Price gouging at pump is wrong
I've lived in Alaska going on four years now, and really was floored by gas prices here. We are getting oil and refining it right here in state and for some reason, it costs more than it does in Hawaii, where all of it has to be shipped in. Oil companies are price gouging and it's not right.
Every time they get investigated, "There's never any wrongdoing." Yeah right. Someone needs to investigate the investigators.
I understand the oil companies have to make money, but poverty stricken people are taking the brunt of greediness. Someone, uncorrupted, needs to step in. I'd recommend the federal government but are politicians trustworthy anymore?
Changes are overdue. Having gasoline is a must!
Thank you for the chance to vent. I feel better already.
-- Adam Hooven
Anchorage
Enstar needs tighter controls
We, the Enstar consumer, have already incurred a 50 percent hike in gas rates over the past couple of years. Now it appears as though we, the consumer, are being tasked to bail out their accounting errors for the overcharges to the Fort Richardson laundry.
What about those laundry consumers (veterans and military personnel) who must have paid higher prices because the laundry must have charged higher rates to conduct business? Do those customers get a "rebate" or does it go into the laundry concession's pocket?
The utility commission needs to request Enstar to make a defensible bookkeeping case to increase rates to make up for their errors, and make sure they don't just keep attempting to raise their rates to amortize the mistakes over the upcoming years.
-- Lee A. Wyatt USMC (retired)
Wasilla
Hannity, Beck shows not 'news'
I was initially encouraged by Leonard Pitts' column Oct. 3, but was disappointed when he wrote that O'Reilly, Hannity and Beck are "news" outlets. I quite disagree. Those are "programs" featuring opinions of the hosts.
Just as we do not call Leno or Letterman "news" shows even though the hosts discuss current events, we do not call Channel 11 at 5 p.m. the Dave Stroh Show; it is news.
True, conservatives need a news outlet where presentation is amplified with similarly positive words about the subject, as is with current mainstream media outlets for liberals. However, Fox programs noted here are not "news" but "programs" and describe themselves as such.
To some this is a semantic argument but words do have specific meanings.
-- Brett Hobde
Anchorage
Obama didn't earn Nobel Prize
So President Barack Obama has won the Nobel Peace Prize. Well isn't that special. I thought this prize was given to someone who has done something.
I guess now the Nobel Peace Prize ranks right up there with the prize you get in your Happy Meal.
-- Steve Jones
Eagle River
Why blame aid organizations?
A recent Compass unfairly blames homelessness on the very organizations feeding and sheltering our neighbors and transitioning them back to independence. The author recommends closing Brother Francis Shelter and housing the homeless on an isolated island far from our view and key transitional services.
Most BFS guests find themselves homeless after a temporary financial setback. When they arrive, they lack the support systems that get many of us through life's challenges.
Their immediate needs are met with a meal and shelter from the street. Each individual is treated with dignity and encouraged to be self-sufficient. Soon they are surrounded by a network of support, including health services, job placement and housing referral. Through specialized case management, BFS guests access the many resources offered in our city and many make their way back to a productive, independent life.
Homelessness is an unfortunate reality in Anchorage and a difficult economy makes more of our neighbors vulnerable. This is the time to support organizations like BFS and learn more through www.cssalaska.org.
-- Michelle Egan
Anchorage
Editor's note: The writer is a member of the board of Catholic Social Services.
Construction sites shouldn't idle police
I must admit I am becoming increasingly frustrated every time I see a police officer parked alongside the road at a construction site, lights flashing. I understand that the safety of construction workers is a concern but am confused why almost every time I see a construction site, especially on the Glenn Highway between south Eagle River and Eklutna, there is a patrol vehicle parked effectively slowing traffic to a snail's pace (such as 15 mph in a 45 mph safety zone).
There is no doubt that as taxpayers, we are paying for this idle time. The next time APD and the police union complain about not having enough officers, I am afraid their complaints will fall upon many deaf ears.
-- Stephen Thornton
Eagle River
Where did schools official study?
I wonder where Paul Prussing, our deputy director of Alaska's Division of Teaching and Learning Support, studied history that he learned that Columbus founded the United States ("Dark side of Columbus discovery emerges," Oct. 12).
Columbus may be credited with discovering the New World, but he had been dead for 250 years before the foundation of the United States.
-- Lucas Wolfe
Anchorage