Blossoming Growers Markets

[RE: Newscity, “Just Don't Act Out,” June 10-16] Being that I am a Christian and recently completed a year as Mr. New Mexico Gay Pride, I was sad to see such an example of poor research on a topic. Had Ms. Garcia put the most minimal amount of research into her article she would have found there are many churches in Albuquerque that are welcoming to the GLBTQ community: First Congregational United Church of Christ, Church of the Good Shepherd, United Church of Christ, Sombra Del Monte Disciples of Christ, First Presbyterian Church, Central United Methodist Church, Christ Unity Church, the Independent Catholic Church in America, St. Luke's Lutheran.

I serve the Church of the Good Shepherd UCC as Music Director. When I entered the Pride Contest last year, my pastor and several church leaders were there to support me. In the year following, I centered my fundraising efforts around the goal of closing the gap between the gay community and the church community.

My efforts ended up raising just over $1,800 for this year's Pride Parade and Festival. So, despite what Ms. Garcia's article says, there are lots of places gay people can go to worship and participate in the life of the church. I hope that in future issues your reporter will at least bother to do a better job of research.

I keep seeing and hearing the Bush campaign ad on TV highly touting President Bush for creating some 480,000 or so jobs during the month of May and for growth of the economy during the past 10 months. I find this ad very misleading because they don’t provide the public with the whole truth. This shouldn’t surprise me since most of the their ads deal in half-truths. This is a blatant disservice to the American public.

While the economy, based on the stock market indicators, has continued to grow steadily during the past 10 months and there were about 480,000 new jobs created during May, they don’t bother to tell the public that the economic growth is primarily attributed to increased productivity due to cheap foreign labor costs and that the national unemployment rate has deteriorated or remained unchanged—hovering around 5.7 percent.

The only deductions that I can make out of our current economic scenario is that either this administration’s rich corporate buddies are manipulating the stock market with highly innovative bookkeeping practices for political reasons or the economy has continued to grow based on increased industrial productivity due cheap or slave labor costs attained by outsourcing their work or relocating their companies to foreign countries. Our current economy, while it may be improving, represents a false economy—one whose bottom will drop like a lead balloon, sooner or later.

In either case, this does not reflect a strong American economy. The only ones that benefit from this type of economy is corporate America. In the interim, the American people are being “hung out to dry” in more ways than one: high unemployment and having to buy American products produced in foreign countries.

A strong American economy is one that is based on “patriotic” financial investments by corporate America in America—expanding their companies “in-house;” thus, creating many new jobs for the American people and reducing the unemployment rate. This is the real sign of a strong American economy.

This administration has failed miserably in this area. They seem more intent in proliferating corporate greed, rather than doing what’s in the best interest of the American people. I just hope that the American people can see through all their political shenanigans.

RE: Commentary, “They're Here, They're Queer, They're Married, Get Used to It,” June 10-16] Touché! Gwyneth Doland's commentary was a brilliantly written representation of how so many of us educated, compassionate, free thinking members of society view the ridiculous ongoing debate of the gay marriage issue. Can't we get over it already? As Ms. Doland so eloquently points out, “… We don't legislate the private sex lives of our citizens.” And in my opinion, denying legal marriage rights to gays and lesbians is doing just that! And, more importantly, it's outright discrimination!

Haven't our gay and lesbian friends and colleagues been subjected to enough pain, embarrassment and discrimination? If these gay couples are willing to make the monumental commitment and sacrifice it takes to make marriage work, I say lets give them the opportunity. After all, the straight couples have screwed up the sanctity of marriage to the tune of a 50 percent divorce rate. Let's let our gay friends have a shot at it.

We can't stand to have the liberals in power. They will pull us out of Iraq and Afganastan [sic]. They will let the terrorists regroup and put together another big attack on this Great Country of ours. We must attack, attack, attack. We must keep the terrorists on the run. They cannot have time to stop and breathe. With the liberals in power people like Ted Kennedy, Hillary Clinton (who said that Hussien [sic] was helping terrorists) and John Kerry will make it much easier for terrorists to attack by ending the war in Iraq and the war on terror and getting rid of the PATRIOT Act; they basically are supporting terrorism. They want to get out of other countries that are in need of military help because it might hurt them politically. They don't want to stop the terrorists. They want innocent people to die (Americans, the people of Irasrel [sic], etc.) They didn't want to go to war because Saddum [sic]was less of a threat to them as Bush is. Bush is the Best President (next to Reagan) since Lincoln. The liberals are scared that he will ruin them. He is right on every thing he has done in office.

[RE: Payne's World, “Primary Postmortem,” June 10-16] Greg, you and I go way back. You have repeatedly acknowledged and apologized for allowing a terrible thing to happen in the city under your watch as city councilor six years ago. You said that you were oblivious to the atrocities that were going on at Albuquerque Animal Services and my pleas for help because you were a new city councilor and the energy and enthusiasm of your campaign made you lose focus.

Yet, you attribute blatant superiority to these specious traits in your comparison of Sen. Richard Romero and Miles Nelson. You characterized Nelson as having “energy, enthusiasm, momentum, organization and fire in the belly” and Sen. Romero as “gentlemanly.” Although I have forgiven you for being a Republican, as the mother of all that is grassroots, may I remind you of what it means to have true and demonstrated courage, conviction and public service? Sen. Romero marched in Washington D.C. for women's right to choose. In Congress, he will protect that right. He introduced a bill that is now law, to ban intracardiac euthanasia on shelter animals. None of the other five legislators to whom I have written about this issue even bothered to answer my letters. I sat next to Sen. Romero on the Senate floor and in committees and had the privilege of observing first hand his unwavering strength as he fought to end this shameful practice of animal torture. He also sponsored a bill to add a bittering agent to antifreeze to protect our pets and children. Gentlemanly, indeed.

[RE: Letters to the Editor, “Beyond Comprehension,” June 17-13] Speaking of “barely literate drivel from an undereducated yokel,” I am writing to comment on the letter written by Joe Reskin.

I am a native New Mexican. I grew up on a farm that is near a small town in the southeastern part of the state. In the ensuing years, I earned a college degree and have held various responsible jobs in the medical field. I have traveled throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. I spent some time at the University of Warwick in Coventry studying English literature. I have read The Iliad, and I have also read Sidney Sheldon novels. What of it?!

I do not feel I have had to overcome any disadvantages by being from New Mexico, or by choosing to live in this “hapless burg” known as Albuquerque. I have a feeling that the majority of Albuquerqueans could definitely “hold their own” in any conversation with Mr. Reskin.

I believe that Mr. Reskin needs to leave this city which has so let him down … but not for the same reasons he thinks are valid. Mr. Reskin, feel free to return to whatever cultural haven you came from.

[RE: Payne's World, “Buying Blow from the Bench,” June 17-23] Especially when it comes time to vote for retention of incumbent judges. If we are not to be allowed the knowledge of which judges violate the law, then I personally will vote to oust all of them next time!

It has always rankled me that so many things are “secret” in our great state. From secret deals (amounting to $450,000 of taxpayer revenues!) with cops accused of corruption, rape and cocaine dealing to how often drug dealers manage to “get away” (and innocent civilians manage to get killed in the process, as in Ralph Garrison).

Perhaps all of us working together and voting together will clean our wonderful home city and state of this canker sore that is the present establishment in some quarters!