Letters - Monday

Ploy to shift funds from schools

In the March 16 Gazette article "Democrats applaud ruling on tax freeze," Gov. Bill Ritter is quoted as claiming a victory for children and schools and that the courts removed an "obstacle that hurt students [and] families." He also claimed that without the freeze, the Legislature would have been forced to make deeper cuts in education.

Someone should tell the Governor about Amendment 23, which requires that the statewide school funding be increased by at least inflation plus 1 percent for 10 years - through FY 2010-11 - and at the rate of inflation thereafter. Apparently, Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder, who co-sponsored the mill levy freeze, knows about it, for he said, "Now that we don't have to do that every year [put more money into schools], that money can be used on anything."

This is an admission that the levy freeze was always intended to be a tax increase for nonschool funding. If Democrats were truly interested in "following the will of the voters" as is stated near the end of the article, they would have demanded that the increased school funding be provided at the expense of other state programs, which can be inferred from the amendment.

Furthermore, the Legislature was not following the will of the people to "de-Bruce" TABOR restrictions on school funding just because voters in 174 of 178 school districts elected to allow districts to keep excess revenue.

The intent of TABOR is to allow voters to choose whether the government keeps or returns excess revenue.

The fact that voters chose to allow the school districts to keep excess revenue in so many cases is proof that TABOR works, and that the voters do permit tax increases when they believe they are needed.

Mike Baker, Colorado Springs

Tax freeze a shell game

The old shell game continues. "The real winners today are Colorado's children, families and schools" Gov. Bill Ritter said.

"Before this, the state had to put more money into schools," said Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder. "Now we don't have to do that every year, that money can be used on anything."

So, did the additional money raised by freezing the property tax mill levy go to Colorado's children, families and schools or not? It seems not.

It's kind of like diverting all our state gas taxes away from roads, bridges, etc., isn't it?

Dudley Banner, Colorado Springs

Vets deserve choice in meds

In my role as a professor who specializes in the endocannabinoid system, I am frequently contacted and saddened by people people suffering from conditions that are often profoundly helped by the use of medical marijuana, but who are unable to find doctors who will help them legally obtain it. I find it particularly tragic when our brave military men and women are injured in their efforts to protect our freedom, only to find that federal policies do not honor the freedom of those who most deserve it.

Department of Veterans Affairs policies not only prevent veterans from discussing the medical use of marijuana with their military doctors, but turn them into drug addicts by providing them with addictive narcotics for often unsatisfactory relief from chronic pain.

Too many of our vets are illegally using marijuana for effective relief of mental and physical pain.

All humans make marijuana-like compounds that regulate all of our body systems. The pain-relieving properties of cannabis are unambiguous, and have been know for thousands of years.

Furthermore, a normal role played by endocannabinoids is to help people forget unpleasant memories which is why marijuana is effective for post traumatic stress disorder. There is an abundance of modern peer reviewed science that supports what our citizens are slowly finding out - medical marijuana works.

Narcotics destroy the lives of chronic users. In contrast marijuana often restores a degree of normalcy and functionality. Don't we owe our vets this choice?

Dr. Robert Melamede, Colorado Springs

Smokescreen on the Potomac

The smokescreen continues. Our supposed leaders in Washington, D.C., have deliberately focused the outrage of the taxpayer on 200 people for taking bonuses while Congress and the administration loot the country with deficit spending.

Everyone seems outraged over $150 million. On a perspective scale, Congress has pontificated, beat its collective breast, howled and threatened retribution, castigated and berated AIG for a week over 15 cents, on a spending project of $1,500. That is the relative scale of 150 million to 1 ½ trillion.

This isn't about spanking executives. It's keeping the taxpayer distracted over chump change while the Democrats engage in a wish list of prolific spending.

I'd love to play poker with all you outraged taxpayers who buy into this charade. You're easily spoofed and I'd have all your money before sunup.

Dan Downes, Elbert