Anchorage Daily News

Harp player gives beautiful gift

So many mornings we wake up with the newpaper and its headlines tell us about the crimes and sorrows that our nation is going through. Reading your article about Liu-Hsiu Kuo, the young lady who visits the ill at Providence, took my breath away.

Here you have someone who has been given this wonderful talent and she takes the time to not only share it but share it with someone who needs it at such a delicate time. Not only does this help the patient but perhaps the families as well.

I know that if I were in the hospital feeling my worse and worrying about my loved ones, listening to her music would definitely soothe my soul.

I applaud her for doing such a wonderful thing for these people. In a time where it seems like so many people think of themselves and only take. It's completely refreshing to know there is still someone out there that cares for others and shares her beautiful gift with them. It should be a lesson for us all.

-- Tina Bolsinger

Anchorage

Free speech a must at university

The core job of a university is to seek and teach the truth(s), freely and openly, without fear and without favor. Academic freedom and free speech are essential to this endeavor. But from time to time some forget that. Recently legislators, university officials and agency personnel have questioned the right of University of Alaska faculty and students to express views that differ from their own views on resource policy in Alaska. The UA Regents policy on free speech is crystal clear:

An environment of free and honest inquiry is essential to the functioning and the mission of the university. The Board of Regents and the University of Alaska therefore acknowledge, affirm, and espouse the right of freedom of speech as guaranteed in the Constitutions of the United States and the State of Alaska.

"The essential purpose of University of Alaska is to engage in the pursuit of truth, the advancement of learning and the dissemination of knowledge. To achieve this purpose, all members of the University of Alaska must be assured of the constitutionally protected right to question, speculate, and comment, as well as the right to criticize the University and society at large. The University will not limit or abridge any individual's constitutional right to free speech."

To those who defend this principle, including Representatives Gara, Kerttula, Foster, Guttenberg, and many others, thank you.

-- Rick Steiner, Professor

University of Alaska

Anchorage

Wolf control is not barbaric

In response to the letter written by Ruth E. Kastner from Greenbelt, Md., ("Aerial Wolf Slaughter Appalling," 12 Feb 09.): She asks can't Alaskans do something to stop aerial wolf slaughter.

The residents of Alaska have done something. We voted to continue the predator control used by the Department of Fish and Game and selected personnel authorized to do so. This is not hunting, it is population control. The moose and caribou populations are getting hit hard by too many wolves, and they do not discriminate on how many calfs they slaughter.

It is not barbaric by any means. If you have rats in your basement you get rid of them. Wolves are magnificent animals, one of God's wonderful creations. He put us in charge of the Earth, to till and keep it, so it is our responsibility to control animal populations to ensure one does not eliminate another.

I suggest the Maryland resident stick to solving problems in Maryland and I promise I won't interfere with Maryland's business.

-- Ron Jackson

Eagle River

Sen. Murkowski mouths same old tired excuses used by the GOP "Excessive," she self-righteously charged. "It will leave Alaska on the hook," she laments, as she casts her vote against the program that is designed to help this country recover from the excesses of the Bush administration.

Lisa Murkowski, with all due respect, is thoughtlessly dragging out the same old and tired excuses used by her party when they can't think of anything else to say to justify their actions.

Since when did Alaska's Republican Congressional delegation care about federal programs being excessive or leaving Alaska on the hook Alaska became the laughing stock of the nation with the bridges to nowhere, Florida's Coconut Road project, etc. And don't forget "I'm stuffing this baby like a turkey," as Congressman Don Young carelessly tossed federal programs at Alaska whether we wanted them or not.

For a brief time, I thought Sen. Murkowski was going to be her own person, and then I remembered seeing her smiling face as she boarded Bush's Air Force One and also her palling around with that terrorist Dick Cheney. Apparently, she has fallen into that ever-looming Washington, D.C., trap where the party is more important than one's constituents. It's time for Lisa Murkowski to come to the new economic reality of this country or hit the road, either one works for me. Thank God we have U.S. Sen. Mark Begich.

-- Sylvia M. Carlsson

Anchorage

Get back to the basics in life; spend less and enjoy it more

Nearly all world economies struggle. Some have lost control over their life. Focus on what you can do. Do not believe you are helpless or need government dependency.

Reduce expenditures by 50 percent. Co-locate with family and friends. Control utility and cell consumption. Buy co-op, bulk and share.

Have a subsistence plan. Plant a garden or use container gardening. Gather berries, fish, and hunt. Pick from u-pick farms. Can or dehydrate food for long-term storage.

Raise livestock. Even a few chickens produce eggs

Become self-employed. Start a business with tax refund or micro loan. Enroll in education or training and take sabbatical from the job market.

Get involved in local government. Push to eliminate tax and spend policies and many unaffordable social programs.

Volunteer and find joy in schools, hospitals and nursing homes. Do maintenance or remodeling to reduce their costs.

Build your relationships. Fortify family, help neighbors and reclaim faith. See a counselor or join support group.

Get back to basics. Play. Participate in sports and recreation. Rediscover hobbies.

Thrive. Find fun and inexpensive ways to celebrate life. The most important things in life do not cost a lot of money.

-- Trish Hanlon

Anchorage

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