COMMENTS ON SOME OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS appearing on the Longmont Times-Call opinion page of Feb. 9, 2010:

First, Robert Ferenc’s letter, “Cameras don’t know who is driving,” regarding the proposed traffic cameras made a lot of sense. (Note: He and I exchanged barbs recently on another issue.) In addition to the several problems Ferenc cited in questioning the use of these devices, my objection is that the cameras installed for traffic enforcement purposes can easily be converted to provide the government with constant surveillance of the people. Unless we prefer to live in the world of “Big Brother,” I think we can do without the authorities watching our every move. And no, I’m not “for” allowing scofflaws behind the wheel to run amok.

In his letter “What do we get for health care?” Tony Umile recommends that it may be worthwhile to compare our health care with that of Europe, which, according to the data he presented, is superior to ours. He may be correct, but I have my doubts. For one thing, the countries involved usually collect heavy taxes from everybody to pay for it. So their free health care may not be so free after all. From personal experience, I’ve visited several different European countries and fortunately had no need to experience their health-care services. Unfortunately, I was once hospitalized in Cartagena, Colombia, and to get out of there and into a hospital in the United States was a most welcome experience for me. We’ve got to be careful in screwing around with our health-care system that we not end up destroying what we have.

And finally, I wish there was some way for Brad Jolly, education activist who authored the essay “School district still misrepresenting the basic facts” to serve as a full-time analyst of school finances and policies. I think it would be helpful to have a knowledgeable, outside person of his caliber monitoring and interpreting the issues, making recommendations if warranted, and publishing the findings on a regular basis. What do you think?