We had hoped to host some 400-500 participants in the championships but we had over 1,200 kids and 137 teams compete in the first ever event. Paid attendance was nearly 2,500 for the one day event. Discussions are already underway to consider expanding the championships to a two-day event due to the anticipated numbers for next year. Performances were scheduled every 4 minutes and at the end of the day the competition was completed about 10 minutes ahead of schedule. A special thanks to those board members representing the Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame, the NCA and the NSIAAA for volunteering to serve as event staff as the championship could not have gone as smoothly without them.

We again thank the community of Grand Island for hosting this outstanding event and it will only grow next year. The Event Center was an outstanding venue for the championship and the quality of the facility was only exceeded by the hospitality shown us by the community of Grand Island. We look forward to a long term relationship with Hall County and the City of Grand Island in making this an annual affair. Thanks to all of those playing an instrumental role in making this first ever event one that will be remembered and cherished by the participants and sponsors.

Steve Johnsen,

Executive Director, Nebraska Coaches Association

Fluoride issue has been dealt with

Do the legislators have nothing better to do than try waste our tax dollars trying to circumvent the wishes and vote of the people of Nebraska?

We have spoken several times on the issue of fluoridating drinking water and yet Mr. Johnson and Mr. Aguilar are once again trying to cram down toxic waste down our throats. Give us a break! Given the proclivity of certain State Legislators to continuously try to hammer down our throats issues that have already been voted against by the people of Nebraska and the inevitable vengeance legislation put forth by term-limited legislators, I think it is time to institute legislation that prohibits legislators from bringing any new bills up for vote that is an attempt to override or reword past legislative action that has been voted against by the people of Nebraska, without a majority election vote by the people of Nebraska requesting such item to be reversed or reviewed for a period of fourteen (14) years after the most recent vote.

These continued actions by legislators to reintroduce legislative action into law by-passing an action already voted against by the people of Nebraska is a waste of tax payers money and legislative action. The amount of tax payers money being squandered in Lincoln on these redundant legislative actions trying to by-pass the vote of the people to get their little pet projects shoved down our throats is ridiculous. Do these legislators have nothing more important to do with our tax dollars than spend it trying to by-pass our wishes?

We as a body have spoken very clearly on several occasions that we do not want fluoride (a toxic waste by-product from the production of aluminum, that has been linked to bone cancer, thyroid dysfunction and other serious health issues) in our drinking water. Yet when I emailed Mr. Aguilar about my concerns about this he does not even bother to respond. If he feels that he is not responsible to his constituents, he needs to find a new !job, because he is not going to get my vote. I am so tired of seeing our government waste our tax dollars trying to find ways to get around the vote of the people.

Robert J. Duering

1804 E. 7th St

Bush legacy will be cost of Iraq War

Direct to you from the Bang for Your Buck Dept., it appears the Iraq War will end up costing so much that it makes the Vietnam War look like a weekend outing.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the overall cost of prosecuting the Vietnam War from 1965-73 ran to somewhere around $220 billion in 1973 dollars. The CBO's "conservative" estimate of the total Iraq war costs, assuming we get out four to seven years from now, will be about $839 billion. The "moderate" estimate is $1.104 trillion. That's right with a T enough in stacked dollar bills to reach about a quarter of the way to the moon.

So far, Congress has appropriated some $357 billion. But if you look at a 12-year overall war scenario and include depreciation of military hardware, costs of treating wounded troops, insurance payments for those killed, etc., the total is about three times that.

Then there's the interest. Since we began with a deficit, all the war money has been borrowed at roughly 4%, with a five-year payback.

There is, of course, much more: lost earning power from killed or seriously wounded troops, the continued cost of the State Department's hiring mercenaries as guards (remember when the Marines did that?), etc. Add all that up and the cost is appalling. For those who don't remember, at the war's outset, President Bush said a projected total of $200 billion was a "gross overestimate."

All this is what the current administration has stacked on us, and our children and our grandchildren. If you think folks weren't too fond of Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, who were our presidents from the time the Marines came ashore in Vietnam until we got chased all the way to the helicopters leaving, think how our citizenry will look on the president who began this war under dubious circumstances and who will leave it for the next administration to resolve. Now there's a legacy for you.

Byron W. Myers III

803 S. Kimball St.