Tucson speaks up: Letters to the editor for the week of Oct. 1, 2021

Many anti-vaxxers are gloating about Covid-19 breakthroughs that some vaccinated people are experiencing, while ignoring pertinent facts:

1. No vaccine ever produced is 100% effective. No one in the government or any health organization ever claimed them to be 100% effective.

2. Covid vaccines have high efficacy (94% to 97%) against Covid-19. That's substantially higher than the flu vaccine that's been tweaked for years. Variants are lowering the efficacy somewhat.

3. Those who have had the vaccine and experience a breakthrough usually get mild symptoms, much like a cold, or are asymptomatic.

4. A few breakthrough cases do require hospitalization, but that is infrequent. Ninety-nine percent of those who currently test positively for Covid-19 are unvaccinated and ninety-seven percent of the deaths due to the virus are unvaccinated.

The massive benefits of getting vaccinated are obvious. Too many of those unvaccinated people want the vaccine--when they are on ventilators or dying. That's too late!

Barbara Mongan

West side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Three letters printed in the September 29 Daily Star follow a cookie-cutter format: claiming personal experience with illness, decrying the Covid pandemic, and warning that Democrats in Congress want to destroy Medicare Part D--by negotiating prices! If these form letters come from real people and not fictional identities created by the pharmaceutical lobby, they are a striking reminder of how dependably the party faithful regurgitate the propaganda they are fed--paragraph by paragraph. Republicans once celebrated their dear leader's promises to lower Medicare drug costs. Now, when the present administration actually threatens to do what the last administration merely promised, it is an assault on our health and safety.

Such reversals are no surprise. But it is sad that Kyrsten Sinema--elected on a platform of seeking lower drug prices--has let $750,000 from pharmaceutical companies turn her into the Republicans' partner in hypocrisy. Is $750,00 the inflationary equivalent of 30 pieces of silver?

Andrew Browning

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Aging is an expensive journey which, even at 79, I’m still figuring out. While I'm incredibly lucky to have Social Security benefits, there are still significant financial stresses for a senior on a fixed income. Thanks to Medicare Advantage, undue health insurance costs don’t have to be one of them.

Prices are going up for medications and treatments, so the out-of-pocket cap that comes with my plan has been crucial in ensuring I can access the prescriptions I need without breaking the bank.

But Medicare Advantage is about more than access to affordable health care. The limited costs associated with my plan allow me to pay for other basic necessities in my life, including my home. If Congress cuts funding from this program, Arizona seniors like me will be hurt.

There are 27 million people in this country who depend on Medicare Advantage, including nearly 600,000 Arizonans. It is my sincere hope that you will stand with us and reject harmful cuts to this program.

Jon Stetson

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

We finally concluded the ninjas' fraudit and now we have Senator Sinema to thank for insulting the Arizona voters who sent her to Washington. Let me be clear: I consider myself a diehard Democrat. Nothing pleased me more than finally electing two Democratic U.S. Senators and a Democratic President of the U.S. But Senator Sinema seems to think she can do what she wants without answering to the public. When asked today "where she is" on the hugely contentious reconciliation bill with a critical vote pending, she answered, "I'm in the Senate". When the reporter persisted and rephrased the question, Sinema mocked him even further by stating, "Clearly I'm in the front of the elevator". By mocking people who are attempting to understand her positions on policies, she mocks all of us.

Arizona deserves better than a rogue freshman Senator who refuses to be held accountable.

Laura Franklin

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

We should all be thankful for General Milly doing his job and contacting the Chinese military to assure them we were not planning any attack on them. You and I may well think it is ridiculous for China to think we would launch an attack, but you and I do not have the Chinese nuclear button under our control. So if the Chinese government is fearful of what was happening in the United States after the election in 2020, they might be more likely to make a mistake and start a conflict no one wants. (Remember a flock of geese triggering a NORAD alert?) So of course the top military officer in the nation should call his Chinese counterpart and assure him there was no danger. To do otherwise would be a dereliction of his duties. Plenty of people in the administration knew of the call.

Donald Ries

Southeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Recent nation-wide seven day daily averages regarding the pandemic include over 138,000 new cases, 2,000 deaths, and 93,000 hospital patients. Why aren't Republican senators, representatives, and governors joining President Biden in his appeals to Americans to get vaccinated? Over 675,000 American have died.

Stuart Sellinger

Northwest side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Yes to pork barrel legislation

I’m certainly not alone being confused about the spending spree that is enveloping our nation’s capital. Let’s skip over the pending $3.5 trillion reconciliation package, which could more appropriately be termed entitlement legislation, and focus on the bipartisan infrastructure bill that’s now thankfully below $1 trillion.

I’m all for bridges but don’t like massive top-down legislation, rather preferring a return to grassroots pork-barrel legislation that allows those we elected — Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, Rep. Raul Grijalva, Sen. Mark Kelly and the others — to personally secure federal money for local projects, retaining our trust and vote.

But now Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Mitch McConnell and Sen. Chuck Schumer run the show, and Arizonans are disenfranchised because we never voted for them.

Our elected representatives no longer have a name or a voice; what only matters is if there is a (D) or (R) after their names. If Arizona needs a new bridge across the Santa Cruz, let our legislators figure out how add it to a bill funding pig farms in Iowa.

Jeffrey McConnell

West side

RTA and water rates

How sad that the Tucson Mayor and City Council threaten to drop out of the Regional Transportation Authority because Tucson is underrepresented on the RTA. Yet these same politicians want to sock higher water rates to unincorporated Pima County residents who have zero representation on the Tucson Water system. Do these hypocrites even see the irony, or are they just shameless? Maybe both organizations need to properly represent all of their constituents.

Charles Broder

Foothills

Get your vaccine, booster ASAP

Many anti-vaxxers are gloating about COVID-19 breakthroughs that some vaccinated people are experiencing, while ignoring pertinent facts:

1. No vaccine ever produced is 100% effective. No one in the government or any health organization ever claimed them to be 100% effective.

2. COVID vaccines have high efficacy (94% to 97%) against COVID-19. That’s substantially higher than the flu vaccine that’s been tweaked for years. Variants are lowering the efficacy somewhat.

3. Those who have had the vaccine and experience a breakthrough usually get mild symptoms, much like a cold, or are asymptomatic.

4. A few breakthrough cases do require hospitalization, but that is infrequent. Ninety-nine percent of those who currently test positively for COVID-19 are unvaccinated and 97% of the deaths due to the virus are unvaccinated.

The massive benefits of getting vaccinated are obvious. Too many of those unvaccinated people want the vaccine — when they are on ventilators or dying. That’s too late!

Barbara Mongan

West side

Medicare drug prices

Three letters printed in the Sept. 29 Daily Star follow a cookie-cutter format: claiming personal experience with illness, decrying the COVID pandemic, and warning that Democrats in Congress want to destroy Medicare Part D by negotiating prices. If these form letters come from real people and not fictional identities created by the pharmaceutical lobby, they are a striking reminder of how dependably the party faithful regurgitate the propaganda they are fed.

Republicans once celebrated their dear leader’s promises to lower Medicare drug costs. Now, when the present administration actually threatens to do what the last administration merely promised, it is an assault on our health and safety.

Such reversals are no surprise. But it is sad that Sen. Kyrsten Sinema — elected on a platform of seeking lower drug prices — has let $750,000 from pharmaceutical companies turn her into the Republicans’ partner in hypocrisy. Is $750,000 the inflationary equivalent of 30 pieces of silver?

Andrew Browning

Foothills

Sinema insults AZ and the nation

We finally concluded the Cyber Ninja’s fraudit, and now we have Sen. Kyrsten Sinema to thank for insulting the Arizona voters who sent her to Washington.

Let me be clear: I consider myself a diehard Democrat. Nothing pleased me more than finally electing two Democratic U.S. Senators and a Democratic President of the U.S.

But Sinema seems to think she can do what she wants without answering to the public. When asked today “where she is” on the hugely contentious reconciliation bill with a critical vote pending, she answered, “I’m in the Senate.” When the reporter persisted and rephrased the question, Sinema mocked him even further by stating, “Clearly I’m in the front of the elevator.” By mocking people who are attempting to understand her positions on policies, she mocks all of us.

Arizona deserves better than a rogue freshman Senator who refuses to be held accountable.

Laura Franklin

Foothills

Protect Medicare Advantage

Aging is an expensive journey which, even at 79, I’m still figuring out. While I’m incredibly lucky to have Social Security benefits, there are still significant financial stresses for a senior on a fixed income. Thanks to Medicare Advantage, undue health insurance costs don’t have to be one of them.

Prices are going up for medications and treatments, so the out-of-pocket cap that comes with my plan has been crucial in ensuring I can access the prescriptions I need without breaking the bank.

But Medicare Advantage is about more than access to affordable health care. The limited costs associated with my plan allow me to pay for other basic necessities in my life, including my home. If Congress cuts funding from this program, Arizona seniors like me will be hurt.

There are 27 million people in this country who depend on Medicare Advantage, including nearly 600,000 Arizonans. It is my sincere hope that you will stand with us and reject harmful cuts to this program.

Jon Stetson Northeast side

The Democratic Party failed to win big, like Biden, in state and local races in the 2020 elections. Their thin congressional majorities resulted in the creation of Frankenstein’s monsters like Kyrsten Sinema, who seems hell bent on feathering her own nest at the expense of the Biden agenda.

Sinema spouts patriotic rhetoric like a profound thinker while scheming, since her days as a member of the House of Representatives, to pander to Republican interests while masquerading as a Democrat.

She has become emboldened to go for the gold - campaign contributions - from right wingers at a Sinema fundraiser with big business, thus proving by her actions that she’s been a conservative wolverine in a more progressive ewe’s garb.

It has been reported by “The Hill” that “The New York Times obtained a copy of the invitation for Sinema’s fundraiser — flanked with the senator’s campaign logo — that is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.”

She’s a capitalist tool.

Mort Ganeles

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

In the lead-up to the election in 2018, I knocked on many doors and made even more phone calls on behalf of Democratic candidates, including Kyrsten Sinema. I now regret my efforts in promoting Sinema from the House to the Senate. If a competent primary opponent emerges to replace her, I will support such individual, and other predictably reliable Democrats have expressed similar sentiments to me. Simply stated, I do not believe that Arizona Democrats would have voted for Sinema if they knew that she was going to become such an impediment to so many major Democratic initiatives, most notably Build Back Better, which has the potential to reshape this country’s social agenda for decades to come. While some might consider her antics amusing, their entertainment value is far outweighed by their dangerousness. If Senator Simema’s goal is to emulate the “maverick” status of former Arizona Senator McCain, I paraphrase Lloyd Bentsen in noting that Arizonans knew Senator McCain, and you, Senator Sinema, are no John McCain.

Bruce Skolnik

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

A recent letter on drug prices repeated a common misconception - that lowering drug prices will halt innovation. The fact is, Medicare negotiation to lower drug prices can curb pharmaceutical industry’s pricing power without threatening needed innovation.

Major drug companies spend more on advertising and lobbying than they do on R&D, demonstrating there is plenty of budget for pursuing innovation. Not only that, these companies could lose $1 trillion in sales over 10 years and remain the most profitable industry globally. In fact, Medicare negotiation could actually drive innovation by rewarding truly innovative drugs with the best prices.

The truth is the most innovative drug in the world is worthless if it is unaffordable, and one-third of Americans don’t take their medications as prescribed due to high drug prices. I hope Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly will pass Medicare negotiation legislation right away to ensure Arizona’s patients can afford the medicine they need

Dr. Eric Cornidez, Chief Medical Officer for the Pain Institute of Southern Arizona

Midtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Although the term intersectionality was introduced in the late 1980s, issues regarding this concept have been prevalent decades before the name. Intersectionality occurs when social categorizations (race, class, gender, etc.) overlap to create a unique form of discrimination or disadvantage. Kimberlé Crenshaw is the individual who first acknowledged the topic of intersectionality and decided to bring it into the public eye. Bim Adewunmi provides ample background information and works to introduce the idea through her interview with Kimberlé Crenshaw. Both individuals focus on how the overlapping of race and gender create unique hardships for black women. They use this form of intersectionality as their only real-world example throughout the interview. Although the term first regarded the lives of women of color, intersectionality covers a wide range of topics that Adewunmi failed to address in her interview.

Ellie Boyer

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Every day brings news of another person exhibiting antisocial behavior, often violently. It is time we stop accepting this sort of conduct. The next time someone attacks a nurse, a schoolteacher, or an election official, they should be ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation. In Arizona a person presenting a danger to others can be subjected to a court-ordered 72 hour evaluation. Physically accosting another person, threatening to take a hostage with zip ties, or acting irrationally and uncontrollably in a public meeting represent a clear danger to others. It may only be a matter of time until gunfire again shatters civil life in Tucson. Get these people help before that happens.

Jim Walworth

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

When Senator Kyrsten Sinema was first elected to congress I was hopeful that she had a vision for Arizonas' future which included representing the people without being sucked into the Washington corruption vacuum.

I was wrong. She has surpassed former senator Martha McSallys' idiocy and now refuses to support older Arizonans that had hoped for some relief from ridiculously high drug prices. Having been bought out by the pharmaceuticals, that isn't going to happen.

She has failed to show up for key votes. When she does, she accentuates her vote with a childish curtsy. That's cute in the 3rd grade class play but not in Washington where enough lunacy already resides.

Time for her to slip into her roller skates and make the trip south to Mar-a-Lago where she can play in his sandbox and be cute. Any damage she does there would be miniscule compared to that of the proprietor.

Mark De Grofft

Southeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

We have two-thirds of a million Americans dead by COVID-19, many of them by their own choice. COVID-19 is a terrible disease of suffering, of possible long-term consequences for survivors, and of possible death. Millions of people are choosing to take this risk rather than take the vaccine. Some use superstitious beliefs to justify it. What, the vaccine makes you magnetic? It changes your DNA? What does it do, make you grow two heads? Why don’t you use the one you have? Some are getting caught by their choice and they lose time in the hospital, simply trying to breathe and to live. The cost is large, but they won’t pay it. We’ll pay it, bit by bit, month by month, year by year. They tie up a hospital ICU bed and nurses and doctors. Everybody else who has a heart attack, accident injuries, stroke, or anything else is blocked by what they have done.

George Yost

Vail

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

The Generals were all in agreement, keep at least 2500 Americans at the Bagram air base. If we would have done so, we would have been setting up for another Alamo. Like Alexander The Great, we still don't understand the Afghanistan culture.

David McCarty

Northwest side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Some of your readers appear to believe anyone who criticizes the current administration watches Fox News, implying they are red-necked morons. As a counterpoint, maybe those critics should remove their rose-colored glasses and watch a little Fox News, or at least do a modicum of independent research. They will find that the Afghanistan withdrawal was a total blunder, both in planning and the lasting effect. They will also find that the border fiasco was precipitated by the Biden invitation that the border was open and that current immigration laws will not be enforced. Shop anywhere and you will notice rising inflation. 10 million jobs are available but cannot be filled because the free-money policy of mother government has convinced many that government largess is more lucrative that actually working for a living. The President will not answer a question unless “they?” approves it and the Vice President is essentially in hiding. And things are just rosy?

Pudge Johnson

Oro Valley

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

COVID vaccine denial

We have two-thirds of a million Americans dead by COVID-19, a terrible disease of suffering, of possible long-term consequences for survivors and of possible death. Millions of people are choosing to take this risk rather than take the vaccine. Some use superstitious beliefs to justify it. What, the vaccine makes you magnetic? It changes your DNA?

What does it do, make you grow two heads? Why don’t you use the one you have? Some are getting caught by their choice and they lose time in the hospital, simply trying to breathe and to live. The cost is large, but they won’t pay it. We’ll pay it, bit by bit, month by month, year by year. They tie up a hospital ICU bed and nurses and doctors. Everybody else who has a heart attack, accidental injuries, stroke, or anything else could be blocked by what they have done.

George Yost

Vail

Beautiful gift of generosity

We wish to share a wonderful experience which occurred while celebrating our 61st wedding anniversary at a Tucson restaurant. As we prepared to leave we were informed that the couple seated near us had taken care of our check! We were astonished and proceeded to meet and thank them. It unfolded that they too were celebrating an anniversary, their seventh. We have been fortunate to live long and happy lives but this encounter is one of our nicest and most memorable.

In a period when our society appears in division, turmoil, and discontent, it is encouraging to encounter such a wonderful and generous couple.

We plan to pass on their generosity.

Robert and Linda

Hutchens

Marana

Unacceptable behavior

Every day brings news of another person exhibiting antisocial behavior, often violently. It is time we stop accepting this sort of conduct. The next time someone attacks a nurse, a school teacher, or an election official, they should be ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation. In Arizona a person presenting a danger to others can be subjected to a court-ordered 72-hour evaluation. Physically accosting another person, threatening to take a hostage with zip ties, or acting irrationally and uncontrollably in a public meeting represent a clear danger to others. It may only be a matter of time until gunfire again shatters civil life in Tucson. Get these people help before that happens.

Jim Walworth

Northeast side

Another embarrassment for Arizona

When Sen. Kyrsten Sinema was first elected to Congress I was hopeful that she had a vision for Arizona’s future which included representing the people without being sucked into the Washington corruption vacuum.

I was wrong. She has surpassed former Sen. Martha McSallys’ idiocy and now refuses to support older Arizonans who had hoped for some relief from ridiculously high drug prices. Having been bought out by the pharmaceuticals, that isn’t going to happen.

She has failed to show up for key votes. When she does, she accentuates her vote with a childish curtsy. That’s cute in the third grade class play but not in Washington where enough lunacy already resides.

Time for her to slip into her roller skates and make the trip south to Mar-a-Lago where she can play in his sandbox and be cute. Any damage she does there would be miniscule compared to that of the proprietor.

Mark De Grofft

Southeast side

Crooked state government

The only part of Arizona government that was fair, honest, and uncorrupted was the election process. Now the Republicans are working at turning that into another tool of Republican heavy-handed dominance and dishonest government. Under the watch of Gov. Doug Ducey, Sen. Karen Fann, Rep. Mark Finchem, Rep. Paul Gosar and other local and remotely-located acolytes of a former President are working toward a completely fascist state government.

Once Arizona led the country in absurd governance. Now, except for the teaching-people-how-count charade Fann imposed, the Republicans in Arizona are just copycats. Oh, God of stupid and cupidinous professional politicians, where is the honor in that?

Charles Larson

Green Valley

Innovation is useless if prescriptions are unaffordable

A recent letter on drug prices repeated a common misconception — that lowering drug prices will halt innovation. The fact is, Medicare negotiating to lower drug prices can curb the pharmaceutical industry’s pricing power without threatening needed innovation.

Major drug companies spend more on advertising and lobbying than they do on research and development, demonstrating there is plenty of budget for pursuing innovation. Not only that, these companies could lose $1 trillion in sales over 10 years and remain the most profitable industry globally. In fact, Medicare negotiation could actually drive innovation by rewarding truly innovative drugs with the best prices.

The truth is the most innovative drug in the world is worthless if it is unaffordable, and one-third of Americans don’t take their medications as prescribed due to high drug prices. I hope Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly will pass Medicare legislation right away to ensure Arizona’s patients can afford the medicine they need.

Dr. Eric Cornidez

Midtown

Buyer’s remorse on Sinema

In the lead-up to the election in 2018, I knocked on many doors and made even more phone calls on behalf of Democratic candidates, including Sen. Kyrsten Sinema. I now regret my efforts in promoting Sinema from the House to the Senate.

If a competent primary opponent emerges to replace her, I will support such individual, and other predictably reliable Democrats have expressed similar sentiments to me. Simply stated, I do not believe that Arizona Democrats would have voted for Sinema if they knew that she was going to become such an impediment to so many major Democratic initiatives, most notably Build Back Better, which has the potential to reshape this country’s social agenda for decades to come.

While some might consider her antics amusing, their entertainment value is far outweighed by their danger. If Sinema’s goal is to emulate the “maverick” status of former Arizona Sen. John McCain, I paraphrase the late Sen. Lloyd Bentsen in noting that Arizonans knew Senator McCain, and you, Senator Sinema, are no John McCain.

Bruce Skolnik

Northeast side

What are her true colors?

The Democratic Party failed to win big in state and local races in the 2020 elections. Their thin Congressional majorities resulted in the creation of Frankenstein’s monsters like Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who seems hell bent on feathering her own nest at the expense of the Biden agenda.

Sinema spouts patriotic rhetoric like a profound thinker while scheming, since her days as a member of the House of Representatives, to pander to Republican interests while masquerading as a Democrat.

She has become emboldened to go for the gold — campaign contributions — from right-wingers at a Sinema fundraiser with big business, thus proving by her actions that she’s been a conservative wolverine in a more progressive ewe’s garb.

She’s a capitalist tool.

Mort Ganeles

Foothills

Happy with booster shot

My wife and I had our second Pfizer shots last February at Tucson Medical Center. We were delighted to receive the protection they offer. We read that the efficacy of the shots were fading and so were eager to receive the third (or “booster”) shots. Now it is much easier to get the Pfizer shots than it was last winter. They became available so we got our third shots easily on the 28th at a nearby Safeway pharmacy. The pharmacists were professional and pleasant. The minor soreness from the injections we received in our left shoulders was the same as the first shots and are not a problem.

I do not understand the rationale of the anti-vaxxers now filling our hospitals with naysayers who are sick and dying because they refused the COVID vaccines. They do a disservice to their friends and relatives, and, of course, to themselves. This was all unnecessary had they simply received the free vaccines.

Jeffrey Dean

Northwest side

Donald Trump answered the question of his own sanity on January 21, 2017. But, unfortunately, too many people failed to grasp the situation and perceive what this man could do in four years; we found out.

Trump’s megalomaniacal personality took the position of every ruthless dictator since 1938. His attempts to create a dictatorship went noticed by those who could see. The “blind,” lead by Trump himself, managed to recreate the world in his image.

The Republican Party is no more. There aren’t enough sane GOP Senators or Congresspeople to resurrect the party. It’s been trumped. Trump has no power. Right… So, how and why has he demanded elected officials across the country to do his bidding (Texas’ Greg Abbott holding recounts in a state Trump won? Arizona?Pennsylvania?).

Trump can do this because GOP leeches and bullies need his hate and lies to reach his base. They need those votes from riled-up people. Do as Mitch McConnell does - say NO to everything.

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Are the Republican “leaders” in the Senate and House as stupid and unbalanced as they seem? Can they really ignore facts and history this easily?

Sen. Josh Hawley, a pack leader of misinformed wolves, wants President Joe Biden’s top officials to resign due to the “disastrous” Afghanistan withdrawal. But, of course, Hawley and the far-right cannot seem to recall it was his hero, DD (draft-dodger) Donald Trump, who surrendered to the Taliban February 29, 2020, conceding to all the demands of the terrorists.

DD cut the armed troops down from 13,500 to 2,500 - with orders not to shoot. It was Trump who agreed to leave our equipment in-country, and release 5,000 Taliban prisoners. It was DD who had fourteen months to formulate a plan of withdrawal by May 1, 2021, and did NOTHING - not even discuss a plan or begin removal of our Afghan friendlies.

Now, Biden is being blamed for a withdrawal that Trump had a year to plan and did nothing.

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

We read too much from the right-wing about President Joe Biden's "failing" on controlling COVID-19 and vaccine distribution. It appears weaker minds that reject the vaccine for whatever reasons created by right-wing fascists and anti-democracy losers have been affected in many ways. Their logic and reasoning abilities are shot.

Biden is criticized by these same "people" and their ignorant "leaders in Congress," who have already been vaccinated. They attack his comments about wearing masks, his insistence on vaccines and his mandates for those vaccines. They, of course, reject every attempt to curtail the pandemic on the basis that their false sense of being "healthy" takes precedence - or their irrational fear of microchips, sterility, infertility, death, pain, government control, et al.

They disregard the FACT that over 90 percent of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths are unvaccinated people (99.5 percent in Texas), most likely themselves. In fact, as of September 20, unvaccinated people are 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 and its variants.

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Doesn't it seem as though the administration has a better plan for shipping Haitians back home from Texas, than for flying Americans home from Afghanistan?

Jeff Chambers

West side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

In 1974, just before Republican Richard Nixon resigned from the office of the President of the United States, Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wanted any orders for nuclear attack coming from President Nixon to be vetted by them first. There was also concern that Nixon would call in the Army to protect the White House in case Nixon refused to resign or recognize he lost his impeachment trial. These actions were literally unconstitutional, but did protect the United States and the world.

In 2020 and 2021 Mark Miley pre-empted the possible same problems found in 1974. General Mark Milley deserves a fifth star for protecting the United States and the world from President Donald Trump.

Matt Somers

Midtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Since the Republican Party is against whatever the Democratic Party is about these days: vaccines, masking, voting rights, anti-fascism, abiding by the Constitution, majority rule, certifying elections, etc., then I think that the Democrats should start a campaign outlawing Russian roulette. The 147 congressional members who voted against certifying the electoral votes in the last presidential election, hopefully, will see this as an opportunity to lead the charge to squash this legislation by loading their revolvers and proving to the world that they are dead—pun intended—against this infringement on their right to play a spirited round of Russian roulette with whoever is dumb enough to play with them. God bless them and their interpretation of freedom—to act as stupidly and irresponsible as they possibly can. This could prove to be the most revetting anecdote for the theory of evolution the world has ever witnessed.

Melvin Brinkley

Downtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Mr. President, here is your morning briefing:

There is a full-blown humanitarian crisis centered at Del Rio on our southern border. We had 200,000 apprehensions in August alone, totaling 1.5 million this year. The Border Patrol and ICE are overwhelmed by the surge.

The Afghanistan exit has been an unmitigated disaster and Americans are still trapped in the country. Your drone strike only killed civilians, not the key ISIS-K planner you first claimed.

The FDA has rejected your demand for COVID-19 booster shots for all Americans. The virus is surging.

Your two Congressional infrastructure bills totaling $5 trillion are on life-support.

France, our oldest ally, is enraged that you snubbed them in making a national security deal with the United Kingdom and Australia behind their back.

Violent crime in our cities continues to accelerate.

But don’t worry sir, the press loves you and they will spin it your way.

Jeffrey McConnell

West side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

In the world of living organisms, life is able to subsist on other living organisms; the result of Darwinian Selection!

Human Society is no exception; a Social System, with exceptions, that supports parasitism and predation; pursuing self-interest at the expense of others and the common good; with the necessity of "Laws", both religious and secular and the creation of a "Higher Power", a God, to Oversee and Control Human Behavior.

This has not changed in thousands of years; with no indication that it will Change and an understanding that in Human Society it is NOT about ME, or YOU...if it about US!!!

Francis Saitta

Downtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

I’ve lived with Type 1 Diabetes for most of my life. While certainly not ideal, I’ve learned how to manage my symptoms through a careful regimen of tests, injections, and monitoring.

Given the importance of these medications to me, I cannot in good faith, support Congress’s current attempt to pass Medicare negotiation. Congress is trying to institute price controls that could limit the variety of treatment options readily available to me and the other 34.2 million Americans who suffer from diabetes.

Yes, patient out of pocket costs are too high, but enforcing government price fixing policies that will limit access and choice is not the answer. Instead, I encourage our representatives to look at other solutions such as holding insurers accountable for gobbling up rebates or simply capping out of pocket costs for our vulnerable patient populations.

On the heels of a pandemic, I can think of no worse time for legislators to choose to sacrifice crucial accessibility in the name of government savings.

Andrew Malki

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Earlier this year, I fell ill with COVID-19. While I certainly knew that the disease was serious, I was surprised by how difficult the recovery process was. It took months before I felt okay.

My experience as a COVID-19 patient gave me a newfound appreciation for pharmaceutical innovation and access to medical care. My battle with COVID-19 is why I am opposed to Congress’s current attempt to pass Medicare negotiation. This measure could severely limit innovation, effectively reducing the number of new cures and treatments available to patients.

I speak from first from firsthand experience when I say that we need scientists and researchers working around the clock to find new cures, treatments, and vaccines to combat COVID-19 as well as the next deadly virus or disease that will inevitably come our way.

With new variants evolving all the time, I urge Arizona’s members of Congress to vote against weakening innovation. Trust me, you can’t put a price health.

Salina Joos

South Tucson

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

The so-called "audit" of votes in Arizona's largest county was fraught with fraudulent failings from the beginning. A partisan band of Republican legislators commissioned it after three legitimate audits, by duly-appointed professionals, had confirmed President Biden's victory. It was run by a self-proclaimed trump-supporter with no experience conducting vote audits, and it operated under shoddy, inconsistent and somewhat secretive rules. Nevertheless, even the Cyber-Ningas were unable to justify trunp's lies about losing the election.

Trump's reaction was to double-down on his lies, as he always does when the lie is exposed, with his Republican puppets now clamoring for even more fraudulent audits. This reminds me of trump's "birther" campaign against President Obama, when he falsely accused Obama of not being born in the USA, despite release of Obama's birth certificate. That was a training session for fascist attacks on truth itself, which have now metastasized into a democracy-threatening epidemic.

Bruce Joffe

South side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Dear Editor,

Even a few Dems are turning away from the Trillions of dollars for the Infrastructure bill, not just the Republicans. I don't get it. Do they not think the money won't boost the economy with thousands of jobs creating more income, creating tax revenues, allowing people to buy homes, eat out, go to Disneyland, whatever. And the longer we wait, the more expensive it will be, and more difficult, as our bridges and roads deteriorate. Of course there are many other inclusions in the bill, but all of them will help our fellow citizens and most important, our planet! The money going out will come back 10 fold. Here's the sad part, under McConnell's so called leadership, it doesn't matter what's good for the people, for the country, it only matters that the Dems get nothing done. This is NOT leadership. I hope senators from his party do the right thing. It's beyond critical.

Ginia Desmond

Downtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

I’ve been living my entire life with an autoimmune disease that’s forced me to live more cautiously, especially right now that we are going through an uptick in COVID Delta Variant cases. Because of my preexisting condition, when I caught covid last year, I was faced with difficult decisions like being intubated under anesthesia to help with my breathing.

I’ve learned to live with my autoimmune disease and I survived Covid-19.

Knowing the comfort that access to these life saving medications have brought me, I feel obligated to speak out against Congress’ obsession with repealing a key provision in the Medicare Part D program that protects access to medicines and coverage for our most vulnerable. By allowing the government to try to pinch pennies, we are sacrificing access to the medicines we need the most, for the vulnerable in our community.

I urge our lawmakers in D.C. stand for Arizonans and stop this attack on our access to life saving medicines.

Cecilia Duran

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Money will boost economy

Even a few Democrats are turning away from the trillions of dollars for the infrastructure bill, not just the Republicans. I don’t get it. Do they not think the money won’t boost the economy with thousands of jobs creating more income, creating tax revenues, allowing people to buy homes, eat out, go to Disneyland, whatever?

The longer we wait, the more expensive it will be, and more difficult, as our bridges and roads deteriorate. Of course, there are many other inclusions in the bill, but all of them will help our fellow citizens and most importantly, our planet!

The money going out will come back ten-fold. Here’s the sad part: Under Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell’s so-called leadership, it doesn’t matter what’s good for the people, for the country; it only matters that the Democrats get nothing done. This is not leadership. I hope senators from his party do the right thing. It’s beyond critical.

Ginia Desmond

Downtown

Failure from the start

The so-called “audit” of votes in Arizona’s largest county was fraught with fraudulent failings from the beginning. A partisan band of Republican legislators commissioned it after three legitimate audits, by duly-appointed professionals, had confirmed President Biden’s victory. It was run by a self-proclaimed Trump-supporter with no experience conducting vote audits, and it operated under shoddy, inconsistent and somewhat secretive rules. Nevertheless, even the Cyber-Ninjas were unable to justify Donald Trump’s lies about losing the election.

Trump’s reaction was to double-down on his lies, as he always does when the lie is exposed, with his Republican puppets now clamoring for even more fraudulent audits. This reminds me of Trump’s “birther” campaign against President Obama, when he falsely accused Obama of not being born in the USA, despite release of Obama’s birth certificate. That was a training session for fascist attacks on truth itself, which have now metastasized into a democracy-threatening epidemic.

Bruce Joffe

South side

Congress, leave Medicare alone

I’ve been living my entire life with an autoimmune disease that has forced me to live more cautiously, especially right now as we are going through an uptick in COVID delta variant cases. Because of my pre-existing condition, when I caught COVID last year, I was faced with difficult decisions such as being intubated under anesthesia to help with my breathing.

I’ve learned to live with my autoimmune disease, and I survived COVID-19.

Knowing the comfort that access to these life-saving medications have brought me, I feel obligated to speak out against Congress’ obsession with repealing a key provision in the Medicare Part D program that protects access to medicines and coverage for our most vulnerable. By allowing the government to try to pinch pennies, we are sacrificing access to the medicines we need the most, for the vulnerable in our community.

I urge our lawmakers in D.C. to stand for Arizonans and stop this attack on our access to life-saving medicines.

Cecilia Duran

Foothills

Medicare negotiations

I’ve lived with Type 1 diabetes for most of my life. While certainly not ideal, I’ve learned how to manage my symptoms through a careful regimen of tests, injections and monitoring.

Given the importance of these medications to me, I cannot in good faith, support what Congress is considering. Congress is trying to institute price controls that could limit the variety of treatment options readily available to me and the other 34.2 million Americans who suffer from diabetes.

Yes, patient out-of-pocket costs are too high, but enforcing government price-fixing policies that will limit access and choice is not the answer. Instead, I encourage our representatives to look at other solutions such as holding insurers accountable for gobbling up rebates or simply capping out-of-pocket costs for our vulnerable patient populations.

On the heels of a pandemic, I can think of no worse time for legislators to choose to sacrifice crucial accessibility in the name of government savings.

Andrew Malki

East side

Congress and Medicare

Earlier this year, I fell ill with COVID-19. While I certainly knew that the disease was serious, I was surprised by how difficult the recovery process was. It took months before I felt OK.

My experience as a COVID-19 patient gave me a newfound appreciation for pharmaceutical innovation and access to medical care. My battle with COVID-19 is why I am opposed to Congress’ attempt to change Medicare. This measure could severely limit innovation, effectively reducing the number of new cures and treatments available to patients.

I speak from firsthand experience when I say that we need scientists and researchers working around the clock to find new cures, treatments and vaccines to combat COVID-19 as well as the next deadly virus or disease that will inevitably come our way.

With new variants evolving all the time, I urge Arizona’s members of Congress to vote against weakening innovation. Trust me, you can’t put a price on health.

Salina Joos

South Tucson

You get what you (don’t) pay for

Whenever I see a letter complaining about infrastructure or government service problems, I want to ask the writer one question:

Have you ever once voted for or supported any person or policy pushing for low taxes?

If the answer is yes, it is time for you to sit down and keep your complaints to yourself because this is what you wanted.

Our current infrastructure is a direct result of 40-plus years of starving the beast. Roads don’t maintain themselves. Litter doesn’t magically end up in a landfill. Basic maintenance must be paid for somehow, and the magical thinking of supply side economics has an incredibly bad record on that front.

We have two options. One, live with the filth and crumbling world in the name of small government. Two, admit that the maintenance fairy doesn’t exist and start paying for decades of neglected upkeep.

David Reynolds

East side

Marana is the real bully

Re: the Sept. 27 article “Marana mayor calls Tucson threat to leave regional transportation group ‘playing bully’”

I beg to differ with Marana Mayor Ed Honea. The city of Tucson isn’t the bully in the room when discussing the Regional Transportation Authority. The small jurisdictions like Marana, Sahuarita and Oro Valley are the bullies with their oversized power on the PAG Regional Council and the RTA Board.

The small jurisdictions have seven of the nine votes, representing less than 15% of the Pima County population. That leaves 85% of the population with just two votes.

The State of Arizona recommends that voting systems apportioned on an equitable geographic population basis. Arlie Adkins, an associate professor of urban planning at the University of Arizona, pointed out in his presentation to the Regional Council that the lack of proportional representation leads to the disenfranchisement of urban residents and people of color.

There’s been a recession, pandemic and an insurrection, so the status quo no longer works. All Tucson Mayor Regina Romero is asking for is fair and equitable representation, but “Of course those that are winning in an inequitable system don’t want to change that system.”

Ruth Reiman

Midtown

Choices matter

My husband was recently told he had blockages in his arteries, including a 90% blockage commonly referred to as the “widow maker.” We had to wait 25 days from the time the cardiologist diagnosed blockages to surgery. We had 25 days to wonder if he would die before his surgery because we couldn’t get scheduled. We were lucky he didn’t have a heart attack and lucky his surgery went well. We also had 25 days to really evaluate the impact extremists in our State Legislature and our governor have had on Arizona’s COVID trajectory.

This didn’t have to happen. Health measures didn’t need to be weaponized. We could have been encouraged to work together to make this all go away. Instead, we had extremists implementing policies designed to appease the Trump base, not to keep people safe. People should matter more than ideology. People shouldn’t have to wonder if they can get essential medical care because of misinformation and arrogance. Change is needed.

Barbara Russo-Sprouls

SaddleBrooke

Whether those individuals indicted are in Arizona or wherever, remain a clear and present danger to society because they could be so easily brainwashed into committing violence. What is the next big lie they will unshakably believe, without any evidence to the contrary? Will the White House be the next building they storm?

Perhaps they should have given more thought to the ones for which they owe responsibilities, both innocent children and elders. They probably still have the internet so they can complain to thousands over how badly they are being treated, when in fact it is this Country they are mistreating.

It is disgusting when the insurrectionists have the freedoms that others would die for. Is it really the time to turn a blind eye to their crime where men died trying to stave off the insurrectionists attack? I think not.

Bevelry Tencza

Rio Rico

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

A lesson in hypocrisy: if treason is defined as giving aid and comfort to the enemy, and we are said to be engaged in a war against Covid-19 in which the enemy is a virus, is not the status of anti-vaxxers clear? The irony is that most of them claim to be patriots, not traitors.

Robert Houston

West side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Gingrich introduced America to ugly hate politics which Trump honed into our most gruesome political era since the Civil War.

We suffered through the toxic Trump presidency managing to sidestep his last-minute coup attempt.

The Constitution and our cherished democratic republic survived those gruesome four years thanks to the awakening of the slumbering giant of the American spirit and its devotion to the rule of law.

Purveyors of ugly hate politics, lick their wounds and lust to return to power, lurking in the wings plotting another insurrection to overthrow the Constitution, sowing hatred and division, to impose an autocracy.

Frustrated and frightened political pundits, who lack the insight of crystal-gazers, gnash their teeth and wring their hands as they vainly strive to postulate our future under gray skies and fail to conjure optimistic predictions.

Don’t stumble into that quicksand. Instead, resolve to join with other patriots to prepare to fight tyranny and protect our democracy.

Mort Ganeles

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

On Sixty Minutes Liz Cheney said that Trump doesn't believe in the rule of law and violated his oath of office. Those things are not in dispute, but the rest of the Republican Party, except for Adam Kinzinger, continues to accept Trump as their leader and probable candidate for President in 2024.

In addition, Trump incited, and then condoned, the attack on the Capitol of January 6th, an obvious act of sedition, which is a crime.

If the Republican Party accepts and condones what Trump stands for and has done, they are totally complicit. What a disgrace.

The only thing that will disrupt and stop this bizarre situation is for Trump to be prosecuted, convicted and sent to prison, because a President cannot be allowed to get away with being an unlawful traitor.

There is no reasonable argument to the contrary, so where is the outrage?

Richard Winkler

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

AZ audit, Trump lost, no fraud

I asked my Magic 8-Ball if Biden won the 2020 presidential election. The 8-Ball confirmed that Trump lost. It cost $8.88, far less than the almost $6 million that the Cyber Ninja “audit” cost, and it has the same level of credibility. Plus, my Magic 8-Ball isn’t a conspiracy nut.

If Arizona is truly interested in solving problems, they should give the Magic 8-Ball a try. Arizona could get rid of those pesky elections altogether. Candidates would just ask the Magic 8-Ball if they won. No exit polls. No recounts. No need for voters. The answer would be instant. Except for the times it answers “Try again later.”

Vern Lamplot

North side

The Fraud-It is over

The Presidential Election Audit initiated by some Arizona State Republicans is over, and they have indeed discovered “fraud” that has been uncovered. The fraud that has been unearthed is their own devious actions in trying to perpetuate the “Big Lie.” They also spent a lot of our state taxpayers dollars on this sham.

The following is a partial list of politicians that supported this sham. Let us remember their names, next time it comes to election time. They should never be allowed anywhere near elected office again.

Arizona Senate President Karen Fann, GOP chair Kelli Ward, state Rep. Mark Finchem, Sen. Wendy Rogers, Sen. Kelly Townsend, Rep. Paul Gosar, Rep. Andy Biggs and Rep. Debbie Lesko. They have betrayed the trust of citizens of Arizona.

David Keating

Northeast side

City council raises

What we are paying our City Council here in Tucson is an embarrassment: $36,000 to the mayor and $24,000 to counsel members. We lag far behind the seven largest Arizona cities.

For example, Mesa, with a population 40,000 fewer people than Tucson, pays their mayor $73,000 and council members $45,000. And Glendale, with half our population, pays $48,000 and $34,000.

Our last increase was over 20 years ago. That this is a part-time job is a ruse. In my ward, the council member publishes a regular and exhaustively researched newsletter, and if I ever don’t receive a response to a query or complaint within 24 hours, I’m shocked.

Raising the salaries to $42,000 and $36,000 would cost each Tucson citizen a measly 15 cents a year. And, even if passed, would not take effect in time to benefit the current council. Come on, Tucson: Vote “yes” on Prop 410, and let’s finally stop the embarrassment.

Denice Blake

Midtown

Insurrectionists present a danger

Whether those individuals indicted are in Arizona or wherever, they remain a clear and present danger to society because they could be so easily brainwashed into committing violence. What is the next big lie they will unshakably believe, without any evidence to the contrary? Will the White House be the next building they storm?

Perhaps they should have given more thought to the ones for which they owe responsibilities, both innocent children and elders. They probably still have the internet so they can complain to thousands over how badly they are being treated, when in fact it is this country they are mistreating.

It is disgusting when the insurrectionists have the freedoms that others would die for. Is it really the time to turn a blind eye to their crime where men died trying to stave off the insurrectionists attack? I think not.

Bevelry Tencza

Rio Rico

Water rights big issue for all

Re: the Sept. 26 article “Wells run dry since mega-dairy’s arrival.”

Thank you very much, Debbie Weingarten and Tony Davis, for this article.

Readers, please read this article, and help us start a grassroots movement to regulate groundwater use in rural Arizona. I am a county water user with 3,000 gallons plus of water cisterns around my house. I use my cisterns, have a gray water shower, and cut corners wherever I can.

Why should I pay even more for water when mega-water users like Riverview pay nothing? Justice is needed. Water rights and water scarcity are big issues for all of us, especially in our continuing decadeslong drought, despite this year’s monsoon.

Sue Thorne

Foothills

Are city elections fair?

In a recent letter to the editor, a woman advocated for Ward-only elections, contending that our current system is unfair. I encourage her to take a broader view. If you are only able to vote for your Ward representative, that representative must still convince several other Ward representatives to support their positions if those positions are going to become law.

Those other representatives can just laugh at you, because they know you will never be able to vote them out of office. With Ward-only elections, you do not gain power — you lose it.

In the meantime, special interests will always have access to all politicians and they can threaten to withdraw campaign support as a way to control those politicians.

Advocating for less power, which Ward-only elections guarantees, is not the answer.

Colette Altaffer

Midtown

Where is outrage toward Trump?

On “60 Minutes,” Rep. Liz Cheney said that Trump doesn’t believe in the rule of law and violated his oath of office. Those things are not in dispute, but the rest of the Republican Party, except for Rep. Adam Kinzinger, continues to accept Trump as their leader and probable candidate for President in 2024.

In addition, Trump incited and then condoned the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, an obvious act of sedition, which is a crime.

If the Republican Party accepts and condones what Trump stands for and has done, they are totally complicit. What a disgrace.

The only thing that will disrupt and stop this bizarre situation is for Trump to be prosecuted, convicted and sent to prison, because a president cannot be allowed to get away with being an unlawful traitor.

There is no reasonable argument to the contrary, so where is the outrage?

Richard Winkler

East side

No time for faint hearts

Newt Gingrich introduced America to ugly hate politics, which Trump honed into our most gruesome political era since the Civil War.

We suffered through the toxic Trump presidency managing to sidestep his last-minute coup attempt.

The Constitution and our cherished democratic republic survived those gruesome four years thanks to the awakening of the slumbering giant of the American spirit and its devotion to the rule of law.

Purveyors of ugly hate politics, lick their wounds and lust to return to power, lurking in the wings plotting another insurrection to overthrow the Constitution, sowing hatred and division, to impose an autocracy.

Frustrated and frightened political pundits, who lack the insight of crystal-gazers, gnash their teeth and wring their hands as they vainly strive to postulate our future under gray skies and fail to conjure optimistic predictions.

Don’t stumble into that quicksand. Instead, resolve to join with other patriots to prepare to fight tyranny and protect our democracy.

Mort Ganeles

Foothills

Treasonous anti-vaxxers

A lesson in hypocrisy: If treason is defined as giving aid and comfort to the enemy, and we are said to be engaged in a war against COVID-19 in which the enemy is a virus, is not the status of anti-vaxxers clear? The irony is that most of them claim to be patriots, not traitors.

Robert Houston

West side

With all the talk about killing ten people with a drone strike I wonder why we don`t give the same press about killing innocent civilians during the second world war. So many of the ones killed then were just innocent civilians like you and I but we didn`t cry about that, why now? War is war, we had better wake up while we still have country to live in.

Thomas R Crawford, Former Marine

Foothills

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Re: the Sept. 17 article "A COV ID-19 diary: My Black family's vaccine hesitancy."

What an insightful, poignant and timely article. I implore anyone who has read this letter to send it to Nicki Minaj, hip hop super star, so she can send it on to her thousands of anti-vaxxer “followers.”

Mary Jo Swartzberg

SaddleBrooke

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

We have become a country that values style over substance. We elect our presidents and congressional candidates based on professionally written speeches, rather than holding them accountable for their actions. Their appointed U.S. officials receive little or no accountability. Please consider the statistics and consequences of our most recent major wars.

In Iraq, the casualties of American soldiers totaled 4,431, while 31,994 were injured. The Iraq war cost U.S. taxpayers $2 trillion, and helped lead to the rise of ISIS. In Afghanistan, American deaths totaled 4,096 and cost U.S. taxpayers about $2.3 trillion. Afghanistan is now ruled by the Taliban, which could provide safe haven for terrorists in the future. This does not take in account the deaths of our allies, enemy soldiers and their civilians. Both wars were started on the basis of questionable U.S. intelligence.

We must hold all our elected officials and U.S. bureaucrats accountable for their actions.

Victor Panizzon

Northwest side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

COVID deniers
need to wake up 

Wake up, anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers. COVID-19 delta variants are real. 

Open your eyes and look around you. You may not read or understand the news, but almost 660,000 Americans have died across the country. Currently, 99% of all COVID-19 deaths are unvaccinated people.

Fake news has filled your head with illogical, irresponsible lies. The vaccine has no microchips. The government is not experimenting on you. You will not become sterile. There are no toxic chemicals in use, no mercury, formaldehyde, aluminum or sodium. Your healthiness and immune system are not protection. 

Vaccines don't work? Neither can you if you're dead after contracting the virus. 

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

Lessons learned
on virus's threat

Re: the Sept. 17 article "A COVID-19 diary: My Black family's vaccine hesitancy."

What an insightful, poignant and timely article. I implore anyone who has read this letter to send it to Nicki Minaj, hip-hop superstar, so she can send it on to her thousands of anti-vaxxer “followers.”

Mary Jo Swartzberg

SaddleBrooke

Accountability
for failed wars

We have become a country that values style over substance. We elect our presidents and congressional candidates based on professionally written speeches, rather than holding them accountable for their actions. The appointed U.S. officials receive little or no accountability. Please consider the statistics and consequences of our most recent major wars.

In Iraq, the casualties of American soldiers totaled 4,431, while 31,994 were injured. The Iraq War cost U.S. taxpayers $2 trillion and helped lead to the rise of ISIS.

In Afghanistan, American deaths totaled 4,096 and cost U.S. taxpayers about $2.3 trillion. Afghanistan is now ruled by the Taliban, which could provide haven for terrorists in the future.

This does not take in account the deaths of our allies, enemy soldiers and their civilians. Both wars were started on the basis of questionable U.S. intelligence.

We must hold all our elected officials and U.S. bureaucrats accountable for their actions.

Victor Panizzon

Northwest side

Fans also have
an obligation

Re: the Sept. 19. article “Notes, quotes and stats from the Arizona Wildcats’ 21-19 loss to NAU”

What do players owe fans? Their best effort. What do we fans owe players? Our support, win or lose. The players did give their best effort. Now it’s up to us to meet our obligation to them. They are our team. Let’s do our part. 

Martin Kahn

Sahuarita

Nostalgic
for RichRod

Re: the Sept. 19. article “Notes, quotes and stats from the Arizona Wildcats’ 21-19 loss to NAU”

You have a 14-game losing streak, so you start a true freshman at quarterback? That proved to be a mistake. Does Coach Fisch realize he’s no longer in the NFL? There’s no preseason, all college games count!

Coach Sumlin was a horrible hire, Fisch is starting to look that way. Notre Dame hired Charlie Weis from the NFL and the Irish lost to Navy, snapping a long winning streak. He was eventually fired.

I hope Fisch doesn’t repeat what happened to Weis. Fisch should have to apologize to all UA students & alumni for this embarrassing loss. I know it won’t happen, but I wish Arizona could bring back RichRod.

Chuck Michel

Marana

Potholes will get
someone killed

It has come to my attention that the neglect of our roads in Tucson has proven to be detrimental to drivers. Dangerous potholes lurk on every street causing harm, and not only to vehicles but also to the drivers themselves.

Potholes in areas such as dips and other locations can prove harmful for drivers, especially at night, which could cause drivers to swerve and put bystanders at risk and cause many accidents.

We should start working toward fixing these potholes if we want to improve the overall safety and security of roads. Getting rid of these dangerous potholes should be our community's No. 1 concern. With rain as well thrown into the mix, or dust storms who knows who could get hurt or even worse die because of these dangerous potholes. Fixing our roads should be an important issue in our community as it could be the difference between life and death, and having safer roads is a lot better than having dangerous ones.

Joeli Vakatawa

East side

Civilians die
in all wars

I'm a former Marine. With all the talk about killing 10 people with a drone strike I wonder why we don't give the same press about killing innocent civilians during the Second World War. So many of the ones killed then were just innocent civilians like you and me, but we didn't cry about that. Why now? War is war, we had better wake up while we still have country to live in.

Thomas R Crawford

Foothills

Lack of water
a real danger

While the Pima County tussles with the city of Tucson over Tucson Water's charging of higher rates for those outside of Tucson's city limits, a much larger issue is occurring — the longer-term lack of water for eastern Pima County.

The head of the Arizona Department of Water Resources has already expressed concern about Lake Mead reaching "dead pool" status at 895 feet. Due to the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District loophole, developers are cashing in now and ignoring the near-future loss of water.

You can't regulate what you do not have. The Republican-run state Legislature is owned by developers. The 100-year guarantee of water is now a fraud.

Matt Somers

Midtown

Re: the Sept. 23 letter "White House stumbles along."

This is just one of several letters that have a false idea of the role played by the President and his staff. The author asks, "Are you better off than you were 10 months ago?" Well, Biden was sworn in on Jan. 20--that's eight months ago.

The author claims the Afghanistan withdrawal was poorly planned and executed; this is the job of the military. The role of the president is to set a date for withdrawal. President Trump set the withdrawal for May 1--which would have been a debacle. Biden delayed that by four months, providing a little breathing room.

The author also mentions the immigration problem at the southern border. Ho-hum, we've had immigration problems there going back to President Reagan legalizing illegal immigrants.

The author raises a number of other issues which he deems important. A suggestion: Stop watching so much Fox News propaganda, bub.

Walter Mann

Marana

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

The U.S. military admits that the August 29th drone strike in Afghanistan that killed 10 innocent civilians,7 of them children,was a "tragic mistake"; yet our government suppresses the whole truth about the drone war program.

President Biden assures us that that the program will continue so that Americans may be kept safe from terrorist attacks.

We hear little about former U.S. Air Force intelligence analyst Daniel Hale, who revealed to a journalist that, for the period he was able to document, 90% of drone strike victims were civilians. Many were children. This latest strike was a mistake, but hardly an aberration. It was in fact quite typical. Daniel Hale

was convicted of violating the WWI-era Espionage Act. He is now in prison for telling the truth.

Drone strikes don't make us safe. We the people must demand an end to them.

Kim Mathews

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Gen. Milley proudly stated that "China is not our enemy", that alone should have had him fired. How can he be in charge of the military if he doesn't even know who the enemy is? Under his leadership the greatest military in the world could not defeat a bunch of goatherders in Afghanistan. He said that we did not need Bagram air base and that lead to dead Marines. He was in charge of the surrender that was, and still is today, a complete disaster. He was in charge of a drone strike the killed seven children and other innocent people. This is a partial list of things that show that Milley was incompetent. But when he stepped over the line and called China, telling them that he would give them a warning if we were going to attack them, he became something worse, he became a 'TRAITOR'!!!! Period.

Jack Hingstrum

Marana

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

My thoughts are not about the how or why or the legality of immigrants. I am thinking about protecting both immigrants and current Americans. As I think about all the diseases we have under control in this country, I reflect that all parts of the world are not as fortunate. If we can require that millions of Americans get COVID vaccine, then we can ensure that we are not inundated with many more possibly COVID positive and at-risk people. We need to protect all newcomers with COVID Vaccinations and also think to the future. As we send the children to school and the adults to the work place, we need to require Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) Vaccination, Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP) vaccines and Chickenpox/Varicella Vaccination. Lets require this protection before we set possible disease loose on the country. Maintaining herd immunity requires this, now and at the borders. It is negligence by this or any administration to not act now.

David Germain

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Who is Senator Sinema fighting for these days? ALSIC, a Pharma dark money conduit for campaign donations to elected politicians in Congress, sent a flyer to Arizona households a few months ago. The flyer announced that ALSIC had awarded Sen. Sinema a "2021 Health Care Innovation" commendation. Maybe because she is the sixth largest Senate Democratic recipient of campaign cash from the industry this election cycle?

In two recent Arizona polls, significant majorities favored passage of the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill, which in part allows the government to lower drug prices. But Sinema has told the White House she opposes the plan to lower prescription drug prices as part of the bill.

Senator Sinema needs to fight for the people by supporting the reconciliation bill, and stop fighting for the drug monopolies! Get out of the swamp, Senator.

Richard Kaiser

Midtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

Demand an end to drone strikes

The U.S. military admits that the Aug. 29 drone strike in Afghanistan that killed 10 innocent civilians, seven of them children, was a tragic mistake; yet our government suppresses the whole truth about the drone war program.

President Joe Biden assures us that that the program will continue so that Americans may be kept safe from terrorist attacks.

We hear little about former U.S. Air Force intelligence analyst Daniel Hale, who revealed to a journalist that, for the period he was able to document, 90% of drone strike victims were civilians. Many were children. This latest strike was a mistake, but hardly an aberration. It was in fact quite typical.

Daniel Hale was convicted of violating the WWI-era Espionage Act. He is now in prison for telling the truth.

Drone strikes don’t make us safe. We the people must demand an end to them.

Kim Mathews

East side

Sinema fights for Big Pharma

Who is Sen. Kyrsten Sinema fighting for these days? ALSIC, a Pharma dark money conduit for campaign donations to elected politicians in Congress, sent a flyer to Arizona households a few months ago. The flyer announced that ALSIC had awarded Sen. Sinema a “2021 Health Care Innovation” commendation. Maybe because she is the sixth largest Senate Democratic recipient of campaign cash from the industry this election cycle?

In two recent Arizona polls, significant majorities favored passage of the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill, which in part allows the government to lower drug prices. But Sinema has told the White House she opposes the plan to lower prescription drug prices as part of the bill.

Sen. Sinema needs to fight for the people by supporting the reconciliation bill, and stop fighting for the drug monopolies! Get out of the swamp, senator.

Richard Kaiser

Midtown

Stop depending on Fox News

Re: the Sept. 23 letter “White House stumbles along.”

This is just one of several letters that have a false idea of the role played by the president and his staff. The author asks, “Are you better off than you were 10 months ago?” Well, Biden was sworn in on Jan. 20; that’s eight months ago.

The author claims the Afghanistan withdrawal was poorly planned and executed; this is the job of the military. The role of the president is to set a date for withdrawal. Donald Trump set the withdrawal for May 1, which would have been a debacle. Joe Biden delayed that by four months, providing a little breathing room.

The author also mentions the immigration problem at the southern border. Ho-hum, we’ve had immigration problems there going back to President Reagan legalizing undocumented immigrants.

The author raises a number of other issues which he deems important. A suggestion: Stop watching so much Fox News propaganda.

Walter Mann

Marana

Make newcomers get vaccinated

My thoughts are not about the how or why or the legality of immigrants. I am thinking about protecting both immigrants and Americans. As I think about all the diseases we have under control in this country, I reflect that all parts of the world are not as fortunate.

If we can require that millions of Americans get COVID vaccine, then we can ensure that we are not inundated with many more possibly COVID positive and at-risk people.

We need to protect all newcomers with COVID vaccinations and also think to the future. As we send the children to school and the adults to the workplace, we need to require measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccinations, diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP) vaccines and chickenpox vaccinations. Let’s require this protection before we set possible disease loose on the country. Maintaining herd immunity requires this, now and at the borders. It is negligence by this or any administration to not act now.

David Germain

East side

Milley’s failure and lives lost

Gen. Mark A. Milley proudly stated that “China is not our enemy”; that alone should have had him fired. How can he be in charge of the military if he doesn’t even know who the enemy is? He said that we did not need Bagram air base and that lead to dead Marines. He was in charge of the surrender that was, and still is today, a complete disaster. He was in charge of a drone strike that killed seven children and other innocent people. This is a partial list of things that show that Milley was incompetent. But when he stepped over the line and called China, telling them that he would give them a warning if we were going to attack them, he became something worse, he became a traitor. Period.

Jack Hingstrum

Marana

Why do we allow a vocal minority to hold the rest of us hostage and prolong the COVID Pandemic? Who is responsible for the thousands of infections and deaths, including children, that have occurred since the Delta Variant came on the scene? There is no way to sugar coat it. Those who will not get vaccinated and who refuse to wear a mask in public are largely responsible. The rest of us should be outraged! We should be outraged by the fact that the anti-vaxers are endangering everyone else and prolonging a deadly pandemic that has killed over 680,000 Americans.

Therefore, it’s time to implement stronger measures. Mask wearing should be mandatory in public places, including schools. No mask, no entry. We also need vaccine passports. Only the fully vaccinated should be allowed to enter a bar, restaurant, sporting event, or movie theater.

William Ellett

Midtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

A recent World Bank report claims that up to 200 million people will need to move within their own countries in the next three decades due to climate change.

The opinion piece by Peter Orzag in the Star minimizes the economic consequences of the need for migration due to climate change.

Both these opinions may grossly underestimate the problem. A case in point might be Bangladesh with a population of 166 million with 80% of the country less than 10 meters above current sea levels. It is already subject to extreme poverty and overpopulation which is one typhoon away from total calamity.

Orzag states that only 7% of the population of Miami, Florida will need to migrate which is ludicrous if sea level rises are near a worse case scenario. If climate change is not substantially mitigated immediately, then a sea level rise of only a few feet would mean nearly 100% of migration out of both Miami and Bangladesh.

Michael Hamant

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

The tax-and-spend folks are at it again. Tax the people who can afford it – the wealthy, the corporations. Protect the middle class.

Can’t the tax-and-spenders understand that the wealthy, the corporations, do not, will not, and never have paid taxes? Taxes are for them a cost of doing business just like the cost of raw material for any product they produce.

Raise taxes? They don’t mind. They understand that any and all of their taxes are paid by their customers.

The real taxpayers are always the end users, their customers, generally the middle class!

Chuck Josephson

Midtown

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.

The. U. S. military hundreds of miles from Kabul said they identified a vehicle in Kabul they suspected was filled with explosives so sent a drone to destroy it. In the process they killed a man who was beloved in the community and seven of his children.

Since the U. S. Military knew the car was in a residential area why didn't they send someone on the ground to verify what they suspected? Seven innocent children and their beloved father might be alive if they had.

And we wonder why people seek revenge against America.

Jim Dreis

East side

Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.