Samson: A man with a plan

At last someone has a plan and a commitment to fix the near gridlock on the Interstate-70 interchanges at Parachute and Glenwood South Bridge.

As the gas boom continues to grow the problem will become more dangerous and unbearable. The recent work done on the south side of the bridge in Parachute is a minor Band-Aid compared with a real long-term solution which may well include another interchange at Parachute and even a duplicate bridge. Similarly for the South Bridge.

Obviously the Federal government must be a major player but until local government shows leadership and imagination on funding, the problem will fester and lead to deaths and injury. Also an equally important problem is the cost and delay times involved for the commercial vehicles of the gas industry which costs are eventually borne by ordinary commuters.

This writer is pleased to find out that Garfield County finally has a candidate who is focusing on this problem. Commissioner candidate Mike Samson's recently announced Garfield County Forum is formulating an imaginative and bold approach.

Larry Soderberg

Parachute

McCain’s choice

When I found out who John McCain had chosen for his running mate, my first reaction was surprise. But as I thought about it more, I began to feel insulted. He cannot be thinking about the welfare of our nation when he picks someone with so little experience.

I can stomach, to some extent, the possibility that a candidate with whom I disagree will be our next president, with a reasonably-qualified person as vice president. I've done that before. But I am alarmed when I consider that Sarah Palin would be, as they say, only a heartbeat away from the presidency, should the Republicans win this election.

This is especially cogent considering John McCain's age and health history.

McCain has strongly questioned Obama's judgment, along with other charges that he is subordinating the country's welfare to ambition to be president. If this isn't an example of the pot calling the kettle black, I don't know what is.

This is a completely irresponsible, frivolous choice, and I, for one, deeply resent it.

Patricia Girardot

Glenwood Springs