Poor timing for new bill
I don’t profess to be an expert in the field of public relations; however, the recent signing of the Inflation Reduction Act appears to be an obvious lesson in poor optics. President Biden was signing the bill at the same time the stock market was plunging over 1,000 points. My advice to the person who planned the event: Update your résumé, check the help-wanted section of the Washington Post and leave the White House quietly and quickly.
Charles Schultz
Northeast side
Change is good, but...
Re: the Sept. 18 article “Middle class finding it difficult to buy a house.”
Local journalism is crucial. Without the Star, I wouldn’t have known about Chuck Huckelberry’s retirement scheme or Abraham Hamadeh’s father overstaying his visa. But is a front-page story about a home-buying couple in Napa really local news? Since the change, I’ve suffered trying to read the tiny print of the few comics which remain, and today, instead of a half-page, above the fold, New York Times Sunday crossword puzzle, I found a quarter-page Tribune Services substitute. I seem to be paying more and receiving less. The Star is straining my ability to feel good about supporting my hometown paper.
People are also reading…
Suzi Hileman
Northwest side
You have got to be kidding
Several of your contributors have suggested that the only people President Biden termed semi-fascists were MAGA supporters that promoted overthrow. To that I say baloney. He actually was referring to anyone disagreeing with the present policies of the administration. That includes questioning the wisdom of the open border and the green energy policies. Also, anyone who suggests that the school system is not teaching the kids the fundamentals that will allow them to be successful in later life. Anyone who is concerned about raging inflation or the ballooning crime rate is obviously an enemy of the state. Those who question free money for all. Biden campaigned on being the great uniter, but that obviously meant agreeing with the Democrats’ policies without discussion or compromise. By not supporting their policies blindly, you are obviously a threat to democracy.
Loyal M. Johnson Jr.
Oro Valley
Open letter to Jim Click
Mr. Click,
Recent news reports indicate that you will be actively supporting Kari Lake for governor. You have been a pillar in our community for decades, having established thriving businesses here. You have gained our admiration for underwriting so many worthy causes every year. To think you would support someone who denies that President Biden won the 2020 election is disheartening. Moreover, Lake promotes the QAnon conspiracy theory. Your support of her candidacy would suggest you also believe these assertions and theories.
A guest opinion in the Sept. 21 Daily Star boosts the candidacy of another state Republican candidate, Blake Masters (“Despite his numerous flaws, Masters is best candidate”). Yet the author admits he will have to hold his nose to vote for Masters. And he goes on to state that “Kari Lake’s candidacy is an insult to thinking individuals.” Mr. Click, please reconsider your decision to support Lake.
Dale Keyes
Downtown
Breaking laws, but not arrested
I do not understand why the FBI did not arrest Donald Trump after finding classified documents in their search of his home. If it were an ordinary citizen, I’m thinking the handcuffs would have been on in a flash. No one is above the law? Trump breaks laws with impunity.
Edward Weil
North side
Don’t be confused
Arizona’s Republican-dominated Legislature has for years encroached upon its citizens’ right to make law, even though that right was enshrined in our constitution with statehood (1912). Not only have they made it excruciatingly hard to gather valid signatures for initiatives, but they also fight fang and claw to remove citizen initiatives from the ballot. They also refer their own ballot measures in order to confuse voters (there will be at least 11 propositions on the ballot this year).
Here’s a guide to simplify things:
The 100-series (128, 129, 131, 132) were generated by the R-Legislature and designed to restrict citizen rights, so vote NO (130 also expands legislature power)
The 200 series (209, 210, 211) were citizen-generated and intended to expand or protect our rights, so vote YES on all three
The 300-series originated in the Legislature, but it’s a mixed bag
308 and 310 had bipartisan support, so vote YES
309 infringes citizens’ rights, so vote NO
Jim Christ
East side
Let the truth be told
In light of the recent abortion ruling upholding an anti-abortion law dated 1864, let’s finally tell it like it is. What I’ve always called “old white men,” (knowing that they aren’t all white and old) and their “approved” female counterparts played the sham game of sharing power with Black men and a few anointed minority males in the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s. Now, however, the truth must be told: these “old white men” seem to have a strong feeling of inadequacy and fear of competing with women. Even those women like the judge who made the ruling must feel unworthy to compete with other women. So, let’s keep ’em barefoot and pregnant while the rest of us hope that these relics of the distant past realize that we’re now in the 21st century when every country’s progress and security demands that talents from everyone must be utilized.
Barbara Benjamin
Foothills
War on public education
The GOP cult’s war on public education is not only infuriating, but also puzzling. I understand that they have become the party of ignorance, pushing emotional appeal and fear over reason, and that ignorant people are easier to manipulate than educated ones, but by eliminating an educated, trained middle class, they harm themselves.
If middle-class students abandon public schools because the Trumplicans have driven away the teachers, then the students who can, will flock to private schools, which will have to pay exorbitant salaries to the few teachers left, driving up their costs so that only the richest can afford them.
When the middle class shrivels up, when Americans can no longer compete in the world market, the rich will not be nearly as rich; they won’t be happy about that. The cult is shooting themselves in the foot — of course, they’ll blame President Biden for that, too.
Floyd Newsom
Northwest side
Teachers and COVID
What a travesty that TUSD teachers are given no sick leave (other than two minor days) to keep from infecting their own staff and students when testing positive for COVID. We wonder why positions are unfilled by quality teachers and why they are leaving the profession. As a retired Arizona educator, it is plain to see why newly educated teachers are going elsewhere. Just when are the Arizona legislators, school boards and administrators going to wake up and realize teachers can’t survive this way?
Steve Poe
Midtown
Slow streets needed
Tucson would benefit from assigning some streets to be “slow streets.” These streets are designated to support alternative transportation where vehicles are only permitted as residential traffic.
Lately, while biking I have noticed a dramatic increase in speeding vehicles traveling very dangerously on Mountain Avenue, which is designated for bike traffic as a “Bike Boulevard — lower traffic, lower speed street with improvements that prioritize bike travel.” However, many drivers are using this street as their personal fast track to and from Speedway to Limberlost Road. Speeding vehicles can be extremely dangerous for cyclists riding in the bike lane as there are times when cyclists will have to suddenly pull out of the bike lane due to dangerous hazards.
There are several schools along Mountain Ave., with students of all ages walking to and from the school bus stops. Aside from the university, there is Salpointe Catholic High School, a Montessori school, and Rio Vista elementary school all contributing to Mountain Ave., foot and bike traffic.
Cheryl Kelli
Downtown
The blame game
Re: the Sept. 24 letter “Masters at projection.”
The author claims that Dems project their guilt for the BLM protests of 2020 onto the GOP riots of Jan. 6. I think the letter writer is suffering from another defense mechanism, denial. He sees the speck in the Dems’ eye, while ignoring the moat in his own eye.
He describes Jan. 6 as “one riot,” and the violence that accompanied the BLM protests of 2020 as “dozens of very violent riots.” As someone who has sworn allegiance to the U.S., I am shocked that someone would describe an attempt to overthrow the government of the United States as a mere riot. The comparison to the BLM protests of 2020 is bizarre. BLM is responsible for the marchers in the street, but the nearby violence could have been perpetrated by anyone. Perhaps it was a false-flag operation by the GOP.
Walter Mann
Marana
Purple makes GOP see red
I’ve seen this movie before. When I moved to California in 1974, Ronald Reagan was governor, and the state was red, red, red. When I left in 1992, California was blue, blue, blue. We could blame it on a couple of clueless Republican governors, but it was probably due to a huge influx of newcomers to the state.
Arizona Republicans have gone bonkers, because Arizona has turned purple. That’s why their candidates want to stop certifying elections. The GOP can tolerate blue states like New York, or blue voting districts if there aren’t too many, but becoming a purple state drives them crazy. The state of Georgia also turned purple in 2020, sending two Democrats to the U.S. Senate. But the Republican response in Georgia has been totally different, with the GOP backing candidates who stood up for democracy.
Purple is a vibrant color, and it doesn’t fade for a long time. Eventually it turns blue, and bogus lawsuits and fake electors won’t change that.
John Vornholt
Northeast side
Democracy — not inflation — on ballot
Republicans nationwide are deflecting attention from the critical issues of Trump’s continuing sedition, women losing rights to health care, and our very democracy being undermined, by conjuring up the bogey man of inflation. Rising prices, being experienced worldwide, are the result of a global pandemic and unchecked corporate greed. Any hope of creating a healthy economy based on decent wages and local production, restoring sanity and decency to our political process, protecting our rights to safety and privacy, and saving our very democracy, lies with electing Democrats to every level of government. Arizona Democrats have a fine slate of ethical, experienced candidates up and down the line. Arizona Republicans have produced a frightening array of corporate puppets and sedition-mongers who believe they have a right to change our votes to create an autocratic process. Vote now, and vote Democratic, while we still have a vote and a democracy.
Mary E. Bradshaw
Northwest side
Velodrome needed
To expand interest in Tucson’s bicycling community, perhaps it is time to convert the under-utilized Rillito Race Track into a velodrome racing track. A velodrome could welcome more bicycle enthusiasts and visitors to Tucson.
We have heartily embraced the Chuck Huckelberry Loop, which does not accommodate both bicycle racing groups and pedestrians well.
Dorothy Hornby
Northwest side
Toll on local auto shops
Re: the Sept. 26 letter “Dems’ EV push will harm auto shops.”
It’s too easy to brush aside the letter from the Vail writer condemning the Democrats for pushing the electric vehicle agenda as another partisan attack without merit. If the wind is blowing and the government pushes funding for wind-powered electricity generation, is that a Democrat thing? There will be no stopping (only slowing by moneyed interests) all out electrification. Renewable electric energy is already cheaper to transmit and cheaper to produce altogether.
But what about her husband’s repair shop in Vail? Is it just survival of the fittest? Or does society have an obligation to help people without the resources to re-train or re-imagine a way of making a living — as their way of making a living will be EV stampeded into oblivion? Sure, it’s a ways off yet, but that’s no comfort to the Vail writer or her husband’s repair shop.
I offer no answers here but I ask this question because it’s the only way forward to a fair and just transition away from fossil fuels.
Rick Rappaport
Oro Valley
Letter response
Re: the Sept. 26 letter “Attributes.”
In my opinion, the letter writer is completely correct in their thinking. We have allowed too many incompetent political party “followers” to determine what’s best for all of us.
The only thought I would add is: experience in, or empathy for, those protecting our freedoms: the U.S. Military!
Peter Strauss
Marana
