Green energy reality
Re: the Sept. 6 letter “Green energy myth.”
I am constantly amazed by the grumbling naysayers of alternative energy solutions. On Monday, we were again accused of being incapable of analyzing green energy problems. For me, I am envious of my good friends, in rainy Seattle of all places, who charge their electric car completely from their rooftop panels. They no longer care whether gas is $5 per gallon or $2 per gallon because they have moved on from that smoky reality. They do not need oil pipelines or long coal trains to support their quiet lifestyle. I ask our “shocked” writer, “who is the misguided one”?
In Tucson, we have seen an abundance of parking lot solar panels erected. When those employers start adding electric vehicle charging stations for their employees and customers, then we will be embarking on an effective and clean solution to our unhealthy carbon dependence. Too bad so many readers are dedicated to finding fault, instead of moving forward toward a cleaner, and certainly more healthy, future.
People are also reading…
Howard Grahn
North side
Why gas prices are falling
Gasoline prices at the pump have dropped from about $5 a gallon to about $3.50 or so. The reason: a slowing economy and less demand for oil. Prices skyrocketed because of President Biden’s anti-petroleum rhetoric and executive orders on halting drilling and freezing oil/gas leases. The petroleum industry saw them in his cross hairs. We were coming out of the pandemic and demand for oil was high. That, coupled with Biden’s and Democrats’ trillions in spending, led to decades-high inflation, boosting gasoline prices and product costs. Now the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates, slowing the economy. Unemployment rose last month and jobs numbers were half what they were in July. New construction and new home sales are down. The combined effect has been less demand for oil, thus falling gasoline prices. Biden caused the high costs of gasoline and ironically, has caused them to be lowered. Not by any deliberate actions though, like increasing domestic production. Releasing strategic oil reserves was just cosmetic.
Rory Smith
Marana
Snake in wolf’s clothing?
U.S. Senate candidate Blake Masters has been busy making his website less Trumpy. This despite his avowed supplication to the Trump gospel that won him the Republican nomination. Has Blake had some sort of epiphany? No. He’s just been advised that his extreme-right stance, as dictated by Masters’ master, will be a boat anchor. So he has gussied up his site to look as though he is somewhat rational. Don’t buy it! This snake will do and say just about anything to enhance his opportunity.
He has no beliefs that aren’t for sale. I call that spineless. A snake dressed up as a wolf. Blake the Snake ... isn’t that a professional wrestler?
Scott Lukomski
Northeast side
CFSD school board election
I am a Catalina Foothills School District resident with three boys. This is a community I cherish, where I feel accepted and I seek to better through civic engagement. I am deeply troubled by the Back to Basics campaign. They are endorsed by Purple for Parents, a spinoff of a group the Southern Poverty Law Center designates a hate group.
These candidates intend to “abandon Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).” DEI honors the lived experiences of our diverse students, families, faculty and staff and also fosters empathy for those who are different from us. DEI is crucial to developing good citizens, good businesses and just societies. It is also the cornerstone of the Thrive 4 CFSD campaign. Amy Bhola, Amy Krauss and Gina Mehmert are volunteer moms who collaborate with our community to preserve our #1 AZ public school ranking and provide 100% curriculum transparency. Thanks to their service, District 16 continues our legacy of providing strong public education, empowering teachers, and ensuring all our children thrive authentically at CFSD.
Yvonne So
Foothills
Can’t be the only solution
When I worked on the Yuma Desalting test pilot project back in the ’80s we had a problem with fouling of the reverse osmosis membranes that was caused by algal slime. A clarification process was implemented that stopped this. The Carlsbad Desalination Project cited by another reader produces about close to 57,000 acre-feet of potable water per year and produces about 300,000 acre-feet per year of reject. In order to replace the 3 million acre-feet per year of Colorado River water would sterilize approximately 18 million acre-feet of ocean water per year. This would kill off vital phytoplankton that release more oxygen into our atmosphere than the forests do. This should be a partial solution, but not a complete one.
Dan Pendergrass
West side
Dobbs decision
Re: the Sept 7 letter “Dobbs v. Jackson.”
The letter writer seems to have a well-reasoned argument supporting Samuel Alito and the Dobbs Supreme Court decision re: abortion. Unfortunately, it is all based on one sentence, “Because abortion was always criminalized in law...” This statement is false. Abortion wasn’t criminalized anywhere in this country until the 1840s. And it wasn’t until 1910 that it was nationwide. So much for tradition.
Rich Bolton
Marana
Department of Justice
Re: the Sept. 8 letter “Department of un-justice.”
You may be registered as an Independent, and be a non-supporter of Donald Trump. However, most if not all of what you said was right out of the MAGA playbook. The information the MAGA’S are putting out is mostly distorted, if not an outright lie. Their intent is to confuse and enrage you (as well as to create fear in you), so you will act in ways that are not good for you or our country. Be skeptical and check the facts from a reliable source or several sources when you are bombarded with their rhetoric. Radio shows, the Internet and stations like Fox News are not held to the same accountability as major news outlets, although you can still get some distortion from them.
Elain Geary
East side
Afghan refugees not all vetted
A newly released DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) report showed that many of the 76,000 Afghan evacuees who rushed onto our military aircraft hastily departing from Kabul were not thoroughly vetted for security concerns. The report said “DHS may have admitted or paroled individuals into the United States who pose a risk to national security and the safety of local communities.” DHS Secretary Mayorkas testified only about 13% of total evacuees were U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents. Many of the Afghan evacuees never worked with our military in Afghanistan. After resettlement here, there have been numerous criminal cases involving refugees charged with a variety of crimes. Now a bipartisan group in Congress is about to provide legal status to these people. This same national security situation applies to our border, wherein over 1 million have been allowed entry under Biden not knowing of their backgrounds at home and the thousands that have entered escaping the Border Patrol. These are man-made disasters caused by President Biden!
Donna Davis
Northwest side
Something amazing
The moderate Democrat Party which seeks to unify the country and bring our democracy to a moderate center.
How is it that this party in control of all branches chooses to unleash the Justice Department and FBI on anyone that was remotely connected to the Rally in Washington on Jan. 6.
A woman who was identified anonymously has armed FBI agents show up at her door while her children were also called for interviews.
Banana republics seek to intimidate their political opponents and stifle First Amendment rights.
Thank you, Democrats who seek to protect our democracy.
Wait until our democracy unleashes its political operatives on you or your innocent relatives.
A list of subpoenas is readily available online along with a list of doors broken down with guns drawn and cuffs on suspicion of insurrection.
Connected to the only insurrection without weapons in which the only death was an unarmed female military veteran.
Thanks for working for our democracy!
Wait ’til democracy comes to your door.
Orwell!
Rich Barnes
East side
Are you trying to kill the Star?
First you move printing to Phoenix so half the sports scores are missing.
You change the delivery deadline so it’s impossible to read the paper at breakfast unless you’re retired.
Now I go to read the comics, the break I look forward to after wading through war and politics, and you’ve butchered them.
Don’t give me this “You can find them online.” If I start going online for my news I won’t need you.
Your fine local writers won’t matter if keep making it harder to read the news in a timely manner.
You are killing print journalism. You.
If you want to know the reason your circulation keeps dropping, find a mirror.
Guy Rovella
Midtown
No answers to question
Re: the Sept. 6 letter “Monsoons during climate change?”
The Star thankfully posted my previous letter asking why we still have our monsoon season during Global Climate Change (GCC) and Global Warming (GW). I have since read two letters negating my letter. One writer said how he had learned in school courses, where else, that the atmosphere is “boiling” thus causing our storms. Well, it takes the intense heat of May and June to draw up moisture from southern Mexico. Been occurring for a long time. I just took a flight to Hawaii wherein we were flying at an altitude of 30,000 feet. The atmospheric temperature outside the plane was a boiling 60 degrees below zero. Another writer said that climate and weather were not the same thing. Really? Monsoons are a climatic activity, not weather. He said I did not mention the floods in Pakistan or receding water levels in Lake Mead. My letter was not about that, I specifically asked the question about why we continue to have a monsoon season during GCC/GW. Not really answered.
Langhorne Bilby
Marana
Changes weren’t needed
Add my name to the list of people unhappy with the changes made to the comic pages and puzzles. Only one crossword puzzle and no Cryptoquip? What were you thinking?
Cheryl Quaintance
West side
Funnies and puzzles
I have stood by the Star literally through thick and thin. I continued to get the paper despite delivery issues, including the Parade being missing on many Sundays. But the change to the funnies and puzzles pages is the last straw. You eliminated most of our favorite comic strips. You eliminated the Cryptoquip. Yes, you added the Times puzzle which is good. And so far you’ve kept the TV listings, which I find helpful. But I can get the latest news online. I do the Times puzzle online. I can even catch up on my favorite funnies online. Please give me a reason to keep getting the paper.
Marilyn Forstot
Sahuarita
Gil Thorp comic
I commend the Star for adding the longtime popular comic, Gil Thorp, to the back page of the sports section. The strip remains the only sports-oriented strip on a national level, which I have read intermittently since its inception long ago.
Having missed the Thorp comic in well over two decades, I anticipated learning about 2022 Gil et al. However, since its debut I have been baffled about what/who/where/why is going on with the characters and storylines. The author often leaves his main characters and dialogue mysteriously dangling, unexplained, or subject to the reader’s imagination or interpretation. That’s not the Gil Thorp I recalled. It is difficult, at best, to decipher.
Similarly, it’s disappointing the Star decided to axe longtime, popular daily comics. First the “Far Side” was jettisoned several years ago for reasons I never understood; now, longtime favorites are confined to the internet. That’s hardly a crisis ... but perhaps more of a harbinger of deletions and reductions to come.
Baird Thompson
Foothills
Ode to Cryptoquip
Oh Cryptoquip, Oh Cryptoquip,
Wherefore art thou, oh Cryptoquip!
Where hast thou gone, victim of heartless
editorial pirates! Dictators!
A pox on ye, scourges of the comics page we loved!
Eleanor Arnold
Northeast side
Bring back old comics
Could you please return to the Star the previous comics section? We are disappointed that you removed so many that we enjoyed every day. It was so good to see in the Sunday Star the comics that you have deleted during the week! I looked forward every day to seeing them. Please make these two old folks happy and return the comics you deleted. Thank you.
Ted Jacobs
Northwest side
