Impressed with man and mission

About a month ago, I had a brief encounter with Roland Warren when I dropped off some winter clothing at the Springs Rescue Mission. Seeing my confusion as to where to go, Warren rushed over to me with a huge smile on his face. His energy and joy at being where he was and doing what he was doing were palpable as he directed me to the drop-off location and thanked me for my donation. Just a 20-second conversation with this man left me with a happy feeling for the remainder of the day. After reading his story, I am even more impressed with how he turned his life around and continues to help others to do so. Kudos to The Gazette for featuring Roland Warren’s story as well as the lifesaving work done by the folks at the Springs Rescue Mission.

Kathy Eichinger

Colorado Springs

Success story due to faith

What a wonderful profile of Roland Warren in the local section of the Jan. 6 Gazette!

I know Warren is a strong and committed believer in Jesus Christ from our pleasant interactions at the Austin Bluffs Goodwill retail store. But I never knew his full story. I have now profited mightily from learning more about this man.

When I saw him today, he desired Gazette readers to know something beyond just his personal story. He was emphatic. He wanted people to know that his present success is the direct result of the saving power of belief in Jesus Christ.

Bill Turner

Colorado Springs

Against belief in intelligent design

I have read with interest the recent “viewpoints” on the topic of atheism. I was particularly taken with Dwight Gradin’s input, “A multitude of intricate phenomena” and his reference to intelligent design. He claims that our “marvelously intricate eyes” indicate that “there must be a designer or creator” and is “just plain common sense.”

I recalled a presentation by a local and prominent M.D. at an event sponsored by the Freethinkers of Colorado Springs in which the doctor discussed the various medical aspects of the human body that weigh heavily against the belief in intelligent design. Among these was choking, the fifth-leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. The “design” of breathing and ingestion through the same human orifice, and therefore accounting for such a large amount of human deaths was, at least to me, quite a statistic and certainly seems to fly in the face of “intelligent design.” Wouldn’t an intelligent design preclude a major fault that results in a substantial number of human deaths each year? That’s some plain common sense.

Rich Pointer

Colorado Springs

Society and political correctness

There’s a lot of vitriol out there these days about “political correctness.” The antagonists are saying they are being denied their right to free speech in the name of political correctness. In truth, they are not being denied anything of the kind and will not be thrown in jail for insulting people different from them, such as those of different religion, race, sexual preference, gender identity, nationality and the like. It’s just that, thankfully, our society, as it continues to try to break free from its primitive origins, is attempting to encourage people to refrain from insulting one another unnecessarily and thus promote more harmony and less discord among them. Some words, though perfectly legal to use, are rude, antagonizing, pejorative, even incendiary. Just as one could ask the aggressive driver if that’s the way he/she would like his/her teenage son or daughter to drive, one could ask the political correctness assailant if he/she would like his/her son or daughter to be called names on the school playground or over the Internet. If one believes speech should be unfettered in every respect, how about the speech used by these bullies?

I prefer to think of political correctness not as an infringement of my constitutional rights but as an example of “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Tom Ward

Gleneagle

On gun control: do nothing

Mr. President,

You say you want to do something to reduce gun violence. I have two simple rules to do just that:

1. Do nothing.

2. When in doubt, see rule No. 1.

Gun violence has been declining for decades – indeed, all violent crime has been declining. This has been going on since long before the useless “assault weapons” ban of 1994 became law and continued after its expiration in 2004. Of course, the shrieking media might make one believe that the U.S. is one big shooting gallery, but that’s just sensationalism – not truth.

Politicians often want to “do something” to solve a perceived social problem. Usually, “doing something” is the wrong thing – ineffectual at best and counterproductive at worst. So, Mr. President, I hope you will take my advice. If in doubt, see rule No. 1.

Richard H. Timberlake III

Colorado Springs

Importance of CO detector

This is a letter of appreciation to our utility response team. This morning when I got up at 5 a.m., my carbon monoxide detector was going off. I called 911 and a fire truck showed up almost instantly. They checked my house thoroughly and found no carbon monoxide. My detector had a bad battery, which they replaced.

After they left, I couldn’t help but think how many people in this town who recently have turned on their furnaces and don’t have a detector. Perhaps they think its unnecessary or not an important expense.

It could mean life or death for their family.

Jeannine Andrews

Colorado Springs