Continued: Netlets for Tuesday, June 23

Minnesota won't tolerate sale of human beings for sex

The recent efforts of the Minneapolis Police Department's Violent Offender Task Force and the ongoing efforts of the Sgt. Gerald D. Vick Human Trafficking Task Force to vigorously pursue those who buy and sell women for the purpose of sexual exploitation represent a significant step forward in combating human sex trafficking in Minnesota.

Minnesota needs police officers like those on the task force who see through the "Minnesota Nice Guy" image of clean-cut and trustworthy men who do not mistreat women to the underlying criminal behavior on the part of "johns" who seek anonymity in order to continue to purchase human beings for sex. Minnesota needs police officers who hold sex traffickers accountable for using power and control to keep trafficking victims in the trafficking situation, whether or not they use explicit physical force. Under Minnesota law, a victim can never consent to being sold for sex.

These increases will prevent many qualified students from developing the talents that are needed by the medical device and other Minnesota industries, business, education, government and other important segments of Minnesota for continuation, growth and prosperity.

Failure to adequately develop our human resources will severely damage Minnesota and its people.

WILBUR L. LAYTON, EDINA; UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR EMERITUS

If a person loses his or her job, the loss of a paycheck is bad enough without also having to deal with either a loss of health insurance or a dramatic increase in the cost to maintain health insurance. So why are the president and members of Congress seeking to pass legislation that will mandate that employers offer health insurance to employees, which will result in additional people obtaining health insurance through their employers? Haven't we figured out yet how illogical this is?

PHILLIP MARTIN, EAGAN

How curious was Samuel Thernstrom's June 21 piece, "We Can Cool the Planet. We Have the Technology." In his opening paragraph, he writes that a growing number of climate scientists believe any federal limits on greenhouse gas emission may be "too little, too late" to stop global warming. This comes from a writer who works for the American Enterprise Institute, an organization that has helped to delay any action for years by muddying the waters of climate change science. Now, he proposes researching geo-engineering to cool the planet.

A better approach would be for our representatives to strengthen and pass the American Clean Energy and Security Act, coauthored by Reps. Henry Waxman and Edward Markey. The bill has passed out of committee and will likely be voted on this week. The United States can emerge from this process with legislation that effectively spurs clean economic development, powers our nation with efficient, renewable, home-grown energy sources and establishes a carbon reduction plan that can give us the credibility to lead the international community to a global agreement.

JOE FOSS, MOUNDS VIEW

Thomas Horner writes that Republicans must recognize that our state needs more tax revenue, that we should assure that people have the health care they need to live productive lives, and that education for everyone, including students in urban schools, should be a state priority (Opinion Exchange, June 7). Not likely to happen.

Our governor refused to consider any new taxes, vetoed money for health care for our most vulnerable citizens and is unalloting funds for higher education, which is sure to hurt poor urban students who aspire to college. Not a single GOP legislator has spoken in opposition to his policies.

Perhaps Horner should consider aligning himself with the party that agrees with his views, the DFL.

BILL MULLIN, MINNEAPOLIS

In her June 7 column, "Hostility to religion bodes ill for society," Katherine Kersten declares we are becoming outright hostile to religion ("particularly to Christianity"), warning that we now accept only a "vanilla 'God is love' " morality.

Despite Kersten's contempt, Jesus taught that God's law was fully explained by the "vanilla" word "love."

Matthew 22:35-40: An expert in the Mosaic Law tested Jesus with this question: "'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?' Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'

Amazingly, Kersten would not hesitate to explain Christianity to Jesus himself.

SHAWN GILBERT, BLOOMINGTON