Letters to the Editor

Reader states mural not good use of taxpayer money

Eight thousand dollars to paint a mural on the Southwest wall of the Bob Ruud Community Center. Now there’s a good use of taxpayer money for you.

And the money didn’t even stay local.

Bob Feener

Political leanings not part of teaching true history

A new philosophy and new people in government. What will the year bring? Hopefully, less violence and hateful rhetoric. Definitely less virus. Hopefully the exact development and use for the vaccine will be forthcoming within the next few months.

More than ever, Americans need to be taught our history, from the early grades on up through high school and must be a requirement to get a college degree in anything.

Naturally the teachings need to be actual history and not politically skewed. Anyone caught teaching incorrect political history should be fired and lose their right to be a teacher anywhere in the USA.

Henry Hurlbut

Constitution is our only defense against monopolies

Though many politicians on both sides love using the term “creating jobs”, the fact is the government does “not” create jobs in the real sense of producing something. Many may argue they do provide services (like safety) but in order to provide those services they first must take from the producers and this is not done ‘voluntarily’ like private police or fire department.

This is understandable and acceptable to most people. It is also one of the basic thoughts behind the founders of government being authorized to have only ‘enumerated’ powers.

But through many years of clever manipulation and illusions of ‘something for nothing,’ we have been relinquishing freedoms for perceived security. And the job-creating mantra is among them. The government can make politics and rules that motivate people to move in certain directions, including taxation. These things can be positive or negative to society as a whole or they can favor just certain (sometimes even very small) groups.

Just before the turn of the 20th century, there were powerful people that monopolized essential parts of things that almost affected everyone, they were labeled “Robber Barons” and rightfully these monopolies were broken up.

It was a little easier then because these monopolies weren’t quite as deeply embedded with a large enough portion of lawmakers at the time.

And it was prior to the time which the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed which made it more difficult to “buy” politicians because you couldn’t buy just one, you’d have to buy more than half the state’s legislators, which were much closer and important to the people they served and had to answer to, but that’s a longer discussion.

Today we have people that may even wield more power than the past robber barons, but most people are not even aware they exist.

I’m referring to many parts of high technology, that yes in many ways can be a blessing and a great tool to get tasks accomplished faster and easier as well staying in touch with people, but they have as cleverly and covertly done many things to silence, sway unaware millions.

Today these barons are some of the largest contributors to political candidates and causes that are in their best interest, not necessarily in the public’s, and certainly to continue their monopolies and make competition nearly impossible, with the help of the donations.

Everyone understands especially when it comes to political contributions (other than the little guy donating small amounts) they are expecting to ‘buy’ influence in areas that really affect them and high tech as well as those politicians know this can be done in ways that go beyond economic contributions. Our own tech corporations have been helping and learning ways of aiding the Chinese government, to ‘control’ large masses of people in various ways, the only real defense we have is the U.S. Constitution and it seems fewer and fewer people know or care to know much about it anymore.

David Jaronik

The difference between Republicans and Democrats

During my 75-plus years I have voted for Democrats, Republicans and Independents. My family, like our nation, has members of both parties that disagree about government policies. Believe this is called democracy.

Democrats, in general, at both the state and nation levels, have given us: Social Security, medical care for the needy, various attempts to protect our environment. Democrats have also passed laws to rein in business as needed. Democrats’ approach is to work in groups to meet the common good, on both the national level as well as worldwide, to try to solve problems that affect everyone on the planet, be it war, political, or social concerns. Democrats state their belief is that this approach is both the moral and the most effective way to protect our nation’s future and the example we want to set for the world.

Republicans appear to believe that the two issues we as a nation stand for is: to stay out of the way of business, keep taxes on (business low and let the benefits trickle down to the population), nix on environmental concerns (might affect the profits of a particular business) and let the states’ rights folks rule. The way we have approached the pandemic is a classic example: the federal government got us the vaccine the rest is up to the states to deliver.-We are living with this every man/state for themselves approach, with no central leadership or plan to work together as a nation. It is not working out well.

We have just experienced Trump’s latest attempt at a coup. Records from the White House show at least 18 phone calls to Georgia trying to get Georgia to “find” enough votes to overturn the lawful election conducted, checked and certified in that state. Challenges from Trump— numbers differ, some say as many as 60-have failed in the Supreme Court on down through state courts and local election offices. Yet the Republicans want to overturn our election because they are against mail-in voting, and giving all the right to vote in a lawful manner.

Our nation must explore reforms to our electoral process to criminal liability of our elected officials.

We have many challenges ahead of us as a nation.

Stephen Boyce