Sinema’s inbox is full
I have repeatedly tried to contact Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s offices (Washington D.C., Tucson and Phoenix) to express my opposition to her entrenched views on reforming the filibuster, supporting voting rights legislation and moving forward on the nation’s infrastructure needs. After listening to her obligatory “thanks for calling since your views and opinions are so important to me” message I am then told that “sorry, my inbox is full so please do call back later!” What better illustration of a senator who remains deaf, disconnected and dismissive of the very residents of Arizona who elected her to office? Guess it’s time for a new answering machine, senator?
Scott Feierabend
Northeast side
Co-dependent triangle
I worked at Sierra Tucson and Cottonwood discovering the co-dependent triangle of victim, persecutor and rescuer realizing that explains Jan. 6, Trump and America’s divisions. Victims of every sort become angry and become perpetrators (abusers) like on Jan. 6 and once caught become victims again never realizing that victims have responsibility and persecutors have choices.
Eventually persecutors feel guilty and become rescuers and then feeling sad and fearful become victims all over again. Rescuers can negotiate and flee this trapped triangle. This triangle is a part of every tribal and dualistic group in America and the world. It is a vicious cycle of negativism.
The rule of law illustrates democracy. The law of rules illustrates fascism. The rich elites strive to destroy democracy and substitute an autocratic dictator to do the 1% bidding. This is all evolving before our eyes and we are doomed unless/until we all discover it soon.
Lawrence Quilici
East side
Way off base
Re: the Jan. 3 article “US would be more happy with more people.”
Wow! With the unemployment rate below 4%, companies begging for employees, a birth rate below the replacement rate and over 800K and climbing American deaths due to COVID-19, the writer is advocating to keep immigrants out as a solution to the climate crisis? Let’s start with the birth rate. We need immigrants to maintain our population and many of the immigrants at the border are poorly educated and would welcome the service jobs that are going begging. Keeping them out will not affect the climate crisis. They will still be “resource consumers” in Mexico. As far as “reducing the human population” COVID is doing that all by itself — 5.5 million deaths worldwide and climbing. The Third World is poorly inoculated giving the virus ample opportunity to continue coming up with new variants to infect people.
Tyler Cowen was right on in his editorial. We need more people.
Morton Smith
Foothills
Protect voting rights
Dear Sen. Sinema,
The 15th Amendment gives Congress the power to enforce the right to vote. Now is the time to exercise that power. The right to vote is under attack from all quarters. Congress needs to take control over these abuses. Now is the only time to do so — soon it will be too late. I am sure you do not want democracy to die on your watch. Quiet women do not change history. This is your opportunity to change history. Please welcome it. You need, we need you, to pass the voting rights bills by any means necessary.
Rick Jones
Downtown
We all pay
Re: the Jan. 11 article “Deadly extreme weather year as emissions soar.”
This article about climate change and the negative impacts on humans and property should be lauded. The costs of these weather events are enormous ($742 billion in the past five years). Thousands of people have died. Who pays for this? Everyone does.
Pricing carbon is a fast means to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This is a way to approach burning fossil fuels since the total cost includes the pollution and the extreme weather events. The Business Roundtable, about 75% of Republicans under 40 years old, all living Federal Reserve Chairpersons, Sens. Romney and Graham, and over 3,500 economists support carbon pricing. Economists agree that dividends should be paid to households. Current bills do that. It is time for our representatives and Sens. Sinema and Kelly to support carbon pricing legislation because it saves money.
Bill Jones
East side
Continued attacks on Sinema
On Jan. 13, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema took to the Senate floor where she gave an impassioned speech defending the Senate’s long-standing filibuster and said she has not changed her mind about it.
Afterward, Sarah Michelsen, an ACLU senior campaign strategist and former state director of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign in 2020, tweeted that Sinema “sounds like she’s going to cry,” “keep going” with the attacks because they are “breaking her.” So this is how progressive Democrats treat women, with hate, harassment and intimidation and no respect for their views. They will attack anybody who gets in the way of their leftist agenda.
The mantra from Democrats used to be about Republicans’ war on women. Well, in fact it is Democrats who are engaged in a war on Sinema. How much longer can she withstand the onslaught of attacks before caving? She should have a U.S. Secret Service protection detail assigned to her, Sen. Joe Manchin too. Why has Twitter not silenced people like Michelsen?
Audrey Flowers
Midtown
Trump’s no Christian
I’ve struggled with Americans who supported Donald Trump in 2016, however, I’m especially confused by continued support of the Christian/Evangelical voters.
I recently saw a bumper -sticker on a car: “Jesus is LORD Trump is NOT.” He’s been divorced twice, married three times, ironically twice to immigrants (while disparaging other immigrants routinely). He’s been quoted on a hot-microphone “When you’re a star you can do anything you want!” He’s filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy six times between 1991 and 2009. Why? To stop paying contractors and vendors he owed money to. As of June 2021 there were 11 civil and three criminal cases pending against Trump. Look at all the men he brought into the White House, charged with crimes, many serving time in prison.
The only miracle Trump knows is how COVID-19 will “disappear like a miracle,” while thousands died. This is a man you want as president? A role model for your children and grandchildren?
Robert Ryan
Midtown
