Courts provide protection against tyranny by majority

Courts provide protection against tyranny by majority
EDITOR:
Regarding the Sept. 27 letter, "Judges rule by fiat:"
Advocates for the weakening of our nation's courts, particularly those aiming their sights at our nation's appellate and Supreme Court, are either grossly misinformed, delusional or, in many cases, just plain stupid.
Their argument, that the courts are "usurping the will of the people," is, at best, disingenuous and specious. Those who crusade for the abolishment of a strong and independent judiciary are the same misinformed fools who argue for the weakening of church-state separation, prayer in public schools and the teaching of creationism in biology classes. What they really want are courts packed with judges who rule by their narrow definition of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Without a strong judiciary we the people would still be living with "separate but equal" education for our children, people of color would be paying poll taxes and taking history tests in order to gain access to a voting booth and Jay Leno and John Stewart would be rotting in a federal prison.
Our forefathers had the wisdom and common sense to anticipate that one day the "will of the people & quot; would, if left unchecked, ultimately become the "tyranny of the people. & quot; That's one of the reasons why the Constitution contains a separation of powers clause. Those who cannot grasp or appreciate this principal would be well advised to relocate to Iran. We certainly don't need them here.
AL BLAZO
Youngstown
Wake up, Weathersfield
EDITOR:
The facts and numbers in a Sept. 30 letter from a Mineral Ridge school teacher concerning our school system were shocking.
Last year the residents of this town were dragged numerous times to the polls so our "great" school could continue the excellence.
Our children were wearing pins, every other house had a vote yes sign. The community was rallying together to give our future graduates the education we provided in the past.
As a town we finally took the hit, seeing our property taxes rise but, oh, yes, busing was restored. Sadly we truly believed it was the only way.
Teachers are the true heart and soul of every school -- a literal lifeline to the future of our children. They should be the number one priority. A past yes vote was a vote for them.
Our community should demand some changes. Without those teachers who educated my parents, myself and my children, what are we left with? More than likely it will be a group of over paid people who will be doing a lot of finger pointing.
Wake up, Weathersfield. Demand what is best for our children.
CHRISSY FLESCH
Mineral Ridge
Got a drug problem? Throw money at it, like the feds do
EDITOR:
I'm writing about the front page story, "Officials see sharp upturn in drug use" in the Sept. 18 edition.
When our war on drugs began in 1970 the United States didn't have much of a meth problem. We obviously do today.
In 1969 the federal drug enforcement budget was $65 million. Today it's $19.2 billion. (These figures don't include the cost of incarceration nor the state and local costs).
The obvious answer to our nation's drug problem is more money, since we have only increased our drug war budget by 29,500 percent since 1969.
Obviously, we must throw more money down the drug war rat hole in our attempt to nullify the immutable law of supply and demand.
KIRK MUSE
Mesa, Ariz.