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Barack, Hillary aren't alone in the primaries

I hope to correct the impression that it is either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary.

There are several qualified and sometimes more qualified candidates running for president that deserve exposure the media hasn't given them. The media love the sensation of a black man and a woman running for president, and they have already narrowed it down prematurely to those two candidates.

Joe Biden is running. Bill Richardson is running. John Edwards is running, and a few others I haven't even mentioned.

The media are doing an injustice to democracy by giving the limelight to their few darlings.

Mountaintop zoo needs the attraction

There's been much written regarding the pros and cons of development on Mill Mountain. Through all of this, you would barely know an eight-acre zoo exists at the top and desperately needs to be a key component of the discussion.

I'm all for green spaces and seeing nature in action. I'm also an advocate for taking care of wildlife and educating the public.

The zoo is a great way to connect people to animals through fun, up-close opportunities.

Yet, an effective zoo must draw people, and few exist without attracting visitors through the gate. Zoo development and visitation provide for better animal care, enable conservation work to happen and help educate and build appreciation for wildlife, something nearly every child is enamored with.

We can throw the words "natural" and "development" around any way we want. There sit an 88-foot neon metal star on top of Mill Mountain and a zoo that needs people. To forget that is to neglect wildlife and educational opportunities for families of the Roanoke Valley.

Don't listen to a distant voice

I read with interest the letter from Richard F. Kegley, the great-grandson of Mill Mountain benefactor Junius Fishburn ("Fishburn was green before green was cool," Dec. 13). He correctly states that Fishburn was an advocate of green space before it was popular, but uses the argument to protest the reconstruction of the Rockledge Inn, which was part of Fishburn's gift to the city.

He also ignores the fact that Fishburn allowed the construction of a strictly commercial 88-foot neon star on what opponents of Valley Forward are now trying to convince us he intended only as a pristine natural park.

In a city that is struggling with the loss of its major employers, scant white-collar jobs, nearly half the normal percentage of young people and a dramatic overabundance of the elderly, exactly why is Kegley, who has chosen to move to Atlanta, entitled to a voice when 66 percent of the valley's citizens favor a project that would bring in travelers on the Blue Ridge Parkway, cost the city nothing and, over the next 30 years, give Roanoke millions of dollars?

Those are things his great-grandfather would understand, but then again, he wouldn't have left Roanoke.

The art museum outside of the box

The Buchanan Rotary Club would like to reinforce the recent commentary ("Don't judge a museum by its cover," Dec. 5) regarding the educational mission of the Art Museum of Western Virginia. On Oct. 19, museum staff members presented an excellent program at the Buchanan Theater sponsored by our club.

A painting of the historic Breckenridge plantation, "Grove Hill," located near Fincastle, was the springboard for a presentation on life in the antebellum period. B. Scott Crawford and another staff member guided the audience through a close examination of the painting and what it revealed about life in Botetourt County at that time. Using period documentation, they stimulated audience discussion of important aspects of life of the plantation's owners, their slaves and others in the community.

I would strongly recommend Crawford and his staff to any civic organization seeking a program that would utilize the superb collection of our art museum to increase appreciation for the visual arts and the history and culture of our region of the commonwealth. The art museum's outreach is a wonderful resource for our community at large.

President, Buchanan Rotary Club

Saving wolves only to kill them?

The news story "The gray wolf's surging population" (Dec. 2) was extremely interesting. It stated that the recovery effort helped the formerly dwindling wolf population to the point that federal officials are now inclined to remove wolves from the endangered species list.

It took $24 million of federal funds and two decades to bring wolves back from near extinction, a result of government eradication programs, including widespread poisoning of wolves.

The contradiction continues today when wolves are being massacred by the hundreds (nearly 700 so far) in Alaska and the greater Yellowstone region. Trophy hunters can shoot wolves and wolf pups from airplanes, chasing them into deep snow until they are too exhausted to move.

Alaska's governor wants to allow the use of helicopters for easier killing of entire wolf packs from the skies.

Sadly, this aerial killing of wolves is spreading to other states, like Idaho and Wyoming.

How can the government spend millions on helping the recovery of the wolf population only to allow the gunning massacres now that these magnificent animals have been saved from extinction?

Is there any logic in this?

Supervisors' action calls for a do-over

At first I was disappointed, but now I am just downright mad.

The lame excuses of the current members of the board of supervisors in Roanoke County when confronted by the media regarding their steamroller appointment of Rodney McNeil to the planning commission were just that -- lame.

They should reconsider their actions at their next meeting and do the right thing: Let Charlotte Moore make a recommendation.

Police at Tech acted heroically

In response to Tom Daoust's letter "One gun in the right hands saved lives" (Dec. 15):

The officers at Virginia Tech went through chained doors and ran toward the sound of gunfire. They did not "cower" behind their cars.

It would be helpful if Daoust checked the facts before he wrote a letter.

Let people arm and protect themselves

To all those well-meaning but misguided individuals who pontificate on the glories of gun-free zones and fear citizens with concealed weapons permits, please take time to read about the armed citizen who prevented a slaughter at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs.

One can only imagine what might have happened if the folks at New Life had been forced to call 911 and wait for the police to arrive. The outcome probably would have been similar to the tragedy at Virginia Tech, where unarmed faculty and students were, and still are, at the mercy of individuals who don't apply for concealed weapons permits and don't care about gun-free zones.

I have the utmost respect for law enforcement officers; however, the fact of the matter is that when seconds count, it takes minutes for the police to arrive.

It is time to contact our legislators and insist that law-abiding individuals be allowed to protect themselves, including on college campuses.