Chalk up another win for Iowa! They say send us your gamblers and their money, and we’ll send you our sex offenders.

Roy E. Swanson, Lincoln

Priorities in sentences

Now let me see … a 22-year-old man has illegal relations with a

14-year-old girl (whom he marries), and a 25-year-old man kills a 21-year-old girl (because of a hot-rod motorcycle accident), and they both get 18 months to three years in prison!

What is this? The first judge is encouraged by all parties involved (except the attorney general) to be lenient, and the second judge (without any comment from the attorney general) has to face opposite demands from two different parties.

I do not know any of the individuals or families involved in this whole mess; however, it just doesn’t seem right that our attorney general (Jon Bruning) is able to put one of these offenses as his target and not the other.

In my estimation, a person that breaks the law, admits to it and is willing to take on the responsibility of his actions should have a much less severe sentence than one that claims a life due to complete disregard and recklessness.

Sometimes I wonder where the priorities lie.

William Ebers, Lincoln

Protest in peace

The recent protests over the depiction of Islam’s Muhammad are very disturbing. Simply put, Muslims have a right to be upset, to boycott Danish products and even to create cartoons questioning the history of the Holocaust (though I do not know what Jewish people have to do with the Danish cartoons); however, the current wave of violent riots is unacceptable in a civilized world.

The Danish were engaged in free expression, a right which should exist everywhere. While I think that the cartoons were childish and irresponsible, they are nothing to burn and stone buildings over.

My God is blasphemed daily, and while I am certainly not happy about it, I do not take to the streets in violent protest.

Nothing done by the Danish has suppressed the rights of the Muslim people. No mosques where torn down or boarded up. The right to vote (where present) was not taken away. This cannot be compared to the freedom marches of the civil rights movement. It bears closer resemblance to the rioting after the Rodney King verdict.

Finally, the Danish government cannot be held responsible for the actions of a free press. That is what freedom of the press means. The newspapers do not have to get their stories or commentary approved by the government.

Muslims … protest this slight to your religion, but not in a way that suggests that the criticism is true. When depicted as a religion of violence, it is counterproductive to protest that depiction by engaging in violence. Be angry but live in peace.

Allen Tate, Lincoln

Who we are

In his State of the Union address, President Bush talked about a range of issues facing our nation and the world. One problem that the president didn’t mention, however, was torture — a brutal and internationally condemned act that is still being perpetrated by agents of the United States.

The president did say that the United States is measured by who we are and how we treat people. And though he has publicly condemned torture, President Bush and his administration have narrowed the definition of torture, educated interrogators on how to avoid prosecution and looked for ways to override international law on issues of torture.

This silence on torture came despite the fact that roughly 40,000 people signed a petition asking him to address the issue. Silence despite the fact that the administration has committed itself to the “non-negotiable demands of human dignity.” Silence despite the Eighth Amendment, despite the Geneva Convention and despite the fact that torture is un-American.

Sen. John McCain put it best when he said on the Senate floor, in regard to torture: “This isn’t about who they are. This is about who we are.”

Sam Procter, Lincoln

Don’t forget Cather

I am very appreciative of the fact that the Journal Star was so supportive of the Cather Foundation during the highly successful “One Book One State Nebraska Reads ‘My Antonia’” project in 2005. The Journal Star contributed 10 ads, in black and white and in color, to promote the reading of “My Antonia.”

For this reason, I am quite surprised to see that Willa Cather and Red Cloud were left off the Literary Map of Nebraska in a Sunday edition of the Journal Star.

The reading public not only in Nebraska but throughout the world is familiar with Cather’s beautifully described landscapes and settings in Red Cloud and Webster County, particularly in “O Pioneers” and “My Antonia.” Cather’s unique sense of place is much celebrated.

I am sure this was an oversight on the part of your employees, which is unfortunate. Your writer missed a wonderful opportunity to quote some truly elegant prose describing a renowned stretch of town and countryside in this beautiful state.

Betty Kort,

Executive Director

Cather Foundation at Red Cloud

Couple was mature

What exactly was gained by putting Matthew Koso away? Taxpayers got to pay for the trial, will pay for Matthew’s care while in prison and will probably pay for his wife and child’s care while he’s in prison. A young wife lost her husband, a little girl is without her daddy. When Matthew gets out, who knows if he’ll be able to find a job to support his family, due to his criminal record. He may be forced into asking for government help. Oh well, righteousness isn’t cheap, is it?

Attorney General Jon Bruning says he did his duty by enforcing the law. I feel his actions may be a little more personally motivated. He’s gained national and international attention due to this case. That can’t hurt his political future.

The only offense I see here is government sticking its nose into consenting individuals’ personal lives.

When Matthew found out he was going to be a father, he could have fled. After giving birth, Crystal might have tossed her baby in a dumpster. Instead, they got married and began raising their child. They showed maturity many of their elders do not possess.

I know there are those reading this thinking I’m a fool for believing that Matthew and Crystal are capable of making a life commitment. Maybe, maybe not. Way back in 1968 I was a pregnant 15-year-old who married her 24-year-old boyfriend … We’re still married.

Marie A. Case, Palmyra

Replace oil

OPEC has us over a barrel again. With oil headed toward $70 again and our continued thirst for foreign oil, Americans are sending extra billions of dollars to rogue nations bent on our demise. Iran is emboldened by our fiasco in Iraq. They’re betting the world wouldn’t dare take Iranian oil off the market! So another war is looming, this time with Iran.

The world is awash in oil.

The only thing that stands in the way is high production costs and the threat that at any time Saudi Arabia, with $1 a barrel production cost, can flood the world market with cheap oil.

The stone age didn’t end for a lack of stones; the oil age won’t end for a lack of oil!

Americans need to tell their representatives in Washington enough is enough!

Oil needs to be replaced now!

Ed Schmersal, Lincoln