Letters to the editor of the Pahrump Valley Times

Remember to pull over for emergency vehicles

I would like to thank the two paramedics that on January 5th, around midnight, saved my life. They got me to Spring Valley Hospital just in time. I had a hernia that was just about to rupture.

They do a great job for the people of this valley and sometimes people here don’t like to pull over for these guys. Remember someday it may be you they are rushing to get to the hospital!

I’m thankful they are out here. Please be courteous and pull over when you see those lights flashing.

Thanks again guys.

Marion Smalls

Our state is proof that low taxes can work

According to the overarching narrative from the political left, tax cuts benefit large corporations at the expense of the American middle class. I’ll give them credit for getting half the story right: businesses will benefit from the new tax law, but not to the exclusion of working America.

Wells Fargo and U.S. Bancorp are two of many institutions raising their starting pay to $15 an hour - $7.75 more than Nevada’s minimum wage for employers who offer health care, and $6.75 more than those who don’t. Las Vegas’ own South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa doubled employee bonuses and canceled a scheduled increase in health insurance costs as a result of the tax cut.

All told, Americans for Tax Reform report that more than three million American workers are receiving bonuses, wage increases, or better benefits thanks to the new tax law. But it’s not just the employees of major corporations who experience the tax cut windfall.

Regardless of where your paycheck comes from, workers will begin to see greater take-home pay as early as February, according to IRS estimates. The new tax system reduces the federal tax rate for every person earning less than $200,000 (or $400,000 for families), and doubles the standard deduction to $12,000 for individuals and $24,000 to families. That means the low and middle-class Americans who need a tax break most are paying zero dollars on their first 12 or 24 thousand dollars of income.

Small business owners - and by extension, their employees - will benefit too. The new tax bill allows business owners to immediately expense the equipment they invest in, rather than spreading their tax savings according to a complicated depreciation schedule. It also allows business owners to fully deduct loan interest, which helps local job creators save money on the new trucks, ovens, or construction projects that will allow their small business to grow into a medium or large one.

The small business owners I’ve spoken with over the years echo a similar sentiment: Nevada’s fairly low-tax business environment makes it a welcome place to plant their roots and build the business they’ve always envisioned, but a lack of capital stops them from expanding.

It’s madness to think that our best-performing small businesses were previously shackled with an almost 40 percent federal income tax rate. Small businesses are responsible for creating more than 450,000 of Nevada’s private sector jobs - they shouldn’t be punished for it by having to hand over close to half their earnings to the federal government.

Removing such a large portion of business income out of a local economy to fund Washington priorities does little to improve the lives of working Nevadans. Our schools are funded and highways maintained with revenue generated from a healthy local economy. And as our state’s own tax structure has proven, there’s no better way to stimulate a local economy than putting money back into the hands of those who drive it forward.

Tax cuts aren’t just a rallying cry for congressional Republicans. They work.

Jim Marchant, Assemblyman

Nevada 37th Assembly District

Family thanks hospice and church family for care

The family of Jean Hiller would like to express our sincere appreciation to Pro Care Hospice, especially Jason and Debbie, and to all the wonderful people from Encompass Home Health for the amazing care of the past few years of Jean. They are the best.

Also, a huge thank you to our wonderful church family at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, who made her feel so happy and loved.

Thanks again,

The family of Jean Hiller

Reader: connecting random questions

Do you listen or read daily news from various media outlets? Do you feel comfortable with the accuracy of what you hear or read?

I suggest keeping your answers to the foregoing questions in mind when you form answers to the ten following questions.

1. What do you feel is the most important thing in your life?

2. What do you believe is the most powerful force on the planet?

3. How do you feel about the political movement to establish a single world government?

4. What do you believe sets humans apart from most other animals?

5. Do you fully understand the meaning and implications of the word ‘infinite’?

6. What do you believe is the spark that gives life, sustains life and ends life?

7. How do you feel about the statement, ‘God gave us reason, not religion’?

8. How do you feel about the statement ‘You were born with the birthrights to be happy, healthy and abundant’?

9. How do you define abundant?

10. Do you subscribe to the statement ’Everything you have been led to believe as being true is false’?

These questions may at first seem random, but they are actually all connected. Think about them, they are more profound than you may think at first.

Dwight W. Hunter