Dear Editor,I would like to speak in honor of our mothers.You see, mothers are the true heroines of civilization. Why? Well, when humankind had a one-pint brain, we were smart enough to chip away one side of a piece of flint until it was sharp enough to cut. Wow.This technology thing was good so we grew a two-pint brain. Now we were smart enough to chip away both sides of the flint and make a plethora of objects.Following the potential of this big brain thing we expanded into a three-pint brain and became craftspersons and scholars, but we hit a wall. Our head is now too large to safely bear. Women, realizing this, built a support system of midwives and delivery techniques to lower their mortality. But even so, labor claims womens lives.Our warrior mothers agreement to bear children, despite the risk to their lives, has forwarded the march of humanity.Since our brains cant become any larger, how do we continue our increase in knowledge and capability? How are we here at all with such fat heads?The only way for civilization to advance has been for women to commit to ever-longer periods of raising their children, of setting aside their own lives for our socialization and education. Mom currently faces a 21-year or longer commitment! These women utterly deserve our admiration and support.Thanks, ladies, for your courage, dedication and wisdom.John HoffmannCarbondale

Dear Editor,OK, lets ask ourselves a question. What if the Bush administration had connected the dots in respect to Sept. 11 and prevented those attacks?I imagine Bush would have been impeached by now. Im serious. The same know-it-alls stating that Bush should have known about the attacks would have been calling for his head if he had detained 19 Middle Eastern men on the grounds of intelligence reports suggesting an imminent and devastating attack on the United States.If he had invaded Afghanistan to attack terrorist camps on the basis of the 1997 PDB, the same liberal politicians would have been outraged. The same people that have the audacity to compare Bush to Hitler would still be doing the same thing. Let us not forget that Hitler killed 6 million Jews. Great comparison!And yes, the liberal biased media would have still been filled with the same liberal talking points, the same letters, the same political cartoons and the same biased crap that it is filled with now.Now ask yourself this question. What if Bush prevented a terrorist attack involving WMDs against America because of the actions taken in Iraq? We will never know, will we?No matter what Bush would have done, the people that do not support him will never support him. Most of them cant stand the fact that Bush has moral integrity, or the fact that he tells the truth, unlike his predecessor, and they cant get over the 2000 election.Doug MeyersGlenwood Springs

Dear Editor,Terrorism is not a war of Muslims against Christians. We werent attacked on Sept. 11 because of religion, but because of anger over U.S. government policies. Most of the attackers were Saudis, and they werent carrying out a Muslim holy war against Christians, they were striking out against U.S. policies, which placed military troops on their land, supported the corrupt Saudi government and the Israeli occupation. The religion of Islam is one of peace and service to humanity. Muslims believe were all one people, created by one God for the purpose of glorifying Him. To a small minority of Muslims, America is seen as an infidel (one who is not true to God) because we embody selfishness, greed, arrogance, and other ungodly attributes. This leads some to the mistaken belief that killing is Gods will. But this isnt purely a Muslim phenomenon. Despite professing a religion of peace, Christians killed hundreds of thousands of infidels. Recently a Muslim friend said, God always sent a prophet to the people during times when they were lost, when they needed to be brought back to the path. But now they do not need another prophet. They need to listen to the prophets God has already sent. All religions lead to the same thing. If we could see this, we could see that we are all human beings, members of the same family. If only some Christians were so tolerant and enlightened, peace might have a chance. Not just God bless America, but God bless everyone! Sue GrayCarbondale

Dear Editor,I am very concerned that the present administration in Washington has handed a multinational mining company 155 acres of federally owned, prime mountaintop real estate near Crested Butte for a price of $5 an acre (thats $875)! One-tenth of an acre in that area fetches as much as $100,000. Phelps Dodge Corp. applied for nine patents on U.S. Forest Service land at the top of Mount Emmons, also known as the Red Lady, just three miles west of the Crested Butte ski area. The area, which lies within the boundaries of Gunnison National Forest, is the site of a longstanding battle between mining interests and the local community, which has since filed suit against the federal Bureau of Land Management protesting its sale of the patents. The suit is being brought by the Gunnison County Board of Commissioners, the Town of Crested Butte and High Country Citizens Alliance. Phelps Dodge claims the land can be used to operate a molybdenum mine, yet in legal documents filed two years ago in a separate case, the company argued that establishing a mine on that land would be fiscally reckless. Observers believe the company is more likely to develop the land into vacation homes. If you would like to see the documentation for this information, visit http://www.bushgreenwatch.org/back_issues.php Laura Van DyneCarbondale