Thankful

This Thanksgiving Day we can all be thankful that our Founding Fathers were not the indecisive, self-serving wimps we have in Washington today. HOWARD R. BARNES Corona

Jane Walle was among the hundreds of people who gathered Monday night outside the Santa Monica College library to remember the victims of last week's shooting rampage that shook this seaside city. Like the students, staff and neighbors around her, she paced on the concrete until just after 6 p.m., then slowly began the trek to the football field for an hourlong gathering. But just a few steps into her walk, she stopped short in front of a makeshift memorial strewn across a patch of asphalt.

I'm thankful that because of advances in medicine, my unborn grandchildren should live to see the completion of the widening of the 405 Freeway. I'm thankful that Los Angeles is still more business-friendly than the planet Jupiter, although that's mainly because the surface of the latter is minus 235 degrees Fahrenheit. I'm thankful that LAUSD canceled summer school because I firmly believe that after nine months students need a break from not learning anything. I'm thankful that LAX is ranked the third-worst airport in the world because if there are two worse airports, it would seem to bolster theologians' arguments for the existence of hell.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Peyton Manning has had dozens of signature moments in his football career that the outside world didn't witness. Since childhood, Manning has jotted handwritten thank-you notes, and for years he has maintained a tradition of sending them to various NFL players retiring from the game. "I don't know who qualifies for a letter, necessarily," Manning said. "It's probably just somebody I played against for a long time. I don't have to know you real well. The other guys on my list now, I've got [Baltimore center]

In response to Mark Liscio's inaccurate attack on Laura Lake and Friends of Westwood (Letter, Feb. 8): As president of Westwood Homeowners' Assn. and someone who was born and raised in Westwood, I am very involved in most of the "real elements and issues" affecting Westwood's future. I cannot see where we have been "misrepresented" by Laura Lake in our struggle to promote responsible development that follows the existing laws and codes. In a community that has been overwhelmed by development as Westwood has, it has been to our great benefit to have someone with the expertise and educational background as Laura.

For the Marines of Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment, this Thanksgiving in Afghanistan brought one overriding thing to be thankful for: They're about to go home. Within days, the Marines will return to Camp Pendleton after a seven-month deployment that included engaging in firefights with the Taliban, dodging roadside bombs and trying to breathe life into a moribund local government. Although four members of the battalion have been killed in action, Charlie Company has had no fatalities.

USC fan Robert Samoian's letter in Viewpoint last week simply illustrates how much fear Terry Donahue has instilled in USC fans. Fear that is based on the fact that Donahue is the only coach since Red Sanders to have turned the corner on USC's football program. Fear that is based not in that Donahue is 5-7 against USC, but that even with the last loss, he has beaten the Trojans four of the last six years. Most Bruin fans are thankful (and the rest should be) for the job Terry Donahue has done in producing consistently winning and entertaining teams each year.

Since being "liberated" from many of my possessions in January 1994, I have come to appreciate my health, my life experiences and living in the moment. I spend far less energy acquiring "things." Holidays have become celebrations or ritual, spirit and togetherness, not the fruitless search for unwanted and useless gifts. Nancy Joslin Kaleel Sherman Oaks Earthquakes are nothing new to me. Oh sure, I helped dad clean up a 2-foot deep puddle of paint in the garage, but I was not in charge.

We should be thankful that the President will have Hillary. Then he won't have to depend on the fortune teller in Hollywood for advice. C. S. McKINNON Los Angeles

I am a special education teacher at Western Avenue School. David Lopez, who is in my fifth-grade class, wrote this by himself after the class was taught how to write a letter: "I'm thankful for lots of things. I'm thankful for my heart so I can live happy. "I'm thankful for my brain. It lets me think. "I'm thankful for my voice so I can say what's on my mind." This letter really touched me and made me realize a child with special needs can express himself better than some of us "normal" adults.

Vinny Del Negro eased into a chair in what was now his former office as the coach of the Clippers. Del Negro was preparing to pack up his belongings Wednesday, a day after the Clippers had let him go after three years coaching the team. He also had come to say goodbye to the same front office that no longer wanted him as the coach, to chat with the people who helped make his stay fun and to take his coaching staff to lunch. He had come to the conclusion that one has to take the “good and the bad” in the coaching profession and that he had just experienced both.

NEW YORK -- Former Rep. Anthony Weiner, who enjoyed online relationships with several women before he resigned his congressional seat amid a sexting scandal, might have a harder time winning female fans in his run to be New York City's next mayor. Hours after the Democrat used a video posted on his website to announce his candidacy, a poll Wednesday showed that 52% of female respondents said they believe that he should not run for the office. Thirty-five percent said he should be a candidate, and 13% said they were undecided or didn't know, according to the Quinnipiac University poll.

Though he helped the Clippers to their best record in franchise history and back-to-back Western Conference playoff appearances, those weren't  enough for Vinny Del Negro to keep his job as coach of the team. Del Negro said that being let go Tuesday was “hard to take," but that he understood how the business of professional basketball works. He  said he was happy to help change the Clippers' culture. He also wanted to thank Clippers owner Donald Sterling, President Andy Roeser, Vice President of Basketball Operations Gary Sacks and director of basketball administration Eric Miller.

BALTIMORE - Gary Stevens on Saturday became the oldest jockey to win the Preakness, and the Hall of Famer has Clark Masterson to thank. Masterson, a personal trainer based in Bellevue, Wash., helped the 50-year-old jockey lose 25 pounds and nearly 8% body fat during two months of workouts last year. It allowed Stevens to come out of retirement after seven years and resume a riding career that produced eight Triple Crown victories and nearly 5,000 other victories. Running in his 17th Preakness, Stevens rode Oxbow to his third win. Stevens also won the race in 1997 (aboard Silver Charm)

Three Cleveland women rescued after they were abducted and held captive for about a decade thanked the public Sunday and asked for privacy. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight issued statements that were read by a lawyer. "Thank you so much for everything you're doing and continue to do," Berry said. "I am so happy to be home with my family. " "I'm so happy to be home and want to thank everybody for all your prayers," Gina DeJesus said. "I just want time now to be with my family.

The crowd yelled for Dustin Penner to shoot as the final seconds of the second period ticked off the clock Friday at Staples Center. His teammates yelled for Penner to shoot and the coaches joined the chaotic chorus. Penner, not known for always taking coaches' advice, listened this time. "If you don't try you don't know," he said. Because he tried, and because his long shot glanced off the stick of St. Louis defenseman Roman Polak and changed direction enough to catch goaltender Brian Elliott off guard, the Kings took and held a one-goal lead that launched them into the second round of the playoffs.

Ron, be thankful you're not relegated to the parking lot. Besides, if you gave up smoking, perhaps walking a few hundred feet wouldn't be such a chore. CRAIG A. NELSON Cardiff by the Sea

CHICAGO - All the pieces seemed to fall into - and, in one case, out of - place this season for the Angels to have their most regular lineup in years. The infield was set. The trade of Kendrys Morales to Seattle assured that Peter Bourjos , a favorite of General Manager Jerry Dipoto , would start in center field and slugger Mark Trumbo would have a spot. And the March trade of outfielder Vernon Wells to the Yankees removed any temptation for Manager Mike Scioscia to tinker with the lineup by playing Wells too much.

Check any correct answer to the following question: What is 42? a) the number worn by Jackie Robinson when he played with the Brooklyn Dodgers. b) a movie about Robinson's courage in breaking baseball's color barrier in 1947. c) the number of games the Dodgers will win this season. Doug Thomson West Los Angeles :: Perhaps the Dodgers should just put everybody on the disabled list and call it a season. Sterling Buckingham Canyon Country :: I finally figured out what the Dodgers' motto this year means.