Letters

Summer me

Welcome to this week’s Reno News & Review.

Sometimes the declaration from Eminem’s 2004 song, “Mosh,” rings through my head repeatedly: “It feels so good to be back.”

This was one of those weekends, and you’ve got to know I loved it. Friday night, way too much wine on the deck at St. James Infirmary. You know the drill, just enough breeze to keep my bald head dry. Plenty of red. Beautiful and sane company under the light of a nearly full moon.

Saturday, final steps in preparation of my vegetable garden. Yes, I know it should have been finished two weeks ago, but I only do gardening— like almost every other pleasurable thing in my life—when I feel it. Shopping a little late in the season saves me money. I was quite pleased to continue my personal boycott of Lowe’s, a company based in North Carolina. I’m boycotting every company with its national headquarters in the state that most recently ensconced discrimination against gay people in its state constitution. I spent something around $450 at other local stores this weekend. I’m likely to spend some more after the freeze tonight (which is after deadline but before this newspaper’s distribution). And not only that, but I mowed the back lawn and saw Snow White and the Huntsman. I liked the movie, but my more sophisticated companions weren’t that impressed.

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday. I got up and planted everything I had. Drove down to the Moana Lane Nursery and got some more stuff. Planted some more. Long about mid-afternoon, Hunter and I decided to replace the garbage disposal. I always think it’s interesting to watch his face as he tries to figure things out. For example, when I asked him to squeeze the juice out of one orange, I could see that he could see no possible use for fresh orange juice in a garbage disposal. I guess it made sense when I poured it into my previously poured wine cooler. You got to love the simple life.

— D. Brian Burghart brianb@newsreview.com

Stand, Forrest, stand

Re “Days of Our Lies” (Feature story, May 17):

I am the “Reno resident” who filed against Mark Amodei citing the National Defense Authorization Act. Amodei cites the following in the Act as upholding Constitutional protections for U.S. citizens: “The requirement to detain a person under military custody does not extend to citizens of the United States.”

OK, the requirement does not extend to citizens of the United States but the government is still allowed to detain U.S. citizens under the statute.

The president admits this in his signing statement, as he signed the bill: “Moreover, I want to clarify that my administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens. Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a nation.” (So all he has to do to get around that statement is detain American citizens without trial with the Secret Service, right?)

President Obama now has a huge opportunity to right this wrong inflicted on the American nation and the Constitution. Federal judge Katherine Forrest ruled recently that the indefinite detention provision of the National Defense Authorization Act likely violates the First and Fifth Amendments of U.S. citizens. All President Obama has to do to regain the high ground on this issue is instruct his attorney general, Eric Holder, not to appeal Katherine Forrest’s ruling.

We are a swing county in a swing state in this election. I sincerely believe that we can make a difference if we speak up! Please contact the White House. Just Google “contact White House” and the website comes up with myriad ways to contact President Obama.

Please take the five minutes and defend our civil liberties!

Yes, I was on the ballot for District 2 for 10 days. I withdrew because I realized I lacked the resources to really run, and I like Xiomara Rodriguez, who shares my concern on this issue.

Erik Holland Reno

Water power

Re “Dry spell” (Green, May 31):

The Truckee Meadows Water Authority has an awesome drought plan with the ability to provide regular service for years of low precipitation and is ready to deal with much worse than the worst drought on record through limiting service. The Southern Nevada Water Authority has a similar plan.

I would be willing to bet that the Nevada Drought Response Committee is less about drought preparedness and more about finding excuses to declare an emergency to get federal dollars.

Finally, please stop regurgitating fallacies about shorter showers saving water. All indoor use returns to the watershed. Only outdoor conservation matters to water. Sure, wasted water is wasted power, but the TMWAactually generates more power than it uses—renewably! Scott Reimers Reno

Paper tigers

I learned from my work with Greenpeace that KFC is using paper from Indonesia’s rain forest through “Yum!” brand to package their tortured animal products and other fast food items. I am not happy about this, as an aware person, and I would love to see a story in the paper putting the pressure on the Reno demographic of KFC and its affiliates. Please help me and the Sumatran Tigers, as well as other endangered wildlife, to stop this unsustainable packaging through political pressure. Christopher Henderson Reno

Rewind, be kind

I would like to ask the people to look at the world for a moment and think of all the different cultures/races that exist. Can anyone tell me which of these has never been persecuted? Then look at all the religions of the world and which one of those has never been persecuted? Every race and religion has been persecuted. With this being said, is there any one race or religion that is any greater than the others? No! So what is the problem, people? Everyone has the same blood, organs and bones. Because of their culture or up-bringing, they most likely will understand things differently and see things differently, so why is this a bad thing? Why can’t we learn from this and share our views and opinions and learn from each other rather than criticize? I have traveled to many third world countries, and it is so much fun to learn other cultures and gain an understanding from another view point. People get over your righteousness because if you were in charge you would be in charge from above. When it comes to religion, we all believe there is a higher good and how we reach that higher good varies with each religion, so again, what is the fuss all about? There is no religion that is superior to the others, so get over your religious greed. I am so tired of people using the racial/discrimination card. Hopefully this will be aired so some people who need a little historical insight can stop being naive and speaking from the hip. Nicole Leanne Reno

Never a dull letter

Re “You do the math” (Editorial, May 24):

My healthcare horror story is long, but here’s a synopsis: I changed employers about a year ago, and the new employer’s healthcare insurance would cost me $50 more a month, so I “COBRAed” for over a year. My COBRAexpired May 20, 2012, so I changed to my new employer’s plan May 20. The problem: I had a hernia repair surgery in April of this year, so about half of the $2,000 deductible was paid. The new plan is also a $2,000 deductible, but the problem is that the new deductible expires in July as that is the “new year” for my employer’s insurance. It wouldn’t matter much, but I may need surgery on my foot now, and I will have to delay that until July. So $2,000 deductible from Jan 1 to May 20, another $2,000 deductible from May 20 to July, and then a third deductible from July to July 2013.

Another funny thing is that I had my other foot operated on last year and the doctor gave me crutches. The insurance paid only $12 for the crutches, and they cost $100. I called them, and they informed me that the crutches were “out of network”. I asked how something tangible could be “out of network,” and the CSR apologized, but said that is why they only paid $12.

I think Reno News & Review should have a Letters of American Healthcare Horror Stories so that every week we can share the sad state of our healthcare in our nation. Just sayin’.

Kelley Shewmaker Reno

Knock three times

Re “Muy Caliente” (Ask a Mexican, May 24):

After reading “Ask a Mexican” in this week’s RN&R, I felt compelled to reply. Gustavo Arellano’s reply to the guy who is now having ED issues due to something that was said to him was very disturbing. To suggest that bringing a child into this world would “teach her a lesson” is a despicable representation of machismo, to say the least. Just think of the pain that child would endure throughout his/her life knowing that he/she was conceived as an act of revenge for a comment that didn’t sit right with the father during conception. This comment typifies the attitudes so prevalent in some “small-headed” men. No wonder there are so many man-haters out there!

Lou Laverty Truckee, Calif.

Our Mission To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages people to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare. To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live. Editor/Publisher D. Brian Burghart News Editor Dennis Myers Arts Editor Brad Bynum Special Projects Editor Ashley Hennefer Calendar Editor Kelley Lang Photographer Amy Beck Contributors Amy Alkon, Megan Berner, Matthew Craggs, Mark Dunagan, Marvin Gonzalez, Bob Grimm, Michael Grimm, Dave Preston, Jessica Santina, K.J. Sullivan, Bruce Van Dyke Design Manager Kate Murphy Art Director Priscilla Garcia Associate Art Director Hayley Doshay Editorial Designer India Curry Design Brennan Collins, Marianne Mancina, Mary Key, Skyler Smith, Melissa Arendt Art Director at Large Don Button, Andrea Diaz-Vaughn Advertising Consultants Gina Odegard, Matt Odegard, Bev Savage Senior Classified Advertising Consultant Olla Ubay Office/Distribution Manager/ Ad Coordinator Karen Brooke Executive Assistant/Operations Coordinator Nanette Harker Assistant Distribution Manager Ron Neill Distribution Drivers Sandra Chhina, Jesse Pike, John Miller, Martin Troye, David Richards, Warren Tucker, Matthew Veach, Neil Lemerise, Russell Moore General Manager/Publisher John D. Murphy President/CEO Jeff vonKaenel Chief Operations Officer Deborah Redmond Human Resource Manager Tanja Poley Business Manager Cassy Valoleti-Matu Credit and Collections Manager Renee Briscoe Business Zahida Mehirdel, Shannon McKenna Systems Manager Jonathan Schultz Systems Support Specialist Joe Kakacek Web Developer/Support Specialist John Bisignano 708 North Center Street Reno, NV 89501 Phone (775) 324-4440 Fax (775) 324-4572 Classified Fax (916) 498-7940 Mail Classifieds & Talking Personals to N&R Classifieds, Reno Edition, 1015 20th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 or e-mail classifieds@newsreview.com Web site www.newsreview.com Printed by Paradise Post The RN&R is printed using recycled newsprint whenever available. Editorial Policies Opinions expressed in the RN&Rare those of the authors and not of Chico Community Publishing, Inc. Contact the editor for permission to reprint articles, cartoons or other portions of the paper. The RN&Ris not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts. All letters received become the property of the publisher. We reserve the right to print letters in condensed form. Cover design: Hayley Doshay Feature story design: India Curry

THIS MODERN WORLD BY TOM TOMORROW

All trucked up

Reno is a really peculiar town sometimes.

This food truck imbroglio is a pretty good example of that. It’s borderline hilarious, but also serious in that people of similar interests, who should be walking shoulder to shoulder, are fighting, looking to divide communities that are by nature stronger when they collaborate.

It’s all very childish, and coming from us, that’s a pretty serious allegation. Readers can get the specifics from Brad Bynum’s cover story this week, “Totally trucked.”

Let’s get one thing straight: Food trucks are not a new phenomenon. They are a fixture of industrial areas, such as those east of the Reno airport, and have been for decades. There are few of the gray-haired set who don’t recall those ice cream trucks driving around playing “Turkey in the Straw” a.k.a. “Do Your Balls Hang Low?” There are also few people who ever worked a job where their fingernails got dirty who don’t remember the roach coaches coming around about noontime. And who doesn’t remember Woody’s Hot Dog cart?

What’s different now in Reno is this concept of customers coming to the trucks instead of the trucks coming to the customer. How many among us ever got in the car saying, “I’d sure like a rocket pop. That Ding-Dong truck is usually over off Greenbrae this time of day.” However, more sophisticated cities in the West, like Portland, Seattle or Los Angeles, have had places for food trucks to gather at particular times of day for years.

Not even the idea of using that old bus station to add a cultural component to East Fourth Street is new. This newspaper started advocating for that back in July of last year. It’s the most logical spot for an event like this.

At least one member of this staff attended a recent “Food Truck Friday.” It was fun enough. Lots of friends to chat with. Music playing. Joe DeLappe’s group did an art “installation” show with students who gathered litter and made a fashion statement. Except for the fact the evening took a sudden turn for the frigid, the scene was a blast.

The problem wasn’t the scene. The problem was the service from the trucks. The food was great, the prices were good, the servers were nice. It was purely a service problem: The event was so popular that people could wait up to two hours to have an order taken, and then another 20 minutes to a half-hour to receive their food.

Somehow in the rush, the customers, we Renoites who were spending our money, had been completely forgotten. The only ways to alleviate the problem before people who would be regular customers became completely alienated was to 1) increase the number of food trucks, 2) increase the hours (why, oh why, must it close down before midnight?), 3) increase the days of operation.

All those factors align to make it incumbent upon food truck operators to put aside their differences. Sure it’s fun to take petty accusations to Facebook, to call upon various media outlets to highlight the quarrel, and to divide factions, but the bottom line is that the customers are being poorly served by the spat. The food trucks are going to make money, and there are still four Saturdays and four Sundays every single month where independent operators can profit using a taxpayer-funded property. The city of Reno can certainly open that property to food trucks 24/7 with no organizers necessary.

We customers don’t care who had the idea first—it certainly wasn’t anyone in Reno. We just want to eat and have a good time. Ω

Food on wheels?

Asked at the UNR student union food court

Jennifer Bay

Student I really like the food in food trucks. It’s usually pretty convenient if you’re out at a bar or something and all the other restaurants are closed. And all the food I’ve had off the trucks is really tasty.

Paul De Leon

Student It can be pretty good. It kind of depends on what it is, though, for me. Like a taco kind of place is pretty good. Or Bo Dawgs on the campus is pretty good.

Tanner Rosson

Student I think the food is pretty good here. There’s quite a bit of options, all different types of food, so I think it’s pretty good. I like everything I’ve tried, pretty much.

John Joyce

Student I’m not very familiar with them. There’s something about a hot dog out of a food truck that didn’t sound very appealing.

Jenny Reichert

Student It’s kind of hit or miss, actually. Some of them can be very, very good, and some of them are awful. On campus I’ve used the hot dog truck down by the old gymnasium a couple of times, and those are pretty good. Other than that, I don’t use the trucks very often. I usually eat here.