Letters

Nonbiological fathers should risk being pushed out

Regarding "Once a father, not always a father" (June 18): If a state is going to have an open-ended rule allowing nonbiological fathers to disclaim financial responsibility for children through DNA testing, then the state should also have a complementary open-ended rule allowing mothers to remove rights of custody/visitation from nonbiological fathers. If nonbiological fathers want the right to walk away at any time, then they should also bear the risk of being pushed out at any time.

Laws relating to child custody and child support are currently inequitable in their application. It is much more difficult to collect child support than it is to enforce child custody/visitation. The majority of parents who are delinquent regarding child support are fathers, while the majority of parents with custody are mothers. It is therefore very easy for noncustodial fathers to shirk their financial responsibilities while still visiting the child.
Tulin D. Acikalin
San Diego

When DNA proves that the man in question is not the father, he is often stripped of his visitation rights but not the payments. The old argument that these kids lose a father is nonsense: They did not really have a father at all, but rather a visitor and a financial supporter.
Robert R. Stevens
Lubbock, Texas

Regarding your spread "Land battle heats up dunes" (May 20) illustrating the standoff between environmentalists and recreationalists: My family and I spent nearly 20 years enjoying the dunes at Glamis. Never once during that time did I ever observe a nature lover walking through the dunes to get close to nature. Every fall, the area looks as if a human had never been there before. The dunes are pristine, the wildflowers are in bloom, and the lizards scurry about by the thousands.

This debate is not about environmentalists trying to protect the world from a small group of people bent on destroying nature; it is about a bunch of people determined to control access to public lands.
Ken Jenkins
Paris, Texas

I have two all-terrain vehicles and I still do not think people should be able to ruin these beautiful dunes. There are plenty of places already available to ride. Any area that cannot be patrolled and controlled should be off-limits to any motorized vehicle.
Deborah Parrish
Midlothian, Va.

Regarding "Where are the US soccer fans?" (June 19, Opinion): Carlos Lozada's whine over the success of Team USA in the World Cup deserves a yellow card. To equate a team with the number of fans that do or do not support it is absolutely ludicrous. Would Mr. Lozada have insisted that the Jamaican bobsled team was undeserving if it had won an Olympic medal? No, he would not. Just as with many of his continental compatriots, if he can't derive emotional satisfaction from his teams on the playing field, he will try to relieve his disappointment by a bit of gringo-bashing.
Mike McCarthy
Northern Territory, Australia

Regarding "The world (but not US) is ready for some football" (May 31, Arts&Leisure): There was absolutely no mention of the German team – nothing, nichts, nada. Germany has three Cup titles so far and has made it to at least the quarterfinals in most Cups since 1930. Only Brazil tops it as a four-time winner, and only Italy has also succeeded with three Cup wins.
M. Ballard
Columbus, Ohio

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