TNT letters to the editor, 7/31/2021
Violent crime
I’m amazed and appalled at the media and America’s wholesale adoption of the term “gun violence” when discussing violent crime and its recent surge in several major cities.
Call it what it is: violent acts by violent people. The particular tool of choice is not the cause or the perpetrator of the act; the person is.
I have yet to read, watch or hear a report on “gun violence” where a gun caused a person to shoot another person without human intervention.
Guns, swords, hatchets, golf clubs, sticks or stones are not the problem. Controlling or banning any or all those things (or more) will not change anything.
We need to address what makes or keeps certain people violent, not ban guns. In the end protecting potential victims may involve more guns for more people, not less.
Americans also need to remember the Second Amendment exists first and foremost to ensure our defense against a tyrannical government, much less violent neighbors.
The former represents a much more serious though probably less immediate threat.
Mike Ogden, Puyallup
Abortion politics
Re: “Abortion points to other moral failings,” ( TNT letters, 7/22).
I say thanks to so-called “pseudo Catholics” like President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. They have spent their careers enhancing services for mothers, children and other vulnerable populations and saving them from the Republican wrecking ball.
Holier-than-thou Republicans use their opposition to abortion for political expediency. If they cared they would make policy and propose programs that strengthen families.
Instead they have whittled down services and attempted to cut Medicaid, food and nutrition programs, SSI, housing supports and childcare.
If they cared they would ask the wealthy to pay their fair share, rescinding the permanent tax cut they gave their rich friends, which exploded the deficit they’re now so worried about.
So far Democrats have stopped their worst excesses, keeping the social contract in place. That may change if Republicans succeed in disenfranchising enough voters to gain permanent control of government. Then they can ax social programs purportedly to balance the budget.
Mothers and families are just unfortunate casualties in a world where the rich get richer, the poor get really poor and what’s left of the middle class pays the taxes.
Kathy Lorimer, Sumner
Vaccine resistance
Will Washington state lead the way in the fight for a normal life?
Please take some tips from other countries. In the United Kingdom some companies are allowed to require a jab for a job. In France they have introduced a vaccination passport so people can enjoy their favorite restaurant, go to a movie or sporting event with some peace of mind.
Without doing something like this, our state and country will be held hostage by the selfish non-believers who won’t get vaccinated.
Bernie Unwin, Tacoma
Tacoma mayor election
Tacoma mayor candidate Steve Haverly claims he is 100% self-funded. We don’t know because he didn’t file properly, thus I filed an open case with the state Public Disclosure Commission.
Haverly says this keeps him from being beholden to corporate interests and that he’s running for Tacoma, not against the other two candidates, whom he says he respects.
Campaign contributors tend to reflect the values of the candidate, and we don’t get to see that here.
There’s no coherent agenda he presents and no way to look under the lid to see what’s bubbling. There’s no clarity in his vision of “unity” or what his downtown revitalization plan would do for the city.
He hasn’t thought through this enough to realize he’s contradicting himself. He disrespects people like fellow candidates Jamika Scott and Mayor Victoria Woodards who have done the work to make things better for Tacomans.
I won’t vote for a mayor candidate who blatantly refuses to follow the rules any more than I’ll vote for a visionless one.
Steven R. Ketelsen, Tacoma
This story was originally published July 31, 2021 at 12:53 PM with the headline "TNT letters to the editor, 7/31/2021."