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‘Wild and worthy’I read this article from Columbus, Ohio (see “Packy Walker rides again,” at vailtrail.com, April 28 edition). Loved it. I see Packy is still a wild man worthy of attention. My husband and I knew Packy from the ’70s and ’80s. Seeing his picture brought back a lot of memories, some we can’t talk about. Can’t wait to see who else makes the cover during High Country Character month. Thanks.Nancy Sheskey-Weavernweaver@wowway.comFrom Chuck to Packy, via BrandyHi Caramie,I’m Brandy McLaughlin, Chuck McLaughlin’s daughter. I truly enjoyed your story about Packy (see “Packy Walker rides again,” at vailtrail.com, April 28 edition).My dad and Packy were “bird’s of a feather” and I know Packy misses him as much as I do. People like Packy are the true fabric of Vail. Thanks again for the great story.Brandy McLaughlinredheadblm@hotmail.comQuestions for Mr. BushAs I suffered through our smirking snickering so-called President’s “press conference” recently, the same question came to my mind as countless times before: How is it possible that anyone is still able and willing to legitimize this man? A puppet fronting for a group of insatiably power-hungry oligarchs, a mental lightweight who doesn’t even appear to fully comprehend the scripted “answers” he is spoon-fed.Listening to the questions posed, I almost felt that it was pointless, even ludicrous, for the journalists to bother.Will a tipping point come when people are compelled to stand up and say, “Enough. We can no longer go on protecting this sham and pretending he is something he is not!” What if the reporters had deviated from plan and challenged the charade? Imagine a different kind of press conference:”Mr. President, sorry but you did not actually answer that last question. I must respectfully request that you answer the question that was asked.””Excuse me sir, in which sources did you read the statistic you just stated?””Mr. Bush, would you please explain what is meant by a government ‘of the people, by the people, and for the people?’ And how history will view your administration in terms of that principle?””What is the current death toll in Iraq?””Given your unwavering dedication to and belief in war in Iraq, presumably you encourage family and friends to enlist. What is the response?””Sir, would you be willing to address the concerns of a group of ordinary American citizens waiting outside, even though they have not been cherry-picked or coached?””Mr. President, when a large corporate contributor to a particular political candidate is at the same time a major manufacturer of voting machines, do you believe that a serious conflict of interest exists? Please speak to that issue in terms of the recent election.””Sir, it is well known that you personally have enjoyed bailouts and safety nets when your own business dealings went wrong. Do you believe that whenever there are bad financial decisions, whether on an individual level or on a grand scale such as the unprecedented deficit spending of this administration, that things just somehow will work out?””Mr. President, you describe yourself as a religious man. Therefore, having presided over an administration that has shown itself over and over again to uphold policies of destruction, diversion, deception, greed, hypocrisy, and lack of accountability, do you ever worry that this will be considered morally reprehensible by a higher power?”Madeline Salocksmadelinesalocks@yahoo.comWar and liesThere has recently been much coverage of Newsweek’s errors in stating the Quran had been desecrated at Guantanamo Bay. But I have seen very little coverage of a much more important matter: the recently released high level British memo confirming that Bush had already decided to go to war against Iraq by July of 2002. At that time Bush was still telling us that war was his “last choice”. Surely Bush’s distrust of the American people has had far greater consequences than the Newsweek story.So far Bush’s war has cost over 1,600 Americans their lives, and Americans continue to be killed there by Iraqis who are outraged by Bush’s invasion. Countless thousands of Iraqi civilians have been killed as well.In the list of immoral acts one can commit, starting a war and lying about it has to be way up there.Doug Longdoug@doug-long.com


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