I agree with two things that appeared in the July 14 editorial page of The Sun: first the letter from Robert Smith querying the rationale behind the banning of DDT many years ago. The ban never made any sense to me. I'm in favor of protecting the environment, but such measures shouldn't be at the price of failing to protect the health of people. To ban DDT because of some specious reasoning, while the ban has made it possible for malaria-spreading mosquitoes to flourish, seems irresponsible to me.

And the second thing I agree with is the cartoon about pit bull owners, while perhaps a bit strong for the tastes of some people, sure conveyed my feelings. I cannot for the life of me see why the things aren't banned.

Leonard W. Williams, CPA

Sunnyvale

Those who don't support
war do support troops

In response to Mark Zigerelli's Opinion in the July 28 issue of The Sun, I would like to ask: Did you in fact see the movie? May I suggest that you revisit your line of thinking about generalizing about people? Your implication that individuals who do not support this administration, or the war, do not support our troops or their families is not accurate.

I love my country. I support the troops and their families. I grieve with the families of the injured and fallen, and I cannot support this administration.

I would also like to suggest that you review our history books and take a hard long look at Nazi Germany and the era of McCarthyism before you suggest that freedom of speech is treason.

J. Lewis-Parker

Sunnyvale

Public works went above
and beyond the expected

As a new resident in Sunnyvale, I wasn't sure what to do when my water main broke and created a swamp out of my front yard. So I called the Sunnyvale Public Works Department, and within 10 minutes someone was pulling up in my driveway.

Not only that, but I called on a late weeknight evening, way outside of normal business hours. Within minutes, they had diagnosed the problem. (A broken water main, not a broken sewer as I originally thought.)

They also installed a water bypass line, so my husband and I could work on our line and still have water at our house. Because of the bypass line, we were able to do most all of the work ourselves, which saved us money.

I spoke to my co-workers from other cities in the area, and they had never heard of bypass lines being offered where they live. Sunnyvale Public Works should be commended for offering such great service, and for being so efficient!

Tammy Qualls

Sunnyvale

Friends of Sunnyvale are
not friends to everyone

I wish to congratulate the city council in approving most of the Forum Development Group's plans. Now all it needs to do is accommodate Macy's demands and move forward aggressively with the project.

The so-called Friends of Sunnyvale are not my friends and they are not acting on my behalf. There is a great deal of misconception that these community groups and their ilk are spreading. I was very surprised in a discussion with a retailer on Murphy Avenue when she said the plans called for a wall blocking off Murphy. This is not accurate, yet she insisted it was true. Who gave her this idea?

The rumors must end. There are a few things about the plan I would change, but they are minor in the grand scheme of things. Let's stop nit-picking and spreading false rumors about the plans, and let's start building the future.

Greg Maltz

Sunnyvale

Charity pumpkin is stolen from Sunday school

The papers are full of news on the democratic convention in Boston, continued death and violence in Iraq and concerns over the cost of oil and its affect on the economy. In light of these events, the theft of a large pumpkin seems insignificant.

But to a Sunday school class and a village in Africa, this theft is important and quite disturbing. The children in the Sunday school class at St. John's Lutheran Church in Sunnyvale have been working hard to grow a giant pumpkin in the garden behind the church on S. Fremont Avenue.

They have obtained pledges from people to donate a certain amount of money per pound that the pumpkin reaches at its maturity. These donations were to be added to other money collected from selling other produce from the garden to purchase two goat s and send them to a needy village in Africa as part of the Heifer Project. The estimated weight of the pumpkin was 35 pounds, but the youngsters hoped it would grow to as much as 100 pounds.

Sometime on July 28 or 29 someone entered the garden and took the pumpkin. This is even more disturbing since there was a sign next to the pumpkin explaining that it was being grown as a charity project.

What lesson does this bring to the Sunday school children? Should they come away from this incident with a sad feeling that there are people in this world who are so selfish that they would take something that meant so much to them and a village in Africa? We just hope and pray that the culprit who took the pumpkin will allow a second one on the vine to reach maturity so the goats will go to Africa.

Walt Wilser

Cupertino