Letters on immunizations, marijuana law, school performance, guns, Iran sanctions

Get your kids immunized

Parents who don’t have their children immunized against communicable diseases don’t know how terrible these ailments are. I grew up before such protection was available, so I learned their effects firsthand.

A diphtheria or scarlet fever epidemic usually meant a few more little mounds were added to the graveyard. Measles and some of the other diseases had lasting effects, sometimes for life.

In our little community, when a child came down with a disease, the doctor placarded the house with the hated red “ISOLATION” sign. This meant only the breadwinner could come and go freely. The mother and well siblings could only look longingly over the fence at what was happening down the street. But prevention was the only way to stop a disease, and remedies to ease the effects were few.

One year we children got chicken pox in summer, measles in midwinter and German measles in spring. That was a long time isolated in our house.

Measles was nothing to toy with. One morning I woke up with huge red, itchy blotches all over my face and body. On top of that came the sneezing and coughing and a high fever. My sister jumped out of bed one night, delirious, shouting “Fire! Fire!” Nursing sick children was a full-time job.

You only have to listen to a toddler whooping through the night to long for a cure. There may not be one, but there is immunization. Get your children immunized.

Don’t relax pot law

The citizens of Wichita will have the opportunity to vote this spring on softening the penalties for marijuana possession. Just in the news last week was the sentencing of a local father who was under the influence of marijuana and forgot his small foster child in a hot car (Jan. 31 Eagle). The father admitted he would never intentionally harm the child – but the father had been smoking marijuana and was impaired.

Why would any intelligent and informed citizen vote to relax the penalties on marijuana? It impairs good judgment, like any other illegal drug.

Blame the victims?

Gov. Sam Brownback wants to link school funding to student performance (Jan. 31 Eagle). This perversion of governance comes from a man whose performance rating has been dismal.

Demonizing the children of struggling, financially overburdened parents and asking divested teachers to teach oversize classes in underfunded schools is indicative of a failed system of governance that has become the standard for what we can expect of our supposed representatives. Penalizing the very victims of one’s own failed and reprehensible policy is the behavior of a sociopath.

What clearer a “shining example” of someone who should be penalized for poor performance than Brownback and his backers.

Need to defend

Regarding “False security” (Feb. 1 Letters to the Editor): I believe in the carrying of a gun. I’m licensed to.

It’s a tough world. Satan is here. We need to defend ourselves against Satan’s children. Why should I let one of his children kill me so they can rape, torture and kill my family?

This world will never be a Utopia. So in the meantime, as per the Holy Bible (Exodus 22:2), should a person choose to try to break into my home while I am in and I am able to get my gun in hand, I will kill him dead, dead, dead.

Other Christians may not do that. That’s their decision. If they don’t mind watching their families die in front of them, then they can do that. But while the law allows me to defend myself in this fashion in my home and with my concealed gun on the street, I will help such an attacker learn the true meaning of: “It’s time to meet your Maker.”

Others continue to whine about the guns, but I (a Christian Marine) am willing to defend against their liberal agenda to unarm my nation.

Listen to allies

The Washington Post recently published a commentary by France’s foreign minister, Britain’s foreign secretary, Germany’s foreign minister and the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security. They cautioned: “Maintaining pressure on Iran through our existing sanctions is essential. But introducing new hurdles at this critical stage of the negotiations, including through additional nuclear-related sanctions legislation on Iran, would jeopardize our efforts at a critical juncture.”

David Cameron, Britain’s prime minister, agrees: “It’s the opinion of the United Kingdom that further sanctions, or further threat of sanctions at this point, won’t actually help to bring the talks to a successful conclusion, and they could fracture the international unity (a united front in dealing with Iran).”

President Obama stands with these European allies.

Meanwhile, hawks in the U.S. Senate push for tougher sanctions against Iran – exactly what our European allies oppose. Iran is the largest nation in the Middle East. Its relations with the West have been improving. Do we want another war in the region?

From kindergarten we learn the importance of listening, cooperating, “playing nice.” Picking fights is bad policy, dangerous and shortsighted. Listen to our European allies and our president. Iran need not be our enemy.

This story was originally published February 3, 2015 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Letters on immunizations, marijuana law, school performance, guns, Iran sanctions."