State GOP continues
to be an embarrassment
Now that Joe Biden is president of the United States and the resulting insurrection at the Capitol through Donald Trump’s encouragement is being litigated, we’ve also learned that several key Arizona legislators were facilitating these lies.
The Arizona Daily Star published that the Arizona GOP censured the only Arizona Republicans who spoke out about these lies and supported Biden and the fair election. Worse, the GOP elected Kelli Ward to run the party again.
In my book, she should be censured and her co-conspirators, U.S. Reps. Andy Biggs, Paul Gosar and Arizona state Rep. Mark Finchem, who attended the rally and demonstration, removed from office. There is something seriously wrong with their priorities, which, like Trump’s, are based on lies.
Ward has continued to support wild conspiracy theories since she first came on the scene and lost several elections. Congratulations to Cindy McCain and former Sen. Jeff Flake for standing up for sound science and facts. They are the true patriots.
Terri Burchett
Midtown
How to defang
right-wing threat
Inflamed by Donald Trump, an odd mélange of right-wing terrorists have crawled out from under the rocks where they previously hid to threaten American democracy. The American polity must now meet and conquer this threat, but what is the best way to go about it?
The U.S. has a long tradition of racist, xenophobic, and nativist terrorism, the most egregious example being the Ku Klux Klan, which used terrorism to deny constitutional rights to recently liberated slaves, ending the Reconstruction period.
In the pre-Trump era, the KKK was put back in the box using the mechanism of multimillion-dollar lawsuits. That would be the best way to defang the current crop. A recent New York Times photo spread depicted right-wing “militias” decked out in their “combat gear,” confirming that these deluded individuals spend thousands of dollars on this equipment.
These groups operate on a thin cash margin. After losing a series of lawsuits, they will quickly go under and decline back into irrelevancy.
Jon Dorschner
East side
Insurrectionists must be held accountable
The news cycle moves fast and we absorb so much information we can barely process any of it. However, we must not allow the events of Jan. 6 to lapse from our consciousness. At the urging of then-President Donald Trump and others, an attempt was made to thwart the will of the people and install an unelected leader.
It failed, narrowly. If it had succeeded we would no longer be living in a republic. The American experiment would have failed.
Some elected leaders and some pundits think we should just move on. If we do so, without first holding those responsible accountable for their actions, it will happen again and it may succeed.
I am shocked that so many people are willing to put a bloody insurrection in the seat of our government in the rear view mirror so quickly. We should never forget that day and we should hold instigators and participants accountable.
James Waterman
Northwest side
How do you
spell ‘coward?’
Dictionary definition: “Coward: One who shows disgraceful fear or timidity.”
Which sums up nicely the Republican members of the Senate who are already on board to acquit Donald Trump before his impeachment trial has begun.
Oh, they’re already brandishing all sorts of high and mighty excuses to do so: “Impeachment would certainly impede unifying the country! The Constitution doesn’t allow for impeachment once out of office! Trump didn’t really incite the rioters!”
Sorry, those dogs won’t hunt. Stopping Trump from ever running again will bring more unity. And did you actually watch the videos? Did you see the rioters mimicking Trump’s exact words as they breached the Capitol?
No, you will acquit because you are cowards. Ironically, Congress can commit us to war where we are expected to face the enemy bravely and yet they refuse to do their duty. Coward is spelled congressional R-e-p-u-b-l-i-c-a-n.
William Ohl II
Marana
Move back
to San Francisco
Re: the Jan. 27 letter “Where do I go to be censured?”
One might ask, why did you come to our beautiful state in the first place? If you didn’t like us as we are, then perhaps you should have just remained in your Garden of Eden called San Francisco. Some of us Tucsonans are confused as to which of your purple gifts we might need to make you content and better our daily lives.
A burgeoning homeless population, rampant drug use, elevated crime, lack of public health services, a broken sanitation system, public corruption, human excrement on the street, a cost of living so unbearable even the middle class cannot survive. Or maybe it is just some of the highest housing prices in the world and that ever-present $4-per-gallon gas.
Tom Hansen
North side
TMC vaccine operation is a sight to behold
My many thanks to the nurses, staff and volunteers at the TMC drive up site. After seeing all the bad news from other states, I was pleasantly surprised by the well-organized, friendly event when my wife and I received our vaccine. Other areas should come and view the way it should be done.
Robert Bancks
Southeast side
Not in my
Reid Park
On the front page, above the fold, in your Thanksgiving issue was an article titled, in part, “We need a little nature.”
That placement indicates you realize the importance of nature especially in this time of “exceptional drought,” record-breaking heat, wildfire-polluted air (with habitat loss) and pandemic.
The city of Tucson has an obligation to protect nature for us and our future. The planned destruction of more than 3 acres of midtown nature at Reid Park should be viewed as a crime against the population and an order of cease and desist in perpetuity must be pursued now.
There is not a single benefit for the citizenry in this planned destruction. Please, help us, we need nature.
Donna MacEachern
Midtown
Trap and neuter efforts recognize simple math
Re: the Jan. 27 letter “TNR efforts are kindly but misguided.”
The letter from Green Valley disparaging trap-neuter-return makes no sense. If feral cats are neutered and returned to the wild they eat birds. If they are not TNR’ed they remain in the wild and eat the same birds and multiply so the offspring eat even more birds. Elementary.
More feral cats means more bids consumed. Additional funds should be committed to TNR programs as soon as possible. We need to correct the mindset that ignores basic math.
Russ Baker
South side
Wishing success
for new administration
Why does the U.S. lead the world in cases and deaths from the novel coronavirus? According to the Eurasia Group (a New York-based political risk consultancy) healthcare management, political response, and financial policy response have made the difference. In countries with universal health care the whole population could get tested, go to the doctor or hospital without fear of running up large medical bills.
In the U.S., tens of millions of people have no insurance and many who got laid off no longer have it. Germany, by contrast, has universal health care and gave aid to businesses who then didn’t lay off workers.
No master plan for distribution, no coordination of testing or contact tracing, and a shortage of medical supplies and PPE. Forty million Americans are at risk of eviction or foreclosure and a moratorium will not solve the problem.
The new administration has plans for a large subsidy program, coordinated vaccine distribution and health-care reform to get us back to normal. I hope it comes to fruition.
Leadawn Anderton
Southwest side
Women’s health must be a focus for Biden
#Fight4HER is a campaign composed of volunteers that focuses on many areas of concern in our current policy agenda. Our main focus since former President Donald Trump’s election has been women’s rights, and we all passionately believe that anyone who identifies themselves as a woman has the birth-given right to reproductive health care.
This includes family-planning services, STI screenings, and many other pro-choice tactics. This is your body, you make the rules.
Our program has had the amazing opportunity to speak with fighters all over the world who are negatively affected by Trump’s “global gag rule.” This rule affects people internationally, not just in America, by cutting much-needed expenses.
It is important to note that although we are under a new presidency, much more work needs to be done. We are collectively so proud of the progress made by our volunteers, activists and elected officials, and we need to keep this momentum going.
Madison Peterson
Midtown
Meeting in the middle isn’t real compromise
Re: the Jan. 28 letter “Let’s choose compassion regarding abortion.”
Ms. Lamb’s letter highlights why there can never be compromise between the pro-choice and anti-choice camps. Her entire argument rests on the premise that a fetus is a human child. It is not.
It is a religious position that abortion is “the killing of an innocent life in the womb of its mother.” If you believe that, fine. Don’t have an abortion. Work to help women deal with their pregnancies.
But do not attempt to use the government to force your beliefs on the rest of us. Federal laws affecting the fetus before it is viable are a violation of the First, Ninth and 13th amendments to the Constitution.
Don’t be fooled by the rhetoric of the “pro-life” crowd. There is no compassion in forcing a woman to bear a child she can’t afford.
Steven Brown
Midtown
No Walton,
no problems
Though the University of Arizona men’s basketball team did not prevail over Stanford on Jan. 28, what a pleasure to watch a game announced by professional announcers Jay Bilas and Dan Shulman. They understand their role: It isn’t about them but about the game, about basketball. Jay Bilas is one of the best. We Arizona fans know who the worst is.
Camille Gannon
West side
