People need to make own choice...

People need to

make own choice

My daughter goes to Marina High, and we both have discussed the

trucks from the Bio-Ethical Reform, and I don’t feel that they should

be driving around. I feel that everyone has their own decisions to

make, especially children don’t need to be forced or coerced in any

way to believe one way or the other until they’re old enough to

totally understand it. Thankfully, my daughter and I have a good

relationship and discuss all this, and even she felt, her response to

me was, Why do they have to force it on everyone and go about it in

the manner in which they do? And that’s hard, so I don’t agree with

it and I don’t think they should be able to do that, especially

around the middle schools.

JAMIE OLSON

Huntington Beach

Sign ban shows irresponsibility

Of course the ordinance violates the 1st Amendment. But what this

action on the part of the Huntington Beach City Council highlights is

the fiscal irresponsibility of the council. In a time of budget

crisis, when all we hear from the council is that they have no money,

who in their right mind would pass an ordinance that would be

guaranteed to bring on a lawsuit? The council believes in the lawyer

full employment act.

Next this council will ban all cargo ships from Huntington Beach

waters because they block our view of Catalina.

JONATHAN GROSSMAN

Huntington Beach

Images an outrage, and need to stop

I too, have seen the trucks and I am outraged as a parent that

these are allowed to run around. If it was anything else, if it was

swastikas or a black man being hung, that would not be allowed. Why

then do we allow this to be shown. This is unbelievable, and I can’t

believe a city of this magnitude, that is this big, can allow this.

And when they start to yell free speech -- this isn’t free speech.

This is not what our forefathers fought for, to scare innocent small

children who have not made their decision as adults yet on this

topic. This is deplorable. I hope this stops soon. I am careful not

to go on busy streets when I take my children to school now. I go in

tracks of homes because I don’t want them to see this.

CINDY MCCALLUM

Huntington Beach

Children should see the abortion photos

Definitely they should be allowed to show those photos for

children. There are many children that are 13 and 14 years old that

are having sex. They should be allowed to see what is happening to

the babies that they suck out of their bodies and throw into sinks.

KATHERINE SCHAEFER

Huntington Beach

Anti-abortion group is within its rights

I just believe that the group is perfectly within rights to

display the aborted fetuses on the sign. Although I must admit I

haven’t seen it yet, I would like to see it for myself, but I don’t

believe that people should just not know about what’s happening. They

should be able to see that and to make a decision intelligently about

what the issue is. This group, I don’t think, really has any other

choice, because you don’t see that in magazines. It’s too much

pressure I believe, from groups that would boycott. So they really

have no choice but to go to a non-commercial way of advertising.

CARMELITA PICCARDO

Huntington Beach

I think that’s perfectly fine. It’s a way to get people to notice

that abortion is murder and that these babies are actually babies

when they’re being killed and I think it’s their right to drive

around with the sign. This is a free country.

PAMELA BUROS

Huntington Beach

Hopefully images will stick in memories

Many years ago I had a friend that was trying to show me pictures

of aborted babies, and I in no way wanted to see them nor did I want

to deal with them, because at that time I was happy with my opinion

that it was my choice to murder these babies.

I didn’t want to have to deal with the reality of what exactly I

thought was OK to kill. I’m thinking that maybe the reasons why the

Jewish people keep bringing up the Holocaust and the atrocity that

happened and the pictures is because they want that memory stuck in

peoples minds of what happened.

I’m thinking that these pictures here, if these pictures of the

murdered babies can be put in the kids’ minds that maybe they won’t

forget. Then maybe they will remember what it is. If you talk to a

woman who wanted a child and had a miscarriage, she mourns for her

baby, she doesn’t call it a fetus, she calls it her baby. There are

so many women who want children so badly, that don’t think of them as

just superfluous tissue to flush down the toilet or throw in the

trash. They know that that is a child. So I say keep those trucks

rolling and hopefully it will make an impression on these people who

are being taught lies about exactly what happens when you have that

clean little word abortion, but abortion means murder.

ROSEMARY COWELL

Huntington Beach

Candidates ability to lead is biggest issue

The most important issue facing City Council candidates is not the

awareness of problems and crises facing the city, but the exercise of

leadership it will take to solve our problems and manage our crises

over the next four years (and of course longer with the right

decision making). Anyone can point to budget crises, pollution

problems, infrastructure needs and so forth. Anyone can claim that it

will take effective leadership to address our situation. Many of the

candidate brochures and materials I have seen tout the obvious. If it

were easy to fix things, I think the current council would have done

a better job of it.

Candidates who want to win seats on the City Council must

demonstrate that they not only have individual leadership skills but

that they can work with the rest of the council members to directly

address critical problems and needs and to “boldly go where no

council has gone before” in actually coming up with solutions.

TIM GEDDES

Huntington Beach

Column was right on about McGrath

Absolutely, positively hooray for you. I’ve lived in Huntington

Beach since 1967 and have followed the City Councils and City

Attorneys closely. Danette Goulet’s comments regarding Jennifer

McGrath are right on. Furthermore, an endorsement from Gail Hutton

speaks volumes about why McGrath should not be elected.

I have noticed a few columns by Goulet in the last couple of

months pinpointing some problem areas.

After merely complaining for several years, I have decided to get

involved. I doubt that I will ever run for anything, but I can write

letters.

One point I’d like to see mentioned, regards city employee

pensions. This has to be the largest debt in the city’s future. My

understanding is that if a city retiree dies, their spouse will

collect 100% of their pension benefits. I know of no business that

does that. I believe this would surprise a lot of voters. Dave

Sullivan is right; the benefits are beyond reason.

When we are going through budget problems ( annually, I might add

) consider the following council actions.

1. $700,000 per year for a sports park that will benefit very few

people and a few coaches.

2. Forgiveness of over $700, 000 for an art museum with few

visitors.

3. $45,000 for art at the beach, which went to out of state

artists.

4. $50,000 to move metal birds from the old Seacliff shopping

center to City Hall.

Last but not least, it would be interesting to know how much time

and money has been spent on Bolsa Chica in the last 32 years. And, as

we know, it’s not in the city Huntington Beach. I am not an

anti-environmentalist, but surely this should not be a responsibility

of Huntington Beach taxpayers only. And as for Proposition 50,

there’s no guarantee it will buy the Bolsa Chica. And let’s face it,

you and all others in the 20 to 40 year old age group will be paying

for it, and other bond issues for the next 20 to 30 years.

Keep up the focus.

DON LOWE

Huntington Beach

McGrath’s actions not worthy of articles

Since July of this year, when I obtained my nomination papers for

the office of city attorney, I have been campaigning directly with

the voters on a daily basis. I have communicated a positive platform

based on experience and integrity. I am proud of my work at the city

attorney’s office and can factually state I am the only municipal-law

qualified candidate.

As the Independent’s article of Sept. 5, 2002, indicated,

municipal law experience is the most important qualification for the

office of city attorney.

Until now, I have not submitted a response to the several articles

written about the city attorney campaign. Instead I have focused on

meeting the residents of Huntington Beach and promoting their

concerns, however, in hopes of journalistic integrity and the concept

of “equal time” will prevail, I submit the following facts for

clarification:

It should not be headline news that I voluntarily refunded

unsolicited campaign donations received from city employees when, in

fact, the state law has specifically rendered the municipal code

section issue invalid and unenforceable.

I question why it is not headline news that my opponent reports

what appears to be the largest violation of the campaign contribution

limitations ordinance in the history of the city. However, it is

worthy of an editorial in the Independent, which permits my opponent

to offer an explanation for his correction of the problem after it is

brought to his attention.

Further, I question what action City Attorney Gail Hutton could

have taken to satisfy my opponent and the editorial staff of the

Independent. In response to a citizen’s request to investigate the

violation, Hutton referred the matter to the district attorney. If

she had proceeded to investigate the violations as requested, the

editorial staff would have accused of her of a conflict of interest.

Referring the matter to an outside third party should have avoided

any accusation of foul play, but unfortunately, not for my opponent

or the editorial staff of the Independent.

Any allegation of impropriety on behalf of the Huntington Beach

Police Officers Assn., or myself, based on the endorsement of my

candidacy is unfounded and offensive. I have earned their endorsement

over years of professionalism, fair-mindedness, and experience,

regardless of the opinion of the editorial staff of the Independent.

I trust the citizens of Huntington Beach will carefully research

the four candidates for the office of city attorney and cast their

votes for me to provide the best legal protection for the city of

Huntington Beach.

JENNIFER MCGRATH

Huntington Beach

Fire department is way out of line

I consider myself to be very patriotic, perhaps more than the

average person. Because of this, I feel compelled to write to you.

I’ve never written a letter to any newspaper. Sept. 11 is still very present in all of our minds and with it comes new focus on our police

and fire agencies. They have been cast under the limelight as heroes,

and righteously so. They have always been heroes.

However, driving through Huntington Beach, I’ve noticed plywood

cutout sculptures in front of our fire stations that bother me. The

sculptures depict some firemen raising an American flag in the

obvious same pose as the Marines did on the island of Iwo Jima during

World War II on Feb. 23, 1945. The photo of the New York Fire

Department raising the flag at ground zero is famous all on it’s own.

But how dare the Huntington Beach Fire Department even compare

themselves to that infamous flag raising of World War II, that

followed the loss of thousands of lives. The heroes that fought at

Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Peleliu and other locations earned

recognition entirely on their own. Those men of war lived daily in

conditions we can’t fathom and witnessed the most gruesome bloodshed

perhaps of this century. World War II has, no doubt, haunted our

veterans physically and emotionally. We owe them the utmost respect

and thanks, as they have given us the opportunity to live in freedom

in this mighty nation.

My heart grieves for the loss of the policeman, firefighters and

port authority as well as everyone in the World Trade Center on Sept.

11. But, just as it was wrong for some people to try and earn a buck

from that day, it’s wrong for Huntington Beach Fire Department to

ride on the coattails of those heroes. It’s wrong to substitute

themselves in place of those heroes from World War II. Perhaps it’s

time to quell those egos and stop trying to draw so much attention to

yourselves. I do respect the work of our firefighters perform, and am

very thankful we have them. This is an issue of respect; respect that

is due uniquely to the Marines of World War II. Their image(s) should

never be altered or substituted. God Bless the USA,

BRIAN EDMOND

Huntington Beach