Letters to the editor for Sunday, April 27

MORE ECONOMIC UNKNOWNS

Jobs going to green

Just what is a "green collar job"?

I hear the term being thrown around a lot lately by DFL (and squishy Republican) policy- and lawmakers. The Minnesota House last week passed a preliminary cap-and-trade system bill. Freshman Rep. Kate Knuth, DFL-New Brighton, who never met a tree she didn't hug, said she wants to change current Minnesota jobs into "green jobs." Gov. Tim Pawlenty is working on a cap-and-trade regional system.

So I ask, what is a green job, and how do I tell if I have one?

I think all Minnesotans have the right to know if new legislation will target our jobs for elimination. Or are we not ready to talk about the dirty dark side of the "green movement" at a time of such economic uncertainty?

ANDY APLIKOWSKI, BLAINE

CRASH IN WRIGHT COUNTY

Call them irresponsible

I guess it's front-page news when greed drives homeowners, realtors and mortgage companies not living within their means ("From boom to bust," April 20).

Dreams, dream homes in dream developments and dreams of a quick buck on the part of building speculators have all led to this disaster in Wright County. Have so many people forgotten the difference between dreams and reality?

My "dream" is that people who do live within their means won't have to bear the financial burden of those who don't.

KIRKE C. NORTHCUTT, MINNEAPOLIS

It could be the homes mentioned in "From boom to bust" never really had the value the borrowers believed was there. Loan officers routinely put pressure on appraisers to meet whatever "value" they determine for a property or they will fail to send them more business.

In large developments, such as those described, it only takes one or two properties to sell to establish value by providing comparable properties for future sales. At the height of the "boom," some borrowers were encouraged to borrow up to 100 percent or more of their home's value and appraisers were told to do whatever they needed to do to make the loan work.

Until the appraisal function becomes completely separated from the loan function for mortgage brokers as well as federally regulated banks, it can be argued any valuation of a property is open to suspicion.

SUE ZUMBERGE, EDINA

Regarding the April 24 story about suburban communities not knowing what to do with all of the vacant houses: We also have a problem of too many people without a place to sleep.

Can't something be done to match responsible people who happen to be down on their luck with the houses that are sitting vacant and not maintained? Perhaps in exchange for keeping a home clean, lawn mowed, neat in appearance, a family could have a roof over their heads.

DIANE SISKO, WOODBURY

IMPROVE AIDS PROGRAMMING

And save Africans

The new statistics on AIDS in Minnesota from the Centers for Disease Control underscore one crucial fact: AIDS is not over here. Nearly every day of the year -- there were 325 new cases last year -- someone discovered they were infected with HIV, and a life is drastically changed. Thanks to new drugs, they can survive, although they may face a host of potential health problems.

But in Nigeria, where I come from, only a small percentage of people who need treatment are receiving it. Children are still born every day with HIV, because only 11 percent of mothers in need have access to drugs that would prevent them from transmitting the virus to their babies.

With PEPFAR (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) reauthorization looming in the Senate, lawmakers have an opportunity to not only increase funding for lifesaving care, but also ensure that PEPFAR programming links HIV services to maternal health care, catching women early and preventing HIV in both mother and baby. For those already HIV positive, we will have more resources to provide powerful AIDS drugs to keep them alive. In the face of a catastrophic health worker shortage, Physicians for Human Rights is calling for the United States to train and retain 140,000 new health professionals under the new legislation -- as well as additional community health workers. If PEPFAR 2 achieves even these two goals, it can improve access to medical care and thereby save the lives of hundreds of thousands of Africans.

OMOBOSOLA AKINSETE, M.D., ROBBINSDALE; ASSISTANT PROFESSOR,

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

CLEVELAND'S MASCOT

It should stay home

Could we politely ask the Cleveland Indians not to wear uniforms featuring Chief Wahoo when they visit our new publicly financed stadium? In a state with a rich Native American tradition and population, I find the Wahoo imagery terribly disrespectful to my neighbors and ballpark co-owners.

MATTHEW ROBINSON, KASOTA, MINN.