Don't be shocked by agents' antics

I have been reading about how shocked people were to learn about how a group of Secret Service agents in Colombia behaved while partying with some local ladies. It seems to me that this kind of partying is quite the norm in Washington as shown by such actions as :

An attorney general bringing ladies in to the White House to party with his brother, the president.

A president who had sex with a young lady in the Oval Office.

A presidential aspirant who fathered a child, while he was campaigning for that high office, by a woman who was not his wife.

A D.C. mayor busted during a drug sting.

And my favorite, a powerful senator from Arkansas who was with a stripper when he was stopped for drunk driving and tried to flee from D.C. police by jumping into a reflection pool.

This list could go on and on if I really started going back in history.

After the scandals Washington, D.C., has had over the years, why should anyone be shocked or surprised?

EARL RHUE, Rock Spring, Ga.

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Volunteers work to create hope

April is National Volunteer Appreciation Month. I sincerely thank all of our volunteers with the Chattanooga Affiliate of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. This national organization strives to create hope in a comprehensive way through research, patient support, community outreach and advocacy for a cure. All their hard work and support are direct results of personal heartbreak from this killer.

The Chattanooga Affiliate has over 45 active volunteers who have given their time to fighting the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States. This year nearly 44,000 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and more than 37,000 will die from the disease. Pancreatic cancer remains the only major cancer with a single-digit five-year relative survival rate at just 6 percent, yet only 2 percent of the National Cancer Institute's budget is allocated to the disease.

Volunteers with the Chattanooga affiliate work diligently to double the survival rate for pancreatic cancer by 2020. Currently, our members are gearing up for our fifth annual signature event, Purple Stride Chattanooga 2012, Nov. 10. Everyone is welcome to join us at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 28, for a day of hope and inspiration with the Chattanooga Lookouts. For details, contact Edith Snider at esnider@pancanvolunteer.org.

Together we can make a difference.

EDITH SNIDER, Affiliate Coordinator, Chattanooga Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

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Government isn't sole decider

Once again (letter, April 24) Republicans and/or Christians are being portrayed as being uncompassionate and unwilling to give to the poor and needy, this time by the associate executive director of the Hamilton County Democratic Party, who has taken yet another verse of Bible Scripture out of context to try and justify the Democrats' core belief that the government should control every aspect of our lives and that they are the best ones qualified to decide who and what to give our hard-earned tax dollars to.

Where is the Scripture that says the government is the sole decider of what happens to everyone's money? The government's expertise in this field has certainly been demonstrated by the recent GSA scandal and the Solyndra debacle. What a total waste of taxpayers' money!

Reference is made to the (Republicans') proposed cuts to the food stamp benefits, but there is no mention of the current administration's failure to even propose a budget for more than two years.

And, in answer to what Jesus would have done, He would have fed the people physically and spiritually through the "church," ("For the Son of man came to seek and save the lost." Luke 19:10), and would not have relied on the government.

RICK AND BECKY BARRY, Signal Mountain

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Anderson careful in choosing fights

Lee Anderson may have vigorously supported useless wars that he did not have to fight in, but one thing you can say in his behalf: He did fight courageously for years in the battle against the minimum wage.

JOE STEVENSON, Tunnel Hill, Ga.

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Check all angles for coal plants

As a resident of Dayton, Tenn., I have heard news that brings concern. A request has been made for permits granting permission for the opening of two coal-processing plants on Walden's Ridge. Reports show that the output of such a proposed business would be $34 million annually. Reports also show that 300 people would be employed who would otherwise be out of work.

However, there are also other matters of concern. Residents who have lived around Walden's Ridge peacefully for years would be constantly subject to loud noise. The coal processing would cause an amount of sulfur dioxide to be released into the air, causing acid rain. Such rain would kill local crops and livestock. That would affect the income made in agricultural purposes. It would also put many farmers out of work. My own garden would probably be ruined. And not only would local agricultural purposes decrease, it would also have a large impact on the environment.

The U.S. Office of Surface Mining should consider these things when it makes a decision on permits.

HARRISON JONES, Dayton, Tenn.