Education of the Modern Doctor: Marcus Welby vs. House 
Ludicrous misinformation
About “Dogmatic secularists” [“Letters,” Aug. 4]: Letter writer Tim McCannon is ignorant of history, or else he compared apples with oranges to rationalize an agenda. To cite the Civil War and the civil-rights movement as examples of government funding religious agendas is a head-scratcher, and to characterize those examples as analogous to Bill horn granting taxpayer money to a religious organization is flat out ludicrous.
The Civil War was about preserving the union and the abolition of slavery. And despite the work of a reverend (MLK), the civil-rights movement was about constitutional rights, not religion—not to mention that MLK was not the entire movement; there were other facets (secular ones), such as SNCC, CORE and the court cases fought by Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP. There is much more that could be said, but suffice it to say that rarely—if ever—have I seen so much misinformation crammed into so few words as in McCannon’s letter.
Dan Jacobs, Mira Mesa
Poetry and prose
About the letter in your July 28 edition from David Samo of Steele Canyon: Perhaps Mario Cuomo said it best: “We campaign with poetry; we govern with prose.” Or, think of it as the difference between courtship and marriage; there are bound to be disappointments when the rhetoric doesn’t match reality.
Suzanne Ledeboer, Normal Heights
Parks and homelessness
I liked the David Rolland Editor’s Note on City Hall [Aug. 4], and while relocating it on the ocean, all ocean buildings should be required to have a flat roof, with a city park on top. Parks are then connected with ramps and stairways. No wasted park or roof space. Chicago City Hall has a rooftop park.
Regarding the John G. Wotzka letter “Send ’em to the missions,” Aug. 4], professionals on the sidewalk were amused to be called lazy criminals. One of the retired doctors committed the crime of investing in Enron and Bernie Madoff. It seems unbelievable that many people believe the bullshit they read in the “conventional” news media that there are only three homeless in the entire world.
My website has a home page, but also a homeless page, at NZ9F.com.
John Kitchin, homeless
A taxing situation
About “The unlikely hero?” [“Editorial, July 28]: The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. (I remember my mom saying this years ago, and how true this is.) Many or most people are on fixed incomes. Raise taxes? OK, but let’s try to do this in the right direction.
Rentals have doubled, tripled or more in the past 10 years. Those who could afford to invest have made themselves wealthy. Since this is the case with rentals, why not focus on strictly rental properties? The individual homeowners are struggling to make house payments, keep up with taxes, insurance and trying to put children through school. To raise property taxes on the individual will force more home foreclosure.
I am a concerned homeowner, now retired.
What will happen if I can’t afford to pay my taxes? I certainly cannot afford to rent at the prices today.
Debbie Fellows, Mira Mesa
Editor’s note: To clarify, the tax increase referred to in our editorial, which will be proposed to voters in November, is a sales-tax increase, not a property-tax increase.
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