Ducey needs to change his mind
Gov. Ducey has endangered the health and possibly lives of Arizona students and personnel at all levels. Aside from political pandering, what could be the rationale in forbidding vaccine requirements at state education facilities? Arizona is in the vanguard again in rising cases, hospitalizations and ventilator use. As classes resume without vaccine and mask requirements, the tolls will climb steeply once again in this state.
Children under 12 are not yet eligible for this vaccination. It is incredibly naïve and dangerous to assume youngsters won’t contract COVID, become ill, have long-term health issues, or die. The delta variant has preyed on the unvaccinated at all levels.
Surely the governor will reconsider his mandates, which will have dire consequences for so many. Right now his course of action is dangerous and reprehensible.
Sandra Heater
Foothills
Legislators need a lesson
Great news! Arizonans agree on something!
A recent Gallup poll found that 92% of all Arizonans agree action is needed to ensure our public schools have highly qualified teachers. Unfortunately, Legislative District 11’s Republican legislators, state Sen. Vince Leach and Reps. Bret Roberts and Mark Finchem all support legislation to vastly expand Arizona’s voucher program. Their votes to expand vouchers take tax dollars from public schools where teachers must be certified and give tax dollars to private schools where no certification or qualifications are needed.
Arizona private schools are “free to operate as they see fit.” They can hire anyone and teach anything. Children can be taught the world is flat or the Holocaust never happened — and your tax dollars help pay for it.
If Arizona is to get the highly qualified public school teachers that 92% of us say we want, voters need to elect different legislators in 2022. It’s time to teach LD11 Republicans a lesson!
Thea Chalow
Oro Valley
Bezos in space — what about Earth?
Re: the July 27 article “Bezos is trying to change the world, and that’s OK.”
I don’t indulge in hatred, but I do think Jeff Bezos is a ludicrous egomaniac. Jay Ambrose’s puerile column praising Bezos’ supposed contributions to the betterment of humanity did nothing to change my opinion. How do dehumanizing treatment of labor and runaway consumption improve our lives?
And what of all the billionaires’ adventures in outer space? In 1969 human beings landed on the moon as the Harlem Cultural Festival, chronicled in the new documentary Summer of Soul, was going on. Festival attendees interviewed for the film agreed that the money used for space travel should be spent helping people on Earth. Around the same time, poet/musician Gil Scott-Heron began a poem: “A rat done bit my sister Nell/(with Whitey on the moon)”
Be not distracted by the self-serving antics of billionaires. A little less “brainpower” and a lot more soul power can really change the world.
Kim Mathews
East side
Olympic soccer team protest
How long will we continue to pay for American athletes — in this case our women’s soccer team — to travel to the Olympic Games in order to demonstrate their disdain for their/our country. Their kneeling on the ground during the national anthem prior to the game was, as they intended, a national disgrace.
Of course they have the right to protest and tell the world that America is evil, but should we be supporting it? My boycott of watching and reading about the Olympics began the minute they knelt, and it will continue throughout the Games for all sports. When do we get fed up enough with this behavior that we quit televising it, watching it, writing about it, and reading about it — and involuntarily paying for it. I am at that point right now.
Bill Mason
North side
Suicide by COVID
I won’t mourn those who decide to commit suicide by COVID because it is their right to do so. I have yet to hear any of the non-vaxxers take responsibility for wasting hospital beds and costs or saying how they will prevent spreading the virus, especially to children under 12 who have no choice. I think we all should be about protecting children.
I saw a piece on TV about seat belt laws in the ‘60s. I remember those days. The deciding factor was insurance companies requiring them and not paying for accidents where people didn’t wear them.
In 60 days, insurance companies should deny claims for COVID hospitalizations. No whining about masks. COVID could have been over by now.
Barbara Moore
East side
U.S. economy
Re: the July 27 article “Biden economy under scrutiny.”
Of course the economy is under scrutiny. When a Democrat is in the White House, you can always count on the Republicans to work hard until they find something they can criticize; in this case it’s the inflation boogeyman, and speaking of that, where were the inflation worries when Trump threw baskets of money at billionaires?
Admittedly, pumping too much money into the economy will cause inflation. But what is too much? If you think we’ve already reached that point, you’re wrong. The pandemic is likely to get worse due to the dynamic interplay of the delta variant and the unvaccinated.
Job one is to get us out of out of one of the worst recessions in the history of this country. If inflation becomes a problem, the Federal Reserve will step in. The GOP politicizing the issue is exactly the wrong thing to do.
Walter Mann
Marana
Kevin Dahl for Ward 3
Re: the July 18 article “Star’s endorsements in Wards 3 and 6.”
I was very surprised to see the Arizona Daily Star Editorial Board endorse Juan Padres for Ward 3 over Kevin Dahl. As a news source that frequently covers climate change-related news, it’s disappointing to see them say that Mayor Regina Romero’s efforts on climate change are enough.
This is a crisis, and it should be a top priority for all city leaders. We need as many leaders who understand this urgency as we can get. I support Kevin Dahl because he knows that climate change affects all areas of our society, including business and the economy.
Danielle Hargett
Midtown
Extend 30-day review for I-11
I hope the 30-day deadline to allow more time to review the plans for the new I-11 freeway can be extended.
Although, there is a need to expand alternative routes for transportation in the Tucson metro area, I am concerned about the effect to wildlife habitat.
Ingrid Baumgart
West side
