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richardmchale

Ten years ago I filmed a demonstration at Costner's CINC manufacturing facility. The centrifuge works. It removes petrochemicals from water, both in the lab and in ocean waters. The struggle then was to ramp up to handle massive spills such as the current Gulf crisis, where sheer size of the spill and heavy waves makes clean-up difficult to control. We will soon see how well they have met the open ocean challenge, but no matter how you look at it, Costner has sincerely put his money where his mouth is. All Americans should hope this down-to-earth hero of enlightnened environmentalism succeeds. Perhaps best of all, he's put his fortune on the line to make a better world, and it's not been done for glory or fame. My hat is off to Dan and Kevin Costner. These guys are true Americans.

As a moderate Republican, it was sad to see the hate spewed by people with bumperstickers on their cars reading "Only Glen Beck Understands Me". The haters are a minority, a shrill one who have nothing positive to bring to the table. We need to work together to get healthcare for all people so this country can remain 'the lite unto the world'. True Americans realize that we began as, and still are, the UNITED States of America. And as a free people, we can decide we want to ensure healthcare for all because that is what free people do: make difficult decisions for the betterment of the country and future generations.

One of the haters told me he didn't want healthcare for all because he would no longer have a lever to control his employees. Nice guy.

I'm a Republican who is for Dina Titus and President Obama. The healthcare bill is not perfect. It needs to be done in a way that 'We The People' can afford to pay for it. That is the purpose of Titus' Congress on the Corner: to get input on viable ways to get the bill right and pay for it. I believe a country that lets their less well-off citizens die from lack of healthcare is mean spirited and short sighted, and doomed to failure because of such meanness.

Believe me, we are all in this together, and no sane person should let far-right rabble-rousers stand between them and their doctors. I will vote for Titus because she is making the effort to do what is right for America in modern times, not in some mythical glorious past where every person had to swim or die based on wealth.

Bravo to those brave enough to stand up to the right wing wackos. Good will win the day.

I think City Center will do well, although the trip to viability will be a bit long and arduous. There are two critical factors to keep in mind.

One, people in or out of recessions want to come to Vegas to play and gain relief from their many stresses back home. That won't stop, and in fact will only increase as the nation recovers from Wall Street's most recent madness.

Two, Vegas veered to far toward the high roller, clearly forgetting the value crowds that built this town. That emphasis on value is returning and will be rewarded. The fact is, there are only so many high rollers who want to visit our fair city at any given time, but there are vast crowds of average folks who covet the experience.

Lets also not be too harsh on the delusions that led to the overbuild, or too quick to gauge the future. Things have a way of working out our way (in Vegas' best interests) as long as we stay positive and are ready and willing to create a good experience for our visitors.

That is the point, is it not?

Once again, the residents of West Las Vegas will shoot themselves in the foot and complain to any who listen that they are lame, gosh darn it.

Folks, F Street being open or closed does not do a damn thing to create jobs, lift yourselves out of poverty, or have any real effect on your path to betterment. Working together as a community to get educated, create jobs and stable families does better your lives. If you really want to reverse the historic inequities visited on West Las Vegas, skip the road opening and use the money to improve your skills and education, open businesses, and upgrade your community yourselves without waiting for someone else to do it for you. That is the path to success that everyone takes - if they truly want success.

Note: Wanting things to stay the same (F Street stays open, the neighborhood never changes) and expecting different results is a form of delusion. I still wonder why there was not more support for the Moulin Rouge to reopen. Some black activists fought it, for whatever reason, but that is just one example of a world-class business that would have bettered West Las Vegas in every way. Why not put your energies into those types of projects, rather than fight to maintain the status quo of an inconsequential street?