Anchorage Daily News

Set airfare by passengers' weight

I see Alaska Airlines now charges $25 extra for a second bag and some airlines charge for even the first one because the weight makes for more fuel use.

I weigh 140 pounds and the guy across the aisle from me weighs 340. By their logic, should my ticket cost the same? Perhaps they should go by total weight and my second bag should still go for free.

What's up with that?

-- Ed Steiner

Kenai

Let Exxon ruling guide your vote

I have spent a lot of time in Alaska but don't have the privilege of living or voting in this extraordinary state. I am deeply moved by the Alaska reaction to the Supreme Court decision on the Exxon Valdez case. The Daily News coverage of this decision shows that it has caused immense pain, understandably.

But when Alaska voted for Bush, voters guaranteed that this would happen. His appointments to the Supreme Court carried the day on the Valdez decision decisively. McCain will carry the oil tradition forward.

Alaskans, think about this as you choose in November. Do you want government for the people, by the people? Or government for oil, by oil? What does Alaska choose?

-- Pete Myers

White Hall, Va.

Senator's car parked too close

My husband and I are both senior citizens and he is handicapped. We were shocked Saturday noon, as we left a local restaurant, when we found a Cadillac with state senatorial plates parked in handicapped parking so close to our car that the mirrors nearly touched. There was no indication that the Cadillac's occupants were handicapped. Was the driver so inept that he -- or she -- could not judge how close they were, or were they that inconsiderate or rude? I had to climb in on the passenger side, crawl over the console, and back the car out so my husband could get in. I'm not sure we want such rude, inconsiderate people representing us in our Legislature. Apparently, they have only contempt for their constituents.

-- Carol Spooner

Anchorage

Spend more on alternative energy

How about using some of that surplus money to grant and fund alternative energy applications for villages and communities, as well as individuals, families and even neighborhoods, who could use it to generate power from wind, water, or sun and feed it back into the power grid?

This would be a better bang for the buck, as it would result in free and sustainable power, and can be increased with more surplus money until we all are off the dependence of fossil fuel for our energy needs.

We have a unique opportunity to be creative and do what is right, sustainable and clean for our future. Further subsidizing the oil companies with handouts will do nothing in the long run but cause more dependence on them. It is possible to have free energy and even to have a surplus that could be shared among us all for future generations.

-- Valerie Luczak

Wasilla

Tell charter anglers about derby

How disappointing for the ticketless tourist who landed the $10,000 tagged halibut in the Homer derby. Maybe I expect too much from people, but you would think that a fishing charter business would have mentioned the derby to the client as they were accepting his money for the fishing trip. If you are in the business of providing recreational activities for tourists, the least you could do is promote relevant events that do in fact contribute to your business.

Imagine how different that article would have sounded if the client had purchased the derby ticket. Rather than it being "a blur," I'm sure the captain would not only have remembered the man's name and the moment he landed the fish, he also would have posed with him for the picture in the newspaper.

-- Mary E. Mears

Palmer

Impeach our criminal president

There is no reason that makes me believe it is OK to commit a crime in order to prevent a crime. In doing so, we have canceled out the social good of preventing the crime in the first place.

I see no justification for trying to annihilate half the population of countries under the excuse of 9/11 that had no participation in that crime. When all the facades fall away, it is exposed that we are in it to steal their oil and who knows what other resources.

It is also a crime to ignore the obligation of bringing to justice those who have committed crimes against the American public.

By not impeaching Bush, you might just as well be his accomplice.

No immunity for the telecoms, and in fact I ask for a boycott of the telecoms that participated illegally as partners with the criminal president.

What is to stop him for asking for wiretaps on opposing members of Congress to gain political advantage or to make up lists of anyone who doesn't share his agenda?

-- Douglas Cobb

Anchorage

Legislators OK'd wind farm cash

With all the recent coverage of proposed short-term energy relief from the state, one of the biggest accomplishments of the last legislative session has been overlooked.

For years, folks have talked about Fire Island as a perfect spot for a wind farm. Finally, after years of efforts by Eastside Rep. Harry Crawford, the Legislature appropriated $25 million for the necessary transmission line. In the Senate, Sens. Bettye Davis and Johnny Ellis backed up Crawford efforts and the money was approved.

Cheap, clean, renewable energy is a beautiful thing, and teamwork has paid off for Anchorage consumers.

--Ted Madsen

Anchorage

Yell at Congress to open ANWR

Why are Alaskans so silent on ANWR? In days of cheaper oil, 70 percent of us were in favor of opening the coastal plain to careful development. Now the price of oil is north of $140 per barrel and we are apparently uninterested in keeping the trans-Alaska pipeline full. We prefer to spend our energy endlessly debating gas pipelines rather than yelling at Congress to open ANWR.

Interestingly, the rest of the nation is doing our shouting for us and some politicians in Congress are actually listening. Seventeen open-ANWR bills are pending in the U.S. House and Senate.

Can we really afford to be fat and happy and do nothing to secure our oil future? Do we believe that the price of oil will decline to historical levels in the coming months? If not, it is time to yell blue murder at those members of Congress who still haven't caught on to our energy crisis and force them to make some difficult, but sensible, decisions.

By all means encourage renewables in our future, but to deny us the benefits of oil from the outer continental shelf and ANWR is madness.

-- Roger Herrera

EDITOR'S NOTE: Roger Herrera is a retired oil geologist.

Load Valley cars on rail to town

As letter writer Julie Gillette reminds us ("Valley rail not fully thought out," July 2), a big show-stopper for Valley rail is timely distribution and collection of the folks who ride the train.

Anchorage, like all cities with the available space, allowed itself to spread out in mostly single-story structures. For most, there is no option to get off the train and simply walk a few blocks to work or to get home.

Maybe Alaskans have already solved this problem of moving people once they arrive at the depot. Remember how you used to get to Whittier? You rode in your car while it was parked on a railroad flatcar. Once you arrived in Portage or Whittier, you simply drove away. Why not use a variant of this from Wasilla? Perhaps the automobiles could be parked crossways on the rail car for ease in loading and unloading and, after being properly secured, drivers could periodically idle their engines to keep warm in the winter.

Read something, sleep, watch DVDs in your car or just watch Alaska pass by. If you oversleep or have to work late and miss the train, except for the exorbitant price of the gas, no big deal.

-- Lynn Willis

Eagle River

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