Book 'Em, Dano
To the Editor,I enjoy reading The Weekly, and have both agreed and disagreed with the views in The Skinny. I disagreed with your criticism of the enforcement of the Covenants and Deed Restrictions (CC&Rs) at Continental Ranch. As you state, "a Covenants Committee has been established to promote and maintain a congenial community." This objective can only be accomplished by seeing that the covenants and restrictions are not violated.
Parking cars in the wrong place, landscaping and garbage violations (you could add boats and campers in the yard and ugly TV antennas) not only have a negative impact on congeniality, they also depress the value of the property adjacent to the violator.
Those who wish to "do it their own way" should purchase
property in a very rural area. By doing do, the only property
that will be affected by this careless activity will be their
own.
--Jerry Gill
Painful Reminder
To the Editor,Regarding Linda Bayless' "Holding Chip" (Tucson Weekly, November 30): Bravo! It has been a long time since I have read such a touching and tasteful article on AIDS.
I, too, am a health care worker and I have seen the unjust treatment
our society has handed out to people who have AIDS. I have seen
people with AIDS coming into the hospital with their families
and friends around them, only to be left alone later, so there
is only someone like me left to hug them, listen to them, and
wipe their tears away in their last days. Thanks to Linda for
reminding me no one deserves AIDS or wants to die alone.
--Desarie Anne Nixon
Comic Genius
To the Editor,I hope this letter will help your readers to look at your cartoons as art and not just jokes.
For instance, Peter Kuper of "Eye of the Needle" is a true artist. His work shows a fine sense of design, shape, texture and balance of black and white. He achieves half-tones within the limitations of the line plate.
Joe Forkan's "Staggering Heights" reveals
a master of anatomy and expressive drawing. He should do one large
drawing of Newt Gingrich and call it "Staggering Heights."
--Alfonso Giella
Reel Mistake
To the Editor,Unbelievable. If it wasn't sitting here, in black and white, right in front of me, I wouldn't believe it. Your paper constantly disses the daily rags for being so unprofessional. Yet you hire a film reviewer who thinks there are two "o"s in Angelica Huston's last name ("Guard Dog," Tucson Weekly, November 30). Wake up and smell the coffee, Stacey. She's the daughter of John Huston (Have you ever heard of him? Probably not, he was merely one of the greats), not the sister of Whitney Houston (I'm sure you know who she is).
--Harry Pletcher
Guest List
To the Editor,Regarding Jana Rivera's "Houseguest From Hell" (Tucson Weekly, November 22): Jana Rivera will never get that cup of coffee with Katharine Hepburn if she continues to misspell the first name of that great actress! Does this make her "really great, high paying job" at The Weekly safe for awhile?
--Don Bentz
Ghost Story
To the Editor,Regarding "Dead Reckoning" (Tucson Weekly, November 30): Where has Urrea been hiding? And where can I buy the book?
--John Annerino
Development Blues
To the Editor,Thanks for the great story on Don Diamond and his empire. He definitely has slipped the shaft of Californication with lots of Vaseline to the Tucson basin.
I am wondering if Supervisor Ed Moore is sleeping with Diamond, considering his waffling on development issues. The current decision to allow the continued rape of the Sonoran Desert for dense-pack housing, a hotel and golf course off Kinney Road next to Tucson Mountain Park is ludicrous.
The whole idea smacks of collusion between Herder and Moore.
The University of Arizona touts itself as environmentally conscious.
Apparently, that's only by convenience. Of course, the University
knows the environmental importance of another golf course. Mostly
they know the importance of the almighty dollar.
--Donald E. Longs
Driven To Respond
To the Editor,I find it amusing that Shane Parker's letter "Keep on Trucking" (Tucson Weekly, November 30) finds Jeff Smith's column ("Montezuma's Revenge," Tucson Weekly, October 19) to be raving, consistently inaccurate, based on marginally accurate facts, while, in the same sentence, Mr. Parker seems to consistently read it. Regarding Parker's letter:
1. I have lived on the border for the past 40 years and traveled via automobile throughout the border states and Mexico. I don't know where Parker's knowledge and experience come from, but I must have had my eyes shut during my travels, as I have never seen--nor has my husband seen--licensed Mexican trucks such as the semis, 18-wheelers, piggybacks etc. traveling our highways.
2. Anyone who has traveled in Mexico and is familiar with its customs, knows that mordida is a way of life and no one--not ex-President Salinas, NAFTA, wealthy owners of corporations or trucking companies--will control or eliminate bribery.
3. New trucks do not necessarily mean safer trucks. Is the construction of these trucks the same as is required in the U.S. under the Department of Transportation? Are the drivers required to be tested and certified for a commercial driver's license? If a U.S. citizen is involved in an accident with a Mexican vehicle where the Mexican vehicle is at fault, who does the U.S. citizen pursue for satisfaction--the driver, the company, Mexico, NAFTA?
4. The main reason the Global Tracking Device (GTD) was developed was to be used for the safety/protection of the drivers and vehicles. The GTD has been used for many years by the large trucking firms and is now used by numerous corporations and federal agencies as a tracking source for their personnel and vehicles, not as a monitoring device for "Big Brother." Many recent investigative reports have exposed the fatigued truck driver on our highways, and if anyone personally knows a longhaul trucker you find that these exposés are factual. If you then believe that we do indeed have some unsafe truckers on our highways, I say it is well worth the government interference to protect the public by using GTD.
I may not always agree with Smith's column, but I always look
forward to it. Reading any column written by a reporter or letter
to the editor should open up the pros and cons of the subject,
but Parker's comments and knowledge of the subject leave much
to be desired. It gives me the impression that Parker will benefit
in some manner if there are no rules or restrictions for the Mexican
truckers.
--Agnes M Hunt
