Tucson Speaks Out: Sept. 4 letters of the day

Doing the right thing

for the right reasons

Re: the Aug. 26 article “After 60 years, ‘Dream’ remains unfulfilled.”

Supreme Court decisions aside, the military teaches its members to be leaders — to live by a set of values and beliefs established to create a foundation of ethical conduct, understanding that to do otherwise destroys the morale and cohesion of the unit as a whole. It’s doctrine consistently stresses doing the right thing for the right reasons, establishing solid character in individuals with the primary purpose of creating a culture of trust amongst strangers. It’s an institution that, frankly, helped change my life and my immediate family’s life for the better.

When I joined the Army in 1997, I was desperately trying to escape an environment that was increasingly marred by social depravity. Despite this fact, it was not a popular choice amongst my peer group—in part because of sentiments like some that were expressed in this article, which were prevalent even then. Years later, many of my old acquaintances told me they wish they had joined me in my endeavor. So do I.

Jamar Ellis

Sierra Vista

TEP subsidies

Re: the Aug. 27 article “New utility regulators fight ‘tree socialism’.”

I read with interest how TEP and its promoters on the Corporation Commission have all sorts of problems subsidizing socialized trees.

This outcry against subsidizing things, and socialism in general, by TEP and its mouthpieces is confusing to me because TEP and the corporation commission have absolutely no problem with the citizens of Tucson subsidizing a shift to renewable energy by making us pay for solar panels that TEP buys (ha!) energy from. My solar panels cost orders of magnitude more than a few pennies for some trees, and the purchase rate for energy my panels produce is stagnant at best while TEP selling rates go up.

I believe there is a term for this. Oh yes. It’s called Corporate Welfare and it’s a good argument against renewing any sort of TEP franchise.

David Reynolds

East side

Official legislator containers

Re: the Aug. 29 article “End of case adds to cost of containers.”

A recent Daily Star article summarized the costs of the Doug Ducey stunt to fill in the border wall with old semi-truck containers. It will eventually cost $163M to make the 2,200-container wall disappear. Only 142 containers have been sold — leaving 2,000 containers to sell. A partial solution can be found with the Arizona Legislators. Several AZ Legislators are not truly residing in their Legislative Districts and now have a trailer parked in their Legislative District — claiming this is their true home. These Legislators had to obtain the trailer using their funds or donations. How about we designate the Ducey containers as the Official AZ Legislative Home Trailer? The containers could be dressed up with AZ colors and have an official plaque that this is the lawful home of a Legislator. Since our AZ Legislators often jump to other Legislative Districts to improve their odds of election, the Legislators can easily transport the container to their new supposed homes.

Jay Gandolfi

East side

Horne’s job

Tom Horne is on television ads telling parents that if the public school their child attends is substandard, get a voucher and send your child to a private school, which will be better than the public school. I am confused. Isn’t it Tom Horne’s job to ensure that public schools are up to standard? I believe the message is that he is not doing much to improve the schools that all children need, but he will pay parents to go to schools that are better than the schools he is responsible for. I’m just saying.

Richard Bechtold

West side

Ruination of

American society

Re: the Aug. 29 letter "Democrats ruining American society?"

I must respond to the biased writer's unfounded diatribe simply claiming that just Democrats are ruining American Society. First: the U.S. rightly or wrongly operates under two political parties, each of which is jointly responsible for the existing state of our society.

Let's address a few of the letter writers claims: Public education has become a concern in a number of some states, but especially Florida with their Republican governor's goal of banning any teaching of slavery/racism. Yes, military recruitment is down for a number of reasons (Iraq and Afghanistan, low unemployment and lifestyle issues.) However, Webster doesn't recognize "Workism" training and neither do I. Our justice system is under fire because a former Republican president has warranted four criminal indictments. Too many so-called "Law and Order" Republicans dismiss his actions as political.

In conclusion, serious mistakes have been made by both parties: the Iraq invasion, the ultimate handling of leaving Afghanistan, and a lack of partisan effort to ensure border security, gun control and welfare oversight.

Chuck Cabrera

Northwest side

Adoration or freedom

What do 60-plus Trump-failures involving even judges he appointed suggest? Not a politicized justice system, but our Constitution's rule of law working to protect our country and our freedoms!

Back to homepage

Subscriber Login

Keep reading with a digital access subscription.

Subscribe now

Since losing the Presidency, Trump has attempted illegally to manipulate our voting rights, accumulate state secrets, and manipulate the entire justice system to gain his ends.

Four Trump indictments point out his total willingness to act outside the law to achieve his ends, not that our justice system is "ganging up on" him. These arrests aren't for jaywalking, they are for blatant attacks on our democracy.

This man is not interested in us .. .his interest is directing the lives of millions such that he will benefit personally ... including now staying out of jail! A reminder to ALL of us — when you turn over your freedom, that's it, that's the ball game. Let's not allow this man and a now totally opportunistic, political cult to take our freedom from us. We and our country are worth so much more!

Frank Parsons

Northeast side

Wildlife connectivity

Thankfully, I noticed that an unnecessary barbed wire fence has been removed near Anway and Tucker roads. There used to be fences on adjoining properties there, that amounted to a death trap for migrating wildlife. I once saw a deer carcass caught in that fence. There didn't need to be two fences so close together. Wildlife needs to roam between our sky islands for species to remain healthy. I thank the property owner for removing this wildlife hazard. Hopefully, other responsible land owners will follow suit.

Tom Hannagan

Marana

Lowering resource

comparison proxy

Since 2017, the actions of the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) give the appearance of conspiring with the state’s electric utilities to protect them from competition by:

• Changing the rates solar customers receive for the excess power to ensure the cost of their systems do not ‘pencil out’
• Denying third-party providers using lower-cost renewable energy access to utility customers.

Commissioner Meyer’s argument that non-solar customers are subsidizing those who have rooftop solar is so obviously erroneous one must question his fitness to serve. To bridge the gap between the supply of renewable energy and the demand for power, TEP burns natural gas and transmits electricity. That is much more expensive than just allowing excess electricity to flow from solar to non-solar neighbors.

If Meyers and the ACC don’t like subsidies, they should hold the utilities responsible for the "externalities" they create but do not have to pay for — indisputable costs from burning fossil fuels and vaporizing the state’s scarce water resources.

Steven Lesh

East side

MAGA mugshot

I wonder how many hours Donald Trump spent practicing his mug shot face in his bathroom mirror at Mar-a-Lago? He must have worked very hard to perfect it, as visions of T-shirts and mug-shot coffee mugs danced in his head. Good job, Donald — the photo perfectly reflects your inner qualities and your true essence. "A picture's worth a thousand words."

Deb Klumpp

Oro Valley

Trump vs. Hitler

Re: the Aug. 25 letter "Stop the name calling."

The letter writer is disturbed that so many equate Donald Trump to Hitler. While it is true Trump has not overtly called for violence against Americans, the comparison is based on more than a dislike of Trump’s personality or policies.

As a young man, I read William Shirer’s “Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”. The behavior of today’s Republican party is eerily reminiscent of Shirer’s descriptions of the behavior of the German National Socialist Party (Nazi party). Hitler’s rise to power was made possible by the acquiescence of businessmen and Christians to his hatred of Jews, homosexuals and others. Trump is using that same playbook to appeal to Americans.

So, I agree that equating Trump to Hitler is not productive. What we need to do is equate six of the eight Republicans on that debate stage, and their audience, to the German National Socialist Party.

Steven Brown

Midtown

Dream of justice

I, too, have a dream. I have a dream that one day Donald Trump will not be judged by the color of his skin, but by the content of his character. I, too, have a dream.

Theron Smith

Green Valley