A chance to do more for aged and disabled

The city's recent dismissal of its director for the Commission on Aging and Retirement Education (CARE) signals a changing of the guard that needs to happen for Baltimore to move forward with a new vision for a quality-driven, well-managed, community-based system of care for the city's 100,000 disabled elderly residents ("Mayor fires 2, hints at more terminations," July 4).

Mayor Martin O'Malley now has an opportunity to create within CARE a culture that is more responsive and enhances the ability of families to care for dependent loved ones in the community for as long as possible.

I hope Mr. O'Malley will look long and hard to find someone who has the experience, creativity and vision to carry us to the next level.

Carolyn Erwin-Johnson

Baltimore

The writer is the founder of Caregivers in Action, a support network for families caring for elderly or disabled relatives.

A 'smoky warning' finds a distant shore

On a recent evening, while walking along the beach on the North Shore of Prince Edward Island, Canada, I watched the sun set high in the sky. It never even made it close to the horizon, despite few clouds.

Smoke from forest fires 1,000 miles away in Northern Quebec had completely blocked the sun. I even think I could smell the smoke, though that was likely my imagination.

And, as an online Canadian reader of The Sun, I was glad to read the editorial "Quebec's smoky warning" (July 9) the next day.

Through the efforts of newspapers, community members and other individuals, we can convince our legislators, no matter the country, that global warming is a priority.

Like so many things, the cost of inaction will likely far outweigh the cost of proactive investments in sustainable behavior.

Colin Deacon

Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada

Let the professionals reform stock market

I mostly disagree with The Sun's editorial advocating more legislation regulating accounting firms, Wall Street and publicly traded corporations ("Bush's opportunity," July 9).

Make no mistake, those who commit fraud or intentional misrepresentation of earnings should be dealt with harshly under our current laws. But the legislation The Sun proposed is short-sighted and would result in even more distorting government interference in the economy and in unintended consequences that everyone but socialists would regret.

It is clear to all that changes need to be made, but they need to be made by participants in the markets, not by government.

Rather than demonize them, let's give market professionals the opportunity to take the necessary steps to prevent abuses in the future.

Donn Weinberg

Owings Mills

How can Bush scold Wall Street?

President Bush lecturing Wall Street on financial shenanigans is like President Clinton lecturing a swingers' convention on fidelity and abstinence ("Bush scolds Wall St., asks legal reforms," July 10).

Given Mr. Bush's own pattern of creative transactions in both the energy and baseball businesses, one wonders which was more dominant at the podium -- simple hypocrisy or envy by a crude and clumsy misbehaver in the presence of the truly audacious?

Kenneth G. Olthoff

Linthicum

Don't give president blank check on war

I found Steve Chapman's analysis of accused terrorist Jose Padilla's detainment ambivalent and frightening ("Different rules apply in wartime," Opinion Commentary, July 9).

He vituperatively attacked those who would question the legality of Mr. Padilla's confinement, but admitted some "minimal evidence" must be presented in court by the government.

Even more alarming was his assertion that though a "check" on the executive branch is needed, a congressional go-ahead for war was ceremonial and meaningless.

Perhaps a more thorough understanding of the repercussions of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution would help Mr. Chapman understand what happens when Congress writes a blank check to the president and leaves him to conduct what he perceives as a righteous war.

Rami Fakhouri

Cockeysville

Care for the kids city already has

I was shocked when I read the recent letter suggesting we should increase the city's population by having Baltimore dwellers have more children ("Maintain the city we've always known," July 1).

We already have too many children having children and too many offspring -- many of them without fathers, some without mothers.

These children often are found roaming the streets at late hours of the night because nobody cares. Many become involved with dope, carry guns and end up shooting innocent people or becoming victims of someone else's gun. Or they drop out of school because nobody has taught them the need for a good education or has been willing to help them over the rough spots.

Let us not encourage city dwellers to have more children, but to take care of the ones already here.

Wilton Shaw

Baltimore

Let parents choose what to teach kids

I am perplexed about why there is so much opposition to school choice and voucher programs.

People of all faiths came to the United States to worship freely -- and this includes bringing up their children in their faith. The public schools -- with their anti-moral, anti-faith, secular teachings -- are in themselves an establishment of religion.

In addition, all 50 states have mandatory attendance laws, requiring most parents to send their children out each school day to be indoctrinated by "Big Daddy" government.

I see this as both an establishment of religion and a practice that prohibits the free exercise thereof.

The best solution is to repeal all mandatory attendance laws, close the public schools, and give parents back their tax money so they can educate their children as they please.

Rebecca D. Reynolds

Parkville

Catholic schools won't promote choice

Does anyone see the irony in the hue and cry by people who favor school vouchers? For instance, the writer of one of the letters titled "Vouchers decision adds to options" (July 7) argues that "with this decision [endorsing the constitutionality of school vouchers], freedom of choice comes within reach of more citizens."

But the religious schools that will benefit most from these "vouchers" are those run by the Catholic Church, whose dogma holds that women do not have "freedom of choice" when it comes to their bodies and what they do with them.

Go figure.

Randall Miller

Ocean View, Del.