Republicans alike. Some Congress members, like Democrat Barney Frank, even advocated for easier home ownership. The real estate boom and bust was truly bipartisan politics.

Regarding my question, Republicans, Independents and some Democrats are not fooled by the rhetoric. Think Massachusetts. This and other Obama/Democrat propaganda must be for the rest of the Democrats.

Pat Moore

Morro Bay

Fox is fair and balanced

Edith Mascolo’s article (“Fair and balanced?” Jan. 26) was anything but fair and balanced. She neglected to list some of the regular Democratic contributors on the payroll at Fox News.

To name a few: Geraldine Ferraro (1984 vice presidential candidate), Bob Beckel (Walter Mondale’s 1984 presidential campaign manager), Al Sharpton (candidate for the 2004 Democratic nomination for the presidential election), Dennis Kucinich (2004 and 2008 presidential candidate), Alan Colmes (liberal political commentator), Kristen Powers (served in the Clinton administration), Charles Rangel (Democratic chairman of House Ways and Means Committee) and Lanny Davis (former White House Counsel for President Bill Clinton).

It is best to watch Fox News with an unbiased eye and to listen with an unbiased ear so that your senses detect how fair and balanced Fox really is compared to other cable news networks.

Adrian M. Hurtado

Cayucos

Please keep O’Reilly

I beg to differ with Robert Dickinson’s statement (Feb. 1) that more than half your readers feel that Bill O’Reilly’s column is a “very negative intrusion into their weekend.”

I believe that the majority of your readers look forward to O’Reilly’s weekly column. In fact, I think The Tribune proved that when it asked readers to comment on having his column weekly. Please keep printing his column.

Gerry Johnson

San Luis Obispo

O’Reilly’s like a bad wreck

I cannot hide it any longer; I believe Bill O’Reilly has special talents. He’s like a very bad wreck. We know we shouldn’t stop to look, but the enticement is just too strong. His latest commentary (“The far left is down for the count,” Jan. 23) will attract anyone, “left” or “right.”

That statement is either appalling to one side or confirmation of the downfall of this Democratic administration to the other. I can argue with many of the idiotic conclusions that he makes in this piece except for his final suggestion “If Obama wants to avoid the fate of Jimmy Carter, he must move quickly to the center.”

A very valid suggestion, except Obama doesn’t need to move anywhere. In order to avoid the fate of Carter, he needs to become the leader of this country and take the word “bipartisan” out of his vocabulary (he won’t miss it).

Obama, take a lesson from the past Republican administration and ramrod your bills down the party of no’s throat. I guarantee the majority of Americans will have a much better taste in their mouths when you do.

Rex Farris

Grover Beach

Politicians lack backbone

Regarding Richard Placak’s letter on Feb. 1 titled “Where are the protesters?”

I was one of thousands of citizens who marched in San Francisco and one of hundreds in San Luis Obispo to protest invading Iraq. Our efforts had no affect on the decision made by Congress.

We have few politicians with enough backbone to prevent the U.S. from becoming mired in endless wars. Vietnam obviously taught us nothing.

Perhaps this is why Placak doesn’t see any protesters.

Frank Fiedler Morro Bay

Height of hypocrisy

The editorial recently about a pot dispensary in Nipomo brought up some interesting points, and I’d like to add a few more (“Keep an open mind about a Nipomo pot dispensary,” Jan. 24).

It mentioned all seven cities in the county have banned dispensaries, though legal by California law. My question: how many pharmacies and bars are in these cities? Why not ban these from the communities as well? They too contribute to attract “unsavory” types to their respective neighborhoods, as well as supplying “accepted” drugs and mind-altering substances.

Recent studies and surveys have shown prescribed drugs are on the rise because the availability of them is quite easy. See what your relatives or roommate have in the medicine cabinet and then trade and deal to friends, co-workers and classmates with horrific outcomes.

Drunken driving statistics show large numbers, but we continue to allow more alcohol sales (like at the Laguna Lake Golf Course).

It seems to be the extreme of hypocrisy for the cities in this county to put the burden on the unincorporated areas of the county who don’t have the infrastructure in place to deal with intricacies of the business operations these dispensaries will require.

Dave Giordanengo

Pismo Beach

High court is wrong

I am shocked at the Supreme Court’s decision (“Supreme Court lifts campaign spending limits,” Jan. 22). The Founding Fathers would not stand for it. It is a complete shift in the balance of power out of the hands of the people and Congress and into the hands of the multi-national corporations. They have already wielded enough power in the past without this decision. It’s a grave mistake and the worst decision I’ve seen in all my years of studying politics.

Ruth Madocks

Arroyo Grande