TEA PARTY CALL FOR CALM

The Tea Party is here. Lots of their folks have been voted into the House. So there are some religious nuts in the Tea Party, and we even have them in letters to the editor.

I have been a little nutty when it comes to my dislike of progressives, but that’s politics, huh? The elections are over. We need to tuck our animosities back away until we can get serious again in 2012 about Barack Obama and Sarah Palin. Hah! David Williams | Marina

LOCK ’EM UP

I think there are a lot of low-level criminals on whom we spend too much money in prisons. But one type we should never let out is sex offenders, who seem so sick and twisted that they can never be rehabilitated.

It was good to read that our Assemblywoman, Anna Caballero, co-authored Chelsea’s Law and helped fix loopholes in our laws that allowed these offenders to go free or be poorly monitored. We need a zero-tolerance policy. Allan Groves | Seaside

WINDOW ON THE WARS

We invite everyone opposed to continued American military strategy in Iraq/Afghanistan/Pakistan to participate in a rally Saturday, Nov. 13, 10am-12:30pm, at Window-on-the-Bay.

Our goal is to build a lasting and disciplined peace and justice movement that can confront the rush to war, and teach the power of concerted non-violent direct action.

The president stated that we are fighting in Afghanistan to protect the U.S. from Al Qaeda terrorism. But the rebels there are not Al Qaeda – they are fighting foreign occupation and for their version of Islam, not to threaten the U.S. or other countries.A recent RAND report shows military action is the least effective means of responding to terrorism (working in only 7 percent of the cases studied) – political engagement, economic development, education and police work are far smarter.

The president was right when he said that a return to Taliban rule would mean brutal government and denial of human rights to the Afghan people, especially women.Support for warlords, corruption, the opium trade, and inability to enforce the rule of law, coupled with U.S. air attacks and night raids on civilians, means that the situation of the Afghan people – including oppression of women, rape and lawlessness are as bad or worse in most parts of Afghanistan as they were under the Taliban regime, according to Afghan women’s organizations. Susana Valle | Monterey

CORRECTION

Last week a music story (Nov. 4-10) incorrectly dated an Overtone performance at Woody’s Bayside Grill that had already happened.