Model UN a valuable resource for students...

Model UN a valuable resource for students

As a former Model UN student at Edison High, I would like to

inform Wayne Parker (“Model UN a waste of school district’s money”

Mailbag, June 12) that he and his comments couldn’t be more wrong.

Has he even stepped into an Model United Nations class? Or observed

the students in their countless hours of research, writing and speech

preparation that is required of them for conferences? If he had, he

would see that it is definitely not filled with socialists and

America-haters. The program is filled with the smartest kids in

school -- liberal, conservative and independent. Some of Model UN’s

objectives are to teach a person how to look at situations from

different perspectives and to resolve issues peacefully. This

valuable program prepares high school students for college and the

future, unlike many other classes that are offered (or even

required). Students need to understand the world they are living in

and Model United Nations is a valuable resource for educating the

youth of America.

STEPHANIE LANDIS

Huntington Beach

As a former Model United Nations student at Huntington Beach High

School, I went ahead and forwarded Wayne Parker’s letter “Model UN is

a waste of school district’s money” to other former Huntington Beach

High School Model UN students to gauge their response. As I expected,

we all had a good laugh -- especially about Parker’s quip that the

program “indoctrinates students in a globalist, socialist

philosophy.” Let me see, how have my fellow former Model UN students

becomes such threats to the American way of life?

Some are teachers, even within Huntington Beach. How deplorable!

Some are attorneys. (Although if they’ve truly been indoctrinated by

a globalist, socialist philosophy I suppose they’ll be giving back

all that money the make.) I hear one works for the Scottish

Parliament. (Those Scots have always been nothing but trouble.) A few

are artists -- musicians, poets, and writers. (Although I hear the

“writer” now lives in New York and that city is truly a bastion of

anti-American sentiment.) Some have gone on to the military. (Uh oh,

socialists within the ranks.) One has been a paramedic, in our own

city mind you. And yours truly works for the Federal government.

Yikes!

Parker, the bottom line is Model United Nations does indoctrinate.

It indoctrinates students into becoming better citizens -- citizens

of the United States of America and citizens of the world.

JODY FISHER

Huntington Beach

Poseidon has no place in Huntington Beach

As if they had learned nothing from the Enron debacle, or from the

nefarious California “energy shortage,” some of our city planning

staff seem determined to put the Poseidon desalination plant on the

fast track. Private business has had a terrible record in public

utilities in recent years. We need only to look at how the hideously

ugly AES plant geared up its production recently.

Why should the good people of Huntington Beach suffer the blight

of yet another large industrial eyesore (on prime coastal land no

less), when it is appears likely that most of the desalinized water

is destined to be sold far away from our city borders? Poseidon

admitted that it already has an agreement with the Rancho Santa

Margarita Water District to sell them up to half of its water. No

doubt, this is with an eye to the proposed 14,000-unit housing

project planned for South County. That project cannot be built

without a water supply. If that project were to be built, it would

destroy the last large stand of endangered coastal sage scrub habitat

in Orange County and it would expand all the ills of urban sprawl

further without doing anything to fix our current problems.

When the Planning Commission met May 27, Commissioner Steve Ray

courageously asked planning staffers about this growth-inducing

issue. Staffer Scott Hess said that was “going beyond the limits of

your jurisdiction.” That’s pretty shocking. All sides of an issue

must be presented freely in open forum in order to develop the best

plans. City staffers must remember that they are public servants who

are supposed to be working for the people of Huntington Beach (not

private developers). And they should keep in mind that the testimony

of Poseidon’s team of experts is paid for by Poseidon.

Public utilities should be run first for the public good, not for

private profit. Let’s hope that the Poseidon scheme sinks like its

film namesake.

MARINKA HORACK

Huntington Beach

When considering desalinization, the components of the brine

should be elucidated for the public. The ocean is not just a

container full of dissociated sodium chloride ions and fish, it has

all of the good and bad ions that are on land as well as all of the

bad stuff we don’t want in our driveways or in our lungs.

Where shall Poseidon get its water to desalinate? How far off

shore?

The Heal the Bay Web site shows passing and failure score cards

for the beaches of various parts of Los Angeles and vicinities.

Failure and the consequent dead fish icon are because of the urban

runoff. Urban runoff, affectionately called “urban slobber,” has

lead, mercury, arsenic, cobalt, copper, pesticides, herbicides, fecal

matter and anything else that finds its way down the gutters. This

stuff does not get treated (there is one exception in Santa Monica);

it goes directly into the ocean. It does not just sit at the outfalls

at the beaches for our swimmers and surfers, but is carried by ocean

currents. We don’t know what really happens to it or how it has

affected our oceanic ecology over time, because we never took account

of what we had in our ocean before we poured millions of gallons of

nasty waste into it in the first place.

We can just speculate that our ocean was in better shape before

people got here.

How far out does that nasty stuff go? How far out will Poseidon

pump its source water? I doubt that it will get untouched waters and

it will certainly get all the wonderful dissolved metals that Mother

Nature puts into it. Add that all up and that is what will be

concentrated into the brine. Mixing it with sewage effluent may or

may not fix the problem. My guess is that it won’t, and at the

outfall and beyond the AES plant will be an ocean desert.

I won’t be swimming there nor my children or friends.

TERRY YOUNG

Huntington Beach

Laws don’t allow trashing of property

California law recognizes that the public can gain prescriptive

rights of access to private property when the land has been used: for

five years as if it were public land; without asking or receiving

permission from the owner; with the actual or presumed knowledge of

the owner; without significant objection or attempts by the owner to

prevent such use.

The Shea Parkside property meets all of the above criteria as far

as I can determine.

Ron Metzler of Shea Homes is well aware of my activities on his

property; I have phoned, e-mailed or spoken with him in person

approximately 10 times regarding various issues. I have never asked

for or received his permission to be on the property, but neither has

he forbidden me to enter.

While I hope that my independent role as the eyes and ears of the

Coastal Commission keeps Metzler awake at night, I also hope that

Metzler appreciates me informing him about unauthorized vehicles

driving around on his property and a water erosion problem that was

beginning to carve a gully into one of his slopes. If prescriptive

rights of access apply to me, they also apply to the paintball

players. But nobody has the right to trash someone else’s property.

The paintball players leave foxholes, tires, lumber, sandbags and

even kitchen appliances, whereas I take only pictures and leave only

footprints.

I think it’s safe to assume that Shea Homes probably prefers the

latter type of prescriptive rights access.

MARK BIXBY

Huntington Beach

Let’s have seniors patrol the wetlands

We are both just horrified at the thought of the paintball issue

and the littering in the wetlands. The wetlands are a very

significant element of our ecosystem, far more significant than most

people realize and I just think it is an absolute crime. I hope that

they will cite any individual that is found there and have them be

fined.

Not only that, we were wondering whether the seniors patrols, you

know they have senior citizens that help the police, we were

wondering if there couldn’t be some of those people who could do some

significant time there. It is such a shame that anything should

happen to our wetlands. And in Huntington Beach we are very blessed

to have some very special wetlands. And it is up to us to preserve

them.

MICHAEL AND CAROLE DADURKA

Huntington Beach

Paintball isn’t hurting anything out there

The children during the paintball playing do not occupy this

40-acre area. I have video tape of the children playing paintball and

they haven’t used trees or cut them down. The tires were already

there. The paintball markings on the tree do wash away after each

rain.

The second thing that I have to say is if in fact there are toxins

down there, there are many other people who take their dogs down

there. The stench of the dog feces is unbearable on hot days. So what

about that as toxin? If anything, the wetlands look their best in the

40 years that I have lived here. It is more organized, and years ago

four-wheelers used to go through there and tear it up and there were

a lot more drug addicts down there.

I think it’s atrocious that Danette Goulet wrote her column about

this and these kids are going to be fined or even arrested. Is there

no place for children to play anymore?

TRACY TOMB

Huntington Beach

City should appeal award in Saldivar case

I do believe the city should appeal the court’s decision to award

Antonio Saldivar’s family $2.1 million. If he grabbed a gun, or what

appeared to be a gun, at the officer, the officer did what he should

have done under those circumstances.

DAVID COFFMAN

Huntington Beach

If I were a policeman in the middle of the night and a young man

pointed a gun at me, I too would shoot him and I believe anyone in a

similar circumstance would. I think it is just appalling that this

family should be allowed this amount of money from the taxpayer’s

fund simply because this boy, young man really, did not have sense

enough to do as he was told by a policeman who spoke his language and

who followed the routine

VELMA BROWN

Huntington Beach

I am appalled at the city paying $2.1 million for killing Salidvar

after he brandished a hand gun, toy or otherwise, to an officer in

pursuit of a suspect. My parents lived in Huntington Beach for 45

years and are appalled that we have to pay for that jury’s findings.

As a Huntington Beach resident, I will defend myself and my city

for everything possible to bring the rights of Americans, but I tell

you what, I will not pay for the $2.1 million. Being a veteran of

the military, I pulled my weapon several times on unsuspecting

criminals pointing handguns at me. Yes I have shot and killed several

civilians but protected my own life.

It is an outrage, an absurdity what they are going to do to this

officer that was protecting the city of Huntington Beach. This lets

anyone pull a toy gun at anybody and get millions and millions of

dollars. There is an absolute atrocity when an officer, in fear of

his life, is basically prosecuted for defending his rights. Think

about your women and children at home, who were shot and killed.

Think about it.

RICHARD JOHNSON

Huntington Beach

Award should stand, officer was wrong

I say no, the police officer should be fired. He has two more law

suits against him pending.

He is still a police officer, he completely emptied his revolver.

There is nobody like this who should be on the city of Huntington

Beach police force or any police force like it. He was wrong, he

tried to cover it up. The family deserves the money.

ROBERT DINGMAN

Huntington Beach

Sports parking fees latest incompetence

This city has never been able to adjust to the fact that we are

not getting a “free ride” anymore because we do not get revenue from

our oil wells that have been shut down. We cannot live in a fairy

tale world forever. We have to get some smart money coming in to our

town or we are doomed.

You’d think that the Planning Commission -- which, I might add, is

such a joke it is unbelievable -- would have figured out how the

parking was going to work before this project started. That beautiful

sports center, which cost us a fortune, looks horrible with that

chain link fence; which will be all rusty in the near future. How do

we expect this joke Planning Commission to come up with an answer for

that parking when they cannot even fix the parking problem Downtown.

The problem I am talking about is the fact that there is not a

spot Downtown to park to go to the post office. We had some spots

until Starbucks started selling coffee across the street. Like there

is going to be the parking patrol there anytime soon. They city fixed

the problem by giving24 before they could get a ticket. Now the white

zone is taken up by the one or two cars that are going inside the

post office to stand in line, while those of us that just want to

mail a letter in the outside mail drops have no place to park.

This is all happening or not while the city raises our city bill.

Yes, I know why you, Danette Goulet, do not go to the meetings.

The thing is I could see myself ranting during my one minute, if only

I could get some immediate response from the council. But they just

sit there holier than thou.

Before we go any further on the parking, we need to get competent

people on the Planning Commission. I know one person that got on that

committee because someone felt sorry for him because he lost the

election for the City Council. Now what does that tell you.

Please, City Council, get your act together.

BONNIE SCOTT

Huntington Beach

Police helicopter noise is way out of control

It seems like the police helicopter is over my neighborhood 10

times a day. It is noisy enough when just flying by, but the

incessant circling is particularly annoying. Is it really necessary?

I recognize that it can be extremely effective in backing up ground

units and in pursuit situations. I am inclined to believe, however,

that most of the chopper time is spent on minor cases. When I look at

the police blotter in the Independent there is little that justifies

the air time the helicopter is getting. Air traffic noise diminishes

the quality of life here in Huntington Beach. Let me please listen to

the breeze and the ocean. Birdsongs, yes. Whirlybirds, no.

CHRIS AYERS

Huntington Beach

Sister City brings benefits, costs little

The persons who listed Sister Cities at the bottom of the priority

list in the city budget are no doubt unaware of the following:

*The original Sister City agreement was signed by then Mayor Bob

Mandic, along with Don MacAllister, and has been supported by every

mayor and City Council since 1982.

*Citizens of Anjo, Japan donated nearly $100,000 toward the

rebuilding of our pier when it was destroyed.

*Yes, street repair ranks above sister cities, but consider the

relative costs of each: money allocated for Sister City programs

represent only .0001 % of the $134,172 million of the city budget as

of Sept. 1, 2002.

*More than 650 guests from Japan and New Zealand sister cities

that we know of have made Huntington Beach a destination, and have

spent their dollars here.

*The Sister City Assn., comprised of volunteers, is responsible

for bringing Broadway shows, an award-winning pianist and flutist,

Flamenco dancers and other cultural events to Huntington Beach.

*The 75 cherry trees by the library and at the Police Department

are a gift from Japan, as is the stone lantern at the head of the

City Hall fountains.

*No city money is spent for anyone’s travel to New Zealand or

Japan.

CARMEN ERBER

Huntington Beach

Editor’s Note: Carmen Erber is the president of the Sister City

Assn. of Huntington Beach.

Bolton’s political cartoons a joy

I enjoy the local political cartoons by Steve Bolton in the

Huntington Beach Independent, which are well drawn and pertinent to

Huntington Beach. Please continue with them.

CARLA AND MICHAEL HUGHES

Huntington Beach

Obscene abortion signs not free speech

I am a furious 31-year-old middle school teacher in Huntington

Beach. My husband, our 20-month-old son and I just tried to have a

relaxing morning walk on the Huntington Beach Pier. As we got to the

intersection of Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway we were

assaulted with obscene photos of dead infants in anti-abortion

posters.

Ironically, I agree that abortion is wrong, but I also think those

graphic images are obscene and inappropriate for children and the

public. I am 10 weeks pregnant and it was very upsetting for me to

see such horrible pictures.

I took Issues in Freedom of Speech at Cal State Long Beach and I

understand obscene images and anything to incite a “reasonable man”

to violence is not protected by the Constitution. I saw a lot of

angry and potentially violent confrontations occur with the

demonstrators and I don’t understand how this “speech” is protected.

The police said their hands were tied. Is this obscene

demonstration protected by Freedom of Speech? And if so, can

pornography or pro-terrorists graphic photos of the N.Y. dead be

displayed at the pier? Shouldn’t our children be protected?

MELISSA ZAIDEN

Huntington Beach