Letters to the Editor of the Pahrump Valley Times

Reader criticizes letter complaining about balloons

In response to people complaining about the balloons. When I moved here six years ago my horses had never seen a balloon and they still don’t care.

Don’t come here and start complaining about things that are going on. The balloons are great to see and you should try desensitizing your horses and mini cows. They are not devalued because they got spooked.

Makes me think you came from California - go back and quit trying to make Pahrump suit you. This is Nevada.

Shelley Johnson

Past protests focus on social injustices in society

So, Stacy Riney thinks Joe Biden is a communist. Really? The man who helped rescue us from the 2008 economic collapse and wants to give you health care is a communist? Good grief!

Meanwhile, Henry Hurlbut doesn’t believe our FBI director or the Department of Homeland Security that “right-wing white supremacy” groups are the greatest threat to our national security. Maybe Fox News didn’t report the recent plot by these extremists to kidnap and assassinate the governor of Michigan. I guess it’s easier to blame Black Lives Matter for everything wrong in this country.

If you were a student in one of my American History classes you would understand that protests are part of the American heritage. The Boston Tea Party and subsequent revolution, the Abolitionist Movement, Women’s Suffrage and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s/1960s are just a few of the protests that focused on injustice. Sometimes violence ensued, but would you deny these events made us a better country?

Sharon Kingdon Moran’s beautiful article on why the Electoral College is a relic of the past left nothing more to say on the subject. Sadly, we remain the only democracy in the world that does not guarantee that the person with the most votes in an election is the victor.

Finally, Henry questions why I live in this country. Apparently anyone who disagrees with his absurd ideas must be banished. Spoken like a true fascist Henry. Thomas Jefferson said “America’s greatness depends on the free dissemination of ideas”. Henry, that means different ideas should be proposed, discussed and debated. I guess you believe that opinions that differ from yours are dangerous. What a sad and pitiful concept!

Dennis Crooks

Couple commend mechanic for good, honest service

Two weeks ago my wife and I (both in our 70s) took our motorhome and truck to Mesquite Springs in Death Valley for a week of camping.

While climbing Towne Pass the rig got hot enough to give me concerns that damage might have been done. So when we drove to Beatty we looked for a mechanic. Someone at an RV park gave us John’s number and we called. He answered and after listening to me said he was on a call near Pahrump but would show up at our camp between 3 and 6 p.m.

Clarifying that there is no cell service in that campground we returned to await his arrival. Six p.m. came and went and we kind of gave up hope… but wait … about 8 p.m. he drove up. (We were amazed… this doesn’t happen in Southern California).

He looked at things and did some tests and opined that nothing was broken but I should probably get everything checked out and maybe a new radiator when we got home. I asked how much I owed him and he cited a more than fair amount.

I just wanted to publicly thank John for being a fair and honest man on top of being a good mechanic. He drove 60 miles each way not actually knowing we were there to keep his word. All of your readers are lucky to have him.

Mike Gaskins

The real devastation caused by the coronavirus

In Mountain West states like Utah and several others, government, business, and media seem to have entered into a conspiracy of silence about the real human devastation of the coronavirus. These agencies have not led out like elsewhere in memorializing the lives of specific individuals who have suffered and died. These untimely deaths deprive citizens and their relatives of years of crucial family experience.

Public personalities hang their hat on privacy to justify the silence. But all our leaders need to do is ask affected families for permission to publish brief biographies of these amazing lives now gone. If they did this, they would soon see how much better their neighbors would behave.

Sincerely,

Kimball Shinkoskey

Maybe we should try to understand the ‘Bill of Non-Rights’

It seems many don’t understand the Bill of Rights, so I found an old “Bill of Non-Rights” I’ve had for quite a while.

1. You don’t have the right to the property of others, unless you purchase it legally.

2. You don’t have the right to never be offended. Here in America we all have freedom of speech and opinions.

3. You don’t have the right to wealth if you hurt or injure yourself with a manufactured, purchased item, by carelessness.

4. You don’t have the right to free anything at others’ expense. Americans have always helped others when needed.

5. You don’t have the right to harm others. Doing so brings penalties.

6. You don’t have the right to a job, but if you want one, educate yourself so the job wants you.

7. You don’t have the right to change American history, beliefs in God, or our language.

If that bothers you, maybe you should move to a land more compatible.

Henry Hurlbut

Government should be obligated to control itself

We still to date, as individuals, have some freedom of choice, but they have been steadily dwindling due to the choices we have made that tend to be toward what we believe is the easiest path. We find it very easy to blame our problems on others, especially those in power positions, whether we directly or indirectly put them there. And one of the most powerful is government.

James Madison said something worth repeating: “But what is government itself but the greatest reflection on human nature. If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the greatest difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed and in the next place ‘obligate’ the government to control itself.”

There are some glaring facts few will deny. First, our central government has been growing exponentially for some time; and next, businesses that have gotten big enough realize that if they cooperate with the government, they can substantially ward off competition. This is becoming more true in high-tech world control communications, which in today’s world, if you control the information you control choices, which in turn control behavior.

An example is the cancel culture makes individuals scared to express views that don’t align with a prevailing narrative. As far as an ‘informed’ electorate, only eight states today call for civics as a requirement to graduate from high school, while 31 require U.S. history. We’ve all seen the “man on the street” interviews and how many, including college people, can give details on frivolous things on what some entertainer or sports figure did or said but few if anything about the things government is doing that directly affect their lives.

Though not yet totally controlled, many communication outlets have painted one candidate as some kind of dictator, (and his outward actions sometimes make it believable), but his actions seem more to throttle that narrative, tending to put decisions in the hands of individuals, local and state leadership, while the other candidate is portrayed as this very friendly guy but continually talks of required measures that need to be taken in a multitude of areas that drastically limit any choice. We will certainly get the government we deserve if we don’t truly look at the choices we still have.

David Jaronik

Reader from ‘across the pond’ weighs in on COVID

I read Tim Burke’s post on how COVID is wearing people down, both mentally and physically. Here in Great Britain people are similarly worn out with the restrictions and the constant changes to the rules and regulations, especially concerning where and in what circumstances masks should be worn. I write this on the final day of October when it is reported that another complete month-long lockdown is shortly to be announced, causing severe economic issues due to nonessential business being ordered to close though, of course, the intention is to reduce the growing number of people being infected, resulting in a death rate matching that of the spring when the virus was at its most virulent.

It is easy to criticize the government of the day and many politicians have made political capital of how Boris Johnson and his team of ministers have handled the pandemic, especially stating that the first lockdown wasn’t introduced early enough, though some of the same people are now stating that going into another lockdown will cause more harm than good given the damage it does to people’s mental state due to the lack of social interaction, along with the economic damage caused by the government vastly reducing their financial support to working people unable to pursue their careers due to the restrictions.

My own view, as a 70-year-old widower with a handicap, is that individuals have to take responsibility for their own actions by socially distancing from people at all times and wearing a mask, however tiresome that may be, whenever they are required to do so. It is similar to crossing a road, you are responsible for not getting run over. Though for how long these restrictions are going to impact our daily lives is impossible to say but a sense of community that involves looking out for our family, friends and neighbors is vital in keeping everyone’s mental and physical well-being intact in these uncertain and worrying times.

Kenneth Farrington

West Yorkshire, Great Britain