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In response to “Big Brother’s effort to stop drunk driving could strand you” (July 11 Opinion):
Alcohol lobby focused on trying to protect itself, not the public
Booze lobbyist Sarah Longwell’s “the sky is falling” opinion piece about new technology used to stop chronic drunk drivers is nothing more than fear mongering and outlandish scare tactics.
Her justifications serve to protect the ability of repeat drunk drivers to kill innocent people. The alcohol lobby should be ashamed.
In 2010, more than 10,000 people were killed in drunk driving crashes.
Here’s what we should be asking: Would we rather do everything possible to stop drunk driving, or would we like to continue picking out caskets for more than 10,000 loved ones each and every year?
Maria Smithson
Charlotte
In response to “Eastland Mall proof that public housing harms neighborhoods” (July 6 Forum):
Concentrating low-income housing harms city more
Forum writer Ketan Chokshi’s ill-informed attempt to justify his “Not In My Backyard” attitude reflects the “I’m better than you” mindset held by too many today.
Do the slightest bit of research and you’ll learn that low-income housing has the greatest negative impact when it is concentrated in one area. Of course, some folks are not interested in facts because their chief concern is to keep “those people” on the other side of town. They don’t mind the crime, so long as it stays “over there.”
Torrius Grantham
Charlotte
Best president? No easy pick for this independent, minority voter
As an independent black voter who has voted for Democrats and Republicans alike, I’m in a quandary. I don’t really line up with Mitt Romney. He has wavered on issues important to me and I don’t feel he knows how to fix the economy based on policies and numbers I’ve seen from his time as governor.
Though I agree with President Obama on higher education reform and the jobs bill, I disagree with him on gay marriage, abortion and his new policy concerning deportation.
So who do I vote for? The Republican I disagree with, or the Democrat I disagree with?
For now, I’ll just focus on the non-presidential races and pray for guidance.
Shawn R. Cunningham
Charlotte
In response to “Accusations fly in feisty debate for 9th District” (July 10):
Boils down to ethics; neither GOP candidate gets my vote
When an employee has inside information on a decision that will impact stock value and buys or sells company stock based on that information, he/she is breaking the law – and the action is unethical.
But when an elected official owns land he personally voted to annex, a “disclosure of interest” is all that’s required to pass the legality test.
That the Senate Ethics Committee “never acted on it publicly” hardly inspires confidence. I want to vote for a candidate whose votes and resulting actions are both legal and ethical. I will be voting for Jennifer Roberts.
Katie Fine
Charlotte
In response to “Summer is the weak link in educating our children” (July 10 Viewpoint):
Education highly valued in India, we’re not keeping up
I work for an Indian company and recently asked a colleague what his children were doing for summer vacation.
His reply: “There is no time off; they go to school all 12 months.”
Meanwhile, friends in the United States who are teachers tell me they’re increasingly faced with parents who want their kids to get a good grade without much effort.
We have a dearth of engineering grads in the U.S. and more of my colleagues from India are increasingly getting hired here.
We no longer need children to “work the farm” all summer. We need year-round education to keep up with the rest of the well-educated world.
Rose Rummel-Eury
Concord
Dugout politics my way: Nix the baseball stadium, build the park
Against fans’ wishes, the “manager’s favorite” – baseball – is at bat again after several strike-outs.
Thankfully, the very expensive streetcar-to-replace-buses was sidetracked.
Now, let’s send baseball “back to the minors” and put in the downtown park, as fans originally wanted. Or, let’s get new management.
Joe Spencer
Charlotte
To stop voter fraud consider options from Iraq, Oregon
The most likely form of voter abuse is one person voting more than once in different precincts.
Let’s simply ensure each person can vote only once. Follow Iraq’s lead: Everyone who votes must dip an index finger in indelible ink.
Another color-blind system is Oregon’s way of mailing ballots to each registered voter.
We must also insist that those who’ve died are removed from the registered voter rolls.
Carolyn Lawson
Huntersville
