A pothole on one of Tucson’s city streets.
Miserable roads
Most roads in Tucson are, as we all know, just miserable. Granted, there are attempts to fix them, but even when a street is resurfaced, the cover deteriorates quickly within a few years, and soon, the old potholes are right back again (look at Tucson Blvd.). In my humble opinion, there is a fundamental flaw in our entire system. Instead of working on maintaining our infrastructure, the government spends most of its money on widening Grant or Broadway, which is not really needed but costs huge amounts of money. Here is my simple suggestion: Due to our extreme weather conditions, cracks easily appear. If those are not taken care of, they quickly widen, expand, and then potholes appear. If we spent more time, effort, and money on maintenance, we could save millions of dollars in the future. Ask a dentist about preemptive care of teeth, then you know what the city ought to do with its roads. Improve the conditions of our roads now and save much in the future.
Albrecht Classen
Midtown
Is woke propaganda the norm at UA?
Re: the May 15 letter “Israeli training of US police.”
This letter is both silly and dangerous. Silly accusations against the Tucson police department, as if it were a branch of the Tel Aviv police. The emeritus prof tries to taint our police by saying they trained in Israel. I trust the Tucson police, whether they had training in Israel or not. The dangerous part of his propaganda is the false charge of Israel using rubber bullets against peaceful protesters. The peaceful protesters the professor noted “used more than 3,600 Molotov cocktail attacks, 100 hand grenade attacks and 600 assaults with guns or explosives during the first intifada” alone. That is in addition to 160 suicide bombings carried out by Palestinians. The shame here is propaganda coming from a professor teaching our young at a public institution. Finally, he makes it sound as Israel developed rubber bullets, that honor goes to the English, using 120,000 against Irish protesters during the Troubles. Where was your outrage then?
Andrew Katz
Green Valley
MLB sloppiness
Being a devoted MLB fan, I’m wondering how the management of all MLB clubs are just ignoring the fact that these players are mentors to young men and women who strive to be in the game. Excessive jewelry causes harm/ and or fly in faces. Long head and facial hair take away the clean-cut aspect. Uniformity in the teams’ uniforms seem to differ from every player. If the foreign players are that good over our USA players, please have them speak English.
Communication is essential. Shortening the playing season would keep the games from delays/cancellations, due to winter weather.
The physical stamina, appearance, and dedication to this baseball profession makes all the difference in player and leadership performance and responsibility.
Respect the game. Respect the player. Respect the coaches/managers and all those behind the scenes who come into your home for entertainment.
Clean it up!
Phyllis Bowcott
Northwest side
Right problem, wrong solution
Republicans are concerned that non-U.S. citizens are corrupting our elections by voting in them, and they want to make that more illegal than it already is. It is already illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections, and it is also illegal for them to donate to campaigns.
Non-citizens voting in our elections is not the problem, the problem is campaign and PAC contributions made by corporate entities. These are easy conduits for foreign interests wishing to influence our elections. To the foreign interest, what does it matter than they can’t cast their measly one vote in an election, when they can pump thousands of dollars into the campaign of their choice? The money is untraceable when laundered properly through a willing PAC or corporation.
John McConnaughey
Oro Valley
Now on sale
Given the transactional nature of the modern Trumpublican party, I’d like to place my order ... er ... bet, in the spirit of Barr, Haley, oil execs and long red ties everywhere.
Even though I’ve known for decades about the misdeeds and self-centered dishonesty of Donald Trump and believe him to be not worthy of any public office at any level, I pledge that I’ll:
vote for him in 2024 for $10 million USD;
tell others I voted for him for an additional $50 million;
suggest others might vote for him for another $100 million; and
take back all the unfavorable things I’ve said about him for $500 million.
All cash package deal. Non negotiable. All payable in advance, the funds will be distributed to actual charities, of my choosing. I reserve the right to renege, with no penalties, on any promises I’ve made, after completed payments.
Bruce Kaplan
Northwest side
Alito’s stance?
Just what is Justice Alito’s stance on our Constitution, when he aligns himself with those favoring an insurrection? The insurrection was a Trumpian act, fitting of a group that has a sociopath as their hero. But Trump’s stance is clearly fascist, for those of us who have studied fascism in detail. It seems more than ironic that a SCOTUS justice would support an insurrection that attempted to tear down the Constitution that he was sworn to protect. How can a justice adjudicate on Constitutional matters of the court, when he supports an unconstitutional uprising? I highly suspect that Alito is aligned with Trump’s fascist policies. His pro-insurrectionist flags at his home and beach house should be a clear reminder of his abandonment of our Founders’ principles. In most cases, the ascent of fascism is brought about by filling key positions in the existing system with fascist acolytes, including the courts. That sort of radicalism has no business in the Supreme Court. He must be removed.
Steve Rasmussen
Foothills
Clean energy is the key
Re: the May 21 article “Biden is a better choice on environment.”
Mike Carran’s op-ed about investments in American infrastructure and clean energy technology reminded me of another period of American growth and prosperity.
Remember Alan Greenspan’s giddiness in the late 1990s when the stock market kept rising, the job market surged and global trade was expansive? That boom was largely due to investments in technology, particularly computers.
We’re experiencing a similar economic boom now — generated by the transition from fossil fuel to clean, renewable energy. Globally, investments in clean energy technology, from semi-conductors to solar and wind, increased 75% last year over the year before. The BIL, IRA, and the CHIPS and Science Act is creating 1,000’s of new jobs for Tucson, manufacturing lithium iron batteries, semiconductors, data centers, digital services.
There’s no going back to black lung disease or the poverty of Appalachia. Investors want zero carbon emissions, cleaner air, and a stable climate. Treasury Secretary Yellin deserves recognition for her steady hand in developing a forward-looking economic policy.
Jane Conlin
Oro Valley
Your children’s future is at stake in November
If elected, Trump will preside over the world’s second largest producer of greenhouse gases. His embrace of climate denial and fossil fuels, and vow to roll back climate research and clean energy programs, will come just as our window for evasive action is narrowing. Without significantly expanding efforts to reduce greenhouse gases over the next 10 years, Earth’s average temperature is likely to reach 2 deg. C above pre-industrial levels by 2050. Trump will be long gone when coastal Florida is succumbing to rising sea level and heat is making the southern tier of the U.S. progressively uninhabitable. People who fail to see what’s coming will ultimately be driven from homes they can’t sell and their equity will evaporate. Already, areas of the West and Midwest are running out of groundwater for agriculture and drinking water as reservoirs dry. Sound familiar? The ultra-wealthy will easily relocate, but where will you and your children be in 25 years? Biden is the only choice come November.
Christine Flanagan
West side
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