Wednesday, November 4, 1998

Phone regulation

With reference to the Oct. 30 article in the Abilene Reporter-News about phone company competition, I have been retired from Southwestern Bell for 12 years and am old enough to remember the cost and level of service under monopoly as well as under the limited competition that we have today thanks to deregulation.

The only improvement in service has come about through technological advances and not competition. Further, competition did not drive the technological advances.

I can remember the research and development at the Bell labs that led by far the readiness for acceptance by the public and also many discoveries that have been adopted by other industries for the betterment of society.

If you feel deregulation of the telephone companies has improved your service, lowered your rates and made access to the supplier easier, then by all means you should push for further competition.

Frankly I think it has increased rates and difficulty in trying to find out where a problem lies and having it serviced.

In the same line, let me comment on the push for competition in the electric power field. If I understand the proposal, it is about as absurd as one can get and will tend to destroy the level of service we now have.

If you really like the confusion competition has brought in the phone company, you will probably love competition for electric power. And while we are at it, why not push for competition in the water and sewer service, too.

PAUL COOPER

Abilene

Via e-mail

Vote no on bonds

Bonds repaid over four years? I doubt it. Bonds are created for very wealthy people to create nontaxable income. Examples: "Librarygate" and the restoration of the train depot on North First.

Once bonds are created they will be there forever. The money will be spent on whatever, necessary or not. The $21 million will never be repaid; however, the taxpayers must pay the interest to make the sale of the bonds attractive to the investors.

If I were a multimillionaire and had $1 million in a savings account paying 5 percent interest, that would be $50,000 taxable income per year. However, being in a 20 percent tax bracket (or more), I would pay Uncle Sam $10,000 income tax per year on that $1 million.

However, if I should buy a $1 million bond, the income is not federally taxed. The $21 million is spent on whatever, and the bond is still intact. The taxes created are necessary to pay the investors, year after year; non-taxed dollars.

The taxes created over a four-year period will be used to pay the buyers the .05 percent nontaxable interest income. Over a four-year period the bond buyers will save $200,000 in federal taxes.

The rich get richer, the taxpayers pay and pay. Vote no to a bond issue.

EARLE ZALANKA

Abilene

Postal appreciation

We visited the U.S. Postal Service processing and distribution center at the old Aileen plant in Abilene a couple of years ago and again this year. It is an amazing thing to see. It would be good for everybody to visit the place at least one time just to see what a tremendous volume of mail is handled there all day, every day.

One thing is for sure: The U.S. Postal Service is to be commended for the excellent work it has done for the past 200-plus years and that it is continuing to do. Benjamin Franklin started it, and it hasn't let up.

Let your letter carrier know and those good folks at the Post Office how much you appreciate them. You should appreciate them greatly.

LEEANN AND HOYT SMITH

Abilene