The Times from Shreveport, Louisiana • Page 13

World 12A FRIDAY. APRIL 1, 2005 THE TIMES shreveporttimes.com OPINION IL3A U.N. troops surround Haitian slum in move against armed gangs; at least one killed that borders Port-au-Prince, sliootinz C0NTACT CRAIG DURRETT 459-3281 or shreveportopinlongannett.com FR HAY APDII 1 onne; i in mi IIIIWIIW'WIIH'IIIIIIIIIMI'IM Mil, j. tUU THE TIMES of Cite Soleil, occasionally firing into die air. But tiiey did not appear to have yet entered die heart of tiie slum, which is home to armed gangs believed to threaten the elections.

Gunfire wounded six people, the Haitian Red Cross said. The operation, die first major offensive by U.N. forces around die capital, comes amid a surge of violence that has killed hundreds since September, including two U.N. peacekeepers. More than 1,000 Jordanian troops as well as Chinese and Haitian police were taking part in die raid.

The U.N. force in Haiti has come under criticism for inaction in stemming the violence more tiian a year after an uprising ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aris-tide. In recent weeks, mission leaders have vowed to get tough with armed groups. On Thursday, about 30 gunmen tried to lujack vehicles on a road into Cite Soleil, a crowded shantytown The Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti U.N. forces and Haitian police surrounded a teeming seaside slum Thursday in an offensive aimed at disarming gangs and restoring order ahead of fall elections.

Soldiers fired into die air to drive off car hijackers who killed at least one man. U.N. peacekeepers atop armored vehicles made high-speed sweeps up and down streets on the outskirts and killing at least one truck driver just 100 yards from Jordanian peacekeepers. The troops drove toward die hijackers after die shooting, forcing diem to flee. Looters then descended on die abandoned truck, hauling away cartons of soda on tiieir heads.

Onlookers then mobbed die looters, trying to pull soda bottles out of the boxes for themselves. U.N. peacekeepers did not intervene. Founded from weekly newspapers published since 1839; published as The Shreveport'Times and The Times, daily and Sunday, since 1871. Editorials reflect the views of The Times Edftorial Board.

ACLU may hinder effort to monitor border Today, April Fools' Day, the American Civil Liberties Union will show us what a joke its commitment to American Larry K. Whltaker President and Publisher hvhitakergannettcom Alan English Executive Editor aenglishgannett.com Rod Richardson Managing Editor fodrictiard8ongannett.com Craig Durrett Editorial Page Editor cdurrettgannett.com ADVERTISEMENT Members are: Craig Durrett, Larry K. Whltaker, Alan English, Martha H. Fttzgerald and Mary Sharon Thomas 222 Lake St. Shreveport, Louisiana shreveporttfmes.com denture technique: look other possible benefits, Michelle Malkin Editorials civil liberties really is.

In case you haven't heard, April 1 is the launch of the Min-uteman Project, an all-volunteer effort by law-abiding American citizens to call attention to Ivoclar dentures: Sw Hand-crafted to iflflfek complement your age I and enhance your Hr appearance. JF- Dr. Hobbs (right) discusses tooth jPqarifc form with Randy Rogers, HPI C.D.T. faaJhr All hands on deck to save La. coast European A natural One of the most common complaints I hear from denture wearers is that their dentures look like false teeth causing them to become self-conscious and to smile less.

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When you elect to have Ivoclar dentures, my staff and I can take special measurements that will enable us to duplicate the natural appearance the nation's wide onen southern Opinion characteristics of your teeth in our on-characteristics of your teeth in our on premises dental lab, using the Ivoclar precision denture technique. Ivoclar dentures offer more than just an attractive denture that will enhance your appearance. These dentures are also designed to provide better chewing and biting than normal dentures because of the unique occlusal design of the lower teeth, providing unusual cutting and chewing features that may allow better functioning for patients. Dr. Hobbs is able to offer clients the Ivoclar denture system, among other services.

He has a special interest in patients who wear dentures and those patients who need dental implants. Dr. Hobbs treats each individual patient according to their needs and each patient can be different. He is a member of the American Dental Association, American Academy of Implant Dentistry. U.S.

military airplane crashes in Albania TIRANA. Albania AU.S. military airplane crashed in central Albania wliile on a training mission Thursday, and nine American personnel aboard were believed to have been killed, the Albanian Defense Ministry said. The Pentagon said a C-130 crashed and a search was under way. The plane had taken off from Tirana's Mother Teresa Airport and crashed on Driza Mountain in the district of Gramsh, 50 miles southeast of capital, Tirana, Albanian Defense Ministry spokesman Agim Doci told The Associated Press.

Doci said officials believe that the nine people aboard, all Americans, were killed. Ebola-like virus toll in Angola reaches 126 LUANDA Angola Aigola's death toll from an Ebola-like virus has climbed to 126, the Health Ministry and World Health Organization said Thursday, making it the deadliest recorded outbreak of the rare Marburg disease. There is no vaccine or cure for Marburg, which spreads through bodily fluids and can kill rapidly, according to the World Health Organization. The virus was identified only last week as the death toll spiraled. Diverse clerics unite to oppose gay festival JERUSALEM Israel's chief rabbis joined Christian and Muslim clerics in a rare alliance to protest plans to hold an international gay festival in Jerusalem this summer.

The 10-day WorldPride festival, last held in Rome in 2000, is to include street parties, workshops aid a gay film festival. Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox Jewish mayor, Uri Lupolianski, says he is powerless to interfere, as public events are licensed by the police, not city hall. Jerusalem police spokesman Shmuel Ben-Ruby said Thursday that police had received a number of requests not to issue a permit for the festival but had no decision had been made yet. At a news conference Wednesday. Yona Metzger, one of the chief rabbis, pleaded with the festival's organizers to take it elsewhere.

Metzger was joined at the news conference by Rabbi Shlomo Amar, Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah and other Christian and Muslim officials in demanding the event be canceled. Prince Albert takes over in Monaco MONACO Groomed from birth to rule. Prince Albert took over Monaco's royal powers on Thursday, assuming all but the throne in the tiny principality after a royal commission decided his critically ill father is too sick to perform his duties. The announcement by the royal palace marked the first time since 1949 that Prince Rainier III Europe's longest-serving ruler has not been in control of the Mediterranean realm smaller than New York's Central Park and famed as a playground for the rich and famous. Rainier, 81, was hospitalized March 7 and has been in intensive care for 10 days with breathing, kidney and heart problems.

Court cuts jail time in freelance terrorist hunt KABUL, Afghanistan Three Americans jailed for torturing Afghans in a freelance hunt for terrorists have won shorter sentences but failed to persuade an appeals court to overturn their convictions. Jonathan Idema, Brent Bennett and Edward Caraballo appealed the rulings to the supreme court, appeals court Judge Abdul Latif said Thursday. Officials said it would be at least two weeks before the high court considers the case. At a closed session Tuesday, a four-judge appeals court in Kabul upheld the convictions for torture and operating a private jail, Latif told The Associated Press. Idema's sentence was reduced from 10 years to five; Bennett's was cut from 10 to three; and Car-aballo's was cut from eight to two, Latif said.

Estonian president names new premier TALLINN, Estonia Estonia's president on Thursday named Reform Party leader Andrus Ansip, a champion of greater privatization and lower income taxes, as Estonia's new prime minister in the latest of numerous government shake-ups in the 14 years since independence. Ansip, 48, who was a minister of economics and communications in the former government which resigned last week. He has two weeks to present a new Cabinet to the parliament for approval. The previous government of former Prime Minister Julian Parts resigned last week after parliament voted no-confidence in his justice minister. From Wire Reports Jonathan ToddSpecial to The Times Letters Family Dentistry Edward Hobbs, D.D.S.

2136 Airline Drive, Bossier City Call 746-5171 7:00 A.M. APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE border. Hundreds of Americans from New York to Michigan to California will travel down to the U.S.-Mexico border for a month to monitor illegal aliens and alert emigration enforcement officials if they witness law-breaking. In doing so, the Minutemen will be exercising their constitutionally protected freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Those would be fundamental civil liberties found in something called the, uh, First Amendment, of which the ACLU is supposed to be the foremost expert and champion.

Or so the group and its celebrity supporters say. In sanctimonious new fund-raising ad campaigns, the organization features the likes of liberal actress HoDy Hunter, who asks: "Do you want to be heard without fear? I am not an American who believes that questioning or criticizing my government is unpatriotic." Uh-huh. "Dissent is patriotic," the Left likes to preach. Except, apparently, if the questioning and criticizing deals with the government's abject failure to enforce immigration laws. Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist has been harassed by open-borders activists at his home.

Mexican government officials are lobbying American law enforcement officials to suppress the Minutemen's rights to speak and assemble. But instead of coming to the defense of the Minutemen who nrr Are you a patient with a Lower Respiratory Tract Infection? If so, you may be eligible for a research Volunteers age 1 8 and over are needed to participate in a research study of two widely prescribed approved antibiotics for people who have either acute exacerbation of bronchitis or community-acquired pneumonia. Study medication will be provided at no cost. If you are interested in learning more, please let the office staff know immediately. Do the right thing; secure a living will Sean A.

Miles Shreveport The removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube impacted many hearts and souls over the last few weeks. From this ethical divide an admirable outpouring of citizen involvement has arisen. I saw courageous efforts to replace Terri Schiavo's feeding tube right here in our hometown and in celebrity involvement in Hollywood. Even though I applaud these heroics I think one huge fact is being forgotten. Would this case have made the media's attention if a living will were developed prior to Mrs.

Schiavo's illness? I do not pretend nor do I assume to know what Terri Schiavo would have chosen as her fate in this particular situation in a living will. What I can do is encourage others to save their family and friends from having to make a decision such as this. According to the doctors' reports, Terri Schiavo had no cognitive thinking, therefore she did not feel pain. But those left behind who fought for her feel a great pain. The fact that freshman U.S.

Sen. David Vitter has joined the fray in the fight against Louisiana coastal erosion should be met with enthusiasm rather than a "been there, done that" attitude. Efforts to fix the coast have been a fixture in Louisiana politics because the state has lost an area of marsh the size of Delaware since the 1930s. Most certainly state and national officials have worked for years occasionally successfully, sometimes in vain to achieve new funding and more equitable distribution of offshore drilling royalties and definitions of coastal boundaries among Gulf of Mexico states. For their efforts, said officials and state workers should receive applause.

But even as the clapping continues, they should welcome the additional clout that Vitter brings along with his good soldier GOP credentials in these administration-dominated times. As Sen. Mary Landrieu, acknowledged in response to Vitter's broad and ambitious plan to expand Louisiana's coastal restoration plan, the effort to save the coast will require "all hands on deck." Gov. Kathleen Blanco was complimentary but encouraged coordination among delegation members to "maximize our options for the benefit of our coast and our citizens." While standing on the banks of the Mississippi River on Wednesday, Vitter outlined five pieces of legislation he hopes to get passed. Two of the bills tread new territory and three are similar to past efforts in Congress.

Like his predecessors in Congress, Vitter wants a larger part of offshore drilling royalties, an extension of coastal boundary from three to nine miles and forward pro Do the right tiling by your own family get a living will, and prevent them from ever having to make such a tragic decision. We must take control of retirement security Tricia Firth Haughton With all of the controversy surrounding the proposed reforms for Social Security, there are a few important facts we should not forget. When Social Security was created, there were 40 workers paying into the system for each retire who drew benefits. Today, there are only three workers per retire, and soon there will be just two workers per retiree. Think about it: Just two workers will have to pay enough in taxes to support one retiree.

Around 2018, Social Security will pay out more in benefits than it takes in. And the problem gets worse every year. Personal retirement accounts offer today's workers the best hope for long-term retirement security. Personal retirement accounts could also be passed on to children and grandchildren, ensuring that no gress on the coastal restoration plan that calls for 14 billion over the next 30 years. To overcome the reluctance of Congress to tap into the billions that offshore drilling contributes to the U.S.

Treasury each year, Vitter wants to gradually increase the amount Louisiana gets under a plan that would realize $1.4 billion a year for the state by 2017. He is also proposing measures to assist the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers through the involvement of the U.S. Commerce Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S.

Geological Survey. Meanwhile, a state effort spearheaded by Gov. Blanco could help overcome congressional skepticism that the requested reallocation of funds would actually be used for coastal restoration. Blanco wants the Legislature to pass a constitutional amendment to require that new offshore royalty funds flow into a special fund for coastal restoration projects and infrastructure repairs. A 2003 amendment committed other mineral funds to this, when available.

Tying up more state dollars in dedicated accounts should be approached warily; that's how for years the state harmed unprotected higher education and health care during budget crises. But the national audience in the coastal erosion debate should be offered assurances of state commitment and continued evidence that this is a national issue. Louisiana's vanishing coastline poses an imminent threat to the nation's security, environment and energy resources. A sustained effort at the local and national levels and the consideration of new ideas is imperative. family gets shortchanged by the system.

The program will be strictly voluntary; those who choose not. to participate won't be penalized. There's never been such an opportunity for Americans to take such positive control of their retirement security. For the sake of today's workers and tomorrow's retirees, lawmakers from both parties must reach across the aisle, find common ground and fix Social Security. For some, golden years have turned to brass Ray Carter Keithville When I was forced to retire 10 years ago I had a good income, but with corporate greed and taxes continually rising I now have a very small income.

I thought the retirement years were supposed to be the golden years. I remember when gas was less than 50 cents a gallon and milk was less than one-third that, and we don't even want to talk about health care or medicine. It seems the golden years have turned to brass and it just gets worse. (The object is don't get old.) I am 69 and holding. HIGHLAND CLINIC RESEARCH (318) 798-4630 i Schiavo case advances 'culture of death' VQnZOnwireless We never stop working for yout I Introducing the NEW America's Choice" Plans with NO ROAMING The passing of Terri Schiavo on March 31 was a heartbreaking moment for America.

As an attorney for an organization that has invested more than $300,000 since Mike Johnson Times recaps Bossier City recommendations Plus, add lines for $Q99 2001 to fund the litigation to save her life, I have both a personal and professional outrage and sadness over this event. Our prayers are with mmmmw monthly access per line to any America's Choice Family SharePlan a dangerous precedent That is, a cheating spouse can now terminate your life at will, if you ever lack the strength to communicate your desire to live. It matters not that you have a loving family who would care for and support you, and it is now uncertain whether even the general language of your own living will can preserve your life. The prevailing judicial philosophy is no different than Hitler's. Because the life of an unborn child (or a disabled Terri Shiavo, or the elderly and infirm) may be difficult or inconvenient or even costly to society now means it can be terminated.

This disregard for life has been fostered by the courts. During business hours today, 4,500 innocent American children will be killed. It is a holocaust that has been repeated every day for 32 years, since 1973's Roe v. Wade. Nearly 45 million babies have been sacrificed in the name of "personal choice." That staggering number represents somewhere between one-half and one-third of my entire generation.

The magnitude of this is hard to imagine. If you graduated from high school in the last three decades, your class should have been twice as large as it was. Your choices in marital partners have been limited by half. Social Security wouldn't be in a crisis with all those able workers. And we wouldn't have this "culture of death," where euthanasia has become all the rage, where kids shoot other kids because they've learned that life has no real value, and the Terri Schiavos of the world can be sentenced to starvation.

It is a shocking paradox that we live in the greatest country in the world, but also excuse and provide legal sanction for the greatest moralevils of our time. May God have mercy. Mike Johnson is an attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund. He lives in Shreveport. the CenturyTel arena.

The city in the next four years will face more severe budget constraints based on an adverse legal development concerning Opinion Terri's parents and siblings, and our challenging our government, the ACLU has warned the 1,000 volunteers that it will send monitors to document the Americans' activities. Moreover, the ACLU has already threatened lawsuits against the American dissenters for exercising their rights. This buDying of pro-immigration enforcement activists comes as no surprise to those of us who have followed the ACLU's aggressive open-borders agenda. ACLU of Arizona spokesman Ray Ybarra argues that the mere presence of the Minutemen at the border constitutes "unlawful imprisonment" of illegal (excuse me, aliens (excuse me, Contrary to the ACLU and mainstream media representations of the group as racists and immigrant-bashers, the Minutemen are a diverse volunteer group that includes Americans of Mexican, Armenian, Russian, Lebanese, Indian and Cuban descent; and black and Native American minorities. By recklessly linking the Minutemen to white separatists and casting them as outlaws, the civil liberties crowd engages in the very guilt-by-association smear tactics it has so loudly condemned.

And in putting the protection of illegal aliens' rights over law-abiding Americans' civil liberties, the ACLU demonstrates on which side of the border its true allegiances he. Write to Michelle Malkin at Creators Syndicate 5777 W. Century Suite 700 Los Angeles, CA 90045. E-mail to malkincomcast.net. casino revenues Walker and the continued need to upgrade nation as a whole.

There is currently a real disconnect between law and justice in the American legal system. The founders stated clearly in the Declaration of Independence that the right to life is inalienable and given to us by God. Today, some judges, the American Civil Liberties Union, and its misguided allies vehemently deny that truth. Terri's case sets infrastructure. Walker is uniquely equipped to help ensure efficiencies in government and shape realistic approaches to revenue needs.

FOR MAYOR Lorenz "Lo" Walker Walker is the obvious and best choice. After 16 years as the city's chief administrator, Walker has the experience and proven diligence to provide competent leadership. Walker is committed to basics such as public safety but also envisions a rejuvenated riverfront area that extends from the soon-to-open Louisiana Boardwalk south toward FOR CITY COUNCIL Don "Bubba" Williams Williams brings experience to representing the residents of District 3. He has been a part of the council during the construction of both the CenturyTel arena and the retail development along the riverfront. Much of what is needed tii his central city district is less glamorous but necessary infrastruc- Make contact Rhvj ture upgrades.

During the past four years, millions have been spent replacing aging sewer and water lines. Williams also has been cred mmam JHUF Wmm We welcome your comments on editorials, columns, other topics in The Times or subjects important to you. Only letters that include name, address and day and evening phone Get your family with 2 lines for $59.99 monthly access and share: No Roaming Coverage not available everywhere. Unlimited Calling to any Verizon Wireless customer. Unlimited nights and weekends 500 anytime minutes all when calling from within the America's Choice Coverage Area.

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Box 30222, Shreveport, LA 71130-0222. ited with being Williams instrumental in helping mend relations between the council and the Bossier Parish Police Jury. letters are edited for length, accuracy and clarity. Letters to the editor and articles submitted to The Times may be published or distributed in pnnt. electronic or other forms.

$79.99 mail-in rebate $29.99 AudiovoxB910 And, get up to 3 Color Phones FREE! LGVX3200 monthly for just jg gg; The Times access each with new two year Agreement. Tragic case of Terri Schiavo brings out the worst in us Over the last month our country has been consumed and divided by the Terri Schiavo case. Many people in this country were Justin IPff B1.800.2 JOIN verizonwireless.com any of our stores deeply upset by the Shatwell VERIZON WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS STORES AUTHORIZED RETAILERS whole affair, seeing various political or religious issues in the case to which they related. This sparked countless arguments, thousands of sermons, a string of protests RadioShack. THE VERIZON WIRELESS STORE as a community to take a moment to step back, take a deep, sobering breath, and analyze what we've really been doing for the last several weeks.

Firstly, we allowed ourselves to be consumed by the case. The news coverage surrounding Schiavo was simply excessive. While a democratic nation was experiencing a popular revolution, our news stations were presenting us with an endless parade of various "specialists" who in many cases had never met or examined Terri Schiavo. Hours of rehashing the same facts was followed by often radical commentary from demagogues on both sides of the issue. In our desire for drama and conflict, we allowed a personal family tragedy to become a national soap opera.

Though the news media deserves much of the blame for providing such coverage, we as citizens are just as guilty for demanding it. Our second error was allowing our protests to get out of hand. The prayer groups, speeches, and marches were fine, but many protesters did not stop there. In one instance, a man claiming to be aiding Terri Schiavo tried to rob a gun store with a box cutter. Though this attempt failed for obvious reasons, the fact that one protester was willing to resort to violence suggests that perhaps the rhetoric was getting out of hand.

More shameful than this was the blatant disregard for the rights of the other patients at the Pinellas Park hospice. That institution has 72 beds, meaning as many as 71 oilier terminally ill patients were being treated there at the same time as Schiavo. The role of hospices is to comfort those who are about to pass and make their deaths as peaceful and comfortable as possible. Did no one think that perhaps the other patients at Pinellas Park did not want their last days interrupted by noisy protests and massive news coverage? Even when we arc embraced by powerful passions, we are still responsible for our actions. There is simply no excuse for screaming outside of the window of a dying stranger.

Our final error was allowing Congress and the president to undermine one of the most sacred tenants of our country. By giving special permission for the Schiavo case to be heard in federal court, they completely undermined the authority of the Florida judiciary system. This action impeded upon Florida's state rights and violated the separation of powers. Both of these tenants are very important to our way of life as they are two of the strongest safeguards that ensure our democracy does not devolve into a dictatorship. I realize that many of the politicians in question likely had strong, religious feelings about this issue.

However this does not give them the right to commit unconstitutional acts. If they objected to the Schiavo ruling, they had every right to go down to the hospice and protest like every other disgruntled TYLER 4905 Broadway 903-535-9200 American citizen. The jobs they possess are larger than themselves and their first duty should be to uphold the dignity of their offices. In the long run, vigilante legislation can only weaken our country, no matter how righteous the cause may seem. As our country continues to grow and diversify, contentious issues such as the Schiavo case will continue to arise.

We as a country must learn how to better handle these situations so that we may avoid such grievous and dangerous mistakes in the future. Justin Shatwell is a senior history major at Northwestern State University. Send comments to shreveportopiniongannett.com or Opinion Page, P.O. Box 30222, Shreveport, LA 71130-0222. Wireless One 2008 Airline Drive 903-714-1132 Wireless Out Pierre Bossier Mall 2950 East Texas St 318-742-7772 BOSSIER CITY One Stop Wireless 1816 Benton Rd.

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