Wright speaks ugly truth

Why is there so much indignation over the thoughts of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr.?

This man speaks the truth. But while the truth is reported to set you free, it is also very likely to offend the smug, compliant and self-deluded in the community and the nation.

His comments are historically and biblically accurate. It seems most of us in the country cannot handle unpalatable truths.

-- Sandra Pomponio, Madison

We have a war that has lasted longer than World War II, an economy which, in many economists' views, is in recession, and a growing federal deficit. There's a health care crisis with 45 million Americans without coverage, college education is growing less affordable and gas prices are rising. America's reputation is a disaster worldwide, and we are being led by a president who is out of touch with both his own citizens and the rest of the world.

So what does our national media cover over and over again? The comments of a former pastor of Sen. Barack Obama's.

Our national media -- both liberal and conservative -- evidently feel that because Rev. Wright was Obama's pastor, the senator now is responsible for every comment Wright ever made.

Where was this same media when Bush was running for president? Why did they make no attempt to ask tough questions and find out where he was on the issues and perhaps let America see he was not a smart guy.

I am much more interested in what Sens. Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain will do to address these issues than what the Rev. Wright had to say years ago or last week. He is not the one running for president.

-- Bernie J. Fatla, Verona

As Powell said, 'we broke it, we own it'

Once again Congress is debating and demanding that the Iraqis should be paying more to rebuild their country.

This demand is silly. The United States attacked and overran that country and in the process broke a few things (flattened the city of Fallujah) and touched off an insurgency against our actions. We were not asked to undertake this task of country renewal except by a few now discredited Iraqi exiles.

As former secretary of state Gen. Colin Powell said, you break it, you own it. Like it or not, we own Iraq and it should be up to the United States to fix it.

-- Derek Popp, Mount Horeb

GM CEO should be held accountable

I am amazed that, with the Janesville GM plant on the verge of closing, the State Journal, in Wednesday's editorial, is a cheerleader for the failed policies that have led it there.

Instead of accusing the opponents of NAFTA of protectionism, point out that other countries like China slap a 25 percent tariff on all imported cars.

You were correct in pointing out that Wisconsin is selling more products worldwide, but you left out that, as a nation, we have a $62.3 billion (and rising) trade deficit, so we are not selling enough of our products worldwide.

The biggest discrepancy is where you stated "the only real option is to compete through innovation and education." There are other options I have yet to see discussed.

How about holding GM chief executive Rick Wagoner accountable for once. In 2007 he was awarded a salary and benefit package of $14.4 million while his major accomplishment was losing $38.7 billion for the company. Or Wagoner could make cars that people would buy. Gas prices have been on the rise for a few years now, and they continue to make vehicles that get 14 mpg.

Maybe Wagoner could use his clout to join with the 70 percent of Americans who want a single payer health care system. It currently costs GM $1,500 per car for health care for their workers. It would make a difference if Wagoner lobbied to get this cost off his bottom line.

-- Jeff Simpson, Cottage Grove

Police must release victim's 911 call

Regarding Brittany Zimmermann's 911 call, of course everyone is outraged, as they should be. The audio of the tape now must be released, whether it's evidence the police want to use in questioning suspects or not. Listening to the audio may partially explain what happened, or it just may make people angrier.

The general reason police may keep some information about a crime from the public is that, when interrogating suspects, it can prove critical to a conviction. If a suspect reveals details about a crime that weren't released, it's evidence they may have done it.

It's way too late to hold out for that sort of thing. The basic public relations rule for controversy is to reveal everything, completely and quickly. Once something becomes a controversy, it's better to get it all out rather than letting further details come out over time, extending the outrage.

And, as the Wisconsin State Journal said in its Friday editorial, an apology is in order.

-- Ken Smith, Monona

Question veracity of wind turbine illness

A recent wire service article titled "Turbines may be bad for health" sacrificed science for sensationalism.

Wind opponents would have us believe that turbines cause headaches, nausea and anxiety, and have called it "wind turbine syndrome." While it sounds sinister, "wind turbine syndrome" does not exist in the lexicon of science. The name is a fabrication meant to frighten people, all part of a campaign to discredit wind energy.

The simple truth, as shown and corroborated in numerous European studies reviewed by noise professionals, is that the low-frequency sounds emitted by wind turbines lie below the threshold of perception. No researcher has identified any direct health effects from a particular wind installation.

-- Michael Vickerman, executive director, RENEW Wisconsin

Coverage disturbs area homeless

The Wisconsin State Journal is often fair with the framing of its articles, but the students and community members of the Street Pulse newspaper staff have been negatively surprised by the framing of articles regarding Brittany Zimmermann's case and stunned by the treatment of our local homeless in recent weeks.

We are appalled with the depiction of our homeless as villains and your use of the label "transient." Your coverage relies on a body of assumptions that portray our homeless as an outsider class with no connection to or pride in Madison.

We, in contrast, have eyewitness accounts of people -- accepted guests -- handcuffed and hauled out of private residences, all without warrants. We know dozens of people have been snatched from the streets on whatever premises that could be found. Peace Park, a symbol of opposition to authoritarians, has been occupied by armed guards.

In the history of police work, these sorts of prejudice-fueled tactics have led to failures in high profile cases, with scapegoats pursued while the guilty go to ground. This police harassment destroys a powerful network of eyes and ears that are closer to the street than any other.

Madison should object when our protectors undermine their own efforts, not simply say "Who cares?" The homeless are people who belong to the community. In the wake of tragedy we must not turn against ourselves but come together.

-- Daniela Ugaz, editorial page editor, and volunteers at Madison's Homeless Cooperative Street Pulse Newspaper

Halt Chinese imports, find poison source

First the Chinese poisoned our pets with contaminated pet food, killing thousands of animals. Now the Food and Drug Administration is telling us that a contaminate may have been deliberately put into heparin, killing at least 81 people and sickening many more, one of whom was my mother, who was receiving it for leukemia treatment.

Where is our federal government and why isn't it doing something except holding hearings?

All imports of any type of medicines from China should be halted until the facts are exposed. If the president will not stop it, then it is finally time for our senators and representatives to do something about this deliberate killing of Americans.

Why protect us from Iraq's weapons of mass destruction when WMDs are being imported legally from China?

-- Greg Greenheck, Lone Rock