What’s the Point? & “Look Beyond Selfish Needs”

May 4, 2007

Dear Editor,

From a story about the Council's decision to slow down permitting of SRO apartments:

"The bank might not give us an extension on our loan or the financial reserves might run out," said Shehkter, speaking with an accent.

What's the point of mentioning Mr. Shehkter's accent? It isn't relevant to the story and adds nothing.

Pointing out Mr. Shehkter's accent appears to be an attempt to demonize Mr. Shehkter, to set him apart from "us," to make him one of "them."

Such things are beneath the standards of The Lookout.

Sincerely,

Christian Boyce

May 4, 2007

Dear Editor,

Please take the time to inform your readers just how valuable their local airport is. And that as citizens, they must look beyond their own selfish needs and respect the rights of others. (see story)

No one suggests limiting highway use. No one suggests stopping housing subdivisions that spoil thousands of acres and overburden schools, highways, and precious farmland.

I would suggest cordoning off 1,200 feet of the nearest highway as a safety measure. After all, there are tens of thousands of cars passing by every HOUR, driven by drivers that have had a paltry 30 hours of training only once in their lives. Many of the drivers have medical conditions that render them unfit to drive. The cars are derelicts that rarely get repaired and are mostly unsafe.

Compare this to a total of 18,000 aircraft operations in an entire year, piloted by pilots that have had hundreds of hours of specialized training, plus annual re-training, and requalification every two years. The pilots undergo physical exams at six, 12, and 24 month intervals.

The aircraft are maintained on federally mandated inspection programs based on flight hours and calendar time. Even the smallest plane must undergo a rigorous annual inspection every year or be grounded. Imagine spending $4,000 each year on maintenance on your Toyota Corolla!

Why not attack the real problem, which is too many people in one area, by cordoning off 1,200 homes too?

Noise? Each departing airplane makes noise for about two minutes and then is gone. Every one of the thousands of homes surrounding the airport makes 95 decibel noise for an hour each week while simply cutting the grass. Who is contributing more to noise?

Remember the 1950s, when every town wanted an airport, because it was the way of the future? Now, we have exported our future to China, and we are shutting down our links to the world and any hope of progress every time we close or restrict an airport.

When your airport is increasingly popular, you community is thriving. When it dies, so will your town.

Glenn Juber
Dayville, CT