Letters to editor of the Pahrump Valley Times

Reader disturbed by brutality in our community

Last Night (Saturday, Dec. 21) I was in a local store. It was about 7:45 in the evening. I walked into a genuinely upsetting scene.

A fortyish small-built man was sitting cross-legged on the floor. He was in much distress. He was a homeless man and he had just been beaten up. Right there in the parking lot.

He was bring attended to by several nice people. He was calling police. People were giving him some bills. I was too busy controlling my rage to be of any help. I exclaimed at the top of my lungs, that if this is what the country has come to, our enemy (I did not name it), has been victorious.

I also loudly declared I fear for future generations of Americans. I apologize for yelling at people. I do not apologize for the astonished frustration I felt at that time.

Janice Gilmour

Our town needs ordinances protecting animals

I recently wrote a letter which highlighted the need for proper animal care. I focused on horses, as Pahrump has many horses in precarious living situations.

Well, this Monday morning another horse died from owner neglect. A once-beautiful race horse from California, was sold and sold again. Sadly, each owner refused to provide this gorgeous creature a good home.

By the time he could be rescued, he was so thin and caved in from his spine, ribs and hips, that his internal organs failed and he died a painful death of convulsions and seizures.

For the love of God, people, please report animal abuse or neglect to the proper authorities as soon as you notice an animal in distress. We need to strengthen the existing laws, and work to create better laws to protect these helpless creatures.

Our Pahrump Animal Control and sheriff’s office does an outstanding job of responding to precarious situations. If we had known a week earlier, this once-loved horse might have had the chance to live and contribute to some lucky new owner. Now, he is a sad and tragic photo on a Facebook page.

A society is judged by how it treats those lesser among us, and that includes our family of pets and local critters. Please, please join me and other animal lovers in Pahrump to strengthen our ordinances and pray for compassion in the hearts of these cruel families that allow horses to starve.

Patty Vinikow

The road we’re on has changed direction

Reading Mr. James G. Herzog’s PV Times letter of Dec. 20, I agree and question many of the same things. I personally went to Vietnam in its early years, when there seemed to be wide support and it seemed most of us then had an attitude we were doing the right good thing as our fathers had done in World War II.

Then after my second tour I saw the ugly changes the country had gone through. By many of us, there was almost a feeling of shame because the biggest percentage of us only did what our country asked us to do.

Later, that attitude spread to the guys still there which became a “why should we give a damn” attitude along with widespread drug and alcohol abuse.

I later worked with a friend who was a Korean War vet and compared the two conflicts many times. I pointed out they had it much harder, particularly in winter because it had to be so difficult fighting the enemy but fighting the cold, with many times no way to get warm for days and sometimes weeks. He always told me Vietnam vets had it much worse in the aftermath. In his opinion, it was better to be part of the “forgotten war” than to be subjected to all the ridicule so many Vietnam vets received unjustly, which should have been directed at the political leadership and in some cases, military leadership. This sentiment is as true today as it was back then.

Just before President Obama’s first inauguration in 2008, a concerned man visited G.W. Bush in the White House and expressed concern of President-elect campaign promises of “change” and his world view. One of his promises was to get us out of “dumb” wars, which sounded like a good thing.

President Bush stated “little” would probably change, Obama will be getting the same information from essentially the same people, so there may be some changed around the edges but little else.

Think about it, even with all the promises, very little really changed. Worldwide turmoil may have moved and morphed but for the most part, there was little change for the good worldwide. As a matter of fact, it could be easily argued the U.S.’ blood and treasure losses have increased. Maybe not in actual loss of U.S. military life, but physical and mental wounds.

Then America elects a bombastic, non-politician, maybe because of all the failures of the “professional” politicians.

Mr. Trump comes from a world of “builders” where results and deadlines count. If something is not working and getting desired results, you don’t keep doing the same thing over and over, you change things, fire people if necessary. Doing these things bucks a powerful well-entrenched collection of “professional politicians and bureaucrats. Trump certainly always makes the “right” moves but shows he’s willing to change direction if something is not working. This, along with a level of self-preservation is a very strong motivation to throw the guy that’s “rocking the boat” overboard.

So raw hatred and self-presentation are really bottom line motivation no what you hear them say with all their contortions of reasons.

David Jaronik

There is still progress, unity on many fronts

We’re informed that the House of Representatives has completed its portion of the impeachment process, although at this point a Senate trial seems unlikely. Whatever your feelings on the matter, few would dispute that this episode has been one of the most divisive in our history. Worldwide, America’s reputation has been tarnished and the stain will doubtless linger for a time.

There are learned observers of the national scene who believe our troubled nation is in decline. I for one choose not to accept that negative view and will not allow my faith in our Constitution to diminish. That treasured and enduring document is by no means outdated or irrelevant. Since the earliest days of the republic, our country has faced all manner of challenges. It is reasonable to expect that the unpredictable nature of humanity and the environment will ensure a variety of struggles lie ahead. Even so, in the mix of good and bad to come, the future may also be marked by progress and unity on many fronts. I’d like to think that term limits for elected members of the Congress will be among them…Go ahead. Chuckle if you wish, but it really could happen. Moving along.

On a brighter note, there is an important example of local progress to consider. Applause should be directed toward those men and women who continue to labor with highway construction over the Spring Mountain pass on Highway 160. Every time my wife and I drive to Las Vegas, we never fail to notice the improvements that continue along the route. It’s worthy of recognition that from the start of this major project, traffic delays have been kept to a minimum, and to my knowledge serious mishaps have been avoided because the Nevada Highway Patrol, as well as contractors, maintain constant vigilance. Nevada DMV and all who are involved in the effort to increase efficiency and safety on the highways, deserve our thanks for their professionalism. Keep up the good work—-and happy holidays to everyone.

Ralph Bazan