Maricopa County too big for elections
I’m not an election denier. I’m tired of these Republican crybabies, but there is something wrong with the elections in Maricopa County. That one county is the second-largest election jurisdiction in the USA, which is not a good thing. A problem there, such as the recent printer issues, affects tens of thousands of people. In Cochise County, the same problem might affect a few hundred people.
Almost 60% of the population of Arizona lives in Maricopa County. It wasn’t that way in 1912 when Arizona became a state, but people are pouring into the Phoenix area. A Republican board of supervisors and election officials have controlled Maricopa County for decades, but I sincerely doubt if Democrats could do any better getting that 800-pound gorilla to behave.
You want change and better elections? Split Maricopa County into two or three counties — or at least independent voting districts.
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John Vornholt
Northeast side
Another cautionary tale
Re: the Dec. 5 letter “America be aware!”
This letter refers to a 1937 novel, “It Can’t Happen Here,” in which a charismatic demagogue is elected president and imposes a dictatorship with the aid of a paramilitary group.
I read that book long ago. More recently I read a dystopian novel by Octavia Butler, “Parable of the Talents,” which refers to a presidential candidate who pledges to “make America great again.” A character in the novel describes this politician as “a demagogue, a rabble-rouser and a hypocrite [who] pulled religion and government together and cemented the link with money from rich businessmen.”
This novel was published in 1998.
These books were written as cautionary tales. They were never meant to be used as how-to manuals.
Tom Chulski
Green Valley
Griner release
I read where this basketball player was released and a Marine was not. Griner would not come out of the locker room until after the national anthem was played and having served in Marines myself I understand the pride the Marine has for this country, and yet a basketball player is coming home and he stays there. This president has his priorities a little mixed up.
Thomas R. Crawford
Foothills
Ukraine’s defense
Why aren’t our “friends” and “the only democracy in the Middle East” helping our friends in Ukraine preserve their democracy? On more than one occasion, President Zelenskyy has asked for the Iron Dome, but has been rebuffed. At first, he was told that the Iron Dome was not effective against Russian cruise missiles, but cruise missiles are not the only threat to Ukraine’s citizens and infrastructure. Today, Russia is also using Iranian-made drones to wreak destruction in Ukraine. Recent news articles have touted the effectiveness of the Iron Dome against weaponized drones, and yet this highly effective defensive shield is withheld from the Ukrainian people. As Ukrainians die, our “only friends in the Middle East” look away. Are they concerned that such assistance to Ukraine might anger their Russian partners in Syria? Does the United States need to reimburse its “friend” for helping defend democracy in Ukraine?
John Prug
Foothills
Sinema’s plan
Sen. Sinema can win support from all parties by saying: “I’m resigning as Democratic senator from Arizona to run as an Independent in 2024. Katie Hobbs can appoint my replacement.”
Jim Dreis
East side
