Readers Write 5/20

Veto SB448 and don’t reward bad builders

Marietta builder Larry Thompson’s attorney Jimmy Luke questions “what’s best for business, or a neighborhood or the people of Georgia” in his remarks for support of Senate Bill 448, designed to protect builders’ financial interests (“Big developers seek debt bailout,” News, May 13). The distressing photos underscore the need to veto this bill. I’ve lived in East Cobb for 15 years and have witnessed the destruction of the area by “big builders” with their policy of clear-cutting to build monstrous houses or to simply walk away, leave a community in ruin without repercussions. This bill certainly is not in the interest of the neighborhood or the people of Georgia as Luke would like us to believe. It is exclusively in the interest of the whims of the builders and would be great for their business.

EDLA RINGUE, MARIETTA

Risk is inherent when going into business

I read with interest about developers wanting government to bail them out and protect them from the consequences of the extreme economic conditions (“Big developers seek debt bailout,” News, May 13).

I am all in favor of this, as well as extending it to my business as well. My business has dropped in the last few years, andthe government should make up the $75,000 a year difference in my income.

Of course, if my business comes back and I exceed that amount, the government could stop paying me and I would keep the overage. The mentality that seems to be pervading our country and our world that the government should shield us from anything bad ever happening to us is just beyond me.

Being an entrepreneur means I take risks, and when the money doesn’t come or conditions change, well, that is the chance that I take. Where do these people think that the money is going to come from? It comes from taxpayers. No one should be shielded from the outcome of the decisions that they make by the government. That is not its purpose or responsibility.

VERNON PEPPERS, ATLANTA

Muscle-car mentality put America on top

George Will offers a metaphor for ideologies driving America’s future (“Car/self-image connection has unlimited mileage,” Opinion, May 13). On one side we have the Prius “the vehicle of the intelligentsia” and on the other, everyman’s Ford F-150 pickup, year after year the No. 1 selling vehicle in America. It is telling that during the recent recession only Ford refused the bailout, while the rest are now wards of the state. The F-150’s popularity speaks more to providence than coincidence and highlights an enduring characteristic of America: Built tough!

The problem with the intelligentsia’s granola-powered “Prius” ideology is an apparent acquiescence to life stuck in first gear. Fortunately that attitude isn’t in the American character, and despite its snob appeal, will eventually sputter out. It was the muscle-car mentality that propelled the USA into the powerhouse it is today.