Star’s embarrassing bizarre op-eds
Re: the Nov. 1 article “Israelis have only one choice to survive: Leave” and the Nov. 2 article “Why Israel should give talks another chance.”
Gil Shapiro wrote an Op-Ed calling for all Jews to leave Israel, denying the historic not to mention religious ties of Jews to Israel. Moreover it flies in the face of Jewish experience within our lifetimes: Jews fleeing Nazi Germany on the MS St. Louis in 1939 were denied entry anywhere, including the U.S. It also ignores the question of where as in today’s anti-immigrant world would 7 million Jews be accepted? It also fails to recognize that Muslim refugees are kept in camps without any citizenship rights in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria to name a few. The Thursday piece by Clarence Page suggests the time worn idea of “talks”. The Israeli peace movement has been destroyed over the last 20 years. Yes Netanyahu’s government opposes a two-state solution but who is there to talk to on the Palestinian side? Hamas? The Palestinian Authority which pays terrorists or their families for terrorist activity. There are Israeli calls for peace. The Palestinians want only a ceasefire.
Ron Bechky
SaddleBrooke
Workers prepare to remove the monuments of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee on July 10, 2021, in Charlottesville, Va.
Civil War
Statues are not history; they are symbols of societal values. If you want to learn about Robert E. Lee, pick up a book. Confederates that betrayed their oath to the United States do not deserve remembrance on public grounds.
Eric Flohr
Midtown
Ciscomani fails to represent constituents
Juan Ciscomani sits on the Appropriations subcommittee for Labor, Health and Human Services, Education. In line with Republicans’ constant clamor to cut spending, this subcommittee’s bill will drastically cut education funding. Ciscomani’s assistant waffles when asked if Ciscomani supports the bill, claiming schools have billions in unspent COVID funds (some schools have no funds left; because of misuse of private school vouchers, Arizona schools need every dime they can get).
Ciscomani voted to elect Jim Jordan as House Speaker. Jordan voted to overturn Arizona’s 2020 election results and tried to delay certification of Biden’s presidency. Jordan threatens a government shutdown whenever he doesn’t get his way. Ciscomani’s vote, therefore, supports extremist trumpian policies.
Call and voice your concern that Ciscomani is voting for an insurrectionist who denies Arizona’s election results. Voice your concern that the subcommittee’s bill cuts the deficit by cheating children out of an education.
And next time, vote for Kirsten Engel.
Lisa Wolfe
North side
Who are the groomers?
Re: the Nov. 2 article “Compelling clergy to report crimes.”
After reading this article I realized Republicans are going after the wrong sector of society they accuse of being “groomers” — you know, drag queens reading stories to kids and their parents at small venues around the country.
The real groomers are religious fundamentalists and alleged Christians who want to destroy public education and replace it with religious-based homeschool curriculums, while they ignore the numerous and ongoing sex abuse scandals in most of the major religious organizations in the U.S. (such as the Southern Baptist Convention and the ad nauseam abuse perpetrated on children by the Catholic Church).
Contrary to what the modern Republican Party tries to foist on the American public, we are not a Christian nation and there needs to be a solid wall (remember WALL?) between Church and state as the founders intended.
David Abbott
Northwest side
Tucson fentanyl issues
Re: the Nov. 3 article “Homeless people struggling to get services.”
Very informative article. The article explains the complexities of the issue, focusing on 1. Treatment, or 2. Arrest. But there is something else in the mix. How about a huge effort to go after those who distribute the drug? We cannot stop the manufacture and import of the drug, but substantially reducing the availability should be a co-solution to treatment or jail.
Alan Kohl
Northwest side
Perceived bias can also be opinion
The Star’s publication of letters accusing the Star of a liberal-opinion bias is evidence that the Star has a bias towards transparency and diversity of opinion. In my opinion, the Star also has a defensible preference for diverse local news and opinion. In my view, the Opinion section of the Star is a platform, a Tucson-region public square, for venting, for clearing the air, for self-expression (including vanity exposure), and sometimes for various species of ranting. All healthy and necessary if democracy is to prevail and have a chance to thrive. But all criticisms are not biases, and some biases are more defensible than others. For example, I have a bias against big lies — denial of the Holocaust, or that America put a man on the moon. Similarly, I have a bias against the big lie about Obama’s birth, and that the 2020 presidential election was fraudulent. My bias against overt lying is neither liberal nor conservative.
Gerald Farrington, member of the Arizona Daily Star’s Editorial Advisory Board
SaddleBrooke
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is the section of the constitution that charges against Trump are being based on, and what is keeping him off the ballot in Colorado. It prohibits anyone who swore an oath to support the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection” against it from holding office. While Trump did encourage people to demonstrate at the Capital on Jan. 6, I saw no evidence that he urged or engaged in the insurrection that ultimately occurred. Granted, he could have come out with a plea to stop the violence, but how could his not having done so be called a crime?
William Johnson
Northwest side
Trump house
The GOP House blockage of funds to assist Ukraine in the defense of their nation is incredible, until you remember the first Trump impeachment. Trump’s attempt to extort Zelenskyy into providing false information on Biden proved that Zelenskyy was a moral and honest man and how corrupt Trump is.
I think Zelenskyy’s refusal to abet Trump is the cause for the GOP blockage of funds to Ukraine. It is also a reminder to Trump of another of his spectacular failures.
Jeff Rayner
SaddleBrooke
Three reasons why Biden won’t stop
There are three reasons why Netanyahu and Biden won’t stop bombing civilians in Gaza — money, power, and corrupt religion.
Both leaders need campaign contributions to help maintain themselves in power. War frees up large donations from the military-industrial complex. This war also feeds the religious prejudice that lays dormant in the souls of ordinary Jews, Christians, and Muslims. That brings in partisan religious money to their re-election campaigns.
The lust for personal and party power is so deeply ingrained in these two men’s personalities, they are willing to indiscriminately bomb women, children, and the elderly all the while protesting that they are carefully targeting only soldiers. Anyone with one eye can see that is not true.
The savagery of the Israeli-American war in Gaza is actually the biggest factor of all in promoting anti-Semitism because it is stoking great humanitarian resentment against Israel in the Arab world, Europe and America.
Kimball Shinkoskey
Downtown
Brainwashing the children
Re: the Dec. 26 paid ad on page A8
Today (Dec. 26) I see in the Star a full page ad for a Trump toy train. The train has all kinds of pro Trump language on it and touts his presidency as being historic. Does anyone else find this just plain sickening? Trump is a convicted sexual predator. He is under 91 felony indictments. He has been making all kinds of racist statements lately and is now quoting Hitler. How does the Star allow this kind of ad? What if the KKK wanted a full page ad? I doubt the Star would run such an ad. This ad for a toy train is just as bad. Shame of the Star for running such a sickening ad. For me, this is the last time I will ever read the Star. This kind of ad will certainly lead to a loss in readers. I personally know of five people who have cancelled their subscriptions after seeing this ad. More will follow.
Terry Etherton
Downtown
Follow these steps to easily submit a letter to the editor or guest opinion to the Arizona Daily Star.
