Puzzling developments

Even though I am well past 70 the list of things that I don't understand seems to grow rather than shrink. For example:

In years past it was possible for a college student to make enough money during the summer to pay for an entire year of school without any debt. Now they can't even cover one term. Why is inflation so selective?

Why aren't scrap dealers held more accountable for the theft of metals by drug addicts? If someone shows up in an old beater pickup with a load of highway guard rails and catalytic converters, wouldn't you assume that they are stolen? If they couldn't sell this stuff they wouldn't steal it.

Why can't Oregon State ever have a winning football and basketball program at the same time?

Why do we just tiptoe around our energy problems by implementing only those solutions that have popular appeal but very little impact on our total consumption? How about an aggressive national energy conservation effort; a "man-on-the-moon" type crash program to develop practical alternative fuels such as hydrogen; and construction of a series of medium-size nuclear plants like those that are very successful in France? Lack of energy independence is sinking our economic ship, compromising our national security, and affects nearly all aspects of our foreign policy.

How come nobody ever talks about the federal deficit? This is not some abstract bottomless pit but a fact that impacts all of us. It is paid in real money, mostly from foreign sources. As it grows it further weakens the dollar and increases the cost of all our imported products. About one-half of the increase in the cost of gasoline in the past three years can be attributed to the loss of value of the dollar. Alan Greenspan agrees with me here (or maybe it is vice-versa).

LaMont Matthews, Albany

Our options in Iraq

Why is it that with all the brainpower in the United States, no one seems to realize or discuss what our options are in Iraq? Until we spell them out and select one, we will continue to flounder with no apparent direction. We're not talking about the deadly firefights or surges but the big stuff history books will record. We really have only three major scenarios, with a number of minor modifications.

First, leave Iraq to the Iraqis. After all these years, we should know that the peoples in and around Iraq are concerned with only their varied interests and hatreds. Whether we leave today, tomorrow or years from now, the result will be the same: a bloody civil war until a dictator (king, caliph, ayatollah) establishes control.

Second, save the Iraqis from themselves. With the infusions of enough military, we can become the new colonial power. Since major changes in beliefs usually require at least three "time constants," our "conversion" of the population will take about 75 to 100 years of occupation. For the effectiveness of this scenario, you might check with the Portuguese, Spanish, English, French, Japanese and Dutch.

Third, save the Iraqis from everyone. Through the use of massive force we can nuke the Iraqis out of existence. This would not produce any friends, but would show the world that we are not to be messed with.

Obviously we in the United States don't like any of these options, but at this point we are in too deep to escape without penalties. Unfortunately most of the penalties have been and will be visited on the innocent, both here and abroad. The only real questions that should be remaining is: How much longer will we diddle around?

Joseph F. Cuny, Lebanon

Why we need secure borders

Everybody has broken or stretched a law, but to equate something like jaywalking or failing to buckle up to illegal immigration is ludicrous. You miss the point: The need to stop anyone from illegally crossing the borders so you can screen out the undesirables. We need to secure our borders, both north and south.

I agree that these robbing, thieving, vandalizing, murdering, drug-pushing people need severe punishment, both alien and domestic.

How to do this? First, stop sending our National Guard members all over the world to unwinnable conflicts and let them patrol our borders. Then take the billions saved and use it to help us and others build livable countries for all.

That is the only way the flood of illegal immigration will stop, if there is no economic reason to come here illegally. We don't need to add more punitive laws to our books. Robbing, thieving and illegal immigration are already against the law. Enforce the darn things.

One law we need to change is the one where if you make it into this country and give birth, the baby is an automatic citizen. The parents should both have to be citizens for the child to be. We are one of the few countries where this occurs.

As for employment, if the country truly needs people to do these tough jobs, why is unemployment up in Linn and Benton counties, according to the article in Saturday's paper (Jan. 19) on A4?

Lastly, nice article stuck back on page C2 in Sunday's paper (Jan. 20). Maybe Mr. Hering needs to go to the Arizona border and separate out the nice, child-caring, lawn-mowing, leaf-raking illegal Mexicans from the criminal drug-pushing ones. That poor border patrol agent that was killed died defending his country and is a real hero.

Randy Mitchell, Albany

Maybe abstinence works

I would like to draw attention to the article about abortions being the lowest since 1974 (Thursday, Jan. 17).

The open-minded Guttmacher Institute provided survey results from abortion providers nationwide, and they concluded that the decline in abortions was due to more effective contraceptive use, lower levels of unintended pregnancy and greater difficulty obtaining an abortion in some parts of the country.

What they failed to consider was science and technology has never been greater at showing us when life begins.

Could it be possible that a woman's choice is to birth her little one and adopt or raise her baby? Could it possibly be that the decline in unintended pregnancy is because abstinence programs work?

Think of it: Young people turning to parents and pastors for help with this tough subject. Wow, who would have thought it?

Let's say a prayer and give a hand up to those who have taken responsibility for their actions and started changing the reprehensible statistic of abortion in America.

Pat Brown, Lacomb

Flying in style

I have a suggestion on how we could save the taxpayers of this great country money on jet fuel costs for Air Force One.

Vote for Hillary; she could travel on her broom.

Donald A. Parker, Albany