Religious directives don't allow Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center staff to perform a medical abortion on a 12-year-old child raped by a "family friend." The hospital receives money from the whole community and is supposed to serve all women needing medical attention, not just with those procedures approved by the Catholic Church. The city of Santa Fe should withhold money given to the hospital to create such a facility.

Catholics have a right to choose their medical practices, and so do non-Catholics. It is a shame that in addition to the trauma of rape, the girl was denied treatment at the only hospital in Santa Fe. We should not have to travel to Albuquerque to receive medical care. What happened to this young girl is a double outrage. Contact city and county representatives and urge them to demand comprehensive medical service for girls and women in Santa Fe.


Circulate effluent

Given all the seeming interest in renewing the Rio Santa Fe through town and maintaining a continuous flow, how about just pumping some or all the effluent from the sewage treatment plant back upstream and letting it flow?

This would not be cheap to start but could be done in annual installments for pipe installation and booster pumps as needed to get back to the first reservoir. The city already dumps a lot of effluent (beyond what they sell to Las Campanas and elsewhere) in the riverbed at the plant, so just moving the dumping upstream shouldn't change any water-rights credits for returning water to the environment.

The only ongoing cost would be the maintenance and power for the pump(s), and that should be largely solvable via the photovoltaic or other power generation that Faren Dancer and others want to get installed, and somewhat reduced by not pumping when there is discharge from upstream.


Grading Gutierrez

It is time for new leadership in Santa Fe Public Schools. The school board has the opportunity to terminate Superintendent Bobbie Gutierrez's contract. Graduation rates are declining. Teachers are punished for speaking out. Gutierrez misled the board in February 2011, claiming a gain when there was a decline in student scores, and then blamed it on a subordinate.

Construction dollars, not education, drive decisions. Three great small schools were closed to create Aspen Community Magnet School. Now, $16 million later, we have a D school with F's in current standing and growth. Gutierrez banned novels in our schools, mandating a $2.8 million excerpted, error-ridden corporate product instead. We have no alternative high school, no support for teachers regarding violence and disrespect in the classroom. Gutierrez blames SFPS's failures on kids in poverty and English language learners. It doesn't have to be this way.


Change or perish

Corruption of the electoral process itself is surely at the root of the sordid mess now masquerading as a democratically elected Congress.

Failure to curtail the overwhelming money flow, now ensuring a successful election outcome, will create an increasingly unprincipled Congress of shills intent on remaining on the federal gravy train by amassing even more money for re-election.

Moreover, tight term limits for every elected federal official (including all appointed federal justices), seem essential to end permanent self-perpetuation in office, leading inexorably to corruption.

As pruning revitalizes growth, so the country deserves a presidential initiative to appoint a nonpartisan commission of statesmen and scholars, mandated to review and develop necessary amendments to our 18th-century Constitution. This revered document is now arguably failing to meet the needs of today's fast, wealthy, 21st-century America. Therefore, modernize our old political system, or government of, by and for the people will perish.


Dancing partners

Last Sunday's article about the upcoming performances of ARCOS Dance inadvertently misidentified the location of the performances. The performances will be held at the newly renovated Moving People Dance Performance Center. As the article correctly pointed out, ARCOS is a newly formed preprofessional dance company in Santa Fe.

Many of its dancers trained with Moving People, a local dance-education school for dancers interested in either the art form generally or in receiving training that will enable them to go on to a professional dance career.

The two organizations are not formally affiliated, but they work closely together to educate, train and provide performance opportunities to aspiring choreographers and dancers in Santa Fe.

We hope that the community will take the opportunity to see the ARCOS performance and, at the same time, come to appreciate what Moving People and ARCOS are doing to enhance the art of contemporary and modern dance in Santa Fe.