March 27, 2012: Our readers write

No expiration on expectations

“Rules must be binding. Violations must be punished. Words must mean something.” That’s what President Barack Obama said in 2009 in Prague regarding North Korea’s missile launch, which American’s U.N. ambassador said was in violation of U.N. resolutions.

Statements the president makes in his campaign often are violated without reasoning.

Finally, someone explained the administration’s statements have an expiration date like on a container of milk, but the expiration date just isn’t shared. 

The president isn’t the only culprit. 

Take the Justice Department case against Sen. Ted Stevens. The case of fraud was so mishandled that an FBI agent turned whistleblower. A former U.S. attorney in Alaska, Wev Shea, speaking of corruption in the Justice Department’s case on C-SPAN2, said he felt the lead prosecutor and the lead FBI investigator should stand trial.

Attorney General Eric Holder stepped forward, dropped the case and recommended the original conviction also be dropped. I guess the expiration date had passed.

Judge Emmet Sullivan then ordered a study. Three years later, the study concluded the government attorneys engaged in “systematic concealment” of “significant exculpatory evidence which would have independently corroborated Senator Stevens’ defense and his testimony and seriously damaged the testimony and credibility of the government’s key witness.” 

Additionally damaging to Justice’s credibility is that, three years after Sullivan set aside the guilty verdicts against Stevens, Holder still hasn’t disciplined the men and women involved. What was it that the president said in Prague back in April 2009? 

If the quack trial had not occurred, Ted Stevens would have won his election and become the deciding no vote on Obamacare in the U.S. Senate. He would have been at work in Washington, would have avoided the crash that killed him, and the guilty still haven’t been punished.  Maybe Holder should step down.

Bill Beckerdite

Elizabethtown

Climate Gate

Falsified data on global warming, exaggerating the size of the warming, is called Climate Gate. 

I am ashamed of my fellow scientists for what may be the biggest scientific scandal ever. They should have been more cautious before getting the government to insist on huge expenses to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide by cutting our use of oil, coal, even natural gas. Fortunately President George W. Bush was more cautious and knew adopting the Kyoto protocol would do severe damage to our industry and economy. 

Obama’s EPA, however, with no congressional approval, began on Jan. 1, 2011, to impose “an energy regulatory tax” also known as “Cap and Trade.” But the Constitution only allows taxes to be added by Congress and the president working together, so this was Obama imposing “taxation without representation,” exactly what we fought the Revolutionary War over. 

It also reminds us how foolish and destructive a dictator’s decree can be. 

As my son says, he will not believe in man-caused global warming until they can scientifically explain what caused the Vikings’ medieval warming period and Europe’s Little Ice Age. These were big worldwide climate changes that had nothing to do with manmade carbon dioxide emissions, because there were practically none.

What caused these climate changes? Likely slight variations in the sun’s output, something beyond political control or human control, but for which there is some scientific evidence. 

Still, it makes sense to shift away from fossil fuels to a proven, cleaner alternative. Not like now-bankrupt Solyndra, which took taxpayers for many millions when they knew they were failing. Nuclear power is economical, works 24/7 regardless of the weather, emits no air pollution and has an excellent safety record. And it would be growing faster if Obama and his cronies hadn’t shut down Yucca Mountain. 

Steven C. Barrowes 

Elizabethtown