Dear Editor,

Dear Editor,

On Saturday, March 18 my husband and I traveled to Montevallo to watch the baseball game between UM and The University of West Florida. We were struck by the quaint beauty of your town and commented on what a beautiful school it was.

To our amazement we watched as former players, one of which had his number retired prior to the game, and fans turned what could have been a lovely day in a lovely town into a downright awful experience. They yelled obscenities at the coaches and players from UWF for the entire second game. What a disgrace to your town and to the University of Montevallo.

The citizens of your pretty little town should be ashamed of the coach, athletic director, players, former players and fans for such poor sportsmanship.

Jennifer Cook

Pensacola, Fla.

Dear Editor,

Once again the federal government is suing Alabama. This time, they are right. Alabamians should be alarmed to learn that, under current Alabama law, those who are bleeding, dying, and fighting to protect the right to vote have been disenfranchised back here at home.

State law sets our election dates. This year, there would only be four days between the date we certify the results of the primary and the run-off. That is scarcely enough time to mail a ballot from Montgomery to Huntsville and far too little time to deliver a ballot to Iraq.

Some of the solutions proposed by the federal government in its lawsuit – such as allowing ballots to be faxed – are illusory. Oftentimes, not even generals in the battlefields around the world have access to fax machines. This is not a solution to this problem.

In a bi-partisan way, my Office and the Secretary of State, with the advice of military and election experts, diagnosed the problem and proposed a real solution that would solve Alabama&8217;s military voting problem and end the federal lawsuit by extending the run-off election date to six weeks after the primary and by providing an extra week during which ballots may be received and still counted.

Extending the run-off election date is not without consequences of course. It will extend the campaigns for candidates who are in run-offs. Many candidates do not want this. We must not forget, however, that the campaigns our soldiers are engaged in are far more dangerous and last much longer.

I urge all Alabamians to stand up for those who are standing up for us. Call your legislators and tell them to protect the rights of those in the military to fully participate in the system they are fighting to defend.

Troy King

Alabama Attorney General

Dear Editor,

In a recent op-ed (Feb. 7), Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh incorrectly states that the American Civil Liberties Union partially wrote and endorsed a Biblical Literacy Project textbook. While I certainly would not want to speculate on her motives for making this statement, your readers should be aware that it is completely inaccurate.

T. Jeremy Gunn

Director, ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief

Dear Editor,

On March 8, 2006, while traveling through Calera, Ala. on our way home to Canada, we had an unfortunate incident occur which turned into a pleasant and memorable experience, thanks to some special people who came to our rescue.

We had just pulled our Chevy Venture over on Interstate 65 with a flat tire when a young man stopped his van and insisted that he change the tire. At the same time a State Trooper stopped to make sure we got safely on our way. The Trooper also directed us to the closest General Motors dealership where we could purchase a new tire.

We arrived at the Victory GMC Pontiac service area about 10:30 a.m. only to find out that the tire would have to be ordered from Birmingham and that it would probably not be ready until 4 or 5 p.m. The staff of Victory GMC Pontiac were very friendly and professional, and suggested things we could do to make our wait more enjoyable.

As we left Victory GMC Pontiac, we were most appreciative of the first class service we had received and knew that we had just experienced southern hospitality at its finest. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the young man who changed our tire, the State Trooper and especially to Connie Edmondson of Victory GMC Pontiac. If this experience is indicative of Alabama, we say &8220;Thanks Alabama, we will be back.&8221;

Tom and Carol Currie

Gananoque, Ontario Canad