Just call them ‘wimps’
Re: the June 2 article “Rebuild the family to stop school shootings.”
I take great exception to Jay Ambrose’s op-ed describing shooters as, “tear-soaked womanish wimps.” The pejorative use of “womanish “ to describe a mental monster is deeply insulting to females. The women I know are strong amazing people.
Ambrose could have simply said, “wimps,” but felt it was acceptable to denigrate women as weak teary inferiors. I agree the family system is shaky, but I am suspicious of his call for “restoring certain old norms.” Exactly what, Jay? He doesn’t mention the ease that teens purchase machine guns at all. I think the failure to address that is wimpy.
Christi S. Driggs
Northwest side
People are also reading…
O Canada
I learned from TV news this week since the Uvalde, Texas, shooting that Canada is taking a strong stand regarding gun ownership. A quick perusal of Google gave details of Canada’s gun history and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s current desire to “implement a national freeze on handgun ownership and force owners of military-style assault weapons to sell their guns to the government under newly-introduced legislation. As a government, as a society, we have a responsibility to act to prevent more tragedies.” Mr. Trudeau said.
I doubt the U.S. legislatures, federal and state, can pass such stringent measures here. But the notion of gun buybacks in this country to get rid of as many assault rifles as possible would be far more productive than just universal background checks, waiting periods, “red flag laws,” even mental health programs.
Think of all the assault rifles and ammunition we could send to NATO nations and Ukraine. Now.
Mary Naig
Foothills
What will stop our killing spree?
Emmett Till’s terribly swollen and disfigured body, visible through his glass-topped casket, gave impetus to the Civil Rights movement for the next few years, beginning with the successful Montgomery bus boycott that resulted in a ruling that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional. For those of us horrified by the fact that 18-year-olds, not old enough to buy beer, can buy military-style weapons of war, causes me to wonder when a grieving parent, devastated and deeply angry by the death of their child, will display a photo of their child both before, but also after the devastation caused by such weaponry. Would that get the attention of our political leaders? Or are we so inured to the killing of our children and all people that it would not make a dent? Till’s mother’s radical action resulted in racial progress. What will stop our killing spree?
Richard Miller
Northeast side
Two futile searches
In the early 16th century, the Spanish explorer Ponce de León was sent to the new world, now the USA, by the king of Spain to find the Fountain of Youth. He searched, but failed to find it. In the 21st century, the Republican Party searched for evidence of vast voter fraud in the 2020 election. They too failed to find what they were looking for. Both failed for the same reason: none existed. Sixty courts of law have also failed to find voter fraud. Nevertheless, the Republican search continues. Ponce de León eventually gave up his search. Will Republicans ever do the same?
Harry Peck
Tubac
Take action
Re: the June 2 article “Tulsa police: 3 killed in shooting at medical building.”
The headline said that three people had been killed in a shooting in Tulsa. (A fourth later died.) My first thought was “Only three?” My reaction is a discredit to me, but I am sure that I was not alone. There have been so many mass shootings that an attack killing four innocents barely seems newsworthy. We must take action. Requiring universal background checks and banning sales of military weapons to civilians are necessary first steps.
Donald Reese
Southeast side
Republican politicians and guns
Something as simple as stricter background checks was vetoed by Arizona Republican Sen. Warren Petersen, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, because he said it will stop law-abiding citizens from protecting themselves. What? Law-abiding citizens cannot pass a background check? How about a background check on chairman Petersen? Mr. Petersen, just hold up your card from the NRA.
Lotte Decker
Northeast side
Lifeguard shortage
Three years ago, my family lost an adorable 8-year-old girl and her grandma. They were swimming in a neighbor’s swimming pool with no lifeguard and no one else around while they swam. The neighbor came home and found the two of them drowned. The other day, I saw three boys swimming in a city pool that was not open. They climbed the fence and were jumping from the lifeguard stands and diving boards. I know they were just having a good time, however there’s always a chance of an accident happening. The police showed up. He didn’t arrest the boys. I thought a good punishment for these boys or girls would be to require them to complete the lifeguard training program. Clearly they can swim, we need lifeguards and they will have jobs and be able to swim. If they are not 15 yet, the punishment can happen when they come of age. They may respect the purpose of having a lifeguard when they swim.
Michelle Lay
Southeast side
Gun violence
As the NRA and gun advocacy groups frequently say: “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” This statement is false. As we saw in the recent Buffalo massacre, the “good guy” with a gun did not “stop” the “bad guy” with a gun and 10 people are now dead.
If we humans see ourselves as rational beings, then making statements such as the NRA statement above is irrational and not worthy of consideration of any discussion about guns.
Dale Gehring
Midtown
Support Winfield for second term
Dear Arizona Daily Star Editor,
Mayor Joe Winfield shares ads with three bipartisan council members because these candidates refuse real estate developers’ money. Instead, they listen to their constituents and follow Oro Valley’s guidelines for responsible, environmentally sound development.
Mayor Winfield has improved our park system, our town’s credit rating, and saved us millions of dollars without adding any new taxes. He has added over 30 new businesses and convinced the state to finally begin repairing Oracle Road. His financial oversight of our town has received three national awards.
Promoting law and order, he hired an outstanding new police chief, four new officers, increased the police department’s budget, and brought our police pension fund up to 100%.
We support Mayor Winfield, and Town Council members Joyce Jones-Ivey, Josh Nicolson, and Melanie Barrett for re-election on Aug. 2.
April and John Hoffman
Oro Valley
Dangerous panhandling
Despite local laws against panhandling on street corner medians, there seems to be a huge increase in this activity on almost every major thoroughfare. I worry for their safety as some are disabled and barely able to walk the median with their sign. The cowering dog, the heat, and yes, many, many distracted drivers texting and holding a phone talking, are just another accident waiting to occur. I understand our police force is stretched thin. Please help be part of the solution and do not give donations. There are services and help available other than this rampant activity on our dangerous city/county streets.
Mark Zajicek
Foothills
2nd amendment interpretation
Re: the June 3 letter “Guns for protection.”
The letter writer promotes the myth that the founders wrote the Second Amendment to ensure the right of citizens to overthrow the government and provide for personal protection. If he had read the U.S. Constitution he would know that nothing is further from the truth.
The Second Amendment mentions neither function, only the need for a well-regulated militia. It states: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution states that the function of militias is “To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress insurrections and repel Invasions.”
I think our uneducated gun advocates and so-called “originalist” SCOTUS have distorted the interpretation of the Second Amendment to the extent that it is barely recognizable.
Bruce Hilpert
North side
A letter to the Republican Senate
You call yourself the pro-life party. Yet you refuse to pass meaningful gun laws that would prevent murders in the classrooms, grocery stores and houses of worship. You never rail against the death penalty in 24 of the states. You are willing to sacrifice the life or mental health of a woman whose life could be shattered by being forced to have a baby she did not want and was not complicit in the conception. Republican voters, you have a choice.
Barbara Holtzman
Northwest side
Build it and they will come
I think our local governments are doing everything backwards without any regards for the consequences. Building all types of housing for people moving here from California and Colorado, due to these states’ cost of living. Yet, no building of additional resources to support everyone. We are in dire need of more hospitals, medical facilities, more doctors and medical staff veterinarians, and law enforcement officers. Our lives are being negatively impacted, to say the least.
Local governments need to stop overbuilding homes, and put more energy into increasing our resources before inviting thousands of people to live here.
Karin Militello
Northwest side
Keep ACC meeting public
Re: the June 9 article “ACC head proposes secret meetings.”
It is with concern I read in the June 9 edition that the Arizona Corporation Commission chairwoman wants to hold opaque (non-public) meetings with industry. Serving in public office is supposed to be serving the public. Arizona has an open meeting law supporting this principle.
Economic development at the cost of worsening the environment is not in the public interest. If the ACC wants to know about future projects, so should every Arizonan. There is no reason here why our open meeting law should be thwarted.
Linda Karl
Northeast side
Ticked-off consumer
I am a ticked-off consumer. Instead of paying $25 for a tank of gas, pre-President Biden, I am paying $50 plus. I go to restaurants and menu items are higher. I go to Dollar Tree and their $1 prices have jumped to $1.25. That is a 25% increase. I shop at Walmart for groceries, lettuce up from $1 to $1.48, cans of Chef Boyardee up from 98 cents to $1.28, Natures Own Bread up from $2.98 to $3.37, Hunt’s Pasta Sauce up from 98 cents to $1.18, Doritos from $2.50 to $3.57. The price increases go on and on. A dozen large eggs used to cost about $1.25, but now are over $3. Manufacturers have shrunk contents of their packages, but costing the same or more. We are at a 40-year high inflation rate. I blame Biden, not Vladimir Putin for all this. I think his disdain for the petroleum industry has had a devastating ripple effect throughout the economy.
Rosalinda Vasquez
South side
Republican political ads
Unfortunately, I have come to expect Republican political ads to sell fear. This year, they are all telling me that we are overrun by undocumented immigrants and that 90% are real criminals. They are also telling me that drug lords have completely taken over our state. However, this year things have gone to a new low. Juan Ciscomani is telling me that, OMG, schools are not teaching anything that is good about America. Really, Juan? One would hope that our schools should teach the truth. We as Americans were good many times but we were also extremely bad at other times.
I think we have treated Native Americans, Black American citizens, Chinese American citizens, Japanese American citizens, Jewish American Citizens and LGBTQ American citizens with nothing but hate. We murdered them, enslaved them, jailed them and discriminated against them all because we thought that we were better.
Don’t tell me that we need to make America great again by telling me that we should not tell the truth about America!
Lyle Marcks
Midtown
Risk taker? Fly commercial
On June 5, I flew to Guatemala on crowded flights, after waiting in packed lines, to continue work with rural Maya as coordinator of St. Michael’s (Episcopal) Guatemala Project. I had tested negative for COVID the day before and am fully vaccinated. On June 8, three days later, I developed mild symptoms and tested positive, confirmed by a lab test the next day. I remain in quarantine in a safe, modest hotel.
The only time I was in close contact or in confined spaces with others was during U.S. air travel. I was masked. Most people weren’t.
If the new CDC ruling, “no required tests for global re-entry,” had been in effect, I could have boarded a return flight immediately, infected and unmasked. I wouldn’t. But what about the person sitting next to you on your next flight?
My advice: Don’t fly unless it’s unavoidable. Mask. Test first, for others’ sake.
Please ask the Biden administration and Arizona’s congressional delegation to de-politicize this medical issue and reinstate realistic safeguards.
Ila Abernathy Midtown
Valdez left an imprint
Re: the June 10 article “Ex-city manager Valdez dies at 87.”
During my career with the City of Tucson, I worked for Joel Valdez, as well as Tom Volgy, and served as Ward 3 City Council member. Mr. Valdez and I didn’t always agree on the local issues. However, as he referred to me as ‘young man,’ I often found myself disarmed … as he did with many others. During my tenure on the City Council, I attended a conference in Phoenix. During the opening ceremony, I was sitting towards the side of the the room and Mr. Valdez, arriving after the start, took a seat next to me. I was surprised and honored. At one point, he leaned over and said to me, “young man, keep asking those tough questions.” Those words, I never forgot. Mr. Valdez was a special person and left his imprint on our community in so many ways.
Jerry Anderson
West side
