St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 15

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1991 ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 3B LETTERS FROM THE. PEOPLE Obey The Sign Or Pay The Fine the emergency lane could cost the ambulance crew precious seconds, which could cost someone's life. too, want my tax dollars spent to enforce the laws all of them. Dan Brungard Brentwood Joan Shaffer complained in her Dec.

11 letter that while she returned a movie at Schnucks, she parked in the fire lane for 45 seconds, and she was ticketed by police. I have a suggestion for Shaffer: If a few seconds are so crucial, she should leave for work a few minutes earlier when she has to return a movie and leave the fire lane open. Fred L. Bradbury St. Peters Yeah, I work in law enforcement so I'm just a little bit biased, but Joan Shaffer's complaint is an all-too-familiar refrain.

In the vast majority of cases, everyday citizens seldom have contact with the police, and when they do, it is normally the result of some minor infraction of the law. Hardly worth the effort for either the police or the public, it seems. When these citizens run afoul of the law, their first reaction is to tell the police to arrest a real criminal. How dare Shaffer so blatantly question the courage and dedication of our nation's law enforcement officers, who, just like you see the ills of society and feel powerless to solve the problem. To imply that police would rather give her a ticket than deal with dangerous criminals is an insult that cuts The Record On Dumping In the series on waste issues on American Indian lands, "Poisoned Mandate" (Nov.

17-21), a general picture is painted that those in federal government are not really paying much attention to the waste issues and problems on Indian lands. Then in a more specific instance, I am mentioned as knowing of a certain incident and not doing anything about it. While I disagree with the general premise of the article that the government is not being active, it is the specific reference to me and my office that I wish to address. The reference states that I had "photographed trucks dumping wastes on land owned by the Agua Caliente tribe in California" and "had yet to turn over the evidence or to take steps to crack down on dumpers." To set the record straight, I did not photograph trucks dumping wastes. I did, however, photograph the sites where wastes have been dumped.

Catching the offending parties in the act would have been very fortunate and would have made our job of taking further action much easier. As a result of my findings, I participated in a meeting in Palm Springs on Oct. 10, which included represen- -tatives from the Agua Caliente tribe, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, the Riverside County Flood Control District the Bureau of Land Management and 1 the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The meeting was held to outline the responsibilities and capabilities of each of the above entities and to develop a plan to resolve the issue. This matter -is quite complicated and involves various land ownership and jurisdictional issues.

To further complicate the matter, the site is located in the area of a proposed flood control project. As with any pollution incident, the first step is to shut off the flow. This is currently being done by the city of Palm Springs through code enforcement actions. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the other entities are at- tempting to identify responsible parties, sources of funding for possible cleanup, clearing up boundaries and jurisdictional issues and developing accurate cost estimates for testing and cleanup. It is important to point out that correcting these situations on Indian lands is many times more complicat- -ed than it appears and that action is being taken on the particular situa- 7.

tion in Palm Springs. George R. Farris Environmental Services Staff Bureau Of Indian Affairs Washington, D.C. John Blair Moore Was Block Grant Spent Wisely? It's no wonder that poor people with few resources have learned to play the system. serve.

We have succeeded in this community to see a mobile safety patrol organized; parks, trees and banners come into being; street fairs, house tours and repairs increased; positive community organizing among landlords and businesses; and other positive initiatives begun. Future projects from Trinity Square include joint ventures with other police officers to the bone. But Shaffer can rest easy if she should need a police officer tonight one will come, regardless of the insults she hurls in his direction. Daniel Chamberlain Belleville Does Joan Shaffer think a fire lane and "no parking" signs apply to ev groups; working with the school children to increase their safety and well being; locating new sources of funding to increase our administration, and leadership. I hope that you see the hope and future of this historic neighborhood and tell the good that is coming from Hyde Park and those of us who live and work here.

Louise Bauschard St. Louis I've worked for many organizations, and I feel that Mary Lou Green runs Operation Brightside very efficiently. The criticism that appeared in a Dec. 9 article related to the "Spending The Block Grant" series is unjust. I've been with her while she He obviously doesn't know that union and management together probably don't make up 20 percent of the work force in this country.

Or maybe he thinks we make as much as lawyers do. In that case, his theory might work. How about the managing of the companies? Are we to assume that for our 10 percent, that management will miraculously become competent? No more financially crippling leveraged buy-outs, golden parachutes, greenmail and those huge bonuses paid top management even Pay Cuts Won't Stop As I read Joan Shaffer's Dec. 1 1 letter criticizing the priorities of police who recently ticketed her for parking in a fire lane, it occurred to me that I've met this person before. She cursed at me last month for coming to a full stop in front of her at a stop sign.

She parked in a handicapped spot at the mall last weekend, because she didn't want to walk. She cut me off in traffic yesterday and nearly caused an accident She even cut in front of me at the drug store checkout counter last night She's the person who thinks she's above the basic rules meant to remind us, or force us, if need be, to be more civilized and respectful of each other. In short, she's the kind of person who thinks it's OK to park in a fire lane and then lambastes the police for doing what we'd all like to do teach her a little lesson about common courtesy. John Wharton Manchester I would like to respond to Joan Shaffer's Dec. 11 letter, in which she expressed disappointment that she had been ticketed for leaving her car unattended in front of Schnucks "for approximately 45 seconds." Shaffer knew she was violating the law but chose to do it anyway.

Is she better than the rest of us and, therefore, does not have to walk the distance from a legal parking space? Please inform Shaffer that it only takes a few seconds for an ambulance to arrive, possibly to save someone's life. The fact that her car is parked in I am writing you as the new executive director of Trinity Square Association, located in Hyde Park, to register my deep concern with the recent coverage of our neighborhood in the series, "Spending The Block Grant" I believe that the impression given to the reader is one of a poor, entirely rundown community where no one could possibly want to live or work. It is a very unfair portrayal of our community. The story also distorted the usefulness of the funding we have received for four years as one of the block grant recipients. Those funds have provided a full-time staff person to be located in Hyde Park.

The ability to have an on-site community office allows projects and programs to reach the people they are intended to Politics As Usual I read with great interest the Dec. 4 Commentary article, "We Elect Them To Lead, Not To Follow," by Gerald R. Ort-bals. Not only did Ortbals express how millions of Americans feel about politics and politicans in general, but he actually experienced firsthand the three-ring circus that has become our nation's political arena. How many of us have said: "If I could run for office, I'd do things Unfortunately, honest and decent people like Ortbals are discouraged from seeking office because they refuse to sink to the level of party politics.

This creates a dangerous situation by letting the foxes guard the henhouse. I urge Ortbals and others like him to challenge the established practices, bring back decency and honesty to public service and "fill that spiritual vacuum at the heart of American society." Oscar Lopez Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. Behind Recent polls, commentary and reporting indicate a good showing by George Bush in the area of foreign relations. Polls put his approval rating at 75 percent in this area, and many columnists have written that he should apply his expertise in foreign affairs to domestic policy. Even his political foes are prone to give him praise in his foreign endeavors.

But stop and consider the following: Our government for the most part, operates in an open matter in most of its domestic business. There are some cases where officials have concealed facts and circumstances surrounding the nation's internal matters, but generally, Congress and the administration air their dirty linen in public and conduct their meetings and debates openly. Now take foreign affairs: Meetings with representatives of our government and representatives of other governments are closed. Secrecy is maintained at all costs, even to the extent of meeting on board naval ships or In the confines of secure building such as embassies and the like. Then each side issues proclamations and communiques that don't show anything in a bad light or reveal what actually took place or what agreements and decisios were really eryone but her? She says she was only parked there for 45 seconds, but I know what can happen in 45 seconds.

If everyone took Shaffer's approach to parking, we would have total anarchy in our parking lots. As a police officer, I receive daily radio assignments for parking violations. Would Shaffer rather I ignore those? There's nothing I'd love to do was using her car phone and she was using it as any head administrator would do. Maybe the $8,000 being spent for four car phones isn't the problem; maybe the Post-Dispatch's problem is that she's the mayor's niece. If a person is qualified for a job, and good at what they do, what's the problem? Kay Marshall St.

Louis Thank you for printing the Dec. 9 Commentary article, "An Unconscionable Number of Evictions," by Mi-cah Rose and Bill Miller. Likewise, I appreciate the series, "Spending The Block Grant." The articles point out the overwhelming scope of the housing problem at the bureaucratic and Layoffs when they lose millions? Hardaway implies that since we will be making less money, our mortgages, bills for gas, phone, water, electricity, food, medical care, clothing, etc. would go down. This must be part of that cut taxes, no new taxes, raise taxes, supply side, trickle down, free market, fast track and thousand points of light agenda that Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush have been espousing these past 11 years.

Stan Warner O'Fallon, Mo. it must be a secure one. For that the Israelis need to feel that the terms and conditions, both procedural and substantive, are not being imposed on them by the United States, the Soviet Union or their Arab neighbors. As your editorial so correctly states, the rules are being established now, and they are crucial to a successful conclusion. J.

David Levy Member National Board of Governors American Jewish Committee Richmond Heights Affairs eign relations and foreign policy make his domestic agenda look like one of his thousand points of light? Of course not. Would Bush want it broadcast how his office openly courted Iraq and Saddam Hussein even to the extent of having our ambassador, April Glaspie, tell Saddam that we had no Interest in Iraq's border disputes with Kuwait? Would Bush want to admit that Secretary of State James Baker wore himself to a frazzle rushing around with an open purse buying allies to support Bush's gulf war? Would Bush want to admit to his failures in China, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Mexico? Would be like to tell us about his own and his families' personal Involve- ment with the Kuwaiti sheiks? And, come to think about it just why are we continuing to maintain all these troops, after all these years, in places like Korea and Germany or what agreements of any measure were achieved in the recent Middle East peace conference in Madrid? If you can continue to believe what we are fed concerning our foreign affairs, please come see me I have an old automobile or two I would like to tell you about David H. Robertson Jefferson City more than catch a true criminal, but my job entails much more than that Am I not to enforce all laws? My advice to Shaffer is to do her part by obeying the signs and laws, which will free more time for my fellow officers and me to catch the real bad guys. John Vogt St. Louis the personal levels.

Landlords complain about tenants who pay the first month's rent with no intention of paying more, knowing that they have a place to live for at least 90 days, the time it takes to get a person evicted. How could any of us manage on $292 a month? It's no wonder that poor people with few resources have learned to play the system. When corporate America does it, we view it as How can we hold our elected officials accountable? Only when we open our eyes and speak out about the injustice and vote in November. Gerry Rauch St. Louis As an Illinois prison inmate, I am aware of and concerned about the remarkable similarities between what the Department of Corrections is doing today and what it did in the early '80s with regard to the release of inmates without adequate parole supervision.

I fail to see the difference between the early release program of the '80s and inmates being placed on a home-monitor program, after the Department of Corrections has laid off most of its parole officers. Was it not the massive layoffs of parole personnel, with the massive release of inmates in the early '80s that brought the Cook County state's attorney's office into court suing the Department of Corrections? The reason for the suit was the high rate of violent crimes committed by poorly supervised parolees. By the Department of Corrections' own statistics, the recidivism rate is WATCH Out If you got your personal or real estate tax bill from the city, Inside you may have found a slip of paper that looked like another bill. It said that if you rounded off your tax bill to the nearest dollar, the money would be used for park improvements. This ordinance was introduced to the Board of Alderman by Alderman Nancy Weber, at request, which means by someone else.

I found out the request was made by Alderman Paul Beckerle. It was first introduced in December 1990, and then went to the Parks and Recreation Committee. Section 3 of this ordinance 62196, states: "The funds, contained in the 'Special Park Fund' from the 'Round Up' program be used for capital Crowded Put I could not let law professor Robert M. Hardaway's Dec. 4 Commentary article, "Pay Cuts, Not Layoffs," pass without a comment Hardaway's naivete about manage- ment-labor and the economy, given his education and his age, is astounding.

I don't know how he arrived at his preposterous theory that by workers giving up 10 percent and management giving up 25 percent, we would have near full employment, no recessions and no more economic hardship, and that this cut would lead to lower costs for goods produced. While there is much to agree with in the Dec. 3 editorial on the Middle East peace process, it misses the point about why the Israeli government was willing to suffer some temporary adverse public relations regarding its decision about attending the second round of talks. The important consideration for Israel at this stage in the peace process is that the parties have the ability to arrange for themselves on a direct basis when, where and how they will meet. Israel's position is that the negotiations, even on procedural mat Negotiating The Negotiations Prisons Public At Risk The Closed Doors Of Foreign ters, should not be set by a third party.

While the American Jewish Committee appreciates the efforts by the Bush administration to maintain momentum, we believe the United States should not allow itself to be used in a way that allows the Arabs to avoid working out these arrangements in good faith directly with Israel. The American Jewish Committee believes that all the parties, Arabs and Jews, have a stake in securing peace, but it must be a true peace. It must be a lasting one. And for Israel at Yalta or at Potsdam or in any of the scores of conferences and meetings in Geneva. Is Bush and his administration going to admitiat our country's for 85 percent, with a majority violating parole within the first 90 days.

When Gov. Jim Edgar took office in the winter of 1991, he acknowledged the problem of overcrowding in the pris- ons and expressed the need for more intense parole supervision early in the parolee's release. Today we still have overcrowded prisons and growing numbers of inmates on electronic detention monitored by a few overworked parole officers and work-release centers. The department has put the public, as a whole, in jeopardy to prove that the department needed more money to build more prisons. Even though I am an inmate and feel firsthand the effects of prison overcrowding, I am even more upset about the wholesale blackmail of the residents of the state of Illinois! William B.

Statler Jacksonville, 111. For Park Bill improvement in the city parks, ex- cept that no funds can be used in any 1 park until all capital improvements have been completed in Forest Park." This insert in your tax bill does not mean that your parks in your neighborhood are going to be fixed up. It means that the aldermen snuck another ordinance by you to try to siphon off your money for their own projects. The recommendation of WATCH is that you send no money regardless of how small the amount is. Thomas H.

Boulch Chairman WATCH St Louis made. Even among our own people working in foreign affairs, there is no openness or public debate. Today, after decades, the American public still doesn't know qr sure what happened.