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November 23rd, 2008
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July 9th, 2008 issue

Flood thoughts

May the museum staff at the National Czech and Slovak Museum in the United States salvage as much as possible — and when they rebuild, do so on higher ground and take as many precautions (fire, flood, etc.) as possible (“Iowa floods hit Czech/Slovak museum,” News, June 25–July 1).
People are calling this a 500-year flood, but to assume that a similar flood won’t hit again for 500 years is folly. So many communities along the Mississippi River failed to learn their lessons after the flood of 1993. The museum needs to adopt the standards found across Europe in general, and the Netherlands in particular.
Tim Hadac
Chicago
Wolves and sheep
Nations must work with each other. Compromises can occur, but each country retains its sovereignty.  
If you live in the United States and don’t like the decisions made by government leaders, you have two choices: Vote for your candidate of choice or leave the United States.
As to American democracy, a quick lesson to all, the U.S. government is not a democracy, but a constitutional republic. It’s a huge difference. Democracy is when two wolves and one sheep are together, and one wolf says to the other wolf, “Let’s vote on what we will eat for dinner.”
Hank Naizer
Austin, Texas
The dog masters
It’s definitely not a good deal to trade an unloaded shotgun for a radar (“Masters and servant,” Opinion, June 25–July 1).
What the world needs is to trade more of its plows for shotguns. American “dog masters” Bush and Cheney and White House visitors Klaus and Topolánek (perhaps “dognitaries” would be more appropriate) probably believe their radar deal in the Czech Republic can bring more security to the world.
These dog masters follow an amended version of Thomas Jefferson’ saying on turning swords into plowshares. Their version says: “Those who hammer their guns into radars will plow for those who do not.” The way the two sides hammered out a radar deal makes it look like they believe in the constitutional right to “bear radar” as well as to bear shotguns.
The U.S. Supreme Court has recently ruled on the shotgun issue, reconfirming the right to bear arms. It said nothing about paying for a radar system in the Czech Republic.
Klaus and Topolánek are known to send controversial issues to the Czech Constitutional Court for an opinion (as with the EU’s Lisbon Treaty). They should do the same with the radar treaty. The court will hopefully rule that this treaty stinks. By that time, the dogmasters will be pensioners, and they will have time to accept an open invitation to visit and try out their donated guns in the Brdy area. They will no doubt bring with them an appropriate present confirming their lasting friendship: a box of unloaded dog poop bags.
Ivan Kalman
Germany


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