Letters are posted as we receive them during the week, and before they are printed in the paper, so check back frequently to see new letters. If you'd like to send a letter to the editor, use this postmarks submission form, or email your letter directly to mail@austinchronicle.com. Thanks for your patience.

Dear Editor,
    As the Chronicle reports ["City Hall Hustle," News, July 2], the Austin City Council recently commissioned a $100,000 study to find funding for an urban rail line that will cost $1.39 billion. It would make much more sense to use this aggressive approach to find the funds to finish the sidewalk system before Austin's population doubles. A working pedestrian system is a prerequisite for a working public transit system – not the other way around. Austin's very inadequate sidewalk system will make it harder to get grants to fund the rail line. And once the rail line is built, inadequate pedestrian infrastructure will result in disappointing ridership numbers. Do people in city government not realize this? Here are some numbers.
    Number of linear miles of missing sidewalk in Austin: about 3,450 (Sidewalk Plan).
    Number of linear miles of sidewalk built in 2005: 18; 2006: 13; 2007: 14; 2008: 7; 2009: 4; 2010: 6 (Austin Pedestrian Program).
    Expected cost (according to Austin Sidewalk Plan) of finishing sidewalk system: $824 million.
    Amount usually spent in one year on building sidewalks: $5 million or less.
    Number of years in which sidewalk system will be finished, at this rate: 165.
    Number of years since Texas joined the USA: 165.
    Number of years it takes Austin's population to double: about 25 (Austin History Center records).
    Number of pedestrians killed in Austin traffic from January 2005 to the present: 96.
    Number of motorists killed in Austin traffic in the same time span: 227.
    Number of bicyclists killed: 9 (Austin Police Department).
    Known funding for sidewalks in 2011: $0 (Pedestrian Program).
    Shouldn't we build the sidewalks before the train and before the populations doubles?

Dear Editor,
    You all must hate it when visitors point out that you are very spoiled – musically speaking – here in Austin. That talent is so deep, and youngsters are waiting in the wings to bask in the light that is Austin music. I truck down here from the San Francisco Bay where the weather is easy, but the music scene is controlled by folks who would be better off looking to a musical prodigy and a product of the scene, someone who understands the musical structure and history of Austin and its musical roots. I'm surprised Warren Hood isn't appointed the musical ambassador for Austin. The world needs to see what y'all are doing, and he is one person who would deliver the goods.

Dear Editor,
    Daniel Lea claims that handguns exist for the sole purpose of "killing" [“Postmarks,” July 9]. Well, I've been shooting for more than 50 years, have fired about 200,000 rounds, and haven't hurt a soul. How could this be? Either Lea and other anti-gun types are just plain wrong, or I'm simply magical, which I don't think is the case.
    On another issue, thank you, Tim Swanson, for stating the position of many, and I think most, cyclists [“Postmarks,” July 9]. When I ride my bike, I expect no special consideration from the drivers of other vehicles, motorized or not. Just obey the traffic laws, I'll do the same, and I'll watch my own rear end in the process!

Dear Editor,
    In Richard Whittaker’s Dem-speak article, “Greens Gain Ballot Access in Curious Fashion” [News, July 16], he closes his corporate, democratic committee-researched “journalism” by attempting to paint the Green Party of Texas in Bush/Cheney innuendo. The poor-pitiful-me, plaintive appeal of the well-heeled, unapologetically corporate-funded Democratic and Republican parties (logos positioned at the conventions like a NASCAR chassis, and under said chassis, there is very little resemblance to a vehicle on the street) get most of their traction with media sources advertising friendly to their paid-for political system. Running up court costs via a frivolous lawsuit is not only a tactic to block citizens’ alternative voice but serves as financial harassment to Green Party officers who are volunteers. Paul Silver of Common Cause of Texas hit the nail in his postmarks letter [“Postmarks”, July 9] calling for reform of a system that relies on Bush Help America Vote Act election law (promoting, like our Travis County clerk, black-box voting machines where your vote is invisible, unaccountable, and unverifiable) instead of the subpoena-powered Voting Rights Act. And now that the Supreme Court has ruled that corporations have unlimited financial access to our elections, how will citizens have any voice toward taking back our elections by eliminating corporate access completely?
    Our democracy is clearly a corporate pig trough as exemplified by how the bank bailout and single-payer (not) health care favor Wall Street not Main Street.
    Check out the July 16 radio broadcast of Texas Politics Today on KOOP 91.7FM. You can also read a reasoned description surrounding the Greens' ballot access in Elaine Wolff’s article “The empire strikes backhanded” in the San Antonio Current.

Dear Editor,
    Thank you for Wells Dunbar’s excellent article [“'Shoddy' and 'Rushed': Spicewood Neighbors Blast WTP4 Water Line Plan,” News, July 9] on the city’s scheme to build a 7-mile-long, $111 million water transmission tunnel from the new water plant at RM 620 and 2222 under Bull Creek, established neighborhoods, and Canyon Vista Middle School and over to U.S. 183 and McNeil Road.
    It’s impossible to list either the known harms or the unanswered questions still remaining for the tunnel, the plant, the construction shaft proposed for Bull Creek parkland, or the other four miles of water tunnels in one news article. Yet a narrow 4-3 majority of our City Council voted last month to begin building the plant.
    For the 10-plus miles of 10-to-13-foot-diameter tunnels, the city has yet to estimate how many truckloads of rock and debris will be required, where the trucks will dump the debris, what traffic tie-ups can be expected, how much water mixed with drilling fluids and waste will be discharged to Bull Creek, or what levels of noise during what hours of day Spicewood neighbors must live with? Or how many Bull Creek headwater springs will be ruined (in addition to the one spring the city already ruined)?
    What is the current total estimated cost of building the plant and its intake and delivery tunnels? The city’s $508 million estimate, or $1.2 billion counting debt-financing costs, is more than a year old. And how much are residential water rates expected to increase in the years ahead to pay for the plant – on top of the 10.1% rate increase already imposed this year?
    Many thanks go to Council Members Laura Morrison, Bill Spelman, and Chris Riley for continuing to oppose this financial and environmental fiasco-in-progress.

Dear Editor,
    I just filled out my “Best of Austin” ballot online. I am glad there was a spot for Wild Card, and I voted "Best East Austin Superhero – the Really White Vigilante.”
    There were, however, a few local faves I just couldn't find a spot for on the ballot. Austin is crafty and has seen its share of DIY crafts, craft fairs, and the rise of Etsy. Renegade Craft Fair came to Austin for the first time, and Magda yarn-bombed the blue squares on South Lamar that no one likes.
    Best Local Craft Entrepreneur – Jenny Hart, Sublime Stitching.
    Best Group to Craft With – Arts and Drafts, 7pm, Thursdays, at Rio Rita.
    Best Local Craft Supply/Education – for me, a tie: Helios Glass and the Knitting Nest.

Dear Editor,
    I am definitely a proud Austin resident and take pride in showing off our city to numerous visitors. For several years, I have been concerned with the accessibility of the wonderful Blanton Museum of Art and have tried to alert museum officials of this problem. However, probably because I'm a senior citizen, they have failed to pay much attention. Here's the problem: to access the museum, you must park in the Brazos Garage, which is approximately one and one-half blocks from the museum's front door. This distance is too far for many of my older friends and family members to walk. I have suggested a shuttle golf cart, like the dozens the athletic departments own. This suggestion, like others, has been ignored by the museum's officials. So perhaps someone with a bit more clout can get something done. Otherwise, much like they will miss the amazing Matisse exhibit, many of Austin's seniors will be prohibited from the museum's future offerings. What a shame!

Dear Editor,
    Today, as on many other days, I was almost killed by a car driving through a crosswalk while I was walking there and had the light. I was startled, jumped back, and yelled: "Hey! Crosswalk!" at the driver who slammed on her brakes and yelled, "What are you talking about?!" and flipped me off before roaring away. Of course she was driving a small SUV plastered with peace stickers and other "love thy neighbor" sentiments (which I share). Please, people, consider when you're turning in an intersection that it's not just the other cars you need to look for; there are living, breathing people crossing the street legitimately. They have the right-of-way when the light is lit for them. Within the last few months, there has been one death of a pedestrian and another months-long hospitalization, just in the small area near where I work my day job. If you're driving, please get off your phone and look where you're going. Even if I don't get hit, it's not a pleasant experience to have constant near misses caused by uncaring and/or stupid behavior. Thanks for your consideration.

Dear Editor,
    After reading several letters to the Chronicle asserting that bicyclists don't pay their fair share for road improvements or general roadway maintenance, I did some research on that issue. The fact is that all local road maintenance is paid for by city of Austin Transportation User Fees, fees paid by every Austin Energy and Austin Water customer within Austin. That means that everyone who pays a water or electricity bill, including cyclists, pays into this fund. Road maintenance includes normal resurfacing of roadways and the repainting of lane lines. When bicycle lanes are added to the roadway during routine maintenance, the paint used to create the bike lanes and related stencils and signs are paid for by voter-approved bicycle-specific bond funding, which is paid for with property taxes. So whether you are a renter or homeowner, motorist or bicyclist, you pay into Transportation User Fees and for transportation bonds authorized by Austin voters.
    Fees paid by motorists for registration and licensing or gasoline taxes are not distributed locally but are used for state and federal highway construction and maintenance. While cyclists may use these roads, most of them are motorists as well and thus pay for their construction and maintenance. The reality is that cyclist use of any roadway results in far less wear and tear on it, so you could justifiably say that cyclists pay a disproportionate share compared to motorists if they don't drive. Bicyclists have every right, as well as responsibility, of a motor vehicle driver, and we pay our fair share to use the roads.

Dear Editor,
    Daniel Lea ("Killing Is Guns' Purpose," “Postmarks,” July 9) says, "A gun, particularly a handgun, has one purpose, and it is not driving nails." While guns have other purposes, among them target shooting, Lea grandly implies only one. What is that purpose? What is the significance of it, and what would you like to do about it?
    By the way, few Americans, be they conservatives or even NRA members, support "unfettered gun ownership." Or, as the Tin Man said to the Scarecrow: "That's you all over."

Dear Editor,
    The original intent of the Second Amendment is not hard to understand. It clearly states “A well-regulated Militia … shall not be infringed.” That's what you have when you take out the commas and what lies within them. Add the first clause, “being necessary to the security of a free state,” and it is clear that the framers thought that a regulated militia was necessary to defend the new republic. In the second clause, “the right of the people to keep and bear arms,” note where the comma is. Right-wing conservative evangelical blood clots always latch on to that phrase and always misquote it, snuffing that comma. They make it read, “The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” If that was what the framers intended that is how it would read and, frankly, that would have covered the perceived need in much simpler fashion. The Bill of Rights was weighted toward the several states and the people. The twofold intent of the Second Amendment was so the people would have, in absence of a standing armed force, means to repel invasion by outside aggressors or defend themselves against a tyrannical central government. But the Second Amendment was never intended to legitimize use of deadly force to protect property.

Dear Editor,
    Re: “Killing Is Guns' Purpose” [“Postmarks,” July 9]: Daniel Lea states that the only use of a firearm, and specifically a handgun, is to kill. I find this opinion disingenuous and self-serving. A firearm can be used to commit violence, but it can also be used to prevent violence from occurring, when used as an instrument of self-defense. The simple display of a weapon, without firing it, and the threat that entails has no doubt stopped many crimes from taking place. Simply put, you don't have to kill someone with a weapon to stop them from doing you harm. I also feel his views of gun ownership being somehow connected with the denial of others' civil rights and liberties is equally faulty logic, as if only those with conservative beliefs want to stifle conflicting points of view. His is yet another emotional rant preaching to a choir of similarly disaffected people. He conveniently states that a hammer has only one purpose – driving nails – and a gun can only kill. Wrong again. A hammer can also pull nails, separate wood, and move other obdurate materials. A gun can destroy, but it can also effectively prevent destruction. And when someone is breaking into my home in the wee hours of the morning, I'd rather point a firearm at him and tell him to get the hell out than threaten to drive a finishing nail into his hand. But maybe Mr. Lea is more skilled with the use of a hammer than I.

Dear Editor,
    Re: “No Discs, No Pease” [News, June 18]: As any regular disc golfer will attest to, the damage done to the Pease Park disc golf course, being the flood zone that it is, has been inflicted more by Mother Nature herself than disc golfers and other park patrons.
    Earth-parching heat and drought, repeated heavy rains, and floods carving erosion gullies on both sides of Shoal Creek dwarf the damage disc golfers inflict on the disc park, which runs from 25th Street to the north hike-and-bike trail entrance at Eeyore's.
    As of the Fourth of July the park looks great, assuming we don't have any more small tornadoes or 67 mph straight-line winds that wipe out shade trees. Or a flood.
    And lest we forget the criminal element(s) disc golfers have helped to eradicate, rest assured, the park will not “rest,” as some members of the Austin Parks Foundation have opined, by closing the course at Pease. The criminal element will return, notwithstanding a promised new disc course to be paid for by the city with plans (and funds) outlined on some bar napkin at taxpayer expense.
    Sara Hensley and her white-collar “experts” who don't have the money or workers to do their present duties are not who I'd trust to build the “world-class disc golf course” as promised, much less “fix” a flood zone or take care of the park as it is, for good or ill … mostly ill.

Dear Editor,
    Kudos to photographer Jana Birchum for the great shot of a man standing in the rain in Downtown Austin [“Naked City,” News, July 9]. I did the same thing that day, because summer rain is a thing of beauty to behold (not to mention a relief from the heat). Nice to see such an inspirational slice-of-life photograph on the News page!

Dear Editor,
    In "Letters at 3AM: Dead and Alive on the Fourth of July" [July 2] Michael Ventura pits well-known cultural figures and institutions against one another. Within pairings of his choosing he draws sharp distinctions between his selections and tags each with a "dead" or "not dead" label. It's clear enough that by "dead" he means "culturally irrelevant." What's less clear, and what I keep wondering is: dead to whom?
    "Johann Sebastian Bach is dead," Ventura tells us, "Duke Ellington is not. The order Bach imposed upon sound is stunning, but it ain't the way the world works. Ellington's miscegenation of harmony, melody, and rhythm is the world we experience."
    The order Duke Ellington imposed on sound is also pretty stunning, as is Bach's miscegenation of harmony, melody, and rhythm. Contrary to what may be the general present-day impression, the referencing and interbreeding of disparate musical sources did not begin with Ellington or with Bach. This referential quality may seem more apparent in Ellington than in Bach only because the 20th century master's references, which include Bach, are more completely our own. It's also worth noting that, though popular during his lifetime, Bach's music fell out of favor during the 19th century and was only revived during the later half of the 20th century.
    To hear only the structural mastery in Bach, formidable as it is, is to miss entirely the complex emotional and psychological content of his music. The fugue may no longer be fashionable, and it may never be again, but pathos and ecstasy are timeless.
    Check out the "Gavotte" from Bach's Suite No. 6 for Solo Cello, in the unsurpassed recording by Pierre Fournier. Here is rhythmically, harmonically unorthodox music with folk roots foreign to Bach's Germany (the gavotte originated as a French folk dance) that also in places seems to look ahead to bluegrass. This spunky, defiantly liberated music is but one example of Bach's extraordinary depth and range.
    In all due respect to Aristotle, art is more than an imitation. Though it almost invariably mimics "how the world works" – how can it not? – it cannot be bound to that. The most profound art is more than a reflection of the everyday reality Ventura prizes; it is an act of the human imagination. It is a vision which strives toward the greatest heights to which the human spirit is capable of soaring.

Dear Editor,
    Richard Whittaker's Formula One overview ["Austin at Very High Speed," News, July 9] has a glaring omission. Nowhere in the article does he reference the tens of millions that will pass from Texas taxpayers to Formula One's London-based owner and CEO Bernie Ecclestone. At first, state officials said that no taxpayer money would be dispensed. Then we learned about a state tax-incentive program known as the Major Events Trust Fund. The fund reimburses local governments for costs incurred in hosting large sporting events, like Super Bowls. It had previously been generated from sales tax receipts attributable to spending in the host community. However, it then came to light that in the last legislative session, $25 million was quietly moved from the General Revenue Fund into the Major Events Fund, and F1 was added to the list of eligible events. The next shoe dropped when we learned that F1 has a "sanctioning fee" that is typically – wait for it – $25 million. So it looks like we'll be paying that sanctioning fee, and state officials now characterize it as a taxpayer "investment" that will be paid back. If I can cleanly lay out these facts and this timeline in a letter to the editor, how is it they didn't make their way into the Chronicle's lengthy 3,000-word article on the subject? Is it somehow not germane in your journalistic eyes?

   [Richard Whittaker replies: The potential for tapping the Major Events Trust Fund was covered at length in the sidebar that accompanied the article (“High-Speed Facts: Formula One Straightaway”). The state's Major Events Fund is designed to assist local government with the costs required to host an event, such as policing and emergency services. (The legislation also allows the cash to be used to cover hosting and application fees, but that has never been done to date.) The cost to the state is then recouped out of sales taxes. As stated in the article, at this point this is all hypothetical: An application cannot be filed until a year before the event, meaning that the earliest the paperwork can be submitted is June 2011.]