Opinion

Posted on Fri, Nov. 13, 2009

e-mail	print	RSS	reprint
AIM	Digg it	del.icio.us	Facebook

Letters to the editor on tea party, health reform, death penalty, bicyclists, gift to veterans

'Tea party' activists are not selfish

In response to "Selfish protesters" (Nov. 8 Letters to the Editor):

* "Tea party" activists do not protest all taxes. Many signs reflect the idea of a flat tax. I have not seen or heard one activist suggest that taxes are "inherently evil."

* We should take care of those older than 65. If our paychecks are paying their Social Security, it is because the government could not keep its greedy hands out of the Social Security trust fund.

* Those under age 65 should be working and not expecting government handouts.

* To place "those wars" and "bailouts" in the same sentence, as the letter writer did, is ridiculous. Wars, though unfortunate, have preserved our freedom for more than 200 years. And our brave and selfless soldiers deserve America's full support. After all, they are fighting for our freedom. The bailouts, on the other hand, have been full of greed and corruption.

* There is nothing selfish about the tea party movement. It is composed of Americans who only want transparency, honesty, responsibility, accountability and politicians who govern on the same principles that they campaign on.

DEB HAMLIN

Derby

Free Tiahrt

Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, is worried that the Democrats want to get people "into a life of dependency" (Nov. 4 WE Blog excerpts). He and many of his fellow Republicans are centrally concerned about what they call "freedom" — freedom from government.

I think Tiahrt has served his time in bondage, and it is time to free him from his dependency on a government paycheck, government reimbursement for expenses, and government health care. We can free poor Tiahrt with a vote in 2010 for any of his opponents for the U.S. Senate.

DOROTHY K. BILLINGS

Wichita

Reform needed

My only income is the disability Social Security payment I receive each month. Without affordable health care, I cannot make ends meet. I have had family members and friends help me with my health care costs, but many of them are struggling, too. This reform will help me afford the health care I need and still hold my head high without shame.

I voted for Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, in the past election, as I felt he would help us out the best. I need him to be my voice in Washington, D.C., and make sure this reform passes into law, not only to help me but others in my situation.

LINDA POE

Garden Plain

Punish criminals

On back-to-back days, The Eagle reported on the death penalty ("Death cases take time and scrutiny," Nov. 8) and life-without-parole sentences for juveniles in non-death cases ("High court to weigh youths' life terms," Nov. 9).

The first article reported that the death penalty is 16 times more "expensive" than life imprisonment, according to one study. One reason is the slowness of the appeals process. The argument is that because the death penalty is irreversible, we have to get it right.

The second article reported on a U.S. Supreme Court case arguing that life imprisonment for young offenders who haven't killed someone, regardless of the heinous nature of their crimes, is "cruel and unusual punishment." This is because they are "too young" to fully understand the nature of their crimes and deserve a chance to be rehabilitated. Such arguments are ridiculous.

The missing focus in both articles was empathy for the victims. When do we begin to hold the guilty responsible by actually punishing them in full measure for their crimes, rather than denying justice to their victims?

Only when we have penalties that are carried out will criminals even begin to rethink the consequences of their actions — regardless of age.

CHUCK GLOVER

Wichita

Obey road rules

Last week, on Douglas between Edgemoor and Oliver, I saw a bicycle rider going westbound. He was in the outside lane. That was until the light turned red at Oliver. With two lanes of cars westbound, the rider simply rode in the gutter so that he was in the gutter beside the lead car in the outside lane. When the light changed, away he went straight west.

Bike riders whine and cry that drivers don't respect them and give them room to ride, yet they will not stay in the established traffic lanes or obey the rules of the road.

CHARLES ROBERTSON

Wichita

Gift to veteran

My dad is a patient at the Robert J. Dole Veterans Affairs Medical Center. A volunteer came by Tuesday with an impressive package of gifts for him in celebration of Veterans Day and to honor his service in the Army Air Corps.

Everything was appreciated — the lap quilt, the cards, the lapel pin, etc. But the hand-colored picture of an American flag with a written message was particularly touching. Clearly, an elementary-age student had done that work, and there must have been many more handed out to all the patients at the hospital.

We don't know the author-illustrator, but I hope that the child somehow can know that the gift made its way to a real veteran and it was appreciated by him and his family.

SONJA VOGT

Wichita