Tucson Speaks Out: September 20

It's the war, Juan

Affordability, inflation, rising costs — call it what you will — it’s top of mind for voters. The Brown University Climate Solutions Lab estimates that U.S. consumers have collectively spent about $107 billion more on gasoline and diesel since the beginning of the Iran conflict. Part of the cost impacts are from the Russia-Ukraine conflict during the same period. Pencil it out, and it averages to more than $500 million a day since Feb. 28, and it’s going to get worse, soon. All the money Congressman Juan Ciscomani claims to have saved his constituents with HR 1, the Big Beautiful Bill, pales in comparison to the price increases of gasoline and diesel. The cause for the stratospheric increase — a war Ciscomani said in May was “very close to being over.”

It’s still a war, Juan.

Sheldon Clark

Vail

Humanity can choose a better path

What an amazing juxtaposition of articles in the Sept. 16 front section. On the front page we have "US confirms weapons are in orbit." On the op/ed page is Kathleen Bethel's "Humanity can choose a better path." The article about the weapons says they are ready to meet the challenges of evolving threats “wherever they exist." It also says the acknowledgment is "a clear message of deterrence to both China and Russia." That sounds like offense, not defense. I'm with Kathleen Bethel! Let's choose the better path. It's not a pie-in-the-sky utopian dream. Her visions are simply of a truly civil society that we should all want to live in, with equal opportunity for all. This is achievable if enough of us choose that path and reject the one we've been on. What are we waiting for? It's up to each and every one of us.

Aston Bloom

East side

Proud Jarhead

I'm sure JoAnna Mendoza’s motto, as before, will still be "Semper Fidelis." Faithful to the country, not to an authoritarian; spit-shined shoes, not a boot licker; loyal to the country, not a loyalist to Trump; from the halls of Congress, not the shores of Mar-a-Lago. So, Juan Ciscomani for the 1% or Go with Jo for the 99%? Oops, sorry, I know Mendoza will be for the 100% (all of us). I've become a RINO, not the HIPPO (Hang-ons Ingesting Presidential Propaganda Obediently).

Joe Sanchez

Marana

A bad sweetheart deal

I’m sure the headline, “Tucson water supply in danger,” got the attention of every Arizona Daily Star reader. The article ignores multiple serious issues. Why has it taken the City of Tucson over a decade to discover PFAS in its wells after the US Air Force built a PFAS-treatment facility at Raytheon’s plant? Did anyone ask what this “nonprofit” intends to pay its unnamed “retired Air Force veterans” in an undefined sweetheart deal? How does Tucson justify giving away water to a privately owned golf course when other courses are paying for the cost of their water? Finally, given that the USAF is totally responsible for PFAS contaminating our water, where are Juan Ciscomani and Adelita Grijalva on this issue in an election year?

Richard Janik

East side

AI

In 1970, a low-rated movie came out. It was the second movie (maybe the reason not many remember it, other things were on their minds) at a local drive-in theater. It was called “Colossus: The Forbin Project.” Colossus, a supercomputer, is created by Dr. Charles Forbin and is built to control nuclear weapons so there would be no human errors. It quickly spirals into a chilling power shift when the machine links with its Soviet counterpart and develops its own agenda. I had just finished computer programming school, and maybe that is why this movie has always stayed with me. This was 1970 — 56 years ago — a fiction writer saw a potential problem with AI, and the programmers and scientists didn't?

Sandra Gassan Joubert

Northwest side

Save democracy

In case you had any doubts about the ineptitude and incompetence of the president, his cabinet, appointees and congressional Republicans, check out the recent Senate oversight hearing with FBI Director Kash Patel. With our democracy hanging by a thread, it is imperative that Democrats take control of the House and Senate. Even then, not all damage already incurred will be irreversible. Our long-term allies, having learned that America cannot be trusted, have already moved on, forming new relationships, alliances and trade deals with others. While we can’t stop the impact of the chaos known as Trump, we can minimize the extent of the ensuing suffering. Be mindful of your vote!

Sherri Schamel

West side