NEW RULE ON ABORTION

You allege in your Dec. 28 editorial that politics is at the root of a Bush administration rule that enables physicians and nurses who object to abortion to opt out without professional or legal consequences.

Your casual dismissal of prolife physicians' objections to abortion misses the point. We prolifers have no qualms about what a woman does with her body, with one exception. Liposuction? Face lift? Go for it. Even a face transplant, if legal and medically advisable, is not an issue. But murder another human being, just because she is temporarily living and growing inside the woman, for the sake of convenience? Not acceptable, no matter what the misguided and egregiously immoral law says.

We may go backward in the Obama administration due to his abject pandering to Planned Parenthood and the proabortion vote, but we will never stop fighting for the life of innocent human beings in the womb. One day, the hearts and minds of Americans will change, and then abortion will be a sad memory and as unthinkable as slavery.

HALE MESEROW, EAGAN

Thank you for your accurate assessment of the integrity and consistency of the Minnesota Senate recount (editorial, Dec. 30).

This process has been conducted with such fairness and impartiality that it may be difficult to challenge in court, quite a feat in this political environment. With patience, the people's will in the Minnesota U.S. Senate election will be known and all votes will be counted correctly. Minnesotans should be proud of this and rebuff any attempts to mock it.

WILLIAM PAPPAS, STILLWATER

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The suggestion of a Dec. 31 letter-writer that third-place Dean Barkley should be named the new senator because the race between the top two finishers is so close makes as little sense as having third-place Cleveland be named the champion of the American League Central Division last fall because Chicago and Minnesota ended up tied for first.

STEW THORNLEY, ROSEVILLE

Given the difficult economic times for so many Vikings season ticket holders and because they are the hardy folks who support the players' very large paychecks, why don't team members chip in and buy the remaining seats as a gift to Minnesota fans?

They could donate them to worthy charities and get a tax deduction to boot. This might change public opinion of them as selfish, and bring a few fans back into the pack.

How about it, guys? Maybe we will support your stadium when we get back on our feet.

RICK KRIEGER, ORONO

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If there was ever any doubt that Minnesotans did not want a Vikings stadium, the people have answered loud and clear with a resounding no.

The Vikes are in the playoffs and there are thousands of empty seats. If we aren't willing to spend our money on playoff tickets, we obviously do not want to spend our money on a stadium.

RYAN LESTER, ZIMMERMAN, MINN.

"Blame the sky" for ice-covered streets (Star Tribune, Dec. 31)? Historically rain in December has been unusual for Minnesota. Growing up here, we always had lots of good snow and cold in the winter, and never rain. Global warming is the cause of rainy winters and we have no one to blame but ourselves.

The solution is not more salt on the roads, which pollutes our surface waters like the Mississippi River and our drinking water sources, but reducing greenhouse gas emissions. So, mad about the ice? Reduce your carbon footprint. Conserve energy. Walk, bike or bus. Turn down the thermostat and put on a sweater. We're all part of the problem and we all must be part of the solution.

CATHERINE ZIMMER, ST. PAUL

While it may be a "sad truth," as you mentioned in your Dec. 31 editorial, that a "couple of hundred rockets" stirred up such a response in Gaza, the fact of the matter is that since 2005 over 6,300 rockets have been launched at Israeli territory.

That is not a number to be taken lightly. And as those thousands of rockets, missiles and mortars were being fired onto Israeli citizens, Israel was no longer within Gaza territory. Time may have been better used to take advantage of this and begin building a solid foundation for their independence rather than trying to wipe Israel off the map (as Hamas has so often indicated it would like to do).

To paraphrase an old quote, "If the Palestinians lay down their weapons, there will be peace. If the Israelis lay down their weapons, they'll be annihilated." For all the protesters out there, this may be something worth thinking about as well.

EILAT HAREL, MINNETONKA