We cant ignore chronic alcoholics
As a hotel employee in the downtown area I want to thank you for the Jan. 21 front page article on the problem of chronic alcoholism.
I have dealt with most of the same problems that are stated in the article.
I in the past was never a fan of the dry-out motels and centers but for the past few years my views have changed.
We as Americans should not behave like a Third World country but rather be a light of change and hope to the whole world, and that includes the downtrodden few who haunt our streets. If we ignore the problem we will have dead people in the streets, and good luck explaining that to your children.
So we should give a strong hope to the hopeless by putting teeth into the laws and require a lockdown medical facility and a public heath policy that allows the police, fire and health departments to decide who needs these services.
I understand some will never stop drinking but their actions put other people at risk and should be dealt with accordingly. Thanks for the time.
— Randy Wood
Anchorage
Because of its own actions, Charlie Hebdo owes reparations
Michael Carey, one of Alaska's senior pundits, dares to open the Pandora's box marked "intellectual content" in writing about Charlie Hebdo (Jan. 18 Commentary). As he correctly points out, there is good satire and bad satire. Interested readers can find a whole string of Charlie Hebdo covers on the Internet. Discriminating readers will find them consistently puerile, unwitty and trite. Charlie Hebdo's constitutional right to junk speech was not worth the lives of two policemen.
The French government warned Hebdo that they were stirring up a hornet's nest and asked them to cool it. Hebdo retaliated with ever-more-vulgar jabs. Now two policemen are dead.
Where to go with this? I believe reparations are due. The owners, employees and the estates of dead owners and employees of Hebdo should compensate the city of Paris for the cost of police protection and emergency response. This will run to some money. They should also compensate the dependents of police killed in the fray. This could run to even more money. Perhaps there should be civil fines as well for frivolously lethal free speech, just as there are fines for filing frivolous income tax returns. The message: Sow the wind and reap the whirlwind.
A hefty price tag might cause the next clique of self-styled satirists to reconsider whether there is any defensible merit in their rant.
— Diane Pleninger
Anchorage
Gov. Walker gave positive address; is Legislature willing to listen?
I enjoyed the governor's address. He had a lot of positive things that he wanted us to think about. The pan shots to the audience were positive. Did anybody watch what Mike and Kevin were doing? How many times did Mike drink from his white cup? Where was Kevin looking most of the time? If you were watching you saw things that as voters you should be interested in.
Obama delivered his address Tuesday night. We watched Biden and Boehner sitting behind him. They were polite. They did not look uninterested. They were not signaling their party members. They were polite. John Boehner knows he has to work with the president to make things work. Do you think that Mike Chenault and Kevin Meyer are willing to do the same? I, for one, hope so. This address was an opportunity to see if the Legislature is willing to follow what Alaskans voted for. I encourage all to watch and listen carefully as the dialogue continues. After all, it is our future they are playing with. Who do you trust?
— Brett Delana
Anchorage
Valley post offices slow as portrayed
I was very encouraged to see that Alaska Dispatch News had a front page article on the incredibly slow postal lines we all face in the Valley area. I shudder when I have to go to the postal annex to pick up a package. As a teacher, I have often considered bringing papers to grade as I stand in lines that wind around the lobby; however, logistically, it is not possible, so I stand and waste easily a half hour every time I go to pick up a package.
The Wasilla Post Office is just as bad, or worse, for lines. So, in closing, I am not convinced the Palmer Post Office has worse customer service and I would vote we give the bid to the private sector to operate our mail flow throughout the U.S.; let the healthy capitalist competition begin!
— Linda Buhler
Wasilla
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter for consideration, email letters@alaskadispatch.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@alaskadispatch.com.