Zapata's punishment too lenient

Reading about Jeanette Zapata's belated funeral made me doubly angry and upset that her husband, Eugene Zapata, was punished with only five years in prison for her murder.

A jury failed to come to conviction by only one vote, so a mistrial was declared. All Zapata needed to do was admit to her murder, and the court decided to give him only five years in prison.

I don't understand. What kind of justice is that? There's something seriously wrong with a system that permits such a miscarriage of justice.

I can only hope that Eugene Zapata spends every minute of his life behind bars with bitter regret for so cruelly taking the life of his lovely wife and mother of his children.

-- Betty Barbian, Waunakee

What should people do with the money when they receive their economic stimulus payment tax-rebate checks? I hope they don't spend it, but instead use this one-of-a-kind opportunity to start getting their financial houses in order.

People in almost every financial circumstance will benefit by paying down existing debt, or by saving or investing the stimulus payment.

For people with personal debt, there's no better use of the money than to pay as much debt off as possible. Paying more for everything -- by meeting ongoing interest obligations -- has no benefit for the debtor.

People free of personal debt have a great opportunity to begin building a sound financial future by saving their checks. Financial experts recommend that everyone should have a "cushion" of money in the bank to help with unexpected expenses.

Those who already have a cushion would benefit by investing their stimulus checks. They should select stocks that they won't need in the near future, and should be careful how and where they make their investments. Starting a retirement savings account, or adding to an existing account, makes sense.

Do yourself a favor and put the stimulus check to good use -- don't spend it.

-- Richard Entenmann, Madison

Neighborhood works for Penn Park safety

Regarding Thursday's news brief about the police investigation of a report of gunshots in Penn Park, I spoke to Madison Police Department command staff and they assured me no evidence was found in the park indicating that shots had been fired.

South Side residents have been working hard for many months to make sure Penn Park is a safe and welcoming place for all people. This group includes hard-working volunteers from many different community organizations, the neighborhood association, local residents as well as city park district staff, Madison police and other city agencies.

We are unified in our belief that Penn Park is one of the many jewels of South Madison, and our goal is to ensure it is a great place to play this summer.

-- Ald. Julia Kerr, Madison City Council, District 13

Need term limits for Congress members

I have come to believe that our members of Congress are no longer looking out for our best interests, but only theirs. They are so caught up in political bickering, campaign fundraising and high living that they have lost sight of what their jobs were intended to be.

In theory we can vote our legislators out of office. But in practice, they have stacked the deck in their favor and are rarely voted out of office.

The world is too dangerous and complicated for our country to be run by people who have lost their way. We have real problems to be solved: saving Medicare and Social Security, health care, the environment and protecting us from terrorists. Whatever became of term limits?

If we don't like our presidents, we only have to put up with them for eight years at most because of term limits. Some members of Congress have stayed in office for decades. Since many positions are based upon seniority, their constituents fear voting them out of office and replacing them with freshmen with little power.

With term limits, this would end and perhaps we would elect our legislators based solely upon competence. How nice it would be to have them actually looking after our interests for a change.

-- Gerald Dunn, Madison

Asthma cure now considered possible

The State Journal's April 13 Local section carried an interesting article about severe asthma featuring Professor Ronald Sorkness from UW-Madison with comments by Mike Tringale from the Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America.

Tringale was quoted as saying that there is no cure for asthma, but there is now evidence that some people with severe asthma have been cured of their symptoms.

Interested readers, particularly those with asthma, should visit www.asthmastory.com where they can read about a person who was cured or link to published literature describing the emerging scientific evidence.

They may also explore the possibility of participating in an ongoing clinical trial aimed at strengthening the evidence that a significant proportion of asthma is related to chronic lung infection that is treatable with appropriate courses of an antibiotic.

-- Dr. David L. Hahn, Dean Medical Center East Clinic; clinical professor of family medicine, UW Medical School

'Smoke permit' idea has never worked

A Thursday letter writer asked why businesses cannot simply buy an indoor smoking license and post a sign that says "We Smoke."

Think back to July 3, 1995, when the first comprehensive, smoke-free restaurant ordinance took effect in Madison. Before then, smoking was allowed in virtually all restaurants in Madison, and all taverns.

I can remember breathing in cigarette smoke at fast food places and restaurants of all types, especially since I would always experience strong allergic reactions while trying to eat dinner.

So until 1995, restaurant owners did, in effect, post the "smoking allowed" sign to warn people of smoking.

The problem was there were practically no places that the 80 percent of us who are non-smokers could go and not be exposed to hazardous cigarette smoke, not to mention the employees of all these places. And the same was true of taverns until these also were required to become smoke free on July 1, 2005.

Well, we have come a long way, baby. Apparently we have come so far that people cannot remember what it was like in Madison before the smoke-free laws.

Congratulations to the newly smoke-free state of Iowa and the Wisconsin city of Eau Claire. We will get to a smoke-free Wisconsin, one way or the other.

-- Tommye Schneider, director of environmental health, Madison-Dane County Health Department

If it's public place, state can regulate

A recent letter writer claims that if a site is privately owned, such as a restaurant or tavern, the owner should decide whether it is smoke free.

I say that if you own a business open to the public, then our government not only has a right, but a duty to regulate you and your business for the safety of the public.

It has long been established that there are over 40 known carcinogens in tobacco smoke. Therefore, for our safety -- and the safety of the owner and the people who work there -- tobacco smoke should be prohibited.

True freedom is being able to walk into any public establishment, including a bar, and not be subjected to tobacco smoke. Smokers are welcome to go into the establishments as well as anyone else; they just can't smoke there. Just like others can't spit there.

So please stop raising this ridiculous argument about freedom to pollute the air.

-- Bev Jambois, Middleton

Freedom needs more protection at home

Right after our invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, I read and heard references to the ongoing war as being necessary to preserve our freedom, implying that Islamic extremists and terrorists are somehow capable of taking away our freedoms.

But it seems to me the only way they can possibly do so is to take control of our government, the chance of that being unlikely. Where is the logic? Am I missing something and, if so, what?

I believe our freedoms need to be protected here in the United States instead of in the Middle East.

-- Frank Fleres, Madison