PG's mine safety reports are journalism at its best

Congratulations, and thank you, to the Post-Gazette for your leadership role in bringing about new coal mine safety regulations ("New Mine Safety Standards OK'd," Dec. 9). Your intrepid, tenacious and informed probing, exposing and editorializing about conditions that have led to miners' deaths and threatened miners' lives has been crusading journalism at its best.

Please don't stop here. History has shown that regulations are only as strong as their enforcement. It also has shown that there are many pressures on the regulatory agencies to turn a blind eye to "little" violations that operators feel pressured to do for the sake of minimizing costs, maximizing profits.

History also has shown that miners who are represented by the United Mine Workers will be able to take these new tools and use them far more effectively than miners who do not have that representation and protection.

Your work will continue to be critical during the coming months and years. Again, congratulations, and thank you.

KIPP DAWSON
Park Place

The writer is a former miner and United Mine Workers member.

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Beyond the pale

Members of the local Jewish community and all intelligent, fair-minded observers of the international political scene are aware of the persistent, pseudo-sophisticated, anti-Israel bias of the Post-Gazette's Dan Simpson. His Dec. 6 column, "Carter's Clear-Eyed View," however, goes beyond the pale of responsible journalism. It is difficult to recall a more one-sided, incredibly prejudicial diatribe than this piece in any metropolitan newspaper in modern times.

At least when a columnist like Pat Buchanan attacks Israel, the newspapers that carry his columns neutralize their impact with their own editorials, or by other columnists who present a more balanced view and analysis of the problems in the Mideast. Not so with the Post-Gazette, where editorials pertaining to Israel are similarly one-sided and totally devoid of even mild criticism of Arab terrorists and murderers.

Mr. Simpson's worshipful praise of Jimmy Carter's new book makes his column especially egregious. "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid" has already been severely castigated as "replete with factual errors, copied materials not cited, superficialities, glaring omissions and simply invented segments" by a former adviser to Mr. Carter. Mr. Simpson, of course, makes no reference whatsoever to these highly critical remarks.

CYRIL H. WECHT, M.D., J.D.
Squirrel Hill

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Carter's fiction

Dan Simpson's Dec. 6 column "Carter's Clear-Eyed View" extols Jimmy Carter's new book for its firsthand knowledge and factual approach, despite the book's errors and omissions.

Israel is not an apartheid nation, as per the book's title, "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid," but a democracy that extends full civil rights to its non-Jewish citizens. The Israeli Parliament and Supreme Court include Israeli Arabs.

The "impoverishment" of Arabs in the West Bank by Israel is fiction. There was no "occupation" before 1967. Arabs controlled the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and the West Bank until Israel gained control of the territories from Jordan in 1967.

After the 1967 war that Israel fought to defend itself, Israel offered to return all the land in exchange for peace. But, at a summit conference in Khartoum that September, eight Arab heads of state resolved that there would be no peace, no negotiation, no recognition. This position was reinforced at Camp David, contrary to Mr. Carter's assertions, when Yasser Arafat refused Ehud Barak's offer of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

During Jordan's control of the West Bank, the people were impoverished. Subsequent to the "occupation," Arabs' average life expectancy increased 50 percent, infant mortality decreased substantially, seven universities were established and non-Israeli Arab employment in Israel increased from virtually zero to 109,000 -- all by 1986.

The United States is building a fence between Mexico and this country to reduce illegal immigration. Israel put a fence between it and the West Bank to reduce Arab terrorism. How is that worse than the U.S. actions?

ZALMAN SHAPIRO
Oakland

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Costly war

The war in Iraq is costing us too much money and going nowhere. Every couple of weeks a new "miracle tactic" appears, the latest act of genius being the reassignment of active duty troops in mass numbers to "assist and train" (i.e., bail out) the emerging Iraqi security forces and police.

Given our track record, this sounds like another disaster-in-the-making to be spun as grand accomplishment. Stop funding the Iraq war now.

ROBERT GOETZ
Regent Square

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Cameras not fair

I read with interest about city Councilman Bill Peduto wanting to install cameras at traffic lights ("Peduto Wants Cameras at Lights," Dec. 8).

Apparently Mr. Peduto never entered an intersection on a yellow light, slammed on his brakes in fear the yellow would turn red prematurely or found himself in the middle of an intersection when the yellow turned red. But, I imagine, everyone else has experienced these circumstances.

Therefore, I say no cameras!

I am a defensive, courteous driver who obeys the speed limit, but I still find myself in circumstances where the lights change too fast.

Many times I have approached an intersection to be surprised by the yellow light lasting only about two seconds. By the time I enter the intersection the light turns red. There are also intersections that have multiple traffic signals changing at the same moment. According to PennDOT, traffic lights need to be calibrated to the speed limit and slope of the road. I don't believe they are.

I have seen very few people deliberately run red lights. Mostly, it's someone who has no choice and cannot stop safely. Cameras will result in many undeserved tickets.

The article also mentioned that this would provide "millions of dollars." I was always under the impression that traffic signals were designed to allow traffic to flow safely -- not to be a government revenue machine!

JOSEPH L. BETZ
South Park

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Yes to cameras

Here's to Councilman Bill Peduto. His suggestion to put cameras on traffic lights at key intersections to identify (and fine) drivers who go through red lights is a great one ("Peduto Wants Cameras at Lights," Dec. 8).

Since the system is at no cost to the city, why not? It should improve safety. The city could probably balance its budget on the fines it would collect at our corner (Fifth and Craig). There seem to be violators on almost every cycle. Good thinking, Councilman Peduto.

WILLIAM BEHREND
Oakland

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We have a long way to go for a healthier future for our children

I was pleased to see the coverage of upcoming events commemorating Rachel Carson's lifelong efforts to protect the environment and public health ("Events to Recognize Carson's Life, Work," Dec. 6).

At the Learning Disabilities Association of America, we strive to honor her legacy by raising awareness of and preventing exposure to environmental factors that may contribute to developmental and learning disabilities. Neurotoxicants, such as pesticides, flame retardants, lead and mercury, persist in the environment and contaminate our food, water and air. These chemicals and heavy metals can affect brain development in the developing fetus and infants.

As part of the 2007 events commemorating the centennial of Ms. Carson's birth, the Learning Disabilities Association's annual conference will include a medical symposium on Feb. 14 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center featuring national leaders in environmental health, including Patricia DeMarco, executive director of the Rachel Carson Homestead Association. The keynote speaker for the conference is Dr. Herbert L. Needleman, a renowned expert on lead toxicity in children and professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

One hundred years after Ms. Carson's birth, we still have a long way to go to make the environment safe and healthy for our most vulnerable populations. We hope that the medical symposium and other events celebrating her legacy will help raise public awareness of these issues and lead to greater action to provide all children a healthier future.

SHEILA A. BUCKLEY
Executive Director
Learning Disabilities Association of America
Castle Shannon

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