Print edition: 
Citizens' voices finally heard
We are constantly told to voice our opinions. We are asked to vote. We are asked to take more action in the northeast community. That action was rewarded with the Lord's Diner deciding not to locate in the area.
We are finally being heard. We said "no" and got the result we wanted.
You can't live where Wichita City Council members Paul Gray and Sue Schlapp live and decide that a soup kitchen belongs at the corner of 21st and Grove, just because the city has a building in need of extensive electrical repair that it wants to get rid of. If those two council members are so concerned, they are welcome to put soup kitchens in their neighborhoods.
And shame on Mayor Carl Brewer for not taking a strong stand against this farce. He should be encouraging better businesses to locate in the area along East 21st Street.
DEBRA SPENCER
Wichita
Second fiddle
Women have always known that our health plays second fiddle to men's health. After all, we have the medically needed Viagra.
Speaking as a woman in her 50s, having had "routine" breast exams since I was 40, it seemed incredible to read that the annual exam wasn't necessary (Nov. 17 Eagle). And I can forget the monthly self-exams in the shower, too.
Who exactly is on the task force that reverses the recommendations that women have relied on for decades as preventive medicine?
This is how it begins. A woman does her self-exam, finds a lump and discusses it will her doctor, who recommends a mammogram — only to be told her insurance won't cover it. It just doesn't save enough lives. She might get a false reading.
Well, my goodness. Should we apply this logic to our annual pelvic exams? I'm sure there are false readings with those, too.
Women die from breast cancer, ovarian cancer and cervical cancer. Better to get a false positive than to die.
BECKY FOSTER
Wichita
Christian claim
When all is said and done, the pro and con arguments are presented, the votes have been cast, and health care reform legislation is passed, I will still have a question: Among all of the criteria that formed a rationale for one's vote, how has the one criterion that aligns with our claim to be a Christian nation surfaced?
That criterion is obvious to those who identify themselves as Christian representatives: How would Christ have us create, debate, support, persuade others and proudly claim identification with the final legislation for the improvement of every U.S. citizen's health care?
Assuming that our representatives truly believe they are speaking about and voting for health care legislation that complements our claim to be a "Christian nation," I am disappointed about how infrequently this criterion is publicly acknowledged.
JOHN H. WILSON
Wichita
Hawkish charade?
President Obama wrote the following in the July/August 2007 issue of Foreign Affairs magazine: "We must refocus our efforts on Afghanistan and Pakistan — the central front in our war against al Qaida — so that we are confronting terrorists where their roots run deepest. Success in Afghanistan is still possible, but only if we act quickly, judiciously and decisively."
Now, 2 1/2 years later, he is dragging his feet in making a decision. Where is the quickness now? He promised quick action of putting a winning war strategy in place. Was candidate Obama's hawkish stance just a charade to win votes?
STEPHEN L. GUGLETA
Wichita
Honest jurors?
Like Scott Roeder's legal team, I am concerned about the potential jurors who will decide the fate of the accused murderer of Wichita abortion doctor George Tiller. However, I probably have different reasons.
Within hours of this despicable crime, most anti-abortion activists denounced the act. However, troubling statements began to appear in the press. Mark Gietzen of the Kansas Coalition for Life condemned the murder, yet admitted with alacrity that "the credit is going to go to him (Roeder)."
In a New York Times article on July 26, reporter David Barstow conveyed a troubling telephone conversation between Gietzen and a friend. The caller was "jubilant" about the closing of Tiller's clinic, and Gietzen spoke about their prayers being answered.
Last month, a local school of higher learning hosted self-described "conservative crusader" Star Parker, who equated Roeder with those who acted against slavery. Parker also blamed sexual misconduct for most of the world's catastrophes.
What reaction did Parker's risible statements merit from the crowd? A standing ovation and thunderous applause.
Obviously, I am not concerned with Roeder's travails. I am, however, deeply troubled about jury nullification. Those who would gleefully greet the cold-blooded killing of a physician in his house of worship probably wouldn't be honest jurors.
ANNETTE L. MUNSON
Wichita
Protect children
What has happened to our society that it isn't unusual anymore to hear of children being abducted and held captive for 18 years, children killed by their parents, and children tortured? How do we, as a society, not even notice the evil around us?
We have become a society where it is better not to get involved and to look the other way because it doesn't concern us. It should concern every mother, every father, every person who has loved a child. Why are these people going unnoticed? How did they become so evil that they prey on our children?
I am one of those children who was preyed on by adults, and it has affected everything in my life. I only wish that someone had noticed, that someone had stood up for me.
We have opened the door to evil and forgotten how to protect our most precious assets. When do we stand up and say enough is enough? It will only change when people take a stand.
I will be first in line to say I want to help protect these children, any child, and I will search for a means to do so.
REBECCA GASCON
Wichita
Charges add up
I purchased six tickets online for the Brad Paisley concert at the new Intrust Bank Arena the day they went on sale. I was a little confused and disappointed with the $10-per-ticket service charge.
My calculation is: 15,000 tickets with a $10-per-ticket service charge creates a sum of $150,000 for someone. I am curious who gets this revenue.
Ticket price, $56.75. Service charge, $10. Parking, $4-$15. I hope that we can support this new arena that we, the taxpayers, paid for. As for me, this most likely will be my first and last purchase.
SUSIE WIRTHS
Wichita
Fair trial?
While the thought of the Sept. 11 "masterminds" being tried in a U.S. court is appealing, it's also scary. Not because of further attacks, which are a concern, but more so because of further degradation of the American judicial system.
Is there anyone in this great country who really believes that, under the circumstances, a jury of peers can be convened? Is there anyone who can honestly say that he can be impartial?
I like to think that I'm as open-minded about anything as anyone, but I wouldn't wish to sit on that jury.
I'm afraid that, whether or not they are guilty, the trial will not and cannot be fair. This is why we have the option for a change of venue in our legal system.
I'm a veteran and I think those responsible for Sept. 11 should be punished severely. I'm just concerned that this trial may get out of hand.
MARK WRIGHT
Derby
