Letters to the Editor: Feb. 7

Re: the Jan. 29 article “Arizona’s Ponzi scheme of water laws will fail us.”

I expect pushback to Matt Somers’ guest opinion, but I found myself nodding in agreement as I read along, even to the dire predictions for Saddlebrooke, Oro Valley, Vail and Green Valley due to the “slow motion trainwreck of water availability.” This is in contrast to the rosy outlook written by hydrologist Juliet McKenna a few days earlier, wherein she states that infrastructure and planning have “laid a solid foundation for our future. We are on the right track.”

So, Chicken Little and Pollyanna are both coming at us on the water issue. Which can be believed? I have my own opinion. The drought has to end to save us. There’s no fortitude to stop growth, and spending billions at transporting new water to the state will fail. I’m no expert, that’s just my opinion. But paying attention to what’s happening has become crucial. Each of us has to make our own choices and then plan accordingly.

Steve Gray

Foothills

Not taxpayer money

Re: the Jan. 27 article “TUSD to pay to assess support for bond election.”

I would like to clarify some facts about the issue raised. When this item came up on the agenda, I purposefully clarified that the $25,000 to hire a consultant would not come from taxpayer money. The fund this money is resourced from is called an auxiliary account, this money is an additional funding source funded thru incentives, similar to credit card rewards, for example: Office Max rewards the district with 5% cash back on purchases.

I, therefore, want to underscore that this $25,000 is not taxpayer money. That being said, if TUSD runs a bond measure election, it will cost the district approximately $1 million ... and this will be paid with taxpayer money.

As governing board members, we each have our own individual skill sets; consultation is not mine. As a board, we need to know when to rely on and get advice from expert counsel, especially concerning huge financial decisions. If the board decided on a bond measure without research, that would be fiscally irresponsible.

Val Romero, TUSD

Board Member

Midtown

Jordan’s pot calls Biden’s kettle black

On “Meet the Press” this weekend, Rep. Jim Jordan was asked about what could be done to prevent what happened to Tyre Nichols. His response was he didn’t believe anything could be done, so he doesn’t think they should be working on it in the House. “We have other important issues we need to work on,” he said.

Among those issues is investigating President Biden, retaliating for investigating Donald Trump knowingly stealing confidential government information. Biden voluntarily turned over files he had as vice president as soon as they were found and has been cooperating. Contrarily, Trump sued to be able to keep the documents as “souvenirs,” among other excuses.

While serving as a wrestling coach, Jordan was accused of knowing that the team’s open shower facilities put them at risk. They were abused and harassed by a team doctor, but Jordan, a teacher, did nothing about it. He then asked the team’s captain to help in covering up the crime.

After 177 male students were molested and dozens of witnesses testified Jordan knew.

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

Private education all that’s needed

Only private education should exist in a free society. Government equals force, and force should have no place in education. Just as we have the separation of Church and State, so should we have the separation of Education and State. In fact, the latter is more important since it directly involves the indoctrination of our children.

Citizens have the right to choose their own teachers and textbooks. If, for example, one group approves of the Critical Race Theory and another group opposes it, so be it. It’s a free country. Each group pays its own way. This way, neither group is a threat to the other’s freedom or pocketbook.

Abolishing government forces from education will solve most of our educational conflicts. America has always been the melting pot of cultures, religions, and varying philosophies. We have learned from each other and profited from each other. Freeing education from the government, we can have this interaction and sharing of ideas in American schools instead of ongoing warfare.

Jim Douthit, retired teacher

West side

Election-deniers

Good thing Republicans aren’t in charge of the Super Bowl. We would learn who won by late summer after a long court battle. Clarence Thomas would need to see who his wife bet on.

Russ Baker

South side

Taking away benefits

Re: the Jan. 28 article “Record numbers sign up for Obamacare in AZ, U.S.”

With the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, enrollment in Arizona rose by 18% from last year to this. All Arizonans who signed up should never forget Sen. John McCain’s thumbs down on July 2017, where the Republicans would have permanently repealed the Affordable Care Act’s mandate, among other provisions. Fast forward to this week when Speaker Kevin McCarthy said “that cuts to Medicare and Social Security are off the table in talks around raising the debt limit.” Seems strange Americans who need health insurance and will in the future depend on Social Security and Medicare are willing to shoot themselves in the foot by voting Republican who are always willing to take away their benefits.

Clyde R. Steele

Oro Valley

Driving recklessly in parking lots

I recently found out that people who drive aggressively in parking lots can’t be given citations for reckless driving. That is wrong in so many ways. I live at an apartment complex, and because some of my fellow tenants have small children, I absolutely avoid moving fast when I am in my car. Also, driving fast in a parking lot is an indication that a person has engaged in irresponsible conduct. If you hit another car in a parking lot you deserve to pay more for auto insurance. What’s really disturbing is that the people who drive this way often are old enough to know better. If you’re 44, don’t drive like you are 16.

Charles Beaty

East side