Congress Needs to protect the low-income

   Your coverage of the rise in poverty tells us that the recession isn’t over for more than 46 million poor Americans, the largest number in the 52 years the Census Bureau has been collecting poverty statistics.

   We absolutely need a job creation package to help the jobless escape poverty and climb into the middle class. Getting people back to work will help rebuild the economy and contribute the taxes that reduce long-term deficits. But we also need to protect low income programs. Slashing Medicaid, education, and other needed services will make things worse.

   I urge our members of Congress to protect low-income families by allocating the necessary funding for Head Start and child care programs to maintain existing services. I also urge them to demand that this new “Super Committee” raise revenue and protect low-income programs like Medicaid and food stamps when it starts looking for more things to defund.

Daria Flores
San Diego

Better Water Conservation Policies are Key to Helping Local Economies Thrive

   The inhabitants of Easter Island saw their way of life evaporate because they mismanaged their natural resources, thus providing a small, well- understood example of a story that has frequently played out on a much larger scale. The collapses of the Mayan, the Khmer, the Anasazi, and the Roman civilizations have been linked to urban demand for water (and food). In each case, this demand led to large-scale environmental destruction with irreversible consequences.

   It’s time to stop thinking of the water that runs through the Colorado River as simply a resource for power, agriculture, and municipalities. The river and its water are the lifeblood of states, cities, and towns throughout the Southwest. If the water stops flowing to those communities, particularly to rural communities that cater to river sports and recreational activities, the economic and cultural consequences will cripple development throughout the region.

   Why should you care? If we do not acknowledge the economic and cultural benefits we reap from the beauty of the natural wonders created and sustained by the Colorado River, we will lose them.

   Let’s not let the river dry up. Remind our leaders in Washington that keeping water in the Colorado is important to us. Visit NuestroRio.com and become part of our letter writing campaign.

Jessica Taylor
via e-mail.