Letters to the editor

The price of patriotism in Carson City — taxesMost people and residents of Carson City are not aware of the fact that if you decide or have already installed a flag pole in your yard that it is in fact, taxable. You heard right. You pay tax to show your pride in the U.S.A. I thought this was a joke and called the assessors office in Carson City and talked with Dave, who informed me that a flag pole is like a fence post and taxable. This ought to stir the veterans up. Property values have gone down and our taxes have gone up, which does not make sense as I always thought that property value determined the amount of taxes you pay. Huh?So if you see the assessor lurking around in the bushes, you can believe one thing he is looking for is a flag pole. Maybe we should get President Obama and Sen. Harry Reid involved so that can put a stop to such gross disregard for the U.S. citizen and the American veteran. I wonder how those that have died for this country would feel if they knew that we were being taxed to honor their memory.R. HartleyCarson CityDon’t get so worked up over political viewsOn my way home from Walmart while sitting at a red light, I hear a man screaming the “N” word and “F Obama!” I look in my rearview and see an old dirty biker with a grey mullet spitting and screaming racist obscenities. I was shocked that anyone would respond so hatefully to my bumper sticker let alone by the fact that this Neanderthal could actually read. After I flipped him off, the harassment stopped. (Most bullies are cowards when confronted.)Now, I see in the news the owner of a Mexican restaurant in Denver is receiving death threats because he refused to host an official Romney campaign event in his restaurant. Great campaign tool there, Mitt. Klansmen bikers and a death threat phone brigade. Nice. It’s sad to see the Tea Party has hijacked the once noble GOP into vicious hate mongers like these. Politics used to be relatively civilized before they infested the game with their hate and fear. Apparently, sagging poll numbers call for desperate measures. If you can’t persuade them, hey ... try intimidation!Really? If you let politics get you so worked up that you feel compelled to harass motorists and issue death threats, your needs would be better served at a psych ward than a voting booth. Get a grip.Robin Christy Carson CityOregon petition is another false Internet claimAs a retired hydrologist, I have to raise issues with the letter “Climate changes is a hoax.” Apparently Mr. Schumann suffers from the now common syndrome of repeating political “facts” that do not stand up to objective examination. He said 31,487 American scientists signed a petition rejecting climate change issues. This was the so-called “Oregon Petition,” whose web site (www.petitionproject.org) admits that only 3,805 of the signers are claimed to be “trained in specialties directly related” to climate-change research. Of those, only 112 in atmospheric sciences and 39 in climatology. Not stated is how many of those with such “training” actually had credible professions in those fields.A reasoned discussion of this too-often quoted petition can be found at (http://climatesight.org/2009/06/17/ignore-the-petition-project/) and (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_petition) which question the accuracy and honesty of the petition results.Such blind repetition of Internet “facts” is all too typical of those claiming that results of objective scientific research that may contradict political and economic special interests are “hoaxes.” How do such non-facts get so widely repeated? The Oregon Petition was quoted in 2009 by Ron Paul in opposing proposed energy legislation. Ron Paul’s quote was then picked up and widely distributed by such nonscientists as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh. Unfortunately, too many of our voters pay more attention to such false claims that support their personal opinions than objective facts which may suggest a different reality. This only contributes to the current political polarization and “freedom” from objectivity that has paralyzed our national progress.Jon NowlinCarson CityPaslov is spewing liberal garbageIn response to Eugene Paslov’s Oct. 6 commentary, it is beyond belief how a former state superintendent of schools can spew such liberal garbage. Is it any wonder why Nevada is ranked at or near the bottom in education? Unfortunately, there is not enough space here to rebut each of his misleading and malevolent comments. However, he leaves no doubt about his loyalty to the secular-socialist machine which has been undermining America’s values, principles and traditions for decades. As Newt Gingrich puts it in his book “To Save America,” the fundamental difference between historic American ideals and those of the secular-socialist left can be seen in 10 conflicting values: work vs. theft; productivity vs. union work rules and bureaucracy; elected representation vs. bureaucrats and judges; honesty vs. corruption; low taxes with limited government vs. high taxes with big government; private property vs. government controls; localism vs. Washington control; American energy vs. environmental extremism; conflict resolution vs. litigation; and religious belief vs. secular oppression. Secular socialists believe it’s the government’s right, and even its duty, to change the people. Our founding fathers believed the opposite. It is the peoples’ right to change their government. Well, I for one do not want a secular-socialist society or government. We have already been tricked and dragged too far in that direction. If Obama is not removed from office, this could be our last free election for some time.Vern PayetteSilver Springs