Where’s the leadership downtown?
Re: the July 5 column “Romero’s racism charge against blue line only adds more fuel to the fire in Tucson.”
Columnist Tim Steller writes, “You can’t turn the streets and City Hall into a canvas for political views but say only certain views are acceptable.”
That’s one of the smartest things I’ve ever seen printed in the Arizona Daily Star. It seems simple doesn’t it?
As a retired police officer (different state), who has witnessed/experienced a career full of local political performances, I’m not sure why the people downtown have such a hard time lately navigating the issues.
City Attorney Mike Rankin seems to grasp it pretty clearly. I guess he should have been consulted a little earlier, especially with regard to using City Hall as a billboard.
I was a little surprised/relieved that the resignation of Police Chief Chris Magnus was not accepted.
Luckily, City Manager Michael Ortega’s wise deliberation prevailed. Someone really needs to take charge downtown. I mean, “someone else” needs to take charge.
John Babiarz
Southeast side
Mayor’s personal issues become public
Re: the July 5 column “Romero’s racism charge against blue line only adds more fuel to the fire in Tucson.”
It appears our newly elected mayor, Regina Romero, is making a personal issue a public one. Also, she feels she can publicly display her personal feelings on city property, at taxpayer expense. No private citizen would be allowed to do this.
A “Black Lives Matter” mural was painted on Stone Avenue without any response from Mayor Romero, yet she vehemently objected to a private citizen wanting to paint a blue line down the street on Stone Avenue, in front of the Tucson Police Department, supporting our officers, after it had been approved by our city manager.
What’s wrong with this picture? Does Regina Romero believe she is a dictator?
I completely agree with Tim Steller’s opinion in the Sunday paper.
Al Starr
Northeast side
Trump’s planned garden
raises some questions
On July 3 at Mount Rushmore, President Trump described America not as the land of freedom for all, but only for some, hijacking a celebration of national independence and transforming it into a partisan rally to promote his reelection.
Among his self-serving pronouncements was that he had signed an executive order to establish a National Garden of Heroes. It will feature, he said, “statues of the greatest Americans who ever lived.”
This prompts three questions:
First, will the Garden of Heroes include a pedestal reserved for a future statue of Trump?
Second, will it include statues honoring some of the more than 130,000 Americans who have so far died of COVID-19 in a pandemic monumentally mismanaged by Trump?
Third, will Mexico pay for the Garden of Heroes, as Trump has said it would fund his border wall?
Allen Boraiko
Midtown
Battle coronavirus like a wildfire
Dear Gov. Doug Ducey,
There is a new fire in Arizona, it’s called the Coronavirus Fire, and we the people are its fuel. Remove the fuel and smother the flames and the fire goes out.
You have the authority to keep people at home and smother the flames by wearing masks. No one blinks when millions are spent to fight a fire on the ground. In this case, pay people unemployment to stay home, and order people to wear masks in public.
What are you afraid of? The ire of a president who does not care, or losing the trust of the people of Arizona who elected you to office?
A few weeks of fighting this fire could make the difference. People will then live to work another day, grow our state, and, it is hoped, vote in another election.
Lorraine Buck
Oro Valley
Incentives, penalties
can help curb buffelgrass
A recent letter writer noted that homeowners associations can reduce the risk of destructive wildfires in the Catalina Foothills by removing buffelgrass from their communities. It’s an excellent point.
Insurance companies can also help by refusing to write coverage for residential and commercial properties unless owners remove buffelgrass. A carrot-and-stick approach (discounts for owners who clear their properties, penalties or cancellation for those who don’t) might be even more effective.
Lightning-caused wildfires are as old as the Sonoran Desert, but before buffelgrass was introduced by the USDA, they soon burned out due to lack of fuel. Those days are long gone.
Buffelgrass and other invasive grasses and weeds (like fountain grass) now provide enough fuel to feed high intensity fires that can destroy everything in their path.
HOAs, insurance companies and, most of all, individual property owners can be part of the solution. It’s up to us.
William Thornton
Midtown
Get liberal ideology
out of education
Our entire school system needs to be torn down and rebuilt, with the liberals removed altogether.
The school curriculum itself is corrupt, with things like Common Core, ethnic studies, trans acceptance and history lessons which are biased against America’s expansion into North America and demonizes our American civilization of the North American continent.
It’s not just teachers and instructors going rogue, it is the entire mind-set of the school system to mold kids and shape the community to one mind-set: theirs.
The school system itself needs to be taken down and rebuilt, without the liberal mind-set and without the manipulations.
Richard Loyal French
East side
Mosher ‘Zooms’ ahead of the pack
I watched the county attorney debate on Zoom. There were three lawyers: Laura Conover, Mark Diebolt and Jonathan Mosher. In my opinion, Mosher won the debate. He expressed the most passion and sincerity, and he was the most knowledgeable.
He really got into explaining things. He did a good job explaining why the County Attorney’s Office can save money if it stops prosecuting people for marijuana. And he explained why he thought the officer who killed George Floyd should be charged with the highest form of murder.
Mosher has experience prosecuting murderers. I am convinced he is the best one for county attorney.
Karina Alfaro
Southeast side
Be ‘pro-life,’ wear a mask
As a registered nurse, I know the importance of using measures to prevent or limit the spread of disease. I have seen the consequences of COVID-19.
Not wearing a mask in public in the midst of a pandemic linked to a respiratory virus is an unnecessary risk that can cause death.
As a health-care worker and religious person, I am frustrated when I see people choose such a risk regularly, jeopardizing their lives and those of others by refusing appropriate safety measures. Hospitals are filling up or are full.
Pro-life? Wear a mask.
Christopher Walter
East side
Justice movement recognizes everyone
As a very senior citizen who has lived all over this country, I have witnessed hate and bias in action everywhere I’ve lived.
The wave of change now crossing America is not a leftist revolution but a human movement, fueled by voices from all sides. It is a movement toward inclusion, toward truly equal rights for all, a movement to end racism and sexism. It will succeed.
The biases of white, male supremacists have no basis in the laws of God or nature and have no justification through right reason. They are based in fear of the “other” and the fear of losing power.
The human varieties, which we term race, grow from genetic distributions among the billions of us coming out of Africa.
Racial distinctions are real, and they have had serious social consequences, but with all our differences, we are one people. The evolution toward equality and inclusion is taking place.
We should vote for candidates who recognize this movement in a positive way rather than hate it.
John Smith
SaddleBrooke
Proposed I-11 would do much damage
I would like to urge you to push back against another infrastructure proposal that does much more harm than good. Interstate 11 would do just that.
I will simply say that it is not worth the destruction of countless homes and desecration of sacred spaces. It will lead to death for so many precious plants, creatures and humans alike.
COVID-19 and the Bighorn Fire have done enough. Let’s make a decision pretending as though we ourselves would be the ones running the bulldozer if it came to that.
Emily Rockey
West side
Misplaced statues and symbols
The only justification for statues or symbols to stand in prominent display is to inspire the public for generations to come. Unless the public wants to promote racism and restore slavery, there is no place for open display of any Confederate statues or symbols.
These misplaced objects, however, would be ready-for-use tools for teaching our values and history if they are relocated to a public enclosure and stand alongside permanent signs stating who sponsored their erection at what period, under the larger context of the Civil War.
This altered public display would show us where we have been, so such inhumanity will be curbed. This should be a national project managed by the National Museum of History, without any political influence. Only when truth is acknowledged can we be reconciled to build a more just and caring future. Let us do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God,
Ke Chiang Hsieh
Midtown
Greene has my vote
for Oro Valley council
This 21-year Oro Valley resident believes integrity is especially important during this election cycle. What are my credentials, that you should listen?
I choose only honest, honorable individuals to associate with and allow to influence me. That list includes Dr. Harry “Mo” Greene II, who I’ve known more than 15 years.
He works well with others, including those with whom he disagrees. Greene is smart, level-headed and admired by countless people across the United States.
Mo is no political neophyte. Decades of success in the politics of huge medical institutions and organizations provided a remarkable proving ground for this amazing veteran. Thank you for your service, Dr. Greene.
We’re at a critical inflection point that will determine the destiny of Oro Valley for decades. Greene, Bill Rodman and Steve Solomon offer economic stability and a safe, vibrant Oro Valley.
Vote for integrity. Vote Greene.
Steven R. Fowler
Oro Valley
