On one hand, the Santa Fe City Council is telling its employees that they may have to take involuntary furloughs to trim the budget by $1.8 million. On the other hand, it is telling the inhabitants of the 10,000 acres it is annexing that they will receive the full slate of city services: police, fire, water, sewer, refuse collection, etc.

How does the city plan on paying for the extra equipment and personnel to provide the increased services? Maybe it will ask the employees to donate their furlough time to provide them. Or maybe the handful of developers who want to cash in on the open or lightly zoned rural land will donate the money. Who is not being told the truth, but more importantly, who is not telling the truth?


What's next?

The same wonderful folks at City Hall who desperately tried last year to waste more than $100,000 of our money on unnecessary road "improvements" on Old Pecos Trail are at it again. There's a public meeting on Aug. 25 at 5:30 p.m. at City Council Chambers. We need to attend and find out what they are calling "improvements" this time.

These are the guys who wanted to allow U-turns at one of the most dangerous intersections in town; who can't synchronize stop lights; whose idea of "traffic control" is concrete barriers down the middle of busy streets or roundabouts with stop signs at each entrance.

We should all attend the meeting — the neighborhood we save could be our own!


No to alcohol

There are several serious problems with the City Council's decision to allow beer and wine sales at a public family event:

1. It teaches children and youth that it is OK to drink alcohol, in public, and away from home. It suggests that one needs alcohol to have fun.

2. The two-drink limit is too high for many drivers. Some cannot drive safely after even just one beer or one glass of wine. The council's vote tacitly approves people driving home or elsewhere after drinking alcohol, perhaps more than they can handle safely.

3. With the continuing tragic consequences of DWI in New Mexico and Santa Fe County, the council's action is disgraceful, ill-advised, and irresponsible. We all know DWI to be a serious problem in our area, yet the council encourages alcohol consumption at public events, instead of prohibiting it.


No solutions there

Time after time, the Department of Workforce Solutions has proven itself to lack labor within the department and timely and competent solutions for the New Mexico workforce. Excuses do not suffice! I suggest that Gov. Bill Richardson and the Legislature investigate the possibility of replacing salaried employees and auditing and reorganizing the department post haste. In these troubled times, the citizens who depend upon this service deserve no less than immediate attention.


Don't drop the global

While our own economic crisis and such things as health-care reform understandably occupy our attention, we must never forget the wider global needs, such as combating hunger, which often have very direct influence on our more local problems.

How we assist those in other countries needs to be as effective as possible in order to address these situations. The Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009 in the House of Representatives (HR2139) and the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009 (SB1524) in the Senate go a long way to accomplish this. Please contact our senators and representatives to support these measures. Foreign aid is only a very small part of the U.S. budget, but it has great impact.


David vs. Goliath

The health-care reform debate puts a huge magnifying glass on the health of our democracy. We are rapidly finding out whether the public has any control over Washington or whether large corporations have such influence that passing bills in the public interest is no longer possible.

Health-industry lobbyists so far in 2009 have spread $15 million around Capitol Hill as campaign "contributions." The insurance industry has more than 550 lobbyists in Washington. According to the Pew Research Group, 72 percent of Americans support a public option, yet that option is fading away. Without it, "reform" will be timid, and insurance will be increasingly expensive.

Yelling by conservatives inflamed by corporate-sponsored talk shows helps an insurance industry that profits from denying us health coverage. Our government is deeply polarized and so captive of industry that we may receive little reform, despite the urgent need.


Public-option plea

I wish to add my voice in supporting Rep. Ben Ray Luján's stand for public-option coverage.

It should be a no-brainer that this coverage be afforded the American people. With 50 million people uninsured, there should be no question that the government step to the plate and allow full coverage for all Americans.

I just returned from England and The Republic of Ireland. It's clear from my conversations with a number of people that the National Health Service in the UK and the Health Service Executive in the Republic of Ireland work well. People are satisfied. There is also the option for private coverage.

Let's not allow our elected representatives the option of caving in to the health-care insurance industry. Rather let's work for the common good and strive for the most just health care for all of Americans.


End-of-life choices

Why do the false ravings of junk-yard dog politicians like Sarah Palin force sincere and reasoned senators to drop end-of-life care provisions from consideration in health-care legislation? It seems too many have fallen for the fear-instilling catchy "death panel" phrase and have not looked any closer at the actual end-of-life care provision.

This provision allows doctors to be paid for the time they give to patient-initiated requests for end-of-life care discussions. Patients, knowing their doctors can be paid for this discussion, can take the time to discuss the kind of end-of-life care they may wish to receive.

Most people wish to die at home, and not in hospitals hooked up to machines. If there is no advance directive, or a doctor does not know a patient's wishes, hospital, family, and doctor can be under pressure to prolong life at all costs. As a member of Compassion and Choices, I hope people will support health-care legislation that includes this important provision.