The death of bin Laden
Regarding concerns about killing bin Laden, the most dangerous extremist in the world: I say we had little choice. We were uninvited intruders in a foreign country on a very tight and risky mission. What if he would have gotten away or somehow tipped off an aide to blow up the compound? Could you imagine the turmoil, disagreements and wasted years if we had brought him to Guantanamo or put him on trial in New York City, or the hostages that would have been at risk all over the world as bargaining chips for his release?
The closure that we all need to end a tragic period in our history would have come painfully slow at a time when we need to get on with re-booting our nation. The burial at sea was also relevant to prevent a site for martyrdom.
Bin Laden, fortunately, died quickly, not like the hundreds of ill-fated hostages who watched their plane crash into a building or the thousand that were slowly incinerated or crushed in the following inferno. Bin Laden declared war on America and attacked, then we killed him. That’s good enough for me.
Tom Lopez/Longmont
Despite all the cheering over the killing of Osama bin Laden, I felt a deep sadness, not only that assassination has become so widely accepted as an American military and diplomatic tool, but also that, as a nation, we have again chosen to move forward in history by killing people.
If bin Laden were indeed unarmed, do we attribute his death to a presidential directive, or to a soldier acting individually in a tense moment? Will his death have any lasting effect on our “War on Terror,” a war that more and more seems to have no ending point?
Warfare is deeply entrenched in America’s history, but it should be noted that being in a permanent state of war is precisely what brought down Athens, the city-state generally regarded as the foundation of democracy and of Western civilization itself. It is a shame that Martin Luther King’s legacy of nonviolent action is now so cavalierly termed “childishly naïve.”
Robert Porath/Boulder
Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin refuses to offer any kudos to the guy who had to make the decision regarding elimination of Public Enemy No. 1 — Osama bin Laden. Well, why not? We gave her plenty of well-deserved credit for whipping the Spanish in Cuba. Heckuva job, guvna! Nice of you to divert all the attention to that New Yorker with the pince-nez glasses. You remember him: We call him “Teddy.” Like “bear.” I figured that would excite a few memorable images for you. On second thought, I wonder why you weren’t sent in with Seal Team Six. I hear you’re a pretty fair shot. Wait until Harry Truman finds out.
Greg Iwan/Longmont
Horrific plastic problem
(Re: “A life less plastic,” Boulderganic, May 5.) Thanks for your article.I am a member of the Glen Rock Ecological Commission here in New Jersey. My [goal] is to reduce plastic usage. I have presented a proposal to our borough government to restrict plastic bag distribution by charging for bags and requiring they be made of 3-millimeter-thick plastic. Ultimately, if enacted as an ordinance, plastic bag usage would decline by at least 50 percent. Similar programs in India, China and many other regions in the world have produced drastic reductions in plastic bag usage.
Similarly, I am attacking the sale of water in plastic bottles. These two items made of plastic are the main culprits contributing to the billions upon billions of tons of plastic, much of it toxic, that is currently befouling the waters and lands of this planet we live on. I would be pleased to hear from you with your thoughts on this horrific problem and also the progress of the plan to ban or fine the use of plastic bags in Boulder.
Andy Curshen/Glen Rock, N.J.
You left out a DJ
(Re: “Scratching as an art,” Buzz, April 28.) This is a good read. I’m glad when hip-hop, especially local, gets publicity. I am wondering why DJ Notch, who won the Colorado DMCs last year, wasn’t mentioned in an article about the Colorado DMCs? As journalists you got to let people know. Peace.
Aaron ‘A-L’ Ladley/Denver
Save the Hwy. 93 corridor
What is the 93 corridor? The beautiful, mostly undeveloped stretch of land along the foothills between Golden and Boulder is home to Highway 93.
Why does it need saving? Some well-meaning folks want to install a fullsized, four-lane, divided highway toll road right along side of Highway 93.
If you have not driven Highway 93 lately, please do so soon to remind yourself what natural beauty in our backyard looks like. As spring comes and the valleys become green, enjoy the pastoral setting that belongs to all of us — before someone installs a toll road complete with overpasses and … well, picture a W-470 placed next to 93.
Currently, Highway 93 is widened and adjusted periodically as needed. A toll road like E-470 will wipe out green space along the hogback and forever have increasing tolls to try to pay for it. This will encourage more cars, houses and businesses in the area.
Highway 93 is a special case that needs special consideration. We have a beautiful gift along the foothills that needs to be protected. Boulder does amazing things with open space protection, and so do others. They know, then, that humans and others suffer from loss of natural beauty. Natural beauty has value. The deal cut by Boulder is a compromise and a sellout!
We can preserve the Highway 93 corridor. Please contact Gov. John Hickenlooper and tell him a toll road is not the solution for Highway 93. A regional task force to preserve the natural beauty along the foothills needs to be created and given the task of making it happen.
Steve Ruby/Boulder
The f-word
(Re: “Yes, that word,” In Case You Missed it, May 5.) You love “the word”? Interesting that the same word is used for anger, amazement, belittlement and the act of love. We are, of course, told on another page of your same issue (P. 39) that women like tenderness before fucking, combining all the meanings of the word, including anger in attempting to achieve the peak experience. No wonder we are so confused.
We use the same word for opposite peak experiences. One that destroys us and destroys the other, and joins us in a mutually Rand-ish narcissism. The other which draws us together into mutual bonding. WTF! Maybe this confusion is akin to why we can accept the idea of protecting ourselves with nuclear terror or dismiss a million in collateral damage, just as Stalin, Hitler, Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, the CIA and the famed “American People” do (as in, “fuck them, they are the enemy”). Well, Jesus did say, “Love your enemies,” but I don’t believe he meant “fuck them.”
Personally, I don’t love this irrational and destructive, very confused word. Interesting also that we pretend to keep this “adult” word from children. My experience teaching junior high taught me the futility of that effort! You are at least correct in challenging the repression of the word, keeping it in the shadows where it gains its power to continue the confusion. Gotta see this movie!
Bob Kinsey/via Internet
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