W.Va. can take pride in its surface mining industry

Your Feb. 26 story on environmental activists' "struggles" against West Virginia's coal mining industry was an incredibly distorted piece of writing. Your headline -- "Almost Flat, West Virginia" -- is a ludicrous, misguided attempt to be cute. The story carries a Charleston, W.Va., dateline, but the headline makes the Post-Gazette look as if its writer never left Pittsburgh.

The story itself is more of the same. It is stacked heavily against a modern and responsible industry that is supplying the United States with more than 50 percent of its energy needs.

The activist group in West Virginia can be noisy at times, but it is small. The Post-Gazette, however, chose to quote a host of individuals decrying surface mining, while dedicating only five paragraphs to the defense of the industry.

As I told the reporter during our phone interview, the truth is that less than 1 percent of West Virginia's land has been disturbed in any way by mining. And the majority of the land that has been touched has been reconstituted in a way that allows people to use and enjoy the land.

Pristine, undisturbed land is sometimes commendable. But there is great merit in providing good jobs, raising families and supplying the country with its most reliable energy source and, in the end, reconstructing rural lands in ways that nurture development, sustain the surrounding environment and please most people. West Virginia coal miners are proud of making that happen.

Pittsburgh, please call and come take a look at what we're doing. I believe you will like it.

BILL RANEY
President
West Virginia Coal Association
Charleston, W.Va.

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Welcome support

I would like to thank and encourage Mayor Bob O'Connor regarding his recent efforts to clean up Garfield ("Garfield Up Close," March 9). Great things are happening in the neighborhood; however, it has been plagued by persistent crime and drug activity. People are pouring much effort into the area, and it is encouraging to see the city government becoming more evolved.

In August 2004 I purchased a property in the Garfield section of Penn Avenue and have resided there since. I have seen more drug activity than I care for, including asking dealers not to use my doorstep as a place of business.

After graduating from Carnegie Mellon in 2002, I found employment in the university's Robotics Institute and decided to extend my stay in Pittsburgh. Driven by my observations of growth and potential I purchased a multiunit property on Penn Avenue.

My positive forecast for the area is fueled by the increased number of people my age I observe involved in the neighborhood. Establishments such as Modern Formations, Garfield Artworks, Pho Min, People Indian, Brillo Box and the Quiet Storm attract educated young people.

I am further encouraged by the number of colleagues who call Penn Avenue and the surrounding neighborhoods home. Increasing numbers of faculty, staff and graduate students from Carnegie Mellon are purchasing and living in Lawrenceville, Friendship, Highland Park and Point Breeze.

Many people believe in this area, and with continued support from the city we can make our dreams a reality.

MARC ZINCK
Garfield

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Taking action

After reading the story of Mayor Bob O'Connor in Garfield ("Garfield Up Close," March 9), it looks like he is going to be doing more than just walking down the avenue in the St. Paddy's Day parade.

It looks like Pittsburgh has a mayor who is going to do more than just "talk the talk." He is going to "walk the walk."

DENNIS A. JOHNSON
Bethel Park

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Others share blame

I am writing to comment on Rob Rogers' March 7 cartoon. Mr. Rogers' agenda should be set aside at times, and in the interest of fairness he might have considered having the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana joining President Bush at the table. All could have their fingers in their ears, while confronted with the warning "Evacuate the City Now."

This one has all the "ear" marks of plenty of blame to go around.

JIM MORRISEY
Edgeworth

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Mary Magdalene

I was especially pleased to read Richard Ostling's AP article on Mary Magdalene and the scholarly response to the controversy surrounding the first-century figure (" 'Da Vinci Code' Revives Dispute Over Who Mary Magdalene Was," March 5). Thanks to the PG for bringing it to our attention. I write to add two additional thoughts to the background provided by the article.

First, on the subject of whether Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married, there is another line of evidence against it, found in Paul's first letter to the Corinthian church. On this point, historian Paul Maier has noted that in 1 Corinthians 9:5, the apostle writes that he would have had a right to a wife had he wanted one, saying, "even as the rest of the apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas [Peter]." But if Jesus had been married, no one else would have been needed to make his case.

Second, Mr. Ostling's outline of Mary Magdalene's importance in the Gospel records undermines "The Da Vinci Code's" conspiracy theories of suppression. Mary and other women, as well, are consistently portrayed in a much better light in the Gospels than the 12 male disciples. Contrast this with the later Gnostic "Gospel of Thomas," which spins Jesus as saying that Mary would have to be transformed into a man so that she could inherit the Kingdom of God.

STEVEN D. THOMAS
Murrysville

Editor's note: The writer is a graduate student in philosophy and theology at Biola University, La Mirada, Calif.

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Cautious, not cowed

In last Sunday's Forum section, there was an article by John Bryson Chane, Episcopal bishop of Washington, D.C., describing the situation with Peter J. Akinola, archbishop of the Church of Nigeria ("A Gospel of Intolerance," March 5).

Bishop Chane asks why we, "the global Christian community," are silent in the face of the immoral behavior against gays and lesbians in Nigeria. Surely the bishop knows that the tension within church communities is so great that to rise up against Peter Akinola could pull down the churches in a battle for the soul of the church, and that is the reason for the silence.

We are not "cowed," but cautious in the face of an evil almost beyond comprehension. The high-profile men and women providing financial support for the Institute on Religion and Democracy, and its "renewal" movements, taking a stand against gays and lesbians in mainline churches, have driven a wedge between churches within the religious community.

The heavy task is to find a way out and to continue in a mission that befits the church and its followers, being not cowed, but cautious.

JANE LITTLE
Mt. Lebanon

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We must act now: Support these bills targeting gang drug trafficking

I want to applaud the Post-Gazette for bringing attention to the dilemma of out-of-state gangs using kids who are barely in their teens as drug couriers ("How Detroit Gang Got to New Castle," March 5). Contrary to popular belief, gangs are not just an urban problem -- they're moving into the suburbs and rural regions of Pennsylvania. For the second straight legislative session, I have introduced legislation to help fight the growing problem of criminal gangs in Pennsylvania from two fronts.

My legislation, H.B. 704, would define "criminal gang activity" as activity by a group with at least five members that promotes, sponsors, assists or participates in felony activity, or requires someone to commit a felony as a condition of membership. A first offense would constitute a first-degree misdemeanor, and subsequent offenses would constitute a third-degree felony.

I think that having a legal definition of criminal gang activity will make it easier for law enforcement investigators to identify and track gang members and lead to faster arrests, trials and convictions.

My second bill, H.B. 705, would provide for the trying of juvenile suspects 12 and older as adults for such crimes as assault, rape, robbery and drug trafficking, particularly if a deadly weapon is used. We need to make the job of a drug courier less attractive to kids by imposing more serious penalties for criminal behavior.

I introduced the bills a year ago, but they have not moved out of the House Judiciary Committee. We must take action now to protect our families, our communities and our state.

STATE REP. FRANK J. PISTELLA
Bloomfield

Editor's note: The writer is a Democrat representing the 21st Legislative District.

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