European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 16, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 14 the stars and stripes letters to the editor sunday january 16,1994 european edition. Col Steven s. Hoffman Usan Cor Monder pulls her a Bernard a. Govt Stokr a a. Editor. A. A news and editorial pal birth a thai now editor. Chi Walker european editor Bob Wicker sports editor George Manet City editor to write us unit 29480 apoae09211 a or Postrach t1 14 37 6427b Darmstadt Garman news Tel fax 06155 601416. To Call us dial 06155-601 plus Extension or Dan 348-8 plus Extension As follows news ext. 237,255,282,226,326. Sports ext. 225, 269, 263,332,321, 221. Features ext. 230, 245, 341. Letters to editor ext. 208. Education Jimi Jones ext. 226. Business news ext. 326. News bureaus Heidelberg Germany Joseph Warr room 117. Rat Verstr. 104.69126 Heidelberg car 419, bom 1310, Apo a 09102 Telephone Dan 370-7010 or civilian 06221-23421 Tel fax 06221-23421. 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The appearance of advertising in this publication including Kite its or supplement does not constitute endorsement by the department of defense or the Start and stripes of the products or services  kids quiet let me say first of All i have nothing against children. I helped raise three of them myself. What i do have a problem with is the parents of children who make a minimum or no Effort to control children at Church services. There is certainly a Good percentage of parents who do control their children or they remove them from the services. It is commendable and should be the Rule rather than the exception for All who take their children to sunday services. The commotion of children who shriek Gibber whine and fuss in a number of ways seems to vary from service to service. There is however always a representable number that manage to make some part of the service inaudible. L Ean Only speak for Catholic services because that is what i am. I was sitting within two rows of a Young woman with three children. One of them was running up and Down the Pew and literally pulling on the necklace of a woman in front of them. The mom just sat there As if she was brain dead making no real Effort to control her children. It is difficult for me to imagine that she was deriving any meaning from the mass that w As going on. Many installations provide free babysitting services for parents or couples who want to attend sunday services. Those who ignore this feature seem to convey the idea that Quot we have to put up with it Why should t everyone else a try attending services at a German French or English Catholic Church. In Germany you could hear a pin drop at services. Children Are at those services too. The difference is that they Are Ream red to be quiet if not they Are not there. At age 63, i can recall a time in my own childhood in Massachusetts that there was a similar Aura of silence. If there was a commotion of some sort someone was there to talk to you about it. It has been Worth the Effort for me to understand German to the extent that i can attend Catholic services. The Reward is being Able to follow the mass not wonder when or if children Are going to be silent or if some Parent really gives a Hoot about others. A John t. Buckley Owci Bruckert Germany a a a. Methods questioned the premise behind requiring Gay men and lesbian women to deny the Vety Reali to of their existence As a precondition to defending their country begs questioning if the objective is to maintain Good order and discipline in the services then the methods used should be of More than marginal concern if i understand the american heritage correctly. Employing intolerance and suppression to ensure military standards poorly serves a nation that values the essential Worth of the individual and prides itself the Beacon of Liberty and enlightenment for the world. A see. James m. White Ansbach German parents rights violated we have received two notices from the department of defense dependents school where our eighth grader attends and the Raf Upwood clinic is located. They informed us that birth control will be available to our children regardless of our consent. We were astounded that children could seek this medical care yet had to be accompanied to the clinic to be seen for a cold. The new York supreme courts appellate division recently ruled that providing condoms was a health service and minors must get parental consent. The supreme court also stated distributing the condoms without parental consent violated the parents constitutional rights under the 14th amendment. What about us and our rights As parents we Are not Content to let the school military clinics government or anyone else make decisions for us on our children a behalf. Will equal time and space be Given to encourage discussions on peer pressure and abstinence this would be very surprising. Aren t we giving up one of our most precious rights when we stand Back and it anyone interfere in the moral teaching or our children a staff sgt. Bill Barrett Raf Aconbury England close minded Christian with regard to a Ami Redrup minds . 30the writer mentions Quot the Pitfalls of doing ones scientific research with an open Bible instead of an open mind a and also Quot the muddled logic used by creationists to disprove theories of evolution. If his letter was hinting that As a Christian believer in the Bible i have a closed mind then so be it. I am not offended. It is god who insists on a closed minded Faith not me. And 1 think that it takes More Faith to try and reason that All of life and creation would evolve simply by Chance than it does to believe that it was All designed by god. A chief warrant officer 2 p. Dean Bailey Sinai Egypt. A a Quot -. A. Hiring discrimination As i leave Germany this week i would like to make a few observations Why does the army say that it is an equal Opportunity employer when it discriminates on the basis of marital status the Only thing spouse hiring preference does is fill communities with unqualified Lazy and unmotivated spouses. Lets face it the reason services Are so bad in Many communities is because the Best people Are not hired for the Job. As for veterans preference this is another discriminatory act that keeps managers from hiring the Best qualified. Its not 1945 anymore and the reasons for having veterans preference Are Long fone. The sad fact is that most of these persian Gulf a a vets were involved in a prolonged fax Field training exercise and did no to face anything More dangerous than Sand fleas and vendors at the outdoor Market. A sgt. Denzel a Williams Erlanger German definitely Worth it in response to Quot military life no picnic . 27while i agree that few people get Rich off of army pay the writer is forgetting several important things. If her husband is a specialist in the army his base pay Basic allowance for quarters bad and Basic allowance for subsistence Bas Are closer to $20,000 not $13,000 As she stated. You must include the bad or the value of rations provided when referring to How much you make. That $20,000 that he makes does no to even include Cost of living allowance co lathe value of medical and dental care tuition assistance 30 Days paid leave commissary savings Etc. As far As their life being difficult Isnit Quot airborne duty something the Soldier volunteers to do army communities Are full of support agencies for Young family members and those with questions problems or emergencies. There Are spouse briefings before every major Field exercise to provide Points of Contact and important phone numbers. Did the wife Ever Contact the family support group these groups Are a wonderful source of information and resources to help family members help themselves. In 1980 the waiting list for housing in Bamberg was 12-18 months for Junior enlisted soldiers so most families lived on the Economy for a while. We received no moving in housing allowance Miha and no overseas housing allowance Oha. Our rent was about $400 and my husbands bad was about $190. Even so our experience living with the German people was so rewarding we passed up housing when it was offered. We enjoyed the culture and traditions of the Small Community of Stedtfeld outside of Bamberg the people took us in and we were truly members of their Quot family aft still feel that Way. The friendships we made there will last a lifetime. We have returned to visit Many times and Are always welcomed with open arms. So to the writers question Quot is military life really Worth it a my answer is definitely yes. A Nancy Arnold Darmstadt Germany at mercy of computers the military has made great strides in keeping up with modern technology. We have the most up to Date tanks helicopters and training devices. Our army even knew where it was in the deserts of Southwest Asia through the use of satellites and its global positioning systems. Computers have invaded the military to make everyone a Job easier. Or have they along with this great technology is the new Standard army response Quot in a sorry we can to make your appointment or change your address. Our computer is  and of course if the computer is Down you. Have to come Back tomorrow and Hope the the computer is up. It is the same wherever you go whether to i process out process ship your car or have your government furniture delivered or picked up. Chances Are that if you go to three offices on any Given Day two of those computers Are Down. Of course we All know that computers Are never wrong. That is Why your sure pay went to the wrong Bank but right state last payday or the Apo is returning your mail to sender 45 Days before the Apo is scheduled to dose the great computer decided you need neither your Money nor your mail. Even cafes has gotten with the times. A charge can be made on defer retd payment plan App with or without the computer being up. But try to make a payment or adjustment without the computer working. The Best thing to do is to go Home and try again some other Day. Done to forget though that your finance charges continue to add up until the computer feels like working again. So after you drive 30 minutes to get to Post and spend 10 minutes looking for a parking space be sure you say a prayer that the computers will be working today and you will be Able to spend your time getting things done. And the next time you hear Quot in a sorry our computer is Down a just remember that the person saying this Only has a 286 microprocessor and is not programmed to think without his computer. A Marion Gilbert bad Hersfeldt Germany editor s note we encourage our readers a especially those who have never submitted a letter a to write to us. Letters expressing readers viewpoints or opinions Are published daily on this Page. All letters must be signed and include address and Telephone number. Preference is Given to Shorter letters so that More can be published in a timely manner. We Reserve the right to edit letters for clarity length and taste. Send to let ters to the editor the stars and stripes unit 20480, Apo a 09211