March 19, 2024

Letters 01-26-2015

Jan. 25, 2015

Our simple rules: Keep your letter to 300 words or less, send no more than one per month, include your name/address/phone number, and agree to allow us to edit. That’s it. Email info@northernexpress.com and hit send!

Food Isn’t What It Was

In regards to your article on nutrition being a key weapon for battling cancer, the problem is that much of our food has little nutritional value. The USDA’s National Nutrient Database shows much lower levels of vitamins and minerals since 1975. USDA data on a dozen vegetables show calcium has dropped 26.5 percent and vitamins A and C have dropped 21.4 and 29.9 percent. Our fruits and grains follow the same pattern.

Noted scientist Dr. Earp-Thomas, who pioneered work with minerals for over 40 years, stated, "Cancers interested me to no end. Cancers in mice fed poor food grew readily; cancerous mice fed food from good soil rarely got worse and often got better..." He wrote this in 1908.

Dr. Charles Northern, who specialized in stomach/nutritional disorders, has written, "The alarming fact is that foods, - fruits, vegetables and grains - now being raised on millions of acres of land that no longer contains enough of certain needed minerals, are starving us, no matter how much we eat of them." (1936)

A 1992 USDA report estimates several health benefits if everyone in the US could eat a diet containing the recommended daily amounts of primary nutrients: reductions in cancer, heart problems, arthritis, and infant deaths. The battle against cancer begins with the farmer.

It’s fairly easy for a farmer to mineralize their crops (rock dust, kelp, sea salt from desert areas, or humates are just a few materials) but there are no financial incentives to do so - it’s all about bushels and pounds per acre.

Dennis Mackey, Kaleva

The Real Muslim Issues

At least [Express columnist] Tom Kachadurian is being honest when he confesses a long-held family resentment towards Muslims. He makes a distinction between "good" Muslims and "bad" Muslims, never asking why the "bad" ones are causing so much suffering.

The answer is simple: the actions of the United States and Israel have enflamed them. In their indiscriminate violence directed towards Muslims, both countries injure and kill innocent people in a way that appears no different from terrorist atrocities. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims have been killed in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Gaza, Yemen, and elsewhere, all at the hands of Christian nations of the West.

At the same time, those countries have done nothing to curb the spread of radical Islam in Saudi Arabia, an erstwhile "friend" of Israel and the U.S. How can we forget that 19 or the 20 hijackers on 9-11 came from that country?

The other reason radical Islam is spreading worldwide is the existence of masses of unemployed, hopeless young men in many Middle Eastern countries. All of our foolish interventions there do nothing to quell their anger and frustration. There would be no jihadists if world leaders would begin to address their concerns.

Finally, Kachadurian presses "good" Muslims to discipline the bad ones. Exactly how they are supposed to do that is not clear to me. Certainly responsible Muslims everywhere have condemned terrorist attacks. What else are they empowered to do? Blaming "good" Muslims for the actions of the bad is nothing more than placing unreasonable demands on those we regard as different from ourselves. Underneath it all, prejudice lies under the facade of amiable reason.

Richard Fidler, Traverse City

Applauding Opinions

Kudos to the Northern Express for inviting guest editors to write columns. I have enjoyed the timely columns of Scott Hardy particularly. The newest writer, Grant Parsons, has written a particularly important column which documented the dark money which has crept even into the politics of a local race. Interesting that Larry Inman would not apologize for the negative tracts that appeared in the last two weeks of his race against Betsy Coffia. When the Democratic party ran one negative ad against Inman, Ms. Coffia called the Democratic party of Michigan and ordered a halt to their participation in her campaign. Too bad Larry Inman did not do the same. We needed someone of integrity like Coffia to win, not someone who is the pawn of outside negative funding.

Thanks for pointing all this out, Grant!

Lynn Larson, Traverse City

Party For The People

One political party opposes minimum wage increases, pushes "right to work" legislation state-to-state, and finds it their mission to eliminate labor unions and the benefits they bring to everyday workers. I can’t fathom why the common man doesn’t vote and, when he does, favor the party above.

Bradley Price, Northport

Big Money Politics Wins Again

I’m in agreement with Grant Parsons’ opinion column published in the 1/12 edition of the Express. Though I do not live in the 104th district, I have met Betsy Coffia on several occasions and she always made me feel as though I was a constituent. I admired the fact that she would not accept outside donations. Shows integrity.

I can’t say the same about Mr. Inman’s integrity. His acceptance of special interest donations and personal attacks against Ms. Coffia during the last two weeks of the campaign were among the dirtiest politics I have witnessed.

What about the lies and innuendos enumerated in his carpet bombing of large, full-color postcards? One more example of of what would have been a fine and productive legislator going down in defeat because of nasty politics. I’m disappointed that the "local daily newspaper" did not endorse Betsy, rather opting for another Republican good ol’ boy. This is just one more example of voters being influenced by postcards rather than informing themselves of the issues. Shame on you.

We had the same situation in the 101st district; Leelanau, Benzie, Mason and Manistee. The last few weeks of mailings from the Ray Franz campaign were a barrage of negative postcards. As in the Inman campaign, the cards were mailed from The Michigan Republican Party, Lansing. These were overt attempts to attack and besmirch Tom Stobie’s character, a lifetime educator and a man of impeccable integrity. Tom Stobie lost by only 341 votes thanks to Republican trickery and lack of ethics. Once again, big money and outright lies had the intended effect"¦elect a Republican at all costs.

W.D. Bushey, Traverse City

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