Letters to the editor for Sunday, Aug. 19

SO LONG, MR. ROVE

History will judge

So the puppetmaster returns to Texas. Was he brilliant or diabolical? Did he work toward traditional conservatism, an all-powerful national and world leader or simply a powerful Republican Party? The long view of history may not be kind.

In all fairness, were the puppetmaster's results limited by his puppet with only a wooden head? Is it better or worse when the puppet has a mind of its own?

The United States and the entire world have suffered dearly from these actors upon its stage. It will not be pretty when those who paid the admission want their money back.

DAVID CROCKETT, MINNEAPOLIS

AWAITING PETRAEUS' REPORT

What will he deliver?

Is loyalty to the American people more important than loyalty to the American president? Colin Powell and George Tenet didn't appear to think so as they caved in to President Bush on Iraq. Gen. David Petraeus will be faced with this exact question in a couple of weeks. How can men of these people's caliber buckle when they are needed the most?

"There is no military solution in Iraq" is the most widely stated and then ignored evaluation in the history of this country. Get some guts, Gen. Petraeus: Cut the puppet strings that disgraced those before you. The American people demand your loyalty!

TOM MENEELY, ARCO, MINN.

INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS

Put them in context

Regarding the Aug. 12 article "Should this bridge be open?": Let's put our priorities into perspective. We are spending $2 billion a week in Iraq. Surely Minnesota can afford $1.4 billion over the next two decades to repair or replace our aging bridges?

MEG ARNOSTI, ST. PAUL

KEILLOR WEIGHS IN

Better late than never

The "healing" that Garrison Keillor refers to in his Aug. 12 column should have been administered to us by the old scout himself long before August.

Since the end of the last performance of the Legislature and our chief executive, thousands of us have been praying to be delivered from a sense of great despair, the session's primary product. We wondered why G.K., a purveyor of books only a stones throw away from the official state edifice, would allow us to suffer without the least whimper of curative sardonic poetry. The medicine was delivered last Sunday, and we feel much better.

As for the column itself, I have but one comment: To refer to what has recently transpired as a "ballet" is to demean a good part of the performing arts community.

C.T. RICE, BURNSVILLE

Health care at home

If the Current Humorist is worried about crossing bridges on his way to the Mayo Clinic, he can just stroll down Summit Avenue to the very capable medical practices surrounding United and St. Joseph's Hospitals. But then the elitist humorist might meet a "large ebullient woman in a bright red blouse" and have to carry on an intelligent conversation minus snide comments.

DARYL WILLIAMSON, EDEN PRAIRIE

Back-seat engineer

Well, I'm glad that a noted bridge engineer such as Gary Keillor has finally come forward and given us the definitive answer as to why this disaster happened. Of course, in pointing his finger at the governor, Keillor says that many other bridges in Minnesota were rated in worse shape than the Interstate 35W bridge. I guess that either means that the engineers who inspected those bridges are incompetent, or perhaps the science just doesn't exist yet that will tell us exactly which bridges are in danger of falling.

If "Prairie Home Companion" ever goes off the air, maybe Keillor could head on down to Florida to set NASA straight on that pesky heat-shield problem with the shuttle.

JIM FRIE, FARIBAULT, MINN.

9/11 AND THE 35W BRIDGE

The analogy collapses

I began Deborah Morse-Kahn's Aug. 12 column, "A measure of who we are," expecting commentary on Minnesotans' response to the recent bridge collapse tragedy in Minneapolis. I was horrified to encounter a not-so-subtle jab at New Yorkers for leaving the scene of massive destruction on Sept. 11, 2001. As someone who was in New York City that day, let me enlighten Morse-Kahn:

You are comparing an accident in which people perished in a short span of time to a situation in which thousands of people had an opportunity to run for their lives after the moment of impact. We were instructed by the authorities to leave a scene of destruction and grave danger. Your comments ignore and disrespect the tireless efforts of we New Yorkers who worked days on end to help brief rescue relief to Ground Zero.

To compare the two situations is irresponsible, and reflects a mean-spiritedness that debases both those who suffered in 9/11 and those who lost loved ones on the 35W bridge.

KAREN HAZEL, EDINA

PRIORITIZING ISN'T ENOUGH

Inflation took a toll

Since the bridge collapse, writers to these pages have been critical of calls to increase the state's gas tax -- which, it bears continuous repeating, has not been increased in almost two decades. Some claim that all we need do is "prioritize" our spending options and all will be well. This suggested course of action, deceptive in its simplicity, is what has us in our current predicament.

We have spent the last 15 years prioritizing our transportation projects precisely because our revenue has not kept up with our ability to pay. While some may disagree, having the courage to ask Minnesota motorists to chip in a little more per gallon must be a part of the overall solution.

MIKE WORCESTER, COKATO, MINN.

DEADLY DOG ATTACK

Sad, but not surprising

Regarding the deadly pit bull attack in Minneapolis last week: What are we to expect when an adult male dog (presumably not neutered) of any large breed is kept chained in a basement, rather than being trained and socialized into normal family activities, and a small, active, unsupervised child comes within reach?

CHRISTINE LEWIS, MINNEAPOLIS