Border shipping containers
The first containers were placed in Yuma County in August 2022. They were taken down four months later.
Re: the June 21 article “Container wall leaves runaway costs behind.”
The Arizona Daily Star ran a headline story about the shipping containers placed at the border in Yuma. It was not written by Star reporters, but from college student journalists in training. Yes there were over expenditures, rushed decision-making, no-bid contracts and so on. I do not believe any of this would have occurred if President Joe Biden had secured the border at Yuma and elsewhere in Arizona. He did not and still has not. Texas has also placed shipping containers on their border. The border wall gap at Yuma, where hundreds of thousands of people have illegally crossed, is still open.
The Biden administration, under pressure from Sen. Mark Kelly, reluctantly gave approval to erect more wall there. It has been almost a year since that decision was announced and people are still illegally crossing at Yuma. In my opinion, the blame for all this lies solely on President Biden, who stopped construction of the wall and rescinded most of Trump’s border policies that resulted in massive illegal immigration.
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Rory Smith
Marana
Climate change
In the event of the last two days (submitted July 6) of consecutive record-setting global temperatures, I wonder what rock all the climate change deniers are going to hide under. Even though science has been forecasting these events (even under-forcasting them, as it turns out) for years, the deniers have been screaming “hoax” or claiming some naturally occurring phenomenon. Though their pronouncements have proven false, they were at least partially effective in delaying the important measures that could have helped mitigate the extraordinary temperature increases we are suffering through. Do you suppose they might have a change of mind and start supporting mitigation? Don’t hold your breath.
Jack Evert
Oro Valley
Five reasons …
Re: the July 9 letter “Solutions needed.”
The letter writer asks for solutions to the issue of racial disparity in crime while not accepting the possibility of systematic racism. He offers no reasons other than Blacks commit more crime. He proposes no solutions to this issue.
1. From 1526 to 1865 Black Americans were enslaved and largely uneducated. Their families were tenuous at best, therefore they could not create or accumulate wealth. 2. After 1877, southern states put in place laws that prohibited Blacks from economic success and political participation. 3. During the 20th century, cities created rules both written and de facto that limited and in some cases took the wealth of Blacks (properties condemned for freeways). 4. Studies clearly demonstrate poverty is largely a predictor of criminal activity. 5. Blacks are much more likely to be arrested and convicted of the same crimes as whites (crack cocaine vs. powder cocaine).
Solution: Balance economic and educational opportunities for minority Americans in line with white Americans.
Kalvin Smith
Midtown
Trump’s an anarchist
Donald Trump claims he will never take away our rights. Every day we hear how he has been treated so unfairly. His latest statements are “just a bridge too far.” He spent his first term taking away our rights, and now he will “never take away our rights” if you vote as patriots. Numerous examples of rights being taken away in the last few years are too numerous to mention here.
Trump really is an anarchist, he will run things his way and never ask for or take advice from anyone, let alone apologize. He will not get my vote. Every voter who could support him needs to wake up and come to the party. One day we all could wake up and have a dictator for a leader. Hitler was elected. Other examples of this are evident all around the world. The GOP should not support the anarchist.
If someone tells you who he is or that “I alone can fix it,” believe them. All voters have been warned.
Fran Gordon
Green Valley
Cocaine in the White House
Initially, I found it quite concerning that cocaine was recently found in the west wing of the White House. Hopefully, the current administration is not involved. Possibly the former could be suspect? Does it really matter? Instead of playing the blame game, let us remember the misguided words of Nancy Reagan’s famous catchphrase, “Just Say No.” Ironically, we now have hypocritical political figures who say no to human rights and decency while “high” on their horses.
Timothy O’Connor
West side
Horne on TV
Now Tom Horne is doing television ads to promote Empowerment vouchers while the Supreme Court has ruled against college debt forgiveness. So it’s OK for the state of Arizona to pay for a private school education for our most wealthy residents, but it isn’t OK for the federal government to pay for college debt? Either way, the government pays the bill.
I’m not for either one, but again, the poor people are discriminated against. I know anyone can get one, but we all know who is using them the most.
Tom Horne says in his commercial that if you are not happy with your school’s performance, you should get the Empowerment voucher. I have a different solution. Tom Horne, DO YOUR JOB! If the school is underperforming, get in there and fix it! I’m tired of paying government salaries for people who can’t, or won’t do their job.
This has gone on long enough. Gov. Katie Hobbs, get a backbone and get rid of the voucher program.
Teresa Mackey
Northeast side
Wagner and Blackwater
Americans have watched with fascination as the recent drama played out between the Russian government/military and the Wagner Group headed by Mr. Prigozhin. Perhaps this conflict was inevitable given the authority and power conferred on Wagner to carry out military operations on behalf of but independent of the Russian military.
It brings to mind the private contractor, Blackwater, to which the U.S. military outsourced a number of military functions during the Iraq war. Blackwater, too, was paid billions of dollars and allowed considerable independence from the usual military chain of command. Both situations resulted in an over dependence on the contractors by the military, friction with the uniformed services and reported abusive practices against civilian non-combatants. Furthermore, the use of contractors in both cases likely enabled the governments involved to engage in military commitments that may not have otherwise been politically possible.
John Leonardo
Downtown
LD17 deserves better
I suspected our representatives from Legislative District 17 would be lame, but I underestimated their lack of awareness. Sen. Justine Wadsack and Rep. Rachel Jones recently posed holding assault rifles like they were models for the cover of Gun Fetish Monthly. Ironic that the weapons they brandish are allowed in schools and churches, but NOT the building where they work. Such bravery!
More irony from Rep. Cory McGarr, who started whining about his personal finances moments after he was sworn in. Did he not know what the job paid? His solution was a bill that would force employers like his to hold his job open while he is session. Someone’s going to have to pay for that, but maybe raising taxes is OK if it benefits you personally.
LD 17 is poorly served by these three. Weapons of mass destruction are ubiquitous in Arizona, putting us all at risk and, of course, serving as deadly props for vapid politicians who think they are insurrectionists.
Jim Lombardo
Oro Valley
