Deplorable conditions on Navajo Nation
Re: the May 12 article “Navajo lands, families ravaged as virus deaths keep mounting.”
Thanks for the AP article on conditions on the Navajo Nation and the pandemic. It is alarming to know that one-third of the homes have no running water and some no electricity. Our country is spending trillions helping people and businesses now but we should be ashamed that the Navajo Nation is deprived of a basic necessity in the richest country in the world.
I call on our Arizona congressional delegation to promote the well-being of the Navajo people by developing, funding and implementing plans to provide all of the nation with not only running water, but also electrical and communication infrastructure. These basic necessities are enjoyed by millions of people throughout the country and the people of the Navajo Nation deserve nothing less.
Steve Bredall
Oro Valley
County workers’
right to stay home
Re: the May 13 column “County workers should not rush back to office, despite Huckelberry memo.”
Tim Steller is totally correct when he chides Chuck Huckleberry for telling all county employees they have to get back to work instead of telecommuting.
Anyone who has paid attention at all to the scientists describing the worst places for people to be in this pandemic will know that an office space with a multitude of workers together without masks for eight hours a day is a recipe for disaster.
It should not be necessary to have choose between keeping a job and putting one’s life in danger. The county needs to put a stop to this order.
Kathleen Dubbs
West side
Lower density,
big lots are an asset
Re: the May 13 article “Report: Tucson well positioned for fiscal revival after pandemic.”
Moody’s analytics were partially based on population density, evaluating “less-densely packed places” as an asset.
During these past months of social distancing, I have found my backyard a source of solace shared with birds, bees, butterflies, lizards, squirrels, rabbits and my dog. During this same period, I watched as 5 acres of open space on the Benedictine Monastery grounds, a half-block away, has been destroyed.
Could Moody analysts be sending Tucson a message? Preserve your existing open spaces. Packing as much infill development as possible onto a site has a down side. Value your older residential neighborhoods built on lots with room to share with nature.
Will this pandemic open our eyes to treasure what outsiders see as a Tucson asset, before it is too late?
Ruth Beeker
Midtown
A bird’s eye view to the pandemic
As I sit on my patio in the mornings, reading the newspaper and watching the local birds as they eat the seed I have put out, I have begun to wonder if they have noticed that we human animals have largely abandoned their territory and are now more or less staying within our dens or nests that we tend to call our homes.
And, if they have noticed, I’m inclined to think they’re breathing a sigh of relief as our abandonment of their territory has led to such a marked decrease of the pollutants that we humans had so carelessly used to infect their homeland. In my next life, I want to be a bird.
Sue Thompson
SaddleBrooke
Is Huckelberry Trump’s long lost brother?
Close your eyes and they are the same. Both think they are the king of their kingdom. Both are oblivious to the dangers of the COVID-19 virus on their subjects. Neither understand the need for masks, social distancing or telecommuting to keep the virus contained. Neither care about rules or unions or best practices for the people in their kingdom.
How dare Huckelberry make demands on county employees without even the courtesy of contacting their union representation? It is time for the old man to be put out to pasture. He is not a leader for these delicate times.
We must vote out all county supervisors who brought him here. That is Bronson and Valadez. Question every supervisor up for election for a up or down vote on him. It’s time to take our county back and fire Huckelberry.
Jo-Ann Marks
Southeast side
Traditional contact tracing is critical
The Arizona Republic quotes retiring Pima County Health Services Director, Dr. Bob England, as saying, “micro-level contact tracing doesn’t make sense practically.”
The article states that Pima County has mostly notified households and other “close” contacts rather than the traditional contact tracing of everyone who might have been in contact with the infected person.
However, if we listen to the regularly appearing national experts, traditional contact tracing is public health epidemiology 101. Apparently in Pima County, since we do not have the resources, let’s just foolishly forget the rules.
What has happened to public health in Pima County? We need an accelerated program of testing and tracing, as it is a matter of life and death, practical or not.
Howard and Annette Baldwin
Downtown
American flag etiquette, with manners for all
The majority of people in the U.S. are patriotic. Why is it that only a minority take our flag to demonstrations? Or attach a 3 x 5 flag to vehicles, at times partnered with a “Don’t tread on me” flag and/or a political bumper sticker? Is it to suggest that only their political viewpoint is patriotic?
Why do many others (of both parties) feel confident that their logic and reasoning can stand alone, and don’t need the (not so) subtle backing of the stars and stripes?
I feel that we should not use our flag to support our disagreements with other citizens, who are equally (if more quietly) patriotic.
Using our flag in this aggressive manner is starting to attach negative images to avid flag wavers. At this rate, some politically neutral people may begin to feel misjudged in their own flag waving. Let’s start treating the flag correctly.
Pericles Wyatt
Downtown
Virus brings with it
new annoyances
We have been told some COVID-19 testing is not what it appears. Wow! We’re engaged in one of the biggest battles of modern history and our response is a huge barrage of scams! I get online scam attempts almost every minute I’m on the net and the net has become our lifeline.
Now I find that even live clinics are trying to scam us. Even our president wants us to inject Lysol. I went to a doctor and watched an elderly woman who was waiting for her even more elderly mother.
She was told she couldn’t wait in the waiting room, she couldn’t wait in the hallway outside the office, she had to wait outside in the blazing Arizona sun.
I got admonished by a store clerk for having about two toes touching the omnipresent but undefined tape line. Maybe it’s our time to go from this planet, and I don’t mean to Mars.
Thad Appelman
Northwest side
Schools should not
reopen prematurely
On Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci advised the Senate against premature reopening. He especially said not to rush opening of schools due to the impact on children. Now “Dr.” Trump disagrees with him. We need to open schools.
Once again, Trump only focuses on COVID-19 as it impacts him. If schools don’t open, parents can’t go to work and unemployment remains high — reelection is in doubt! Before I encourage my daughter to send her 4-year-old back to preschool, I want the same testing regime ongoing in the White House.
To me, she is far more precious than anyone there! If we can’t provide that level of security to all Americans, we need to continue to wait this virus out.
Norman Patten
Midtown
Flyover costs more than it’s worth
Does anyone really think a fly-over is beneficial? Give the tens-of thousands of dollars of fuel money to the people who need it.
Douglas Everett
Foothills
Punitive fines are
a step toward tyranny
It was disturbing to me to see today that the Pima County Board of Supervisors passed a regulation that would fine restaurant owners if they violate regulations they have established and social distancing guidelines for reopening. It’s enough that the city and county have destroyed their business by issuing the lockdown in the first place.
This is not the time to be financially penalizing local business for not adhering to new regulations. Let the businesses’ figure out what they need to do. The government doesn’t need to tell us what we need to do.
That’s not why government exists. But there are many who believe that is true! You’ve already taken their livelihood, what more do you want?
Tim Robertson
Foothills
Hey, sports section, keep the “No Sports”
When the paper returns to its normal format of reporting sports scores and information, you should keep the Wide World of No Sports. It is so informative and packed with information on all the major records and highlights of older games. Great body of work.
I also like your new TV entertainment section “What To Watch” for that night. Much better than the Sunday column that just lists one item per day.
James McLin
East side
Trump should
reconsider priorities
Our nation is rapidly approaching 90,000 deaths from COVID-19, with no end in sight. Our economy is suffering and our citizens are trying to figure out what tomorrow will hold for them. Then there is global warming and problems with Russia, China, North Korea, Venezuela and in the Middle East, to name a few.
Yet our president last Sunday had time to send out 126 tweets. Does anyone but me see a problem here? Dr. Ruth where are you, we need you badly.
Fred DiNoto
Northwest side
Congress conducting
partisan politics
I, as one member of the 330 million United States citizens, have observed your performance and contact with the public. I have witnessed, in the time when 85,000 Americans have lost their lives and over 1 million people have become sick, you conduct your partisan politics and insider trading making money with knowledge received from your briefings while the public in poverty are in food lines without proper government support.
You, as a member of the Senate and House, are the worst ever in the history of the U.S. You have put partisanship ahead of the U.S. Constitution.
I consider you not American, not deserving of the title you hold. Your selfish decision to protect your personal status and pathetic political pundit position makes me sick.
The future will decide your fate. You clearly have no intestinal fortitude. I hate you for what you and your president have done to this country.
Joseph Miceli
Sierra Vista
State, US leadership
pushing to reopen
Let’s see: We have a sociopath, narcissistic, pathological liar for a president (I am qualified to make those diagnoses), and a governor who appears to be following in his footsteps as far as valuing money over peoples’ lives goes. Given this, it boggles the mind that both are rushing into reopening the country and Arizona when there still are significant upticks of new COVID-19 cases and deaths.
Both the president and governor apparently think they know better than both medical and business experts, who overwhelmingly suggest more caution in reopening the country. So much for U.S. leadership or lack thereof. As my mother used to say, “you make the bed, and now you have to lie in it.”
Zachary Shnek, Ph.D.
Northwest side
Citizens should have access to data
In accordance with the federal phased plan to safely reopen our country, Pima County released an “at-a-glance” chart indicating its progress toward the pre-opening goals of disease criteria, health-care capacity criteria and public health criteria. Unfortunately, both our nation and Gov. Doug Ducey have since abandoned these guidelines. In that local governments cannot legally supersede Ducey, Pima’s “Criteria for Phased Resumption of Business” has not been updated since April 30.
I would argue that citizens, in making informed decisions about their “personal” stay-home order, need access to this data more than ever. Some is available via the Arizona Department of Health website, but calculating the complete picture is unrealistic for individuals.
If our public officials will not or cannot provide us this critical information, then I call upon other trusted establishments to take on the task. Arizona Daily Star? This could be you.
Paula Redinger
Downtown
