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I was fascinated by a local news report about a gentleman standing on a street corner holding a sign that warned motorists that they were approaching a van that recorded speed-limit offenders. It was reported that he thought the warning signs about the presence of the van were too small.

Why would anyone think it was his or her civic duty to warn lawbreakers that they might get caught for endangering lives? I think the photo-enforcement efforts in Tucson are wonderful.

Our law-enforcement agencies are overworked as it is. I don't understand why someone would want to protect criminals from being caught in the act of breaking the law.

Perhaps if the individuals breaking the law affected the sign holder more directly then he wouldn't want to protect them from getting caught.

Back in New York in '82 when gas was in short supply there was a statewide contest in the public schools for a poster on saving gas.

My granddaughter, Beth, in her first year of high school won that contest with a poster showing a foot off the pedal with the caption: "All in favor of saving gas, raise your foot."

How appropriate for today's circumstances.

Re: the July 22 "Thorns and Flowers."

First County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry asked for a recount of the Regional Transportation Authority election, but he knew that as the law is written no judge can order a recount even if he of she wanted to.

The dishonesty spread like cancer. The head of the RTA and supervisors who initially blocked access to election data are asking for a recount.

A recount can only occur as part of an investigation by County Attorney Barbara LaWall or Attorney General Terry Goddard. Neither of these two is known for taking on the establishment, but with the help of the Star, we have a chance.

How about a powerful editorial urging LaWall and Goddard to swing into action? Let them know that this issue is so important that a future election endorsement may hang in the balance. Show them, and us, that the Star really means it.

I'm holding my breath right now.

Re: the July 7 article "Tower sites planned for protected public land" and the July 18 article "Pima County seeks 911 capability for 23 border towers."

Will someone please explain how electronic-surveillance towers near Casa Grande, Eloy and Buckeye will inhibit, catch or rescue people illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border 80 to 100 miles to the south?

The original concept was a virtual fence on the border itself, coupled with other strategies which are already beginning to work. I'm told that in the Wellton Sector east of Yuma, Border Patrol's apprehensions plunged 88 percent from May 2007 to May 2008 due to a vehicle barrier at the line, an increased number of border agents, a zero-tolerance prosecution policy, Arizona's employer-sanctions law and our sputtering economy.

If expensive towers are still needed, shouldn't they be on the line, or is there something officials haven't told us yet?

Re: the July 11 article "Fans and non-fans flock to Sheriff Joe event here."

Local radio and television stations are joining Sheriff Joe Arpaio in verbally beating up Pima County Legal Defender Isabel Garcia. Garcia has very successfully been doing her job defending those less powerful for many years. She has also been working with the immigrant population, legal and otherwise, very publicly for many years.

As long as Garcia was not representing Pima County — and she was not — she has the right to be anywhere and say anything she wishes.

Now, due to a few strident media voices, she is being pilloried. These narrow minds are attempting to force this excellent public servant out of her job because they don't like her politics. It is now time for us to take a stand about an individual's freedom of speech.

Re: the July 19 article "GI electrocutions blamed on Pentagon."

This article exemplifies a disturbing sign of the times. Companies and agencies that are relied upon by the public and our military to provide functional and safe facilities from which to operate are not fulfilling their responsibility. The companies are motivated to make money with the least amount of cost. That's business.

If there is no oversight, fires and electrocutions result. There is little or no oversight/enforcement happening at these KBR-contracted construction areas.

My concern is that those responsible at the Pentagon have turned a blind eye, for whatever reason, and our mission is being compromised.

How many other unseen instances of this type are being allowed? There something rotten in the state of our military and our country.

Re: the July 22 letter "Declare river a waterway."

The letter is a clear example of why the Clean Water Restoration Act (H.R. 2421 and S. 1870) must be passed by Congress, and why the importance of ephemeral and intermittent streams in the Southwest needs to be emphasized.

The restoration act will help clarify the purpose of the Clean Water Act, which is to protect the quality of our nation's waters by protecting all rivers and streams that carry water, whether they are perennial or not.

When it rains, the Santa Cruz River collects flows from all the smaller washes in our watershed, and must be protected. The term "navigable" in the Clean Water Act includes waterways that are susceptible to use or may be potentially used as a travel corridor or highway, whether that use is year-round or not, and whether that use is actually occurring or not.

The Santa Cruz qualifies as a navigable waterway.

In the wake of the 2006 presidential election, I wrote a letter to the Star in which I stated that one of my main complaints in regard to John Kerry losing the election was that Kerry had "never hit one out of the ballpark."

As I look back, I think that Kerry did not actually believe that he could win but rather that he only felt that he deserved to win.

Barack Obama is different and, I believe, is a better candidate because he does expect to win. That he anticipates winning makes him all the more prepared to take the helm of this nation and be a most effective leader from Day 1.

Obama is like an athlete in that he anticipates events and knows how to keep the crowd on its feet as he bats one home run after another. Now that's change I can, and do, believe in.

The Arizona Daily Star welcomes original letters and guest opinions with ideas, viewpoints, criticism and news analysis that encourage discussion on issues that have an impact on the community.

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