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Updated Dec 14,
2006
Letters to the Editor
Iraq
Withdrawal
Through the fog of war we can
now see a light, albeit faint, that
brings hope for a resolution of the
Iraq crisis. All Americans should
encourage the Administration to
take a hard look at the thoughtful
ideas expressed by the learned elder
statesmen of the Iraq Study Group
who propose a potential way out of
the tragedy that Iraq has become.
With great sadness I note that it
appears that President Bush may
repudiate the great bulk of the suggestions
given by the Commission.
His attitude goes beyond stubbornness.
He insists that victory is attainable.
President Bush and Prime
Minister Blair seem to persist in
their mistaken belief that we can
still achieve democracy in Iraq. In a
country divided by tribal strife and
by religious differences how can we
expect democracy to emerge? If
“victory” in Iraq is defined by
whether we are successful in bringing
democracy to that country then
we are doomed to failure.
If not for the clear possibility
that a precipitous bloodbath would
occur if we were to withdraw immediately,
I would support such an
action. We can only hope to bring
security to Iraq through the good
graces of other countries. We have
become the occupier. Iraq must
stand on its own. Give the ideas of
the Commission a chance, President
Bush!
Elaine Starr Hurd
La Cañada Flintridge
Inverness Slope
Disaster?
I read with dismay the La
Cañada Flintridge department
head’s recent report on the
Inverness Road repairs. This road
will have been washed out two
years ago in January. The report
states that the work is 65% complete.
I attended a City Council
meeting two months ago and was
told at that time that the road was
65% complete. One wonders what
has been going on at the site In the
last 60 days?
I live close to what was once
Inverness Drive and see the work
or lack thereof on a daily basis. To
say that the contractor is working
at a snail’s pace would be insulting
to the lowly snail. Former LCF
Director of Public Works Steve Castellanos told hillside residents
in a letter dated June 5, 2006, that
the repairs would take four months,
and if the project ran over schedule
there would be a penalty levied by
the city on the contractor,
Remedial Civil Constructors. We
are now 60 days past the projected
October completion date and are
still being told that the project is
“65% complete.” Aside from the
inconvenience to local residents
having to drive through Pasadena
to get to LCF, how much overtime
are LCF citizens forking over to
contractors making these long-overdue
repairs, or are we penalizing
this procrastination?
In any event, the work keeps
moving slowly — oh so slowly —
along..
Jack Bierman
La Cañada Flintridge
Recycling Bin Theft
Last Friday, our recycling bin
was stolen. As everyone does on
our street and as we have done for
years, we set it out on Thursday
night in case the pick-up was early
that Friday morning.
I called Athens Waste &
Disposal and they did replace my
bin but only after several days and
several calls. We did call the Sheriff
to report it and were told that the
department did not know of a rash
of such incidences; however, a
friend of mine who lives on Briartree Drive here in La Cañada
Flintridge and not far from me (I
live on Starlight Crest Drive) said
her neighbor had the same experience
a few weeks ago. We wonder
if the person who stole it was looking
for material he could use for
identity theft because the contents
were not dumped out but taken
also. Fortunately my husband has a
shredder and is careful about shredding
any papers that could be damaging
if in the wrong hands.
Readers should be warned
about this incident so that they can
be careful with what they toss in
their recycle bins.
Martha Brumfield
La Cañada Flintridge
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