Readers write for Sunday, Oct. 24, 2010

The Star Tribune's endorsement of Tom Horner (Oct. 17) is a thinly veiled attempt to bleed off votes from Tom Emmer so the paper's real desired candidate, Mark Dayton, can get elected. This paper is as uber left as it gets, and so is Dayton, so it's not believable that this paper would support Horner.

ROBERT P. SMITH, COON RAPIDS

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Tom Horner entered the race in the hopes that he would take away votes from Dayton as voters would perceive him to be more moderate, when in fact he is a lifelong Republican. Could it be that the Star Tribune wants a business friendly governor to help it with its real estate dealings?

JOHN ANDERSON, ST. LOUIS PARK

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The extremes of the Democratic and Republican candidates have struck fear in moderate voters, who believe they must play a political game with their vote to defeat the other side. Horner will move Minnesota past the paralysis of extreme politics but only if the 60 percent of Minnesota voters who are moderates have the courage to cast their vote for him.

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Horner's solution for dealing with our economic woes is to broaden the sales tax. Sales taxes are regressive; in general they hit low/moderate income people disproportionately harder than others. Mark Dayton's tax proposals appear progressive; they would hit people according to ability to pay. Your endorsement seems to say you prefer the regressive route. I would think Dayton's would be better for Minnesota.

BOB PHELPS, NORTHFIELD

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So, the Star Tribune Media Company placed a one-and-one-third page advertisement for its favorite candidate in Sunday's opinion section. Just a few weeks ago the same company argued through its surrogate, Nick Coleman, that other companies' stakeholders should not have the right to do the same. This only demonstrates how correct the Citizens United decision really is. We now have a counterbalancing voice to the overwhelmingly left-wing media.

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Your endorsement asks voters to recognize that there are more than two candidates for governor. You only mention three, but as a matter of fact, seven candidates for governor are on the ballot.

Minnesota's news organizations and public opinion polls deliberately ignore this, and in ignoring it, they distort the electoral playing field and misinform the public. Their thinking is this: Minor candidates don't have much money and therefore "can't be elected," and there simply isn't any newsworthy purpose to a political campaign other than getting elected.

While this year's four "left behind" minor party candidates realize the odds of being elected are against them, that doesn't mean their presence is unimportant. Their crucial role is to act as "guinea pigs" for testing out innovative or controversial political ideas. They serve as the conduit for new ideas into a two-party structure which otherwise degenerates into bipartisan stagnation or bitterly partisan stalemate.

Your reporters as well as the pontificating pundits and academic analysts are missing a story and misleading the public with their self-imposed blackout on the minor and independent candidates.

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I've committed most of my adult life to protecting the place I live in and love -- 11 years with Greenpeace, 12 years with the Green Party, 18 years lobbying the Legislature, and now four times running for governor.

It is painful to hear decision-makers rationalize unsustainable practices based on the current economic growth model and the undemocratic system that perpetuates it. The weak, obsolete thinking of the Republican, Democratic and Independence parties is dangerous. During this severe ecological and economic collapse the policies and rhetoric of the major parties do not offer a proportionate response to the problems we face. Our Ecology Democracy Party campaign is introducing three concepts that address structural changes in the Minnesota political and economic system.

First, we want to establish an ecology-based economy for Minnesota, where we measure the health of our economy based upon the health of our natural resources. The outcome would be an overall lower cost of living and dollars would come closer to home.

Second, we advocate for proportional representation in the Minnesota House of Representatives. In a proportional system 10 percent of the vote would get your party 10 percent of the seats in the House. Huge numbers wouldn't be needed to have your values reflected more honestly in the government.

Such structural change has to happen first. Then, we can solve the big problems that are facing our common habitat and government.

If you agree, be consistent. When you walk into the voting booth on Nov. 2, be honest with yourself and your values. Visit www.kenpentel.org to learn more.

KEN PENTEL, GOLDEN VALLEY

Katherine Kersten has done a wonderful job exposing Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TiZA) for what it truly is: a religious school parading as a public school ("TiZA vs. search for the truth," Oct. 17). The issues that TiZA must resolve in order to be considered a public charter school will result in a radical overhaul of its structure. Only then will it resemble a public school.

JON WIERSMA, ST. PAUL

How does Kersten leave her home in the morning? I am so glad she is here to warn us of the dangers of Muslims, liberals and gays. I pity those like her who choose ignorance and fearfulness rather than opening their eyes and minds to the good that is all around them. I choose not to be afraid.