Letters

Amazing

program

    On Monday, July 5, my daughter began a two week drama camp run by Mickey Vanderwerker and Margie Skalka at the Little Town Players Theater (in Bedford). I just want to give a shout out to this amazing program.

    In only three days, my daughter has learned so very much. It is all done in a fun and loving atmosphere and I have to tell you at $60 for two weeks of 2 1/2 hours each day, it is quite a deal!  I want to thank them for their hard work with our children.

    And I want to let people know that on July 16 and 17 at 7 p.m., for just $3 a person, they can come out and watch the production that these children are going to be putting on for our entertainment!

Melissa O. Markham

Huddleston

Stalin bust has rightful place at Memorial

    I arrived in the European Theater of Operations early in 1944, as a pilot on a medium bomber, the B-26 Martin Marauder. I flew my 40th and 41st missions on D-Day. By the fall of 1944, my group moved to the French coast and we began operations there, primarily supporting ground forces. I remained in France until March of 1945.

    At that point in time, the Germans occupied all of the continent except England. Hitler’s involvement with Russia on the Eastern Front was occupying a major portion of his military forces. Had Hitler not been involved with the Russians, his focus would have been primarily on England. England could possibly have been occupied by German forces before the United States could fully mobilize and train to enter World War II.

    President Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin met periodically to determine future actions to be taken against Hitler’s forces. Stalin was a dominant figure in making these determinations. In short, Stalin was considered a staunch ally and Russian forces were essential to an Allied victory.         Those who knew Stalin’s reputation did not particularly care for him. But without Russian involvement, the War would likely have expanded, with the loss of many more lives, making the freedom we have enjoyed questionable.

    Therefore, in my opinion, whether one does or does not care for Stalin and his role in history, his role in World War II was one of major importance in Hitler’s defeat. In light of this, his bust has a rightful place at the National D-Day Memorial.

Joseph G. Johnson Jr.

Daleville

Disappointed by Stalin bust

    My wife and I have a second home at Smith Mountain Lake. We have enjoyed taking guests to the D-Day Memorial and recommending a visit to people we meet.

    On our visit with guests on 6/23 I was disappointed and appalled to see that a bust of Stalin had been added to the memorial to honor him.

    This was a dictator just as brutal or more so than Hitler. He was an ally in WWII only because Hitler had betrayed him, and otherwise would have been fighting us along with the Germans. During his reign, he killed or starved more than 40 million people. With FDR’s help at Yalta, he and Communism enslaved over half of Europe for 45+ years after D-Day. These were the same people Hitler had enslaved and who the soldiers at Normandy were fighting to free.

    I did not see any busts of Churchill, Roosevelt or Truman, nor should there be. The Memorial should be to honor the brave soldiers who planned, died, and accomplished this MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, not politicians and dictators.    

    Since WWII we have let the politicians, bureaucrats, and news media versus professional soldiers micro-manage our wars. Had they been managing D-Day, we would have lost the war, and the generals who planned it would have been tried for war crimes. Our present political leader refused to visit the Normandy Memorial in France for fear he would offend the Germans. He refuses to use the word “ Muslim Terrorists” who killed 3000+ US citizens on 9/11 and have killed 4000+ American soldiers since for fear it may offend Muslims. Why was the bust of Stalin added? Was it because his absence would offend Communism, or to provide money from a non-profit to a sculpturer? We have had the Korean War, Vietnam War, 1st Gulf War with Iraq, 2nd war with Iraq, and are currently engaged in wars with Afghanistan and Islamic terrorism worldwide. It may be too early to tell, but the 2nd war with Iraq is the only one you could argue that we may have won, and I don’t think the politicians or news media can claim much credit for that one.

    I will not plan on visiting this otherwise great memorial, or  recommending it until the bust of Stalin is removed, as it dishonors the brave soldiers the memorial is supposed to honor.

Ed Preston

Greensboro, NC

Does not qualify

    The News & Advance – “National D-Day Memorial, Bedford. Honors the valor, fidelity and sacrifice of the Allied Forces on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Hourly guided tours begin at 10:30 a.m. and last 45 minutes. Admission fee. For information, visit www.dday.org or call (540) 587-8973.”

    This announcement appeared in the Lynchburg paper and probably runs on a regular basis in the events section.

    It struck me because what the D-Day Memorial advertises and has advertised in the past does not relate to placing a bust of Stalin on the grounds. He was incidental at best and certainly would not qualify under “valor, fidelity and sacrifice.”

Frankie Puckett

Moneta

Accident free

    The Smith Mountain Lake Water Safety Council (WSC) would like to publicly thank all the SML boaters who helped keep the July 4 weekend accident-free on the water.  

    With the beautiful weather we had, traffic on the Lake was especially heavy, requiring extra measures of caution, courtesy and good boating sense. Our excellent safety performance on the busy holiday weekend, as well as during the first half of the season, suggests that the many boaters who have taken boater education classes are putting what they’ve learned to good use. 

    We also deeply appreciate the efforts of all who helped achieve nearly 100 percent compliance with the Voluntary No-Wake Zone on the night of the Saunders Fire Co./Parkway Marina fireworks. That includes the estimated 4,000 cooperative skippers who captained spectator boats that evening; the many area businesses that posted reminder messages on their roadside properties, and volunteers from the SML Sail and Power Squadron who crewed the boats that marked No-Wake Zone boundaries on the water with flashing lights. The No-Wake initiative, successful thanks to all who are committed to safe boating on SML, has made the spectacle of fireworks over our beautiful lake safer, more comfortable and less intimidating for all who attend by boat.

    We look forward to working to help keep the No-Wake Fireworks tradition alive on SML and encourage those who enjoyed the show from the water to mail a donation to Saunders Volunteer Fire Co., P.O. Box 14, Huddleston, VA 24104 as this is a major fundraising event for the protection they offer.

Randy Stow

Chairman, SML Water Safety Council

Perriello’s wrong priorities

    “Whether you’re political or apolitical, jobs is the top priority,” says Congressman Tom Perriello. 

    If that’s true, then he and his fellow Democrats are either incompetent or they’re taking us for fools.  Under Obamanomics they’ve created skyrocketing unemployment while focusing on job-killing measures like Obamacare and cap-and-tax legislation.  While jobs evaporated, they forced through programs we don’t want being paid for by money we don’t have.  It’s no surprise that employer groups like the Business Roundtable are complaining that Perriello’s policies are actually slowing economic growth and hindering job creation.

    Perriello and the Democrats have been busy passing their liberal agenda instead of creating incentives for private sector employers to hire.  And they’ve piled on a mountain of debt in the process.  Their $13,000,000,000,000+ in national debt translates into every American taxpayer owing over $118,000. And all that spending hasn’t improved the unemployment rate at all.  It’s just dug us deeper into an economic hole we may never get out of.

    With all this in mind it becomes clear that, whether you’re political or apolitical, forcing Perriello to get a new job should be your top priority.  To do that, you need to vote for Robert Hurt in November.

Edward W. Clark, Jr.

Blue Ridge

Destroying our economic system

    Over 20 years ago, as the Berlin wall came down and we saw the old Soviet Union dismantled. My very astute son, who was a 21-year-old college student, told me that the new home of communism would be the Environmental movement or the Green movement, as it was called at that time. Now, 20 years later, I see that he was correct – what better way to destroy our capitalistic economic system.

    Those of us who are conservative also have a great appreciation for our environment. We see it as God’s marvelous creation, given to us for our use. In return, we are to be good stewards of that gift, but not so fanatical that we harm those to whom it has been entrusted. (Yes, even coal and oil were put there for our use!)

    The Liberals (or Progressives), however, most of whom are secular humanists, are using the environment to put onerous rules and regulations on businesses and the individual. The recently passed (by the House of Representatives) bill, referred to as the “Cap and Trade” bill, is a prime example. This bill will cause a steep rise in electric utility rates, a hardship for farmers as their fuel bills rise and a rise in the price of commodities for everyone as the cost of production is passed to the consumer.

    Tom Perriello voted for this bill contrary to the wishes of his constituents. He also voted for the huge health care bill (which no one had read in its entirety before voting) despite the wishes of his constituents.

    I sent Rep. Perriello a copy of a Mason-Dixon poll, which showed that a large majority of those whom he represents opposed the Democrat-only constructed bill. There are too many changes to our health care system written into this bill (not to mention the unanticipated consequences) to go into in this forum, but suffice it to say, when this is fully implemented, we will not recognize our present world’s best health care. Rep. Perriello and the Democrats ignored changes such as caps on malpractice liability (trial lawyers are huge Democrat supporters) and the ability to purchase a variety of health care plans across state lines, which would have reduced both medical and insurance costs.

    Rep. Perriello is also trying to extend (on borrowed money) the unemployment payments beyond the approximately two years already in place. Is there no end? How about five years? How about 10?

    Our relief from an ever-encroaching Federal Government depends on replacing those in power. As Europe’s socialist welfare states (i.e. Greece, Spain) are going bankrupt, debt-laden America, too, is at a crossroads and the big spending liberals seem oblivious to the danger. We may already be beyond the point of no return.

Joyce Preston

Forest

The greatest need in America

    America has tremendous needs, but our greatest need is depicted in Psalm 85.

    1.  The appreciation we should display as Americans – “You showed favor to your land, O Lord” Psalm 85:1. The Psalmist is thanking God for the blessings the people of the land enjoy. God has blessed America with freedom of speech, religion and democracy and in innumerable ways. This nation was founded upon a belief in God. Our Declaration of Independence, our Pledge of Allegiance, and our currency all give reference to God.

    2.   The condemnation we should dread As Americans – As great as our nation may be, there is a danger that looms over us. The peril is that God would take His blessings off our nation! As you look at Psalm 85 you see such a tragedy occurring for Israel in the Old Testament.

    A. The sins of the people – “You forgave the iniquity of your people and covered all their  sins” Psalm 85:2. As a people they had turned their backs on God. America is doing the same today!

    Even though America is only 1/6 of the world’s population, she leads the rest of the world in the amount of pornography produced and the divorce rate. America leads the industrialized world in murder, rape and violent crime. We are a nation where the life of the snail darter has more value than the baby in the womb. We are a nation that is marked by moral regression, sexual promiscuity, racism, and spiritual rebellion. We have seen corruption among Government and Business leaders. The root cause of this recession in America is Greed. America’s god is money, materialism, & pleasure.

    At the same time, statistics show that the number of Christians and the number of those attending church in America is declining. America’s biggest problem is sin!  As a whole, Americans are pushing God further and further away.

    B. The sorrows of the people – “Restore us again, O God our Savior, and put away your displeasure toward us. Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger through all generations?” Psalm 85:4-5. In the Old Testament whenever the Israelites would worship & obey God, the nation would be blessed with victory and prosperity! But whenever the Israelites indulged in idolatry and wickedness the nation would suffer the judgment of God! They would experience hardship and defeat. Israel finally went into captivity in Assyria and was never heard from again! Judah went into exile into Babylon, and only a remnant returned! America is pushing God out the door and it is going to lead to our downfall as a nation!

    Can something happen to divert God’s judgment? What is the greatest need in America?

    3.  The restoration that we should desire as Americans – “Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?” Psalm 85:6. This ought to be the prayer of every Christian American.  The only hope for America is Revival!  Let’s all commit ourselves to pray for revival to come to our Country, our churches and to each of our lives.

Dr. Eldridge Cullum- pastor

Thaxton Baptist Church