Thanks, Guys

I want to thank the two guys that were next to me at the stoplight at 160 and 372 Memorial Day morning, because they alerted me to the fact that gasoline was pouring out of my engine.

From there, I had another five miles to my home. I could have lost my life in a car fire.

You two and this Memorial Day will always be in my memory. Thank you.

HERTHA RONICH

I'm grateful

Thank you Mark Smith for your great article, "Who Memorial Day is all about," (May 25, PVT).

It was very moving, very touching and very profound. Memorial Day is about those who died for our freedom. I'm grateful.

GARY MARCHINKE

Did not know

On May 9, Christina Eichelkraut reported that William Edward Griffin, 72, chose not to agree to a negotiated plea agreement with the state of Nevada. Griffin is accused of various sexual misconduct charges with minors "under the age of 14."

In the article (and indeed in court) Griffin stated he "did not understand the whole process they were going through when I signed that paper." He said, "I didn't know I was doing away with all my rights."

This letter is to remind Pahrumpians that Griffin ran for justice of the peace on (I believe) two occasions. I know he ran in 2001.

Voters beware; apparently some candidates know nothing about the law when they run for justice of the peace. Or could it be that Mr. Griffin truly knows what he signed and wants to "jack" around with the judicial system?

As a grandparent to two of the three victims in this sexual molestation case, let me make this clear - our family agonized over even accepting any plea agreement, because it would cut this monster a break. But we did it for the children's sake.

He was to get the words "under the age of 14" removed in the deal. Let the facts be known. My grandchildren were 2 and 7 at the time of the "alleged" crimes. I say "alleged" for legal reasons only.

We, the family of the abused, will never again settle for second best.

And I personally challenge the 75 people who recently stood up for this man. I challenge you to look into your souls and tell me you know a damn thing about this molestation case.

Maybe if it were your babies, you would think differently. The abuse of children must stop. In this case, we, the family of the victims, will do everything in our power to get justice. For all the little girls out there, not just ours.

I can't believe people consider an accused molester's age. What about the fact that the little victims have to live the rest of their years and never forget what happened?

As a former Pahrumpian and as a man with family still living there, I would just hope public officials do their best to look out for victims of sexual abuse. And I would hope journalists would feel the need to present "all" the facts and dig deeper. (The reporter I talked with had no idea Mr. Griffin had run for justice of the peace and apparently felt it was not worth reporting. I disagree.)

LARRY CRUIKSHANK

(So far as we know, Mr. Griffin's past campaigns for office are not related to the crimes for which he is charged.-Ed.)

Nuclear waste in Pahrump?

On Memorial Day morning, I was coming back over the hump after working my graveyard shift in Vegas. I was in the section of the road that takes the westbound motorist to the eastbound lanes for a half a mile or so then back again (near the Lovell Canyon turn off).

Two white cabbed flatbeds snaked this section of road ahead of me. Everything seemed as normal as any other morning commute to me. Boy, was I wrong.

It took me several miles to catch and start to pass these two flatbed trucks. As I was all but past the first one, I glanced over and noticed some 55 gallon barrels lodged at the front of the flatbed ahead of what appeared to be dumpsters (the kind you'd find at most construction sites). I thought it odd that the eight to ten dumpsters were painted white, but ... whatever.

As I was pulling along side the lead truck, I glanced over at the load on that truck to see if it was loaded the same way. And then I saw it; the word "radioactive" written in six inch high letters on each of the dumpsters with an atomic logo on a sticker saying "radioactive" on each of the 55 gallon drums at the front.

I then accelerated and moved what seemed a safe distance from the trucks and tried to digest what I had just seen.

Was I witnessing the first nuclear waste transport through our town?

Aren't there suppose to be pilot vehicles around these trucks?

Weren't we promised that any such movement of nuclear waste would be done so in specially designed containers?

The questions came fast and furious but no answers.

I'm not delusional. I saw what I saw. Sometimes things aren't always what they appear, but often times, they are exactly what they seem.

God, I hope I'm wrong about this, but I've got this nasty taste in my mouth.

I called home to get the phone number of our local TV station so I could alert them and they could alert all of you people. They told me they'd try to get out there and get some photos. Whether or not they succeeded, I'm not sure yet. I pray to God they did.

The idea of having to take the back way to work for the next 84 years, because our highway was contaminated drains my very being.

If this isn't headline news material for the next two months, I don't know what is. No longer are we flirting with nuclear waste someday making it's way to our little town ... It's here now.

As I reached my turnoff (just past the "Welcome to Pahrump" sign), I pulled to the side of the road and waited.

At 9:12 on Memorial Day morning, Two white trucks carrying what I perceived to be nuclear waste in non-safety containers rolled past me and into Pahrump.

That is a fact. You can take that to the bank.

NEIL SAXMAN

Immigration

This new immigration scheme is racist. There are six billion people in the world, living in almost two hundred countries.

This proposal grants special treatment to thirty-million Mexicans and Central Americans, plus their relatives, while penalizing all other nationalities who remain in their home countries dreaming of United States citizenship. The Haitians and Africans, Poles and Latvians, Indians and Pakistanis ... are they not also worthy human beings? They have been promised a legal and orderly application process.

Ordinary citizens - Republicans and Democrats - are not anti-immigrant. Our politicians are.

Once again, they are selfishly responding solely to business interests and to potential new Latino votes. Americans unite.

JOSEPH PASULKA