Readers Write (Oct. 9): Catholics, Steve Jobs, Jason Lewis, Glen Taylor

Are you saying the Catholic Church has no right to express its views on marriage ("On gay marriage, state is out of step," Oct. 1)? Remember, we do have freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Yes, culture can change its values, but God's values don't change.

KAREN PETERS, MINNEAPOLIS

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The U.S. Constitution protects the rights of the church to speak on public-policy matters, even when the Star Tribune disagrees with the church's position.

VIDELLA PARKS, ORTONVILLE, MINN.

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Quit trying to silence my church, and quit suggesting that we not be involved in the public debate on the marriage amendment in Minnesota.

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The legacy of Jobs can be compared to that of Thomas Edison, America's most prolific inventor. Just as Edison transformed the course of history by revolutionizing daily life, Jobs shaped the world with Apple.

Those young enough to know only a world adorned with stylish white earbuds and sleek fruit symbols may not immediately realize the extent of Jobs' impact.

Technological savants and average MacBook users alike can appreciate the role he had in transforming the digital age, and how this increased ubiquitous technology has influenced the Arab Spring, younger generations and our planet as a whole.

MELISSA BERMAN, EDEN PRAIRIE

To judge from the news coverage of Jobs' death, you'd think he was a statesman, a scientist who had saved millions of lives or a philanthropist who had dedicated his fortune to solving the world's most pressing problems.

In fact, the former Apple CEO was more like P.T. Barnum, or the Wizard of Oz, a master of marketing who convinced us to pay dearly for the superficial pleasures of living in the land of Apple.

As the cult of Apple grew over the years, even President Obama made pilgrimages to Apple headquarters, holding the company up as the future, a model of American ingenuity. Yet Apple products are made overseas.

And Jobs, for all his affability, had no public record of charitable giving. While it may be mere coincidence that his death came one day after the first Apple product rollout without him at the helm, it's no surprise the event was a dud.

After all, every Oz needs its wizard. Now, perhaps, the president and everyone else can move on to finding a real model for America's economic future.

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Jason Lewis says the old idyllic "Up North" experience is being ruined due to taxes and regulations that have priced all but the wealthiest out of lake cabins ("Up north: An ideal ruined by government," Oct. 2).

So what if a week at a cabin in the late 1960s cost $100 and is now $2,000? It's a free market, and no one is forcing anyone to go up north. What Lewis ignores is what that 1960s cabin experience was compared to what it has become today.

You probably drove on lots of gravel roads and unsafe highways in the 1960s. The cabin was probably a remodeled chicken coop with a 30-inch square shower squeezed into a tiny bedroom. Was there a qualified EMT/fire rescue squad in the small town nearby?

How leaky was the cabin's septic system? It probably dumped straight into the lake. How safe and comfortable was that wall-mounted space heater?

They want a water sports center with jet skis, big power boats and fishing boats with all the latest gear. The kids need an arcade center that rivals the Mall of America.

So take your pick, Jason: If you want to rough it on the cheap, try our many marvelous state parks and quit your bellyaching.

BOB BRERETON, ST. PAUL

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Lewis failed to mention the role of the free market in the rise in property values in the Whitefish chain of lakes just north of Brainerd. Since real-estate taxes are based on property values, these taxes will rise with increased valuations and will squeeze the small resort owners. However, the increased value of their land has benefited these resort owners immensely.

Please note that federal income tax rates are significantly lower today that they were in the 1960s. The top marginal rate on income was 90 percent until 1963, and 70 percent until 1983.

Today's top rates are under 40 percent. As a result of President Obama signing the recent new Federal Estate Tax Law, federal estate taxes are lower today than they have been in decades.

Most people complain that government regulation lowers property values. Regulation isn't the cause of high land valuation as Lewis implies.

BILL DRAKE, MINNETONKA

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Compare that attitude with those of the wealthy team owners who are seeking subsidies and threaten to move elsewhere if they have to pay for the common good. It is well understood that values are formed at a very early age. Hats off to Comfrey, Minn., for training Taylor so well.