Letters to the Editor (Aug. 28): Statues, Endangered Species Act

Putting both sides of the Civil War together

Perhaps there’s a solution to the statue issue in not tearing down this “art.” Wherever there is a statue to a Confederate General, there should be erected a statue of Grant, Sherman or another Northern soldier. Or perhaps a statue of a slave with massive scars on his/her back. Then we would have “both sides,” to paraphrase Trump. It would show all the history and heritage of the Civil War.

How about it, South, want a statue of Sherman next to Lee?

We were warned about the president

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush warned us during the 2016 presidential campaign that Donald Trump was a chaos candidate and if the nation elected him President of the United States, he would be a chaos president and he would run a chaos White House.

President Barack Obama warned us during the campaign that Trump was fundamentally unqualified and unfit.

Thank you, Gov. Bush and President Obama, for your foresight and leadership. Many across America and around the world can see clearly now what you meant.

Save the Endangered Species Act

With all the congressional drama happening in Washington, D.C., I don’t want to forget about one of our most fundamental environmental laws: the Endangered Species Act. Passed practically unanimously in 1973 during the Nixon administration, the Endangered Species Act protects our imperiled plants, wildlife and habitat and recognizes that they “are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational, and scientific value to the Nation and its people,” according to the act’s preamble.

Let’s add economic value to that list. According to a report by the Outdoor Industry Association, the outdoor recreation economy generates $887 billion in consumer spending, 7.6 million jobs, $65.3 billion federal tax revenue, and $59.2 billion in state and local tax revenue. Yet, without clean habitats and biodiversity, we wouldn’t have the privilege to enjoy the prosperity that comes from the recreation industry.

Right now, some members of Congress are promising to gut the Endangered Species Act to make way for fossil fuel development in critical habitat areas, including our public lands. We need the Endangered Species Act and other environmental laws to protect our disappearing wildlife and public lands. Our senators should protect the Endangered Species Act.

This story was originally published August 28, 2017 at 4:37 AM with the headline "Letters to the Editor (Aug. 28): Statues, Endangered Species Act."