Tucson Speaks Out: April 8 letters of the day

Most of the world and almost all Americans root for the underdog. An underdog is someone or a team who is expected to lose or is at a disadvantage. As unlikely as it seems to some, I believe Donald Trump has successfully assumed an underdog role in politics. ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, and many print media revel in reporting outrageous and untrue or unsupported stories about Mr. Trump to make their liberal progressive brethren happy or entertained. It’s great for business even though the listening audience continues to shrink from previous decades. The justice systems failure to prosecute liberal darlings such as Mrs. Clinton and the Biden family and their energy for creating and supporting civil and criminal cases against Mr. Trump is very obvious to all except never Trumpers. The media and justice department have successfully painted Mr. Trump as an underdog. Amazing when you think about it. The media and Justice systems are making Mr. Trump more appealing to American voters. Unbelievable!

Cal Rooker

Northwest side

Principles over profit

A quote in the AZ Daily Star, March 24 by Jared Kushner said, “Gaza’s waterfront property (which is a war zone), it could be very valuable, if people would focus on building up livelihoods” I’m not sure of the concept.

This started me thinking. Researching, I found dozens of stories about a “housing fair” in Jersey where companies pitched real estate deals in the West Bank (currently under military occupation). I hold no opinion on the “fair”, the West Bank or Kushner. (Is he Christian, Jew or atheist?) What caught my attention was the thousands of NY Brooklynites illegally camped in the Bank. Was it Kari Lake who said, “If you come here illegally, you can’t stay.”

Nathan Rothschild, the 19th century British financier (Is he Christian, Jewish or atheist) said, “the time to buy is when there’s blood in the streets.” A ruthless and cold-blooded concept ... to buy where women and children are eating dirt.

Oxford Dictionary says antisemitism .... hostility or prejudice towards Jews. Not guilty, says I.

Thomas Plesniak

Midtown

Israel

I am a Jewish woman who lived in Tucson, Arizona. I do not feel that the city council should be taking a stand on this issue. There is enough antisemitism going on in this world. The city of Tucson needs to tell the antisemites that Tucson doesn’t need to be involved with national politics.

Sharon Berkson

Midtown

There’s a way to feel empowered

Re: the April 2 letter “Empowerment.”

The writer of “Empowerment”, feeling troubled by what is happening in our country, asks if others are “feeling somewhat powerless and lacking confidence that our fragile democratic structure will survive.” He wonders, “what more can we do, to not feel like a victim?” His wise answer is: “We must take action, reach out to neighbors, friends, community, starting with speaking out.”

Individuals who feel like this letter writer should know there are two highly effective ways to become involved in stopping the “onslaught of authoritarianism.” Indivisible Tucson Action Alliance at indivisibletucson.org and Arizona Ground Game at azgroundgame.org both offer simple, proven ways to empower individuals who want to see our democracy thrive. Visit their websites to learn how easy it can be to stop feeling like a victim of the extremists.

Thea Chalow

Oro Valley

Israel

Describing Israel as committing genocide is the worst possible insult of the Jewish state. It’s not true and cannot possibly be true. Israel is a country of 7 million people surrounded by hundreds of millions of Sunni Arabs. Incidentally, Gaza also borders Egypt, but Hamas is Egypt’s most bitter enemy as Hamas is allied with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Alan Burke

East side

Good news about UA: Robbins resignation

As a proud alumna, I know the value of a UA education. It is generational, life changing.

As children of immigrants, 5 of 6 of my siblings earned bachelor’s degrees, several postgraduate and now, our children/nieces and nephews have completed degrees with pride. But the management of President Robbins and his enablers: The Arizona Board of Regents have placed our beloved institution in a dangerous financial situation.

President Robbins gets to depart in 20 months: what about the staff, faculty who are being laid off now? How about the students who can no longer afford to attend, or choose not to come to an institution, so badly managed.

For the good of the institution and not an attempt at a graceful departure, President Robbins should leave now or renounce his entire salary while we wait for the transition. ABOR should also resign, en masse, and let us begin a true renovation/recovery of our beloved University.

Margarita Bernal

West side

Hateful attack by writer Jim Douthit

Re: the April 3 article “The Israeli-Hamas war in historical context.”

I was appalled to read the Opinion piece by Jim Douthit in which he attacked all things Muslim. He claimed to be putting the current situation into “historical context,” while all he did was cherry pick historical events to justify his hateful view.

If he wanted to put things in “historical context,” he might have talked about the divvying up of the middle east by colonial powers in the early 20th century. He might have referenced the Nakba in which 750,000 Palestinians were driven from their homes. He might have cited the program of the Israeli right to undermine any possibility of a Palestinian state while expanding settlements on the West Bank and conspiring with Hamas to create an open air prison in Gaza.

As a Jew, I know it was not Muslims who carried out the Inquisition. It was not Muslims that sent my grandparents, aunts and uncles and cousins to Hitler’s gas chambers.

Robin Steinberg

Midtown

Water safety ensured

Re: the April 2 letter “Water safety in peril.”

The letter writer expressed concern that Hudbay’s “Aquifer Protection Permit Application” doesn’t list limits for calcium, copper, iron, manganese, potassium, selenium, and sulfate. The draft permit issued for public comment follows standard ADEQ protocols for groundwater monitoring at all new operations. The applicant first installs point of compliance (POC) wells in representative downgradient locations, then collects 8 monthly or quarterly baseline samples to assess existing conditions, and finally submits the results to ADEQ for approval of compliance Aquifer Quality Limits (AQLs) and Alert Levels for each well. ADEQ mandates numeric limits protective of human health in accordance with Arizona Aquifer Water Standards as found in Ariz. Admin. Code R18-11-406. Alert levels are set at 80% of the AQL to provide an early warning capability. The draft permit indicates Hudbay intends to install 10 POC wells and 10 companion wells upgradient of the POC wells. There are no “glaring omissions” in the proposed monitoring methods and compliance limits per my experience with similar water permits.

Cori Hoag

Oro Valley

Ideologues go online

Re: the April 3 article “The Israeli-Hamas war in historical context.”

Following so close on your recent trouble with publishing antisemitic trash, it’s a shame that you printed the extended Islamophobic screed penned by self-described “philosopher” and “teacher” Mr. Douthit. Teacher of what? His guest opinion is ignorant. Send these people online, not here. The Lepanto naval battle outcome justifies razed Gaza? His complete ignorance of the multi-ethnic, multi-religious character of Ottoman Istanbul, (Constantinople,) characterize the rest of his nonsense examples. Israeli leadership is guided by righteous Judeo-Christian supremacy ordained by the “West” against, yes, he actually says this, “Muslim hordes?” He sees that we must defeat a world conspiracy of “Islamic powers”. Surely Islam has been distorted by some governments toward merely political ends. Dominant Christian institutions were exploited by politicians for dehumanizing ends for centuries. Not Muslim caliphs, but Christian kings and popes, personally directed or sanctified or were silent on the slaughter of millions using the “teachings” of the Christian religious to demonize Jews. That’s the historical context, Mr. Douthit. There is a tragedy unfolding.

Guy Senese

Midtown

Wake up!

We recently hosted a house party for Kirsten Engel, specifically targeting Democratic and independent voters. I was shocked by the tone of the RSVPs. There were polite turn downs from most of the independents with the general theme, “We’re going to sit this one out.”

While I cordially thanked them for their reply, my inner voice was screaming, “Are you kidding me?”

Every cycle we hear the same line — that this election is the most important of our lifetime. But this one is! Seriously! I firmly believe that this movement, this mondo MAGA con job is an existential threat to our democracy and those who don’t see that are kidding themselves and complicit.

The reality is that the ex-president is cancer on two legs. He is systematically subverting and eroding not only each American branch of government but also the very fabric of our society. It’s time for all voters to wake up and participate!

Jim Lombardo

Oro Valley