Readers Write for Wednesday, June 17

In our opinion, David Letterman's sad comments about Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's daughter and flight attendants crossed the line.

We realize that this is a comedy show, but his remarks about the slutty look of flight attendants and his denigrating young women, like Willow Palin, are a pathetic attempt at humor.

We will vote with our channel selector.

DIANA AND Boyd Uppman, Chaska

With great interest, I read the story about the so-called whistleblower bringing her scooter through White Castle's drive-through (Star Tribune, June 14).

What would her reaction have been had a car struck her while she was in the lane? If she had sustained injuries, would she still be outraged, but for a different reason?

The policy makes perfect sense. An individual is not allowed to walk up to the window if they are not in a vehicle. This type of scooter is not a vehicle, and should not be allowed either.

Navigating someone in a wheelchair is difficult, even more so when you're the one in the chair. However, over the years, I grew weary of so many disabled individuals and family members of persons with disabilities who constantly and rudely demanded special treatment and accommodations because of the disability.

I expected to have access to disabled parking, ramps, elevators and wider aisles in stores, if possible.

I did not expect the entire world to make every possible accommodations for my daughter. Reasonable accommodation is the key phrase everyone forgets.

White Castle is within its rights to refuse service to this lady. It is a matter of her safety. It has apparently apologized and explained its reasoning for this policy to her.

But our whistleblower is having none of that. She's going to make herself a big pain in everyone's backside in order to draw attention to herself, and maybe get herself a little payoff.

GARY DUCKERT, COON RAPIDS

•••

The June 14 article about drive-through window regulations inspired me to complain about a similar problem that I have with my bank. I am an avid bicyclist and commute to work on my bike daily, but I am not allowed to use the drive-through window for "safety reasons."

I don't mind parking my bike and going inside the bank, but the window offers extended hours that are more convenient to my schedule, but are only available to those in cars.

Why do we cater to cars? We need to rethink how we operate in our communities in order to offer incentives for people who are not in cars -- bikers, pedestrians and, yes, motorized scooters or wheelchairs. It's time for our priorities to shift.

The Star Tribune's article on the "Minnesota Nice Guys" ("Minneapolis cops bust 'nice guys' sex ring, June 7) implies that this sex ring is different from others because the men are successful businessmen, lawyers and accountants.

But here's the real news story: Most of the johns out prowling the urban streets looking for prostitutes, going on sex tours to Asian countries or taking part in sex acts at bachelor parties are middle- to upper-class men. It is precisely the "nice guys" who create the demand side of the sex industry.

MARNA ANDERSON, MINNEAPOLIS;

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, WATCH

Those of us who serve older adults in our community truly appreciate two straight days of front-page coverage from the Star Tribune. The June 14 article "Dial-a-ride fix could strand metro riders" and the June 15 article "Helping an elder in need" represent two big issues older adults in Minnesota are facing these days -- issues that more of us will be facing in the next 20 years.

That means that the issues like transportation and health care will only loom larger in the years ahead. The problems of the dial-a-ride services arose because no one was paying attention. Given the growing number of older adults in this state, not paying attention is no longer an option.

At Little Brothers-Friends of the Elderly, we serve lonely and isolated older adults who need the same assistance with health care and transportation that many of their peers do, but often have no one to help them. And the number of people we could serve is growing. It will take intentional, integrated solutions from government, businesses and nonprofits to prepare for this coming "age wave." The Met Council, Volunteers of America and Little Brothers-Friends of the Elderly will not be able to handle the coming needs individually.

We sincerely hope that stakeholders in this state can come together and do some planning in advance, and that we do not wait for substantial changes in services for older adults to occur because of a crisis. The quality of life of an increasing number of older adults in this community depends on it. Let's get ahead of the "age wave" before it comes crashing down on our heads.

THERESE CAIN, MINNEAPOLIS;

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,