Letters to the editor - Saturday, Dec. 23

Merry Christmas, top 1 percent and super-rich, big corporations and CEOs! Santa, his hair strangely yellow, and his hoard of evil elves were very, very good to you, bringing your windfall of gifts in the wee hours of Dec. 20. I guess that’s because you are so very good all year long — so diligent about raking in money, destroying the environment, and figuring out how to further enrich yourselves at the expense of anyone and everything.

If only the rest of us could get even a lump of coal instead of the destruction of sane government, clean air and water, good public schools, affordable health care, national monument land, consumer protections — the list is long. Keep a close eye on your Social Security and Medicare benefits. This greed knows no limits, and lies, smokescreens and fake facts are continually employed to hoodwink the not-so-cognizant (to put it in a nice way) among us. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night. Hope you can sleep.

Deb Klumpp

Oro Valley

Re: the Dec. 13 letter to the editor “Even less help for those who need it the most.”

When I was 8, mom took all four of us kids and we moved from Southern California to up-state New York. All we had was the clothes in our suitcases. We relied on mom’s family for help. It took several years, but the welfare system helped her find a job for minimum wage. Less than $2 an hour.

Neither my siblings nor I turned to drugs or crime in those years. My older brother was in the Navy, finished college and is now retired and living in Massachusetts. My sister married, raised a family, and worked. She is now retired and living here in Tucson. My younger brother is working in Massachusetts and will retire in a few years. Me? I’m retired after over 20 years in the Air Force and working in the civilian market. None of us are rich, but we have comfortable lives.

All of these opportunities are available to today’s young people. Sometimes, all they need is to be shown which way to go. No one is destined to be poor for life!

Steven Barker

East side

Re: the Dec. 14 article “Arizona business leaders plan push to raise education sales tax.”

I consider it very ironic that the state’s business leaders are pushing for higher-education sales taxes. It is great that they see schools as the key to Arizona’s economic future. The irony is that business interest groups have been the beneficiaries of millions in tax breaks that have deprived our state treasury of revenues needed for our education system (and road repairs, child protective services, etc.).

But rather than give up their tax breaks, business leaders would raise the sales tax on the taxpayers, their customers. We are already paying our income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes — and yet our state doesn’t have the money to take care of our children? Legislators are giving that money away in business tax cuts. Business leaders hope we won’t notice that as they finance a ballot issue so WE pay taxes for schools, which we are so desperate to improve. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me!

Hyatt Simpson

Northeast side

It’s starting. Has anyone noticed the recent news articles in which the Trump administration has raised issues regarding the FBI’s “lack of integrity” and “bias” against Trump and his minions? Watch as this really fake news begins to proliferate, creating an opportunity to alter public opinion and provide bogus grounds on which to dismiss special counsel Robert Mueller. When that happens, and the Republicans do nothing to defend this country, I’ll have to say “goodbye” as the U.S. sinks into dictatorship,

Dennis Winsten

Northeast side

We continue to hear that the Border Patrol needs 5,000 new agents to protect our borders. My daughter has been a Tucson police officer for three years. She went through the required tests and she passed them all, including a polygraph test, without any problems. She also completed all of the Border Patrol requirements with no problems until the polygraph test.

She was told that the test didn’t give enough data. She asked if the test was saying she was telling a lie. The administrator responded no, but she was not going to recommend that my daughter get a second chance at a later date. Most applicants get another try with a different tester. The problem here is that she didn’t fail the polygraph test but still didn’t pass, so it’s time the government passes the buck and has an outside agency do the hiring. Maybe save some money and change the process. A lot of qualified applicants have been turned down.

Ken McMullen

Benson

Re: the Dec. 14 article “Arizona business leaders plan push to raise education sales tax.”

I have lived in Tucson 51 years. It seems like every time I turn around someone wants to raise the sales tax for their “we can’t get along without it cause.” If all those sales tax proposals in my 51 years had passed, we would probably have a 20 percent sales tax.

Wake up, taxpayers. What we need is a proposal that requires approval of two-thirds of taxpayers to pass a sales-tax increase. When will a group arise and fight for this cause? Where are you, Jim Click?

Sterling Kopke

Northwest side