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Show r 4 The Magna TimetAVett Valley Newt, May 23, 2002 Editorial Letters to the Editor A call for action on Highway 6 Editor, As part of the Highway 6 A group of concerned citizens are in the process of forming a non-prof- it Improvement Committee's continuing efforts to draw attention to the dangerous highway between Helper and Spanish Fork we are asking anyone who has lost a loved one on the road, because of an auto accident to place a roadside memorial on Memorial Day Weekend. Please place the memorial near the accident location as a reminder to motorists to drive cautiously and also a message to road offi corporation called Highway 6 Improvement Committee, whose purpose is to lobby Federal, State and local officials to accelerate improvement to the infamous road between Helper and Spanish Fork. Our goal is to have a four-lan- e divided highway the entire way, similar to the stretch of between Green River and Salina. cials of the need for continual improvement HIC's goal is for the road to be e a divided highway. Individuals can make a difference. The state does need to do more to change his deadly highway. We can work together to reach this goal. Remember to slow down and be careful and have a safe holiday. four-lan- . Mark and Kathy Justice Huntington, Utah Poor excuses for not wearing seat belts Editor, Forget Downtown . . . Shop West! Ever since the Olympics blazed through here we have been hearing the latest round of crying from downtown Salt Lake City about its empty Main Street, losing Nordstrom's from Crossroads Mall and the uphill battle to revitalize the central business district. While it is true that Salt Lake City remains the state's capital and home of the University of Utah, Hansen Planetarium, Abravanel Hall, etc., it does not have to be the place where the rest of the Wasatch Front goes to spend their retail dollars. In West Valley City and Magna there have stores that need supporting, restaurants that are here to serve you. In West Valley there is a mall that could use your business, a professional hockey team that would love to have you cheering in the stands and the Hale Theater that hosts some of the best theater in the area. Those who work and live in West Valley City will see a difference in this community by spending their paychecks closer to home. For example, due to the recession, the city's sales tax revenue fell last year from $1.2 million to $700,000. This drop has resulted in a city budget for 2002-200- 3 that is down 20 percent from the 2001-200- 2 budget. West Valley City is already ranked among the "tightest ships" of Utah municipalities. While Salt Lake City has 14.1 city employees per 1 ,000 residents and Murray has 9.1 , West Valley City boasts an efficient 3.5 city employees per 1,000 residents. There has been much hullabaloo in the media about what can be done to help jump start downtown Salt Lake, yet little attention to the equally serious recession neighboring cities are enduring. West Valley and Magna have town centers to Magna's downtown, reminise cent of an movie set, is a hosts that quaint streetscape vacant buildings longing for businesses. New businesses that have opened Magna Main Street prove that people will come to Magna to shop. Instead of focusing public dialogue on Rocky Anderson's Main Street, let's get involved with the exciting opportunity to shape 3500 South. The upcoming widening of 3500 South already has $50 million earmarked for it and the support of UDOT, UTA, Wasatch Front Regional Council and West Valley City. As residents and businesses here, let us rally around that project. The first three light rail lines were built in Salt Lake City, the main north-sout- h line, the University of Utah spur, and the extension to the University Hospital, currently under construction. We need to join the movement to obtain a West Valley TRAX spur and demand that it is our turn to get light rail. Instead of losing sleep about how to revitalize the ZCMI Center and Crossroads Mall downtown, we need to generate public debate on how we can best help Valley Fair Mall. And instead of worrying about Larry Miller's ability to fill the Delta Center now that Stockton and Malone have practically joined the AARP, we need to go in with some buddies on season tickets to the Utah Grizzlies ice hockey, played locally at the old-tim- Yes, Rocky, we are sad that the Olympic party has left downtown streets vacant, but we are more concerned about bringing retail dollars home to the westside. Forget downtown, shop west. Much has changed during the past year, but one thing remains consistent and that's the need to get the message our that "seat belts save lives." As summer approaches many Americans will take to the highways again this year. This is an important time to remind everyone of the important of buckling up. Seatbelts do save lives and there is never a good reason not to wear a seatbelt. Let's take a look at a few reasons why some people choose not to wear their seatbelts and the truths behind them. "I'm a good driver." Even if you have a perfect driving record and have never been involved in a traf- - fic collision, it is not a sound reaare many ways to make your seat-be-lt son to avoid wearing your seat-bel- t. more comfortable. At the local Poor drivers can cause crash.dealer or auto parts store you can es with even tfie best of drivers. a. ,find clips and extenders to "I'm just going to the grocery the fit of your seatbelt. , store." Nearly 80 percent of all are much more seatbelts Also, fatal traffic crashes occur within 'comfortable than hospital beds. 25 miles of .the victims' residence Buckling up is the most eflfec-tiv- e and at speedsnof under 40 mph. and immediate way t save So, when you are "just going to , fives and reduce injuries from : the grocery store," is the best time trashes on American's roadways. to wear a seatbelt. The best way for you to help is to make sure everyone is always "My car has airbags so I don't need to wear my seat belt." buckled up. in your vehicle on Airbags are not meant tp take the :very trip. place of seatbelts, they were meant to enhance their safety. An . Louis R. DeCarolis air bag increases the effectiveness j Regional Administrator of a seatbelt by up to 40 percent National Highway Traffic Safety cus-tomi- ze "They're uncomfortable." There Administration Letters to the Editor Welcome Readers are encouraged to share opinions by sending letters to the Editor, Magna HmesWest Valley News, 83S0 W. 2700 S. Magna, Ut. 84044. ;. , Letters can be sent via fax to 5 or at magwestxmissirei.cotn Writers may send a photograph to accompany their letter. All letters to toe Editor are subject to editing for grammar, clarity and brevity. Letters will be corrected for known factual errors. . , Letters must be signed and include a phone number for verification and city of residence. Letters on local topics are given preference. Name and city of residence will be printed. 250-568- Memorial Day reflections on a year of many lit, One year ago we were a nation of peace, but not now. A Short year ago, Slue Star Service Banners were lost in the memories of a ago, but not now. half-centu- ry One Memorial Day 2002, 1 see more and more Blue Star Service Banners in front windows of houses and businesses across America. A banner reminds us that a loved one from that family is serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, fighting terrorism in Operation Enduring Freedom and providing homeland defense. Unfortunately Gold Star Banners are replacing some of the blue. Today's men and women sent into harm;s way differ little from the doughboys who fought in the trenches of France, the Gi's who stormed the beaches of Normandy, or the troops who bought inches of land with blood at Korea's Chosin Reservoir. Indeed, they are no different than the millions of men and t ,V( in Richard f. Santos Guest Columnist women who have answered the clarion call throughout American History. As did those before them, today's men and women that we honor did their duty. Regrettably, we must now add 3,000 more names to the list of our honored dead. Some of the honored dead were in the Armed Forces, but some were not. Each was on the frontlines of the terrorist assault on America. All lost their lives on Sept. 1 or the days following. It is fitting that, as we remember the military men and women who died in service to America, we also - just this once - remember the first casualties of the War on Terrorism. They are also American henos who died in the line of duty. They 1 Vt gave their all in service to their country as surely as if they had been on the frontlines of Afghanistan. Again, young America, wearing the uniforms of our armed forces, are fighting in a war without borders and with clearly identified combatants. Some of them have given the supreme sacrifice for our nation. We are thankful that we are a nation that does not forget...that we are a people who remember and honor the memory of those who died fighting the enemies of the United States - wherever and whenever they threaten. On this Memorial Day I ask all citizens of this great land to remember the sacrifice of more than one million Americans whose memory we honor today. Richard J. Santos is the National Commander of the American Legion. United States Postal Service transformation The Postal Service recently delivered its Transformation Plan to Congress. The plan offers solutions to the current financial situation the postal Service now faces and in the long term calls for a new business model to replace our operating structure. Changing to a new business model will require legislative the changes, essentially 1970 Postal Reorganization Act the formed the current Postal Service. The Postal Service gets most of its revenue from mail the kind of mail used to pay bills and write letters. Any decline in this type of mail had huge conseof our quences since costs are covered by the revenue it brings in. Add to that equation the .7 million new addresses created every year, nearly 18,000 in Utah, and you can see the crisis we face. Trends like that threaten our abili First-Cla- two-thir- ds 1 ss -- ty to deliver the mail. But we have solutions. In the long term, the Postal Service will ask Congress to adopt a new business model, called a Commercial Government Enterprise. Changing to a CGE would be a large step toward placing the Postal Service on more business-lik- e footing. We would be expected to provide traditional and products and services and implement market-base- d pricing. Universal mail delivery would be maintained by giving the Postal Service flexibility to survive a new economy. We will also cut costs. The Postal Service cut 2.5 billion dollars in operating expenses since the end of 1999. The Postmaster General had asked up to cut $5 billion more nationally (on an annualized basis) during the next five years and the Salt Lake City District will do its part to meet Johnson Guest Columnist STEPHEN L. that goal. The old legislation served the country well. In Utah alone, we deliver more than 27 million pieces of mail every week; that equals more than 1 .4 billion pieces every year to more than 930,000 businesses and home. The Postal Sendee delivers in one week as much as UPS delivers in a year, we deliver in two days what FedEx delivers in their typical year. No postal system does what this U.S. Postal Service does today. But what organization can keep the same business model for 30 years and hope to survive? No organization could. Organizations must be able to change in order to survive. No one 30 years ago could have predicted the rise of the internet, electronic bill payment and competition from global mail providers. Mail volume nationally and in the Salt Lake City District has always had steady increases and our old business model counted on volume always going up. But that has changed too. Nationwide, the Postal Service lost $1.68 billion in fiscal year 2001 and could lose close to $2 billion this fiscal year. The plan also allows us to better meet changing customer needs, such as increasing access for consumers. The Salt Lake City District has 300 post officers and other retail outlets, but there are quicker, more ways to get basic services like stamps. People already purchase stamps by phone and over the internet, but we wilj also explore other outlets. We plan to offer simplified, package cost-effecti- al pre-pa- shipping so customers can pay the size of the box, not the weight. And we recently introduced a product called Confirm, part of the new generation of "intelligent" mail services that allows large businesses to track their mail in e near throughout the postal system. As the District Manager for Utah, I am excited to be part of this Transformation Plan. Delivering the mail is a public trust and the Postal Service is committed to guaranteeing mail delivery well into the future. This plan is the first step in that process and sparks the public policy dialogue with the American People. real-tim- Stephen L, Johnson is the District Manager for the Salt Lake City District U.S. Postal Service. id L POOR |