I was reading the article on cell phone taxes, and the fact that we just have to pay them. I think that the tax on regular phones was bad enough. It is hard for me to keep having all these increasing of taxes on everything, but jobs keep going away, travel costs too much, and raises for those who have jobs are getting far and few between.

I see every day in the paper that our City Council is worried about the war but not about the citizens in its own community. If the city would let businesses in town, then they would have the extra taxes to pay for upgrades. But it seems like every time they need money for things other than fixing the roads, they try to throw another tax on one of the services we have. Why don't they try to be like the individuals they are trying to tax?

Wage earners don't have the luxury of just coming up with a way to tax or bill someone for something new; we just have to wait to save the money or go without. What they need to do is find what shouldn't be funded and move the money to what does.

Our government - at every layer - is going to have to realize that with all the jobs going away, people not traveling and existing jobs paying less, they will not be able to have the money they have been used to.

Jack K. Kolb

Corvallis

Some views test free speech limit

The price of living in a free country includes allowing people to express opinions you dislike. The Founding Fathers, acutely cognizant of this fact, thus encoded free speech in the first article of The Bill of Rights.

People disagreeing with (Daily Barometer columnist) Nathanel Blake are playing into his hands when they say, "It was amazing to me that they were allowed to publish this kind of stuff" (Article, March 2, "Campus columnist provokes Muslims").

If Muslims want tolerance and the freedom to address misunderstands about their religion, then they must tolerate Mr. Blake's opinion, ignorant or not.

As for Mr. Blake: Maybe "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." (Beatrice Hall, often misattributed to Voltaire.)

Wil D. Hormann

Corvallis

Milosevic's death mischaracterized

After the death of Slobodan Milosevic, the right-wing media called him the butcher of Yugoslavia. The totally uneducated and ignorant members of the media are lacking knowledge of the Balkans.

I had a chance to live in the general region during World War II, and I knew of the total dedication of the Serbian people to freedom and their fight against fascism.

The true reason to send troops from the United States and the United Nations was just an excuse to help the so-called "ethnic cleansing" victims rather than reveal the expansion of NATO. Also, this eastern region is rich in oil and natural gas.

Recently, the BBC reported that the situation in Kosovo and Albania was getting worse than it was prior to the "rescue mission."

Strangely enough, the political criminals who do belong before the World Court in The Hague are free and continue to kill thousands of people. Those who do not belong in The Hague are put indiscriminately behind bars, without respect for true justice.

The court in The Hague is very much influenced by the United States and the British.

Marie Richter

Corvallis

Congress' Dubai stand was gutsy

The recent debate between Congress and the administration over Dubai's intended takeover of six U.S. ports has left me with a renewed belief in the democratic process that our Constitution proclaimed.

I don't know that the debated subject is of great consequence, but it is of utmost importance that this Congress come to view itself as a separate and independent branch of government.

The members responded to their consciences rather than to party solidarity. Let us hope that this was a pattern for the future, rather than a unique occurrence.

Mike Wolf

Corvallis

More Christians for peace wanted

Here is a fact I find interesting: The Corvallis phone directory lists more than 50 Christian churches in the area. I think it is safe to assume that most have at least 50 members, which means that if 10 members from each church had shown up for the peace march on March 18, that would have accounted for all of the marchers.

Now, I know at least three churches were represented and probably more, but what about the rest? Conspicuously absent were those who consider themselves fundamentalist. Perhaps, like the last one I attended, their leadership still considers this a just war.

What could be more fundamental to the teachings of Christ than love, acceptance and forgiveness? Oh, yes … and something about loving one's enemies and turning the other cheek.

How can Jesus have any relevance in society today, when the leader of the most powerful nation on Earth continually asks God's blessing on it, and yet continually kills and maims innocent men, women and children as his national policy? So much for Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

Roger Paul

Corvallis

Law shouldn't dictate safety

Re: The March 17 "raspberry" that stated, "Mrs. Miller may have been legally right, but perhaps she would change her mind about the relative merits of keeping a slight distance and staying safer for her husband if she ever witnessed firsthand the injuries that result from suddenly pitching forward, face-first, into the dashboard.

"We trust the 2007 Legislature will take note of this safety loophole."

Apparently the Gazette-Times favors the ever-growing "Big Brother" environment. Did they stop to consider the possibility that maybe each individual best knows how to protect himself and his family? Do the editors really think how we conduct our lives is best left up to Uncle Sam? And do they fail to realize that police time is best spent finding missing persons and criminals and locating stolen property?

Some day I fear a world where we will be forced, under law, to leave our homes wearing filtered masks (air pollution) and SPF clothing (ozone depletion causing harmful sun exposure). While these safety items may be something to consider in the future, even possibly necessary, Uncle Sam has no business legislating such acts, which should be choices and choices alone.

I trust that the editors will take note of their own loophole in thinking. In the interim, maybe they will invite government officials into their own private lives and inquire as to how government might best protect them. I will make my own choices.

Vicki Grover

Corvallis

How could we forget this owl?

Oh, Dear!

You omitted a famous owl from your list of famous owls: Howland Owl, one of Pogo Possum's comic strip sidekicks, wasn't mentioned.

Owls are often thought to be "wise." Howland had a broad range of knowledge; it was he who suggested crossing a geranium with a yew tree to produce yew-ranium. It takes the brilliant to see the obvious!

Cliff Heselton

Philomath

Looks like we're stuck in Iraq

Regarding Tuesday's front-page articles, "Elaborate bases raise questions about stay" and "Iraqi woman shares her experiences":

I find the comparison between the information in these articles to be extremely thought-provoking. I'm thinking that if the United States had put as much energy into rebuilding the places in Iraq that we have destroyed as they are putting into building military bases, we might have a very different situation there now.

As it is, it would appear that while the Iraqis continue to experience water and energy shortages, living conditions apparently are much better for those fortunate enough to live on American military bases. Judging from the amount of construction that is occurring, it is difficult not to assume that whether we like it or not, our government plans to remain in Iraq for a long, long time.

Cynthia Cutting

Corvallis