Renewable energy grants will pay off eventually Re: “Md. Spends $2.3m on renewable energy for $637,000 in savings,” Nov. 22
Your article was unarguably and disgracefully false, and the headline on the article itself was at best highly misleading. As the article makes clear, the $2.3 million Maryland spent in fiscal year 2011 on renewable energy grants to homeowners and small businesses yielded estimated savings of $637,000 IN ONE YEAR, or $3.2 million over five years. In fact, the grant projects are expected to yield total savings of $9.6 million over 15 years.
No reasonable person expects capital investments to pay off in one year. But I guess a true headline like “Md. energy grants pay for themselves in 4 years” or “Md. energy investments yield 27% return” wouldn’t conform to your government-bashing editorial requirements.
To paraphrase the famous question to Sen. Joseph McCarthy, “At long last, have you left no sense of integrity?”
Alida DeCoster
Silver Spring, Md.
Editor’s Note: Projected energy savings over any period beyond two or three years are, at best, theoretical.
Occupy anger should be directed at colleges
If the disgruntled college students who started and expanded the Occupy Wall Street movement ever come to realize they are the victims of indoctrination by the socialist college and university establishment — to the exclusion of America’s founding principles and conservative thought — the mass deceit should really make them angry. Indeed, their anger over the constant rise in tuition ought to be directed at the cause: to fund the rise in professors’ and bloated administrative salaries, benefits and tenure.
And their anger and blame directed at banks, corporations and the wealthy should be directed at the cause of the housing and financial crash: Democrats growing government and insurmountable debt. Surely, socialist deception comes at a devastating social, political and economic price, certain collapse into authoritarian government, and the loss of freedoms. When certain free speech is the only speech, it is certainly not free.
Thankfully, we are not there yet, and we have much to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day, including Americans’ unique, innate ability to turn wrong around and make it right.
Daniel B. Jeffs
Apple Valley, Calif.
Conservatives do not deserve union support
Re: “Unable to win fair and square, Big Labor pushes ‘ambush elections,'” Nov. 23
The Examiner editorial does not answer why a 10-day window is more favorable for union organizing than a five-week window. I would like to see The Examiner explain that. The Examiner I guess thinks it is “obvious” that a ten day window is more favorable to the unions. Count me then as one who does not “get it.” When somebody tries to rush me into buying something, I just tell them no. And I would do the same under union pressure to vote to organize.
The most interesting labor story is the one The Examiner does not mention in this editorial is that the GOP, having declared all out war on the middle class, now finds itself not only without union support but also without a lot of former middle class support, including me. It is remarkable that the GOP has adopted such a set of odious programs — all radical departures from the traditional genuine conservatism of the Republican party typified by the Eisenhower administration, our last truly conservative administration. All the GOP politicians claiming to be conservative since Ike have been anything but, especially the set of clowns running for President on the GOP side these days.
R.C. Kreutzberg
Bethesda, Md.
