Letters to the Editor

June 28, 2009

To the Editor: 

Gas For The U.S. 

The information in this letter was taken from the June 12, 2009 SitNews, Ketchikan, AK article entitled “Historic Agreement Moves Alaska Gasline Forward”.

I want to commend Governor Palin and her fellow Alaskans for passing The Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA), which set the stage for Trans Canada and ExxonMobil to enter into an agreement for the construction of a natural gas pipeline. 

The pipeline will carry natural gas from Alaska’s North Slope through Alaska and Canada and down to the lower 48 states. Eventually it will supply 8% of the U.S. annual natural gas requirements.

This clean energy project will create thousands of jobs and large revenues for Alaska; and will help the U.S. continue to decrease its dependence on foreign oil and it will make a positive impact on the environment.

Government officials in the lower 48 states should emulate the Alaskan example and pursue increased domestic energy production, including the development of offshore oil reserves.

Congratulations Governor Palin for your hard work and perseverance to get the job done. 

P.S. Alaska is a beautiful state. My wife and I visited Alaska in May and June 2008. 

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH

June 10, 2009

To the Editor:

Declare your independence from impaired driving this July 4th

This July 4th weekend, Georgians will leave home behind and pack the kids in the family car headed for their favorite summer vacation destinations. It’s time for sun-soaked holiday reunions where friends gather with barbecue, boating, beaches, and cold beer on their minds. But it’s also time for the Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) to remind all motorists to plan ahead wherever they plan to party this summer. And that means planning for a designated driver is Priority-One before any July 4th festivities begin. 

Unfortunately July 4th has joined the growing list of America’s heavy-drinking holidays like Halloween, St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, Super Bowl Sunday and New Year’s Eve. Every motorist should be aware that one-out-of-five traffic fatalities in Georgia are now alcohol-related. Statistics show drivers with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher are eleven times more likely to die in a crash than if involved in that same crash with no alcohol in their system at all.

“There’s nothing wrong with adults socializing with adult beverages, but add car keys to the mix and drinking-and- driving makes a deadly cocktail,” says Director Bob Dallas of the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. “Some drivers just won’t leave their “Margaritaville vacation mentality” behind. They carelessly climb behind the wheel while impaired and that’s when the trouble starts.”

And that’s why highway safety advocates across the country call the July 4th travel period one of this nation’s most dangerous times on our roadways due to DUI’s. The history of this all-American travel holiday tells the tale. About a third of all fatal crashes on our nation’s roads during the July 4th weekend involve at least one driver with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. In Georgia, nearly half the state’s fourteen July 4th traffic deaths involved at least one drunk driver in 2007. 

So every July 4th holiday the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety coordinates more than 500 Georgia police departments, sheriff’s offices and state patrol posts statewide to run concentrated patrols on our interstates and to set up sobriety checkpoints on our roadways. Safe drivers go on their way, but impaired drivers go to jail.

“So while everyone else is watching the sky for colorful lights during July Fourth fireworks, anyone who drives drunk should watch for blue lights in their rearview mirror instead,” says GOHS Director Bob Dallas. “The Operation Zero Tolerance message is simple: No warning tickets. No exceptions. Drunk drivers go to jail.”

“If you plan to party this July 4th, remember there are so many simple ways to prevent tragedy,” says GOHS Director Dallas. “Arrange for a sober driver, store taxi cab company numbers in your cell phone, or take mass transit. If you’re the designated driver, you too can help by reminding passengers about open container laws and not allowing alcohol to be consumed in your car, by obeying all traffic laws, and by making sure everyone always buckles-up.” 

“Remember, impaired driving is no accident or victimless crime,” says Director Dallas. “Know your limits, be responsible and be prepared to call 9-1-1 if you see an impaired driver endangering other lives on the road. Don’t let the Fourth of July blow up in your face. Take a stand and declare your independence from drunk driving this July 4th.”

Bob Dallas, Director
Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety

June 8, 2009

To the Editor: 

Create Jobs for Americans 

A while ago I read that Bill Gates and Mayor Michael Bloomberg were planning on donating a total of $500 million to reduce the incidence of smoking in developing countries, especially China. I haven’t seen any recent information on this subject, but I believe they made a commitment to this ridiculous project. 

Why are they concerned with the habits of the Chinese people? Do the Chinese worry about our health when they send all of those tainted products to the U.S.? Do the Chinese concern themselves with our economy when they flood our country with their products and eliminate U.S. jobs?

It is admirable for Bill and Mike to give back to society some of the many millions they have earned, but they should concern themselves with the plight of all the Americans who have lost their jobs because of the cheap goods manufactured in China and exported to the U.S. With U.S. unemployment projected to approach 10% in 2009, they should be investing the $500 million in the U.S. to create jobs for Americans, the same American workers who made them wealthy. 

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH

May 28, 2009

To the Editor: 

Cars Coming from China  

General Motors (GM) received $20 billion in U.S. government loans and might need another $50 billion to survive.

GM plans to close a number of U.S. plants and lay off thousands of workers. The UAW has agreed to eliminate or reduce employee benefits to drop the average wage, including benefits, from around $75 per hour to near $45 per hour, which is the average wage of U.S. auto workers at foreign plants in the U.S. Hopefully, GM will cut management staff and reduce executive salaries. These actions should make GM cost competitive and save thousands of American jobs.

However, to my astonishment, GM plans to increase imports from Mexico, South Korea, Japan and China from 15% in 2009 to 23% by 2014. Approximately 50,000 cars will be imported from Communist China by 2014.

Evidently the U.S. taxpayers are loaning GM $20-$50 billion to stay alive so it can close U.S. plants, lay off U.S. workers, transfer some production to foreign countries like Communist China and import inferior cars to the U.S. so more U.S. workers can be laid off. And our insurance rates and health care costs will increase from accidents as the wheels falls off the Chinese made vehicles.

We don’t need imported cars. We need fuel efficient, reasonably priced cars manufactured in the U.S. 

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH 

May 22, 2209

To the Taxpayers of Gwinnett County: 

As Mayor of Suwanee, Georgia, I can attest firsthand that local governments are profoundly impacted by these challenging economic times. I can also promise that the Suwanee City Council is doing everything in our power to hold the line on taxes. 

People are hurting. Many have lost jobs or taken pay cuts. Businesses are facing unprecedented challenges. Non-profits are trying to survive. Everyone seems to be doing whatever they can keep costs down. Well, not everyone. 

Earlier this week, our Gwinnett County Commissioners announced their plan to raise your property taxes by more than 25% (30% if you live in a city) so that they can expand their ‘09 budget by about 10% over their ‘08 budget. We don’t have the exact figures because they still won’t publish the budget they adopted on March 3. You see, even though we’re nearly halfway into the fiscal year, without their budget document, the public is being kept in the dark. Our Commissioners are ballooning County government in the worst economy anyone can remember.

$43 million of this enormous $87 million property tax increase isn’t even planned to be spent in 2009- they’re socking it away in something called “working capital reserve”. Our Commissioners have decided it’s better to overtax you and hoard those dollars than for you to pay your mortgage, healthcare or for your kids’ education.

Under the guise of public safety, our Commissioners have hatched a curious plan to hire 170 more officers to start patrolling inside cities that are already policed effectively by the cities. This wasteful and dangerous duplication will require another $17-20 million of your money in new taxes… can’t know for certain without the budget. Sheriff Butch Conway calls their scheme a “terrible mistake.” 

Growing the size of government in these economic times is exactly the wrong thing for any elected body. It’s quite obvious that our Commissioners are oblivious to the reality that the rest of us face. We’re cutting back, yet they’re expanding their County largesse and sending us the bill. And it’s going to be a whopper.

State law requires our Commissioners hold three public hearings at GJAC before they set these new tax rates. Two are scheduled for May 26, the day after Memorial Day. The third is June 2, after which the County will vote on the new tax rate. I plan to attend all of them, and hope you will too.

Have we learned anything from the County’s recent “trash plan” episode? This time, will we make our voices heard to our elected Commissioners BEFORE they take action on this outrageous tax hike? If not, brace yourself for a doozie of a county tax bill.

Dave Williams, Mayor
City of Suwanee, Georgia

May 20, 2009

To the Editor,

Buckle-Up: A crash-course in Road-Reality
Click It Or Ticket!

It’s Click It Or Ticket time in Georgia and anyone who complains about getting a ticket for not buckling-up deserves a crash-course in road-reality even though the numbers often seem surreal. Across the country, more than 14-thousand passenger vehicle occupants weren’t wearing their seatbelts when they were killed in crashes in 2007. It’s tragic because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates seatbelts saved as many as 15,147 lives that same year. And yet, One-in-five Americans still fails to buckle-up regularly!

While all this can sometimes just sound like statistics, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety and our law enforcement partners know from personal experience that behind those numbers are actual faces of mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, children and friends from right here in Georgia. Too many families talk to us about the losses that could have been prevented if loved ones only wore their safetybelts.

Now we’re only days away from Memorial Day and that signals the unofficial start of Summer. In Georgia, Memorial Day isn’t just about backyard barbecues and swimming pools. It’s about holiday travel too. And even though Georgia has an 89-percent safetybelt use rate -- the highest in the Southeast -- too many of our traffic fatalities in Georgia are the ones that are still unbelted. During the 2007 Memorial Day travel period, nine-of-the-eleven crash fatality victims were not wearing seatbelts. 

Truth is, some people in Georgia are still convinced they don’t need seatbelts. What’s worse is those people who choose to disobey the law are taking a chance not only with their lives, but with the emotional and financial health of their families, friends, and the state we call home. Death may be the ultimate consequence for not wearing a seatbelt, but even for those who escape a fatal crash, the economic cost of injuries that might have been prevented by a properly buckled seatbelt can be staggering. We all share in the tragic consequences and bear the burden of the catastrophic costs of needless injuries from traffic crashes. Every year, vehicles crashes cost the equivalent of sending an $800-invoice to every person in this country!

This goes to the heart of our mission to protect the public. It’s why we join every year with hundreds of our state and local law enforcement agencies and highway safety partners to step-up high-visibility safetybelt enforcement on Georgia roads. Traffic enforcement officers will be out in force this May to show their dedication to solving this problem. We want 100-percent of Georgia drivers and passengers to buckle-up. Buckling up costs you nothing, but the costs of NOT buckling up may be a ticket or worse…your life. Treat this as a tough and potentially life-saving reminder: Click It or Ticket! Because in Georgia, if you don’t click it, expect a ticket!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. It’s not about writing tickets. It’s about saving lives. And I’ll keep saying it until we stop seeing needless deaths on our roads because drivers and passengers won’t invest the three seconds it takes to buckle-up.

Don’t let your Memorial Day weekend end with a memorial service for someone you love.

Click It or Ticket!

Bob Dallas
Bob Dallas, Director
Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety

May 14, 2009

To the Editor:

Appeasement Jeopardizes National Security

President Obama is making mistakes impacting our foreign policy.

The Administration tried appeasement when it declared Chavez’s president-for-life referendum was “for the most part…..a process that was fully consistent with a democratic process”.

The Administration looked the other way when Russia pressured Kyrgyestan to shut down a valuable U.S. air base.

In Turkey Obama said “The United States is not, and never will be, at war with Islam”, which is true, but he should have stated the U.S. will pursue Islamic terrorists.

The President warned North Korea it would suffer “consequences” if it went ahead with the launch of a long range missile, but North Korea snubbed the U.S. and launched the missile on a 2000 mile run. Also, North Korea recently restarted its nuclear weapons development program.

President Obama attempted to charm Iran, but Iran’s parliament speaker rebuked our President and told him the U.S. has to acknowledge 60 years of crimes against Iran, change our policies, and abandon Israel.

Obama is making reconciliation overtures to Cuba, but Cuba is negotiating to allow Russian warships and aircraft to refuel at Cuban bases; and Russia might be allowed to reopen an electronic intelligence gathering operation in Lourdes.

Appeasing and apologizing (for nothing) to these totalitarian countries is interpreted as groveling weakness by the Administration, and it is jeopardizing our national security.

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH

May 8, 2009

To the Editor,

"Memorial Day, A Start To Summer "

May 25th, Memorial Day, what many consider the start of summer’s boating season. People from all over our state will be dusting off the boat seats, fueling up the wave runners and giving their favorite set of water skis a good coat of wax, but this year take along awareness of your choice in beverages before you hit the waves. In 2007, alcohol use was reported to be the number “1” contributing factor of casualties in boating accidents by the United States Coast Guard. Country wide, 157 people lost their life as a result of boating and alcohol use combined in some manner that year. Unfortunately, Georgia is not immune to this fact. From 2003 to 2007 Georgia has had 20 deaths that were directly associated with alcohol use listed as the leading cause of the boating fatality. A boat operator with BAC above 0.10 percent is estimated to be 10 times more likely to die in a boating accident than a sober operator. Make this summer’s outings on the water safe for you, your family and others – leave the driving to a sober skipper and opt for non-alcoholic beverages while out enjoying the water sports. Many operators are also blind to the fact that boater’s in Georgia are able to operate a boat at a more drunken condition that what our laws allow for driving on your state highways. Driving Under The Influence on a state highway is set at a 0.08 BAC or above while Boating Under The Influence on state controlled waterways is set at a 0.10 BAC or above. An attempt to correct this oversight, to bring harmony to the laws so that Georgia has one “per se” limit of 0.08 BAC, is being sought out via Georgia Senate Bill 71 by Senator Bill Heath of Bremen and Georgia House Bill 669 by Representative Mark Butler of Carrollton; sponsored by Representative Tom Rice. Yet, one common sense approach to safe boating that helps save lives in order to have a more safe time on Georgia public waters is to not drink while operating a boat. Appoint a designated skipper. Or, simply, save all alcohol drinking activities for when you are safely on land. 

Sincerely,

Andy M. Johnson
Constituent Author and Organizer of Grassroots Activist for Georgia Senate Bill 71 and Georgia House Bill 669
Georgia Hunter Safety Instructor
Tallapoosa, Ga. 

May 7, 2009

To the Editor,

Buckling down on unbuckled drivers on Georgia's rural roads

It’s hard to believe, but we’re nearly halfway through 2009 and summer vacation road trips are almost here. What’s also hard to believe is that vacationing drivers in the vast rural areas of our state face a much greater risk of being injured or killed in traffic crashes than drivers in more populated areas.

It’s scary but true and the problem is safety belt use is lower than it should be on our rural roadways so rural Georgia drivers face a very real danger out on country roads, especially around vacation time. In fact, of the 1,641 traffic fatalities in Georgia in 2007, 49 percent actually occurred in rural areas. 

Here at the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) we’re joining forces with local highway safety partners, especially in rural areas, in an effort to make Georgia’s roads safer around our rural communities. This May we’re getting ready to launch the second wave of our high-visibility Click It or Ticket enforcement campaign on Georgia’s Rural Roads where fatal motor vehicle crashes account for half of all this state’s traffic fatalities.

We want everyone to know, whether you’re driving a passenger vehicle or a pick-up, Georgia Is Buckle-Up Country! Because it’s an urban legend that only city drivers face the risk of fatal crashes and serious injury here in Georgia. In 2007, 527 people died in traffic crashes in Georgia’s most rural counties. That compares with 342 traffic death in Metro Atlanta. 

Our country roads are designed as local, low-speed community connectors and narrow, two-lane highways. With no physical barriers to separate oncoming traffic or restrict access to merging vehicles, rural routes often pose deadly driving hazards. When unbuckled motorists drive too fast for conditions in the country, all too often our rural highways become roads to tragedy.

And it’s not just a problem here. Nationwide, more than half of America’s traffic deaths occur on country roads even though only a quarter of our population calls the country their home and travels there daily. Because of these factors, Americans driving or riding on rural roadways face a far greater risk of being killed or injured in a traffic crash.

Unfortunately, pickup trucks are often at the root of this deadly problem. Many pickup truck drivers believe their ride is safer than any vehicle on the road. But the fact is pickup truck drivers and their passengers are the most likely motorists to die in rural road crashes. Why? Because pickup trucks have a higher center of gravity and they’re most likely to roll over in a crash. So unbuckled passengers in pickups are most likely to be ejected and killed. 

In Georgia, pickup truck seat belt usage is 17-percent less than other passenger vehicles. And nearly 75-percent of the pickup truck occupants killed each year in Georgia are not restrained. Failure to wear seat belts causes an estimated 5,670 additional pickup truck injuries and costs Georgians $346-million in related health care costs and economic losses.

Our special rural roadway enforcement emphasis will begin in conjunction with the State of Georgia’s annual May Click It or Ticket campaign. If we could just get all occupants of all vehicles to wear their seat belts, the senseless traffic deaths in Georgia’s rural counties could be prevented. We need to put the brakes on Georgia’s rural roads fatalities and now’s the time to do it.

The fact is seatbelts save lives, but too many Georgians, particularly those in rural counties, still need a tough reminder. So remember, nor more warnings. No more excuses. No matter who you are or where you drive, be sure to click it if you don’t want to risk a ticket. Buckle Up Every Trip. Every Time.

Bob Dallas, Director
Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety

April 30, 2009

To the Editor:

Iranian Nuclear Missile Threat

Iran tested the launch of a Scud missile from a ship in the Caspian Sea, which was designed to provide the capability of launching intermediate range missiles from cargo ships sitting off coastlines. Also, within a few years Iran will have long range missiles capable of striking North America.

Iran could have nuclear warheads available to mount on missiles in late 2009. The U.S. and other countries do not have missile defense systems to ward off an attack. Counter strikes could be launched against Iran, but this would not prevent Iran from launching an initial strike based on irrational thinking by Amadmanejad and his Iranian cohorts.

The Obama Administration is making conciliatory gestures towards Iran, but is not making any progress in curtailing Iran’s nuclear development program. According to Walid Phares, an expert on global terrorism and the Middle East, “the perception in Tehran is the Obama Administration will not use everything at its disposal to apply pressure on Iran."

Furthermore, Obama’s apparent bow to Saudi King Abdullah is perceived as an act of submission and weakness by the international community.

I fear Obama’s naive blunders will embolden Iran to pursue and possibly use its nuclear missile capabilities.

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH

April 16, 2009

To the Editor:

Combat Somali Pirates

The Somali pirates continue to wreak havoc on commercial shipping off the coast of Africa. There are about 20 ships with over 300 hundred hostages currently being held by the pirates for ransom.

Action has to be taken to combat the pirates. Shipping companies should place heavily armed professional guards on ships with shoot to kill orders. All countries with commercial ships traversing the African shipping lanes should provide naval warships to protect shipping and provide convoy escort duty just like they did during WWII. We need slow moving strafing aircraft located at sea or on land to be available to quickly search out and destroy the pirates in their boats.

If the preceding steps do not work, the impacted countries should sink the pirates mother ships and consider hitting the pirate havens along the coast of Somalia with aircraft and naval attacks.

Although diplomacy is preferable to military action, the Somali government is too weak to rein in the pirates, and therefore military activities will probably be needed to solve the problem.

Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH