In the Jan. 6 edition, there was a story about those cleaning the shore of the lake. In it was a very telling issue not too many seem all that concerned with.

We drink from the lake. Sure, it goes through filtering. However, that does not give people the right to trash it. It is just as bad as the sides of our roads. I guess people think it is their right to toss trash out the car window or from their boat.

With the lake in mind, drought is a part of a natural cycle of the earth. For Lanier, it is a chance for recovery. Part of that recovery includes the wonderful lack of motorized, polluting, noise pollution and speed demons on the water.

It has truly been "the peaceful shores of Lake Sidney Lanier" lately. The water has also been much cleaner. Gone are the cigarette butts and wrappers, cans and bottles of recently consumed beverages, snagged and cut fishing lines, etc. floating on the water. Gone, too, are the stench and slicks of oily fuel near boat ramps.

I know this will raise the hackles of some, though the truth does hurt. So many boats are put into the lake that are less than mechanically sound, you can follow the sheen of gas and oil as they go. We drink from this lake.

Right now, the lake is in recovery. There are a few who wish to get on the water by extending the ramps. We should embrace this time of recovery instead of pushing our human trash upon this lake, which really gets abuse year-round since there is no offseason to fishing or boating on it.

Many successful reservoirs out west have odd-even days of use for powered and nonpowered watercraft. Is it possible to enlist some type of schedule like that on Lanier, or is it already too lawless? It would give the nonmotorized crowd a safer, cleaner environment to fish from their craft, sail, paddle or row, too, instead of getting hammered by huge wakes, which eventually send the trash to the shoreline.

We drink from this lake. Some also swim in it. Eliminating the amount of trash, oil and gas, both on and in the lake and preserving the water quality should be a paramount concern. Reducing power boat usage is a great place to start.

Jim O'Dell
Flowery Branch

GOP contribution comes with new twist
You know how the Republican National Committee begs for dollars from former contributors and then sends them a color Xeroxed picture of the president and an RNC plastic membership card?

The other week, I received my letter begging for dollars, replete with dire warnings of doom about what will happen if the current pantheon of liberals get their way.

I am just as concerned, if not more so, about where the corporate, neocon White House stooges have already taken us. Still, as a Republican since 1972, I sent them my contribution for the year: a peso note with George Bush's face on it instead of Benito Juarez.

Would you believe my RNC membership card, along with a thank you letter, arrived yesterday?
Clearly, as my beloved grandfather used to say, "Something heah ain't kosher!"

Steven Aanes
Oakwood