Tom Danehy Is a Real Boob for Making That Breastfeeding Comment

I usually enjoy Tom Danehy's columns, but I am very offended by the comment about nursing twins in public in one of his recent columns: "I know it's a natural thing, but so is taking a crap" (Sept. 18).

I assume that a growing group of children who get sick less often, have higher IQs than formula-fed babies and are less likely to grow up to be obese are in the general population's best interest. By breastfeeding, we save money on health costs both now and in the future, save lost work time for mothers, and perhaps even help our economy by having smarter workers in the future. (They'll pay more into Social Security. You're welcome.)

Instead of looking at a nursing mother of twins next time and thinking that she should be hiding those things away, perhaps Danehy should take some time to appreciate the skill that it takes to nurse two babies at one time, and the investment that she is making in the future. Juggling four squishy and squirmy entities into position and then getting them all to stay put is a feat.

For many women, learning to nurse even one baby is a challenge, and getting out into public to run some errands is a long ordeal that can't (and shouldn't) be planned between feedings. I'm sorry that Tom Danehy is squeamish about this natural process of life, but he should think before he spreads his unecological, expensive and unhealthful views around.

Stephanie Sara

This Child-Naming Discussion Will Just Never End, Will It?

I got a chuckle out of Tom Danehy's tongue-in-cheek follow-up piece (Sept. 4) advising a former athlete of his against giving her unborn child a wild name. I have to agree with his premise that it could label the kid in the eyes of others prone to racial stereotyping and limit his/her chances in life. With names like Shaquille, Kareem or Cassius, a kid better be damn good at sports, or they face a life of diminished possibilities. Same goes for Beyonce, Ziggy or Denzel. If it wasn't for the entertainment industry, these folks would be signing checks with initials only or be laughingstocks.

Folks, if you want your kids to have a chance in life, give them a chance, and give them a name that ensures anonymity so they can move upward free from discrimination, and maybe become business people or even politicians instead of janitors or car-wash attendants. In the upper echelons of society, you need names like Rupert, Milhouse, Fife or even Barack.

Whatever you do, avoid following this new trend of waiting months or even a year to name your child so you can select something that reflects their emerging personality. I mean, can you imagine how horrible it would be to go through life as Tight-Ass Danehy? It gives me shivers just to think about it.

Bill Haynes

The Border Situation's Bad--but More Border Patrol Officers Won't Make It Better

In his most recent article in the Tucson Weekly ("The Chiricahua Corridor," Sept. 11), Leo W. Banks does a great job of detailing the difficulties homeowners face living in the Chiricahua Corridor, including their complaints about the ineffectiveness of the Border Patrol. He also anecdotally describes how peaceful this border region was during the '60s, '70s and '80s, before the border became militarized, when farm workers used to migrate back and forth easily.

It was interesting, then, that the only hint of a potential solution to these issues that Banks could come up with is a larger Border Patrol presence. When are we going to start thinking more creatively about this issue? Border Patrol's presence, border walls and technology have increased exponentially along the border since the 1990s, yet the issues Banks describes, according to him, are getting worse.

Until the focus moves away from enforcement-only solutions and toward humane and meaningful solutions--such as comprehensive immigration reform, the decriminalization of marijuana and the renegotiation of damaging trade agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement--the situation Banks describes will continue.

Ben Harville

Wait... Did This Letter-Writer Really Just Refer to Mari Herreras as a Nazi, and Advocate Lynching?!?

Sarah Palin should hire Mari Herreras to craft press screeds, as she obviously graduated summa cum laude from the Goebbels Institute of Journalism ("Off With Brad Nelson's Head!" The Skinny, Sept. 18). The non-sequitur quotes from Chuck Huckelberry in the story of election auditor John Brakey's arrest ("Lynchings were outlawed long ago," "Brad didn't want or ask for him to be arrested. He just didn't want him there during the hand count and to stop bothering that process," etc.) are as stunning as the absence in the article of vital pieces of evidence, such as the accounts of county elections workers who discovered votes being counted outside the auditing area during the Regional Transportation Authority election of 2006.

First, John Brakey was and remains an official tasked with auditing a seriously flawed electoral process, and as such is not someone who can be ordered away at whim. It is also obvious that he was only arrested after refusing to allow improperly sealed bags of votes to be counted, and after continuing to press Brad Nelson for proper documentation. These facts demand Mr. Nelson's removal as Pima County elections director. The refusal of Huckelberry to even consider this action, combined with the tacit assent of the majority of the Board of Supervisors through their certification of the primary results, shows the depths to which corruption has penetrated in our system, both in Pima County and the nation at large.

And as to Mr. Huckelberry's inane statement about the legality of lynching, I can only observe that election fraud is illegal, too. Since he seems so intent upon assisting with the theft of our ballots, I propose that we consider the lynching laws null and void, as well. Tar and feathers, anyone?

Chuck Aubrey

Voting Is a Right, Not a Privilege

Daniel Sotelo puts forth a number of "excuses" why some people don't vote even though they want to--primarily not having the time or ability to get to the polls ("The 'Majority Rules' Initiative Would Violate the First Amendment," Mailbag, Sept. 18).

Please inform the writer that by making a one-time request for an early ballot from the Pima County Recorder's Office (740-4330), one can receive all future ballots sent to one's home via U.S. mail, along with an envelope to send back the completed ballot. One can contemplate the issues in the privacy of one's home at the time of one's choosing. This approach saves time, gasoline and frustration. It doesn't get easier than this!

I disagree with the writer's claim that voting is a privilege rather than a right. Tell that to black Americans. Tell that to female Americans. Unless one is convicted of certain categories of crimes, one's right to vote cannot be taken away. That is, of course, unless our dear President George W. Bush has issued some secret executive order.

Barry Austin