Tucson Speaks Out: May 21

Sneaky budget bill

Congress is rushing to pass the budget bill before it can be analyzed — voting this week. What we do know is the bill extends 2017 tax breaks for wealthy people and corporations while increasing the federal deficit by $4.6 trillion. This will be countered by cuts to Medicaid and other social programs — but not until 2029 so current Congress people can escape responsibility for hurting constituents. Instead, they will brag about avoiding a tax increase (for themselves!). Talk about fraud. The bill has already hurt our economy by causing a downgrading of the US credit rating. The bill has many other hidden components to benefit the wealthy — a prohibition on state regulation of AI which benefits Musk and others. Write your Congresspeople and insist they modify and vote against this hurtful bill — especially extension of 2017 tax cuts. Then notice how they vote and remember in 2026.

Wendy Anderson

Foothills

Protect American democracy

A group of Vail residents has organized to promote and protect the integrity of American democracy and rule of law.

We hope to raise awareness and take action against:

• Immoral policies that mistreat vulnerable populations, abuse power and encourage hate and division
• Illegal actions taken in direct violation of existing laws
• Unconstitutional measures that deny the rights guaranteed under the constitution, such as free speech, due process, equal protection under the law, and separation of powers practices of the current administration.

We hope to educate and mobilize the community to hold leaders accountable. We are not powerless. History shows that change begins when ordinary people demand accountability.

All welcome to join us for a rally in Vail for “No Kings Day” on June 14. We will gather at the intersection of Mary Ann Cleveland and Colossal Cave Roads in Vail, 9-10 am.

Lyn Flynn

Vail

Where have all the doctors gone?

Our family has seen four primary care physicians in the past 5 years. They come, they are knowledgeable, friendly, and seemingly enthusiastic — and then they leave within a year. The main communication channel is “My Chart.” When you call, the message is, “We are too busy to answer now, please leave your number and we will call you back — smooth move — now they have turned me into their receptionist.

This is not just a Tucson problem. We are seeing the same issues in New Mexico.

Looking at the taillights of my husband’s dermatology practice, I see a fading connection and commitment between doctor and patient. Some of his families were seen for over 30 years. A computerized record was not needed — he saw the patient’s grandparents and already knew the family history. Yes, it was a responsibility but also a delight.

How come many veterinarians are still personal and paws-on and My Chart-free.

Ideas, anyone? Are you listening TMC and Banner?

S.R. Miller

Southwest side

Illiteracy

I believe that a significant portion of our high school graduates demonstrates underdeveloped literacy skills. Millions of adults in the US are functionally illiterate, meaning they read below a fifth-grade level.

Some statistics indicate that a notable percentage of high school graduates fall into this category.

High school graduates are not adequately prepared for the reading demands of college coursework. Scores on college entrance exams have shown a decline in college readiness in reading.

Middle and high school English language arts classes often emphasize reading comprehension, assuming students have already mastered basic reading skills.

Poverty and lack of access to books can negatively impact a child’s literacy development.

It’s important to distinguish between basic reading skills and proficient literacy. While most graduates can read a simple text like a diploma, many struggle with more complex materials.

I believe that addressing this issue requires a focus on strengthening foundational reading skills early on, promoting reading engagement throughout schooling.

Tom McGorray

Northwest side

Financial literacy as graduation requirement

It is graduation time and as a retired teacher with 17 years of experience in Arizona’s public schools, I worry. I’ve witnessed firsthand how unprepared many students are when it comes to managing money. They leave high school knowing how to dissect a frog but not how to make good investments, read a credit card statement, create a budget, or understand interest rates. That has to change.

We are doing a disservice to our youth and to ourselves by failing to provide basic financial education as early as elementary school. Personal finance — budgeting, saving, credit, loans, and taxes — should be required before graduation. Arizona’s entire economy will benefit from it.

The Legislature should act to make financial literacy a high school graduation requirement. Let’s stop sending students into the world financially illiterate.

Why should the children of the wealthy be the only one to know the secret to financial success?

Mary Patton

Midtown

Trump’s world

It appears to me that many voters are not following the facts about the president, the facts about his aides, the facts about his sycophants, the facts about his appointees, and the facts about his toadies in the House of Representatives. It only takes a moment to read a newspaper’s headlines or watch a television newscast. We need to save us and our Constitution.

Toni Kane

Oro Valley

Selloff of public lands

Every angler knows that fish need water. In Arizona, the water flowing in the vast majority of our trout streams has one thing in common: It comes from public lands.

Public lands are a uniquely American value and legacy — they belong to all of us, and are the place where we can fish, hunt, and recreate without the special permissions and often hefty cost associated with these activities on private lands.

All that changes if public lands were to get sold or offloaded as part of the budget reconciliation process now playing out in Congress. Most states and local governments don’t have the means to properly steward these lands and would likely sell them out to private interests or developers.

One thing we can do to help keep America’s unique sporting heritage alive is to call or write our members of Congress asking them to oppose disposal of public lands as a federal budget item.

Nate Rees

North side

Foothills water rate increase

If it were not for the mountains and foothills surrounding the Tucson region, the Tucson basin aquifer would not be as healthy. This is because of greater precipitation in higher elevations, as well as the land expanse runoff feeding the aquifer. Larger lot areas in the foothills are not necessarily by owner choice, but topography and zoning issues. Water runs downhill, and arroyos and pathways are needed for that to happen, sometimes increasing lot sizes. Vegetation needs some irrigation. We do not see “lush turf or tropical gardens” in our area. More property requires more water. The City has already lost in court their last water rate increase to the foothills. Since foothills residents have no representation with the City, we have to hope for a fair process. Not one based on income, but one based on being treated fairly. Bank robbers robbed banks because that’s where the money was, and because they could. Similar to the Boston Tea Party.

Dave Locey

Foothills

Let them eat tariffs

Mr. Trump promised that China would pay the cost of his tariffs. Now the president says American companies, like Walmart, must “eat the tariffs.” Of course, anyone with a lick of sense knows it is us, the consumers, who will be eating those tariffs.

Surprised? Nope. If you’ve watched over the years, you know Mr. Trump is a well-practiced liar. You also know the president is partial to shady deals and tax evasion, fraud, bribes, and — let’s not forget — sexual abuse. Now, back in the White House, Mr. Trump has not ended any wars or reduced the price of eggs. However, he has been wildly successful enriching himself and his kids.

So what will stop the rampant corruption of the Trump Crime Family? The callous and clueless queen, Marie Antoinette, is said to have proclaimed of her citizenry, “Let them eat cake!” And we know how that turned out.

Leslie Kanberg

Downtown

Tax cuts for the rich

So the Republican Party is well under way in passing a budget to extend the tax cuts to the rich enacted in Trump’s first term. And in fact adding more tax cuts for the rich and cutting funding to the IRS just in case some rich folk still don’t have enough and want to cheat on their returns. And how is this to be paid for? For the most part it’s not, but Republicans are trying by severely cutting Medicaid. Everybody knows the poor don’t need health care, only the rich do. But don’t the Republicans taut themselves as devout Christians and didn’t Christ preach helping the poor? Oh, wait, I forgot the Republicans belong to that sect of Christianity that worship wealth, not Christ.

And the debt rating of the US has been lowered because of all this, so the tax cuts will cost even more, but doesn’t matter as long as the rich get their tax cuts.

Charles McDonald

North side

Trump cut funding to NGOs

A billionaire donated $280M, gaining free access to the oval office. He gained bizarre control over the lives of citizens, using a chainsaw and eliminating benefits for newborn babies, poor mothers, veterans and seniors.

A $280M donation could raise 100,000 children annually. Feeding a child for a year, it would cover 1,277,777 children. He took away the world’s top medical research lab, leaving us no options, due to his paranoia of educated people. This president gave us Covid. His HHS Secretary gave us the measles. His elf took the rest. What will they give us next?

The termination of grants to the NIH, CDC and NGOs, the firing of thousands of staff among these and other agencies at HHS and the broader shutdown of programs and the slashing of budgets across the departments. The scope and scale of these attacks are unprecedented, especially since they affect our children, your children, and the elderly most.

Trump cut grants to the non-profits he said to turn to for help.

Sheldon Metz

Northeast side

History does repeat

Some letters are supported by facts and others vent a personal opinion.

The current administration has some parallels to Germany in the 1930s. The issues today are very complex but similar. Antisemitism was supported by some in both parties of the US Congress as well as many citizens. I suggest reading “Prequel” by Rachel Maddow. Today the anti any culture exists both in Congress and the population.

Tyranny of the Minority by Levitsky and Ziblatt reveals how a minority of either party can exert influence positive or negative in legislative bodies with examples from both sides of the aisle. There have been a number just in the recent years like holding up military or civil service appointments. We have a president elected by a plurality, not a majority, who has issued over 150 EOs in less than 4 months. In a recent op-ed Jonah Goldberg described them as good, bad and ugly. This truly is tyranny by the minority.

Gerald Schwartz

Foothills

What’s for dinner?

47 famously/stupidly proclaimed that the Chinese were going to pay the tariffs. Walmart recently announced that prices of store merchandise were going to rise to pay the tariffs.

Trump, forgetting his mendacious declaration, responded to that announcement by telling Walmart to “eat the tariffs!” How can Walmart eat tariffs that the Chinese are paying? Will Jeffrey, Loyal, or Loran, please explain this to us?

Undoubtedly, MAGAs will direct their anger at Walmart and ignore that their demagogue has once again lied to them.

Rick Cohn

West side

86

Former FBI Director James Comey was not exactly great at reading the room. But he is not guilty of anything for posting (and subsequently deleting) a photo of rocks on a beach spelling out “86 47.” The dated but still referenced expression “to be 86’d” has never had any colloquial meaning other than “You are out of here and don’t come back.” To suggest that it is some kind of threat of harm is fanciful. And ridiculous. You can buy t-shirts, bumper stickers and signs that read “86 47”. I own and display them. They express our disgust with this President and wish that he would get out of our lives. Going after Comey does nothing to make America great. Comey was within his rights to express his legitimate view. As we all are. Our mothers taught us all to be better than this.

Paul Simon

Northwest side

One graduation ceremony

We keep hearing how we all want race and gender to no longer be an issue by making all things equal and fair. Then, we see the University of Arizona hold separate ceremonies for graduates based on their ethnicity and skin color. Yes, we can assume Caucasians, especially male Caucasians, were not invited to those gatherings. Let’s state the obvious. If Caucasian students held a graduation ceremony for only Caucasian students, there would be a huge uproar. So, does the U of A want equal rights or special rights? Saying one thing by using race and gender cards is nothing but a hypocritical attitude from those same people who blatantly discriminate against others. These kinds of divisive actions will never solve anything, but then again, what will certain groups have to complain about if real equality ever happened? Of course, we aren’t supposed to see how they keep creating the scenarios the rest of us are being blamed for. Shame on the U of A for allowing this to happen.

Nate Baker

Northwest side