Open Forum

In response to a letter I read on April 22, I must say that I continue to be astonished by the level of ignorance that exists in this community in regards to the abortion "industry." If this is such a profitable "industry," then why do most of the organizations that offer this option happen to be non-profit clinics? I guarantee that if it truly was profitable, then our government would not only subsidize it, but commercials for RU486 (not to be confused with the "morning after pill") would be as common as those for Viagra.

Legal abortion doesn't exist to make money. It exists so that volunteers don't have to travel to Tijuana to retrieve out of trash cans the bodies of American women who died from illegal abortions, as they did before 1973. I hear people say that if a woman has an abortion, then maybe she deserves to die in a back alley. Would those same people feel that way if it turned out to be their own daughter or sister?

Furthermore, taxpayers in this state don't pay for abortions in any way right now, so the "Taxpayer Protection Act" is nothing more than a sad attempt to work toward the reversal of Roe v. Wade. I agree that most Minnesotans are against abortion. I am too, which is why I've never had one. But thanks to Planned Parenthood, I was able to wait until I was actually ready to have my first child.

What a great idea Sen. Koering and his colleagues have come up with. Let's take away all the money that goes into providing birth control and education, and instead channel it into abstinence-only "education!" The "Just Say No" approach worked so well with drugs, now it can stop abortions from happening too!

Amy Hansmann

Brainerd

Polling places

Regarding the Open Forum letter of April 25, he's right, I did say we should "look at moving other polling places."

I live in Ward 1, Precinct 1. Last year we voted at a church. Prior to that we voted at Woodland Village. I spoke to many, many people who want the polling place moved back to Woodland Village. I strongly propose we do that.

A few day ago I attended the Northeast neighborhood meeting. Consensus there was to keep the polling place at the Garfield school.

I am told that the consensus on the north side was to keep the polling place at the Whittier school. I would support that consensus.

Our goal is to make it easier for all of us to vote!

Lucy Nesheim

Brainerd City Council member

Law should be clear

While I do not think I know all the details of Mr. Winkleman's run-in with the law, I do know enough to voice my opinion. I also hunt with a group that includes physically handicapped and young hunters. Our purpose in using two-way radios is for safety, to help each if needed and to know where each of us are at all times. The regulation in the hunting laws is not a good one. It states: "two-way radios may not be used to aid in the taking of deer." When I first saw that I thought what does that mean? Not wanting to break the law, I went to the area DNR office for enforcement and asked what it meant. I was told that the intent was to prohibit their use in making drives. "I jumped one, it's coming towards you, etc." They also conceded that because of the poor wording it is a judgment call on the part of the officer on the scene. As we all know that also includes his personality and how he is getting along with his wife. From what I read in the paper I doubt if he would have gotten cited if his name was not Babe Winkelman.

The rules should be clear and not a judgment call.

Keith Riedel

Brainerd

Support Our Troops

Veterans and those who proclaim to support our troops should be outraged!

The Karl Rove-led Republican attack squad is at it again, attacking another brave veteran. First, Sen. John McCain, ex-POW, then Sen. Max Cleland who lost his legs in Vietnam. Now it is Sen. John Kerry, decorated Vietnam Vet. What did these men have in common that warrants false and malicious attacks on their records and character? First, they bravely served our country in combat and paid a price. Second, they had the audacity to run against George W. Bush or a Bush crony.

The Chickenhawks who lead this administration, Bush, Cheney, Rove, and Wolfowitz, all skillfully dodged active service as did their mouthpiece pundits, Rush Limbaugh, Bill Bennet, Sean Hanrity, and Bill O'Reilly.

In addition to attacking Kerry's service, they've cut benefits to veterans and oppose a draft. This would mean their offspring could serve rather than just the working class' sons and daughters. It is certainly easier to promote war when it's not your children in harm's way. Let someone else do the dirty work, and when done with them, treat them with disregard at best, if not contempt.

By being critical of the Vietnam war effort after returning, not only did Kerry show courage, he showed wisdom. I certainly want a leader who's able to know the difference (and cost) between a just and unjust war.

Whose record do you feel comfortable with in a time of war ... a combat veteran with three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star, and a Silver Star (plus intelligence), or one with a record of two dental appointments?

Also, John McCain would make a great VP.

Karl Samp

Brainerd

Opinions on Kerry

Republican Congress-man John Kline expressed his opinion (Star Tribune 4/25/04) in regards to Sen. John Kerry's anti-Vietnam activities during the war! So be it. But, what he didn't express his opinion on was George W. Bush being absent from his Air National Guard Unit! Also, how about Sen. Norm Coleman's anti-Vietnam War activities while at Hofstra University? I would like to ask him why he didn't voice an opinion on those people's activities?

James Cummings

Nisswa

Retired veteran

ATVs in Pillsbury

I recently attended the meeting held in Pillager regarding closing ATV riding in Pillsbury State Forest. We were informed that state parks will either have limited riding or will be closed altogether. At the meeting we were informed that the commissioner of Natural Resources proposes reclassifying the Pillsbury State Forest as closed. There were comments given by the public how they felt about the reclassification. Pillsbury State Forest is 10,000 acres, why will it only be left open to horse back riders and walkers? There are plenty of acres so there could be both horse trails and ATV trails. The ATVs pay tax on the machines when they are first purchased, they buy licenses, and there is tax on all the gas to run the machines. What kind of tax do the horse riders pay? There are only a few miles of designated ATV trails in the state of Minnesota; there are a lot more designated horse trails in the state. Horse riders are allowed to ride in the ditches, so why do they need the whole state forest for riding? There were no current environmental studies done. Also there was no economic study done on how the closing of ATVs would effect the economy in the state. Pillsbury State Forest is used by many deer hunters in the fall. They use their ATVs for getting to and from their stand and to help take their deer out of the woods. We have dealerships in Brainerd who sell ATVs and companies in the state who manufacture ATVs. How will this impact them if state parks are closed for ATV riding and there are hardly any designated trails or places to ride?

The DNR informed everyone at the meeting that they would take comments until April 30. If anyone is concerned about this, please send your comments to the local DNR office, the state DNR office, and write your government officials. You may also e-mail the DNR at pillsbury.stateforest@dnr.state.mn.us.

Renee Boesen

Pillager