.....Advertisement.....
.....Advertisement.....

Today's Opinions

  • LETTER: In defense of city’s police officers

    I am writing this letter in response to unsubstantiated rumors and concerns about law enforcement officers within our community, primarily with the Las Vegas City Police Department. As I read the Las Vegas Optic, I see articles to include letters to the editor. These articles are alleging that officers are violent, abusive, and not being held responsible. I have recently been hearing rumors about police officers abusing their powers and violating citizen’s constitutional rights.

    Click here to read more...
  • EDITORIAL: Thumbs

    Thumb DOWN for ... WITHOUT A HOMELESS SHELTER. Members of the Samaritan House have asked the city for help with getting a permanent place for a homeless shelter. The group once had one, but it didn’t meet regulations, members said.

    Last year, First Presbyterian Church and Faith Hall donated space temporarily for a cold-weather shelter. From Nov. 23 to April 1, that shelter served 47 people, who used the facility for a total of 835 days. So there’s clearly a need in this community for a shelter.

    Click here to read more...
  • LETTER: Let’s have citizen oversight of PD

    I’d like to support the proposal made in the letter by Paul Skotchdopole regarding the creation of a citizens police oversight committee. Such an entity makes only good sense and is the only fiscally responsible action possible given our society and human nature.

    Independent, transparent, and empowered citizen oversight would make police more responsive to all segments of society, more humane, and ultimately more respected, appreciated, and compensated for a difficult and dangerous job.

    Click here to read more...
  • EDITORIAL: An Orwellian City Hall

    In recent months, top Las Vegas city officials have urged the community to focus on the positive in city government. Indeed, Mayor Tony Marquez has been upset with negative coverage of his administration in this newspaper.

    Now City Hall thinks it has figured out a way to get everyone to forget about recent controversies — just pretend they never happened. That smacks of the content of George Orwell’s novel, “1984,” in which officials revised history in favor of the state’s mere interpretation of it.

    Click here to read more...
  • EDITORIAL: Good cooperation

    When the two local school districts cooperate on big issues, they deserve the public’s gratitude. Recently, West Las Vegas, which runs the area’s Head Start program, entered an agreement with the Las Vegas City Schools to provide early childhood program services on the east side of town.

    The most important reason for this agreement is that it benefits children. Need we say more?

    Click here to read more...
  • LETTER: Siding with the 'anti-movie' crowd

    I was delighted to see that Las Vegas (was) considering a moratorium on filmmaking. As a veteran location manager of many Las Vegas projects (including Wyatt Earp, East Meets West, John Carpenter’s Vampires and North Country), I have watched the film climate in Las Vegas steadily erode over the years. Most recently, the ambivalence (and dare I say greed) I experienced from some segments of the business community during the filming of No Country For Old Men left a bitter taste in my mouth.

    Click here to read more...
  • LETTER: Focusing attention on the state money

    The VFW in Mora has a new commander. His name is Sam Muniz. We must never forget the former commander Joe Gene Pacheco. It was through his efforts that land for the VFW was acquired and a building is in place. He did an excellent job and I’m very proud of his accomplishments.

    Click here to read more...
  • LETTER: Now protect the roadless areas

    Last month, when President Obama signed into law the furthest-reaching land protection in 15 years, he did it in the name of Theodore Roosevelt. In 1908, President Roosevelt established 150 national forests as America’s legacy for future generations.

    Here in New Mexico, Roosevelt’s vision created the Carson, Cibola, Lincoln, Santa Fe and Gila national forests. A century later, those forests and others like them still stand, because Americans enthusiastically embraced our heritage lands and pushed back when special interests threatened them.

    Click here to read more...