Lack of foresight responsible for coming BRAC gridlock Re: “Gridlock: Area unprepared for 30,000 relocating defense workers,” March 24
Living across from the great Mark Center in Alexandria, where the military job shift will take place, I can hardly wait for the resulting traffic on the adjacent four lanes of traffic, due to the lack of any foresight on the part of the local governments or the military.
One government official noted that we locals need to attend meetings, as they need our input. Who are they kidding? Why would I waste my time attending a meeting when I can look out my window, see the monstrous Base Realignment and Closure building, and know that it will house 6,500 workers?
With the military planning that went into this debacle, how did we win any wars? If we ever suffer a crisis such as happened in Japan or Haiti, we are doomed!
Jacqueline M. Davis
Alexandria
Virginia joins other states passing pro-life legislation
Re: “Wave of anti-abortion bills advance in the states,” March 24
A wave of popular pro-life legislation is sweeping across America. Bills have passed to enforce health and safety standards in abortion clinics (Virginia), ban late-term abortions (Kansas), address fetal pain (Idaho, Oklahoma and Alabama) and provide informed consent through sonograms (Florida).
Virginia will finally require abortion clinics to meet the same health and safety standards as similar surgical facilities that save patients rather than kill them. Abortion advocates vehemently protest that this would “entail higher costs and force several clinics to close,” unwittingly conceding that they will tolerate health hazards in order to keep their cash-cow clinics open.
As evidence replaces propaganda and millions of postabortive women and men realize they have been deceived, public opinion in America has shifted dramatically to the pro-life side and reflects profound personal and cultural change, which can help turn the page to a new chapter of respect for all human life.
Jonathan Imbody
Vice president for government relations,
Christian Medical Association
Ashburn
AmeriCorps funding is money well spent
Re: “House OKs three-week budget despite GOP defections,” March 15
Unfortunately, one long-term proposal in the budget debate is to eliminate funding for the Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers AmeriCorps and VISTA.
Fiscal responsibility is necessary, but funding for programs that provide solutions to real-world issues should be promoted, not targeted for cuts. Nonprofit organizations awarded grants from CNCS must compete for funding, secure matching private funds and demonstrate results, making AmeriCorps one of the federal government’s most effective and innovative private-public partnerships.
Nonprofits leverage AmeriCorps funds to fill a void that neither the private nor public sectors can address alone. In D.C., more than 3,700 AmeriCorps members have contributed over 5 million hours of service, tackling some of the day’s most pressing challenges. D.C. would lose 1,600 of these dedicated participants, including more than 300 college students serving with Jumpstart, who deliver a high-quality early education curriculum to more than 750 preschool children in low-income neighborhoods.
Katey Comerford
Interim executive director,
Jumpstart
Washington
