The 'Weekly' Should Follow Military Knowledge, Not Money
I was sorry to see the Tucson Weekly follow the money in the Congressional District 8 races--especially after noting Jeff Latas as a candidate "with a lot of great ideas." ("Our Picks in Primary '06," Aug. 10).I will follow the candidate with the ideas who also possesses the personal passion to represent our district as an effective citizen legislator. I have had the opportunity to hear all the Democrats and most of the Republicans. I have been impressed by Latas' knowledge of Pentagon weapons systems, the Iraq occupation and our nation's failed Middle East and energy policies. We need a strong candidate who is willing to take a tough stand on the most pressing issue facing our nation--the Iraq occupation that is draining not only lives, but also diverting other scarce national resources to a failed policy.
Latas has a unique ability to understand how so much is tied to our dependence on foreign oil. He has the technical knowledge to serve as a leader who can help us refocus on alternative fuels, which will enable us to redirect resources to universal health care, better education programs and sound environmental policies. I encourage other voters to toss aside politics as usual and vote for the candidate with the great ideas and personal passion to pursue them.
Katie Maass
The 'Weekly' Is Currently Right-Wing!
How ironic that the Weekly, which used to be the least conservative paper in town, has moved so far right that it endorses the most conservative Democrat in the CD 8 race!Instead of backing the candidate who is bold and challenging the establishment, the Weekly backs the darling of the Democratic Leadership Council, the conservative (Joe) Lieberman wing of the Democratic party. Instead of backing Jeff Latas, the candidate with experience that counts--deep knowledge of the Middle East, government in Washington and how our insatiable demand for energy is driving foreign policy--the Weekly endorses a silver-spoon candidate with such a weak record in the Legislature that she has to stretch the truth (spin, spin) in a TV commercial.
If she had really been so influential, she would have boasted honestly of real victories up there in Phoenix instead of making up midnight escapades. Oh, for the good old days, when the Weekly was the iconoclastic underground paper in Tucson!
Barbara Tellman
And We're Ignorant and Hypocritical, Too!
Your editorial board, small as it is, is both ignorant and hypocritical. From the get-go of the Congressional District 8 Democratic primary, you followed the big money of only two candidates: Gabrielle Giffords and Patty Weiss. As an "alternative" newspaper, you are a disappointment for the lock-step support you have given these two and for never even evaluating the one man who could make a difference, Jeff Latas.Jeff is the only candidate who is an Air Force lieutenant colonel and can stand up to the politicos who have practically run the United States into the ground with deficit spending, low morale and lies. Did any of your reporters cover the Nucleus Club forum? Jeff stated that, "I would like to push my finger into Karl Rove's chest and tell him: 'You are wrong!'" We need a strong candidate like Jeff to counter all the misinformation that the Republicans are spreading.
You are sounding too much like the Arizona Daily Star. Gimme a break!
Allen J. Pastryk
Claim: We Surf the 'Star' Web Site Too Much
I was happy to see a series of endorsements in your paper. However, I must comment on one particular endorsement.For State Superintendent of Public Instruction, your completely baseless choice of Slade Mead was quite shocking to me. Did no one on the Tucson Weekly staff actually watch the debate between these two candidates on Arizona Illustrated? If someone had, I'm quite certain the choice printed by your paper would have at least had some grounded basis, if not outright been for the other Democratic candidate. Did the writers even bother to visit the Web sites of the candidates?
These candidates are both quite different in their personal history and how they feel about the incredibly important issues facing our state's educational system. Being that many in the state have become cynical, it's very possible that the Democratic candidate could knock out the incumbent. Being a medium with a left slant and typically read by a majority of self-identified liberal readers (including myself), your paper is in quite the position to make or break a candidacy.
Are the few of us who care enough about this race to actually invest time in listening to the candidates now solely responsible in educating the public, while your staff sits around lazily searching the Web archives of the Daily Star to get information while ignoring more important candidate debates and bringing up the issues? Shame on you, Tucson Weekly!
Colin Gremillion
Local Radio Gets Props
Regarding the Media Watch column of Aug. 3 ("Radio From the Heavens"): I, too, subscribe to XM Radio (it's indispensable on road trips). But, having moved here from Los Angeles last July, I have to say that Tucson is a great radio town.I listened to XM at home in L.A. for two reasons: Commercial radio in L.A. is some of the most mind-numbingly programmed radio I've ever heard, and while there are some good community-sponsored stations, reception can be very problematic.
Signal reception in Tucson is excellent, and the play lists are much more adventurous. So, a tip of the hat to my favorite stations: KXCI FM 91.3, "The Mountain" 92.9, KUAT FM 89.7/90.5, "Cool Radio" AM 1450 and KTUC AM 1400. Keep up the good work, and don't change a thing!
Jon Sanders
Claim: Hoffman's Pro-Gun Commentary Was Painfully Offensive
I am painfully offended that you would print Jonathan Hoffman's pro-gun piece (Guest Commentary, Aug. 3). I thought your paper took a stance on the side of nonviolence. Guns do kill people. It only takes a nanosecond to pull a trigger. In a moment of crazy thinking, even someone you love can pull a trigger and forever change a family's life.Drive-by shootings would be pretty damn hard without a gun. Without guns, the serial killers in Phoenix would most likely have just sat in their apartment and watched Fox News. Has Hoffman checked the gun-death statistics of countries that have banned guns?
My first cousin and his wife (while their 10-year-old son watched) were shot to death by two men who robbed their pharmacy. If the thieves had not had guns, my family members would not be dead, and their son would still be a normal, talkative little boy. He hasn't uttered one word since the murders. My uncle was killed by two men with guns in a Safeway robbery in California. He was the first person they saw. He was big and strong enough to have taken both the men down if they had not carried guns.
His wife was pregnant with their first child when he was killed. Perhaps if Mr. Hoffman ever loses someone he loves from gunfire, he will change his mind. I don't wish that on him. I wish him peace and a change of heart.
Cynthia Jordan
