The American Spectator

Reader Mail

Bits and Pieces

12.16.04 @ 12:01AM

(Page 3 of 6)

This whole section of the article is inane. Our Constitution was never fixed in stone and to call judicial interpretation "activism" is just bogey-man rhetoric. There have always been wide-ranging differences in the interpretation of our great guiding light, and many times the "activism" of judges has proved to be enduring wisdom. The idea that we should simply accept the law as it is written goes against the intentions of the framers, who understood that the Constitution would need to be changed, and indeed who changed it almost immediately with the Bill of Rights.

3. Do we know what Ms. Vidmar's voting card says? Did she appear at the DNC and I missed it? Pulling out some story from deep within the well of the Weird World of News to support a vast anti-American viewpoint may make readers smile and giggle with glee, but it isn't persuasive. Mr. Neumayr is not satisfied with that error, but goes one further. First he uses Ms. Vidmar as evidence of "getting it," and then he tells us that even if Democrats denounce her actions, they are wrong. So which is it?

If you watched the DNC in Boston, you heard many a speaker refer to the legacy of the patriots. By stating that Democrats are uncomfortable with American History, Neumayr has a point. But implicit with critiquing that is that question, "What year in American History is the one where everything was a-okay? What era is beyond reproach?" The sad -- or is it blessed? -- truth is: none.

I hope you will agree to print my letter, and perhaps Mr. Neumayr can have another go at supporting his accusations.
-- Michael Milliman

ENVIRONMENTAL SHANNIGANS
Re: Michael Fumento's Erin Crockovich Is Back:

Thank you for your recent story in TAS about Erin Brockovich. The woman and all she stands for makes me cringe.

You see, I am one of the damned. Worse than damned, I suppose I qualify as one of Satan's minions, front rank, at least in the minds of people like Brockovich.

Because I am a corporate attorney specializing in environmental law. My personal background is that I got my B.S. in Chemical Engineering and practiced as an environmental engineer for almost 13 years before going to law school (at night, while working during the day in a steel mill). For the last 12 years, I have worked in my current job. Its a great job and I love coming to work.

I have no desire to put down hard working legal assistants (God bless 'em), but I think my background is very suitable for what I do. And it is not unique. My boss is another engineer turned lawyer and one of my colleagues is a bio-chemist turned lawyer. This melding of technical and legal training is very common in environmental law. Furthermore, most people I know in the cusiness, both in industry and in government, are genuinely good individuals who work hard to comply with all laws and regulations. I have no problem working with the EPA or their state counterparts. Generally speaking, there is much more cooperation among the regulators and the regulated than the public would suspect.

But I do object to the way the popular media has made a hash of environmental issues, à la Brockovich. In my company, we have a standing policy of not talking to the press, about anything, for the simple reason that we never get a fair shake. Factual statements are ignored, and scare tactics always trump science.

So anything you can do to get the truth out about her odious activities is a plus. Keep up the good work.
-- Bob

COLLEGE NOTE TAKING 101
Re: Ben Stein's How to Ace an Exam:

A most excellent Cliff's Notes on passing University. From a historical perspective, I might quibble with your observation on struggle between systems. The struggle between "isms" was a relatively modern invention having been birthed in the last century. Prior to that your observation would have been:

"All human history is the struggle between ruler(s) that attempt to shackle the human endeavors in the name of some tangible good on the one hand and ruler(s) that attempt to defend their endeavors from such individuals on the other."

Elected representative forms of government are relatively new to the scene of governance in human existence. Even though the U.S. has been practicing some form of representative government for over 3 centuries. We were quite rare in the overall monarchical scheme of things till, again, the last century.

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Trade, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Television, Business, Social Security, Protestantism, Abortion, Environment, Constitution, Law, Military, Iraq, NATO, Africa