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We regularly chime in and proudly sing along whenever we hear our national anthem. The last verse concludes with "the home of the brave." But are we really brave?

In November we will have the chance to do something revolutionary and vote for a new kind of U.S. president who intriguingly straddles both sides of the ethnic divide and stands for the wide gamut of the political spectrum. I am speaking of Barack Obama, and of course it is too early to predict the outcome of the primaries.

However, we as the American people could return to where we used to be and serve as a beacon for the rest of the world by electing a person who represents the old and the new America.

We could continue with the old ways, grinding us deeper into debt and warfare, or we could be brave and bold and elect a new kind of president for the 21st century.

With all the endorsements Barack Obama is getting lately from fellow Democrats, one can only wonder what it is that they know about the Clintons that the rest of us don't know. Either that or the Clintons are finding out you can't fool all of the people all of the time.

The current president has had laid at his feet every single ill that this country is perceived as suffering.

The president doesn't write the budget for this country; he proposes one. The Congress writes one for the president to sign; if he vetoes it, Congress can override his veto. The president doesn't pass appropriations and pork legislation, Congress does. The president doesn't set fiscal policy, Congress does. The Congress signs the checks for deficit spending. The president doesn't write the tax code; Congress does. The president doesn't control monetary policy; the Federal Reserve sets this policy.

Congress demands that the president bring our troops home, but then provides the funds to keep them overseas.

We have 100 senators and 435 congressmen who are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country. Place the incompetence and irresponsibility where it truly lies when you vote in the next election.

Re: the Jan. 23 article "Board OKs English-learner program."

The state mandated structured English immersion a few years ago and required teachers to enhance their certificates by 2007, with another many hours due by 2009. Many more hours of training have been devoted to SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol), another embedded language acquisition protocol.

The training sometimes lacks spark, but the idea that students should be immersed in their target language at school makes common sense and is supported by tons of data cited during the sessions.

The new state law requiring at least four hours per day in segregated classrooms for English-language learners precisely opposes those state mandates. There is no pedagogical data supporting this budget-busting reaction to the changing demographics of our region. This seems clearly unconstitutional, the worst idea yet from a Legislature already at rock-bottom in public education. Let's change the law and properly educate our children, together.

Our water supply cannot support uncontrolled growth. CAP distribution was designed decades ago for Western states with sparse populations.

Look at the photos submitted to the Star by Arizona citizens. They are of vistas, sunsets, mountains and flora. They are of their children and grandchildren, their pets and they capture the simple joys of daily living.

With uncontrolled growth, we will be struggling for a few decades, then go into decline like most past desert communities have that relied on a limited water source.

Re: the Jan. 28 article "Ballots online: Can do but may be forbidden."

Nowhere in the article, nor in any other news that I have seen or heard, is there any hint of Pima County ballot impropriety or fraud. What we have on our hands is the spineless County Board of Supervisors' knee-jerk over-reaction to the baseless but relatively harmless request of the Pima County Democratic Party, the court order, and some outraged activists.

Opening access to a database is an inexpensive, harmless action and would result, no doubt, in an end to the fuss when no improprieties were found. On the other hand, paying for ballot scanning would result in an upward spiral of costs as the action spreads to more and more election results.

Thank goodness for a sensible secretary of state, who has hopefully derailed this silly movement. I hope the voters of Pima County take note, and appropriately deal with the Board of Supervisors in the next election.

Two huge developments have been proposed for southeast Tucson and north Oro Valley, both with lands from the State Land Trust. Both will impose traffic, tax and water use burdens, among others, on this area. Businesses, non-profits, churches and individuals in Tucson have come together to form Sustainable Tucson, working to manage growth for our future.

The State Land Trust's actions are directly at odds with these local goals. The term "land trust" generally implies a responsibility to preserve resources for current and future generations. However, the State Land Trust appears to be aimed at selling state lands to the highest bidder without regard for the consequences, especially for our limited water resources.

If the mission of this state agency is to develop, rather than preserve, state lands, perhaps we need to change its mission. Otherwise, our trust has been broken.

Re: the Jan. 26 article "Citizen jailed as illegal entrant despite denial, Southern accent."

Recently, a disabled relative received a letter from Social Security stating that he is "not lawfully present in this country."

Thus far he has not succeeded in getting that letter removed from his records, even though the Social Security worker acknowledged that it is obviously a mistake. This person was born in Arizona of Arizona-born parents and has U.S. lineage going back to the time of the potato famine.

Jokes about watching for the green and white Border Patrol truck to show up at the door no longer hold any humor. What seemed ridiculous now sounds frighteningly possible.

Clearly, it can and does happen to American citizens, and it could be the loved one of any of us.

One is too many, and the statement from ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) that "It's not something we do" does not hold up against the cold hard facts.