Letters 07-25-2016

July 22, 2016

Remember Bush-Cheney

Does anyone remember George W. Bush and Dick Cheney? They were president and vice president a mere eight years ago. Does anyone out there remember the way things were at the end of their duo? It was terrible.

The Republicans have spent the last eight years obstructing every effort to fix what they screwed up. I say loud and clear that many people hate Obama simply because he’s black. Blatant racism. I don’t understand the hatred bestowed on Hillary. I find it very disturbing not to have any mention of our former president and vice president during the Republican convention. Why do they choose to ignore them and why are so many Republicans refusing to support Trump? Do they see some disturbing similarities? I believe so.

Gary R. Baumdraher, Maple City

Mass Shootings And Gun Control

The largest mass shooting in U.S. history occurred December 29,1890, when 297 Sioux Indians at Wounded Knee in South Dakota were murdered by federal agents and members of the 7th Cavalry who had come to confiscate their firearms "for their own safety and protection."

The slaughter began after the majority of the Sioux had peacefully turned in their firearms.

The cavalry began shooting and managed to wipe out the entire camp. Two hundred of the 297 victims were women and children.

Wounded Knee was among the first federally backed gun confiscation attempts in U.S. history. The Second Amendment supports the right of the people to take up arms in defense of themselves, their families and property in the face of invading armies or an oppressive government. It was written by people who fled oppressive and tyrannical regimes in Europe, and it refers to the right of American citizens to be armed for defensive purposes.

Wounded Knee is the prime example of why the Second Amendment exists and why we should vehemently resist any attempts to infringe on our rights to bear arms. Without the Second Amendment we will be stripped of any ability to defend ourselves.

With gun control comes death to those that it is supposed to Protect. Hitler used gun control to "protect" the citizens in Europe.

Gun control seeks to leave you defenseless.

A.J. Fasel, Traverse City

Families Need Representation

When one party dominates the Michigan administration and legislature, half of Michigan families are not represented on the important issues that face our state.

When a policy affects the non-voting K-12 students, they too are left out, especially when it comes to graduation requirements. Michigan requires 18 credits to graduate, which it allots in a highly prescribed, onesize-fits-all policy. This leaves little time for students to pursue their interests and develop skills necessary for a career after high school graduation with courses in technology, industrial arts, or the skill center.

We need an individual in Lansing who understands these issues and can speak to the point that our students are not clones.

Ron Dykstra, Beulah

Raise The Minimum Wage

I wanted to offer a different perspective on the issue of raising the minimum wage. The argument that raising the minimum wage will result in job loss is a bogus scare tactic. The need for labor will not change, just the cost of it, which will be passed on to the consumer, as it always has.

"Higher prices will cost me business" they claim, while conveniently leaving out the other side of this equation: the four million Michigan residents making the minimum wage will suddenly have more spending power!

Our economy is consumer-driven. Put more money into the hands of the working class and it will be spent here and now, creating demand for goods and services in our state. More demand for goods and services means the hiring of more people to provide them. Pay these employees a living wage and...the snowball effect!

Raise the minimum wage. It’s a win-win!

Lee Astrauckas, Mancelona

Make Cherryland Respect Renewable

Cherryland Electric is about to change their net metering policy. In a nutshell, they want to buy the electricity from those of us who produce clean renewable electric at a rate far below the rate they buy electricity from other sources. They believe very few people have an interest in renewable energy. The board members are deciding this for the entire "cooperative" so I encourage all members to go to Cherryland’s web site and call or e-mail all the board members to cancel the implementation of this new policy.

Russ Packard, Northport

Settled Science

Climate change science is based on the accumulated evidence gained from studying the greenhouse effect for 200 years. The greenhouse effect keeps our planet 50 degrees warmer due to heattrapping gases in our atmosphere. Basic principles of physics and chemistry dictate that Earth will warm as concentrations of greenhouse gases increase. Global warming is occurring because we have added more than 40 percent more carbon and three times as much methane in the atmosphere since the Industrial Revolution began. The global economy is fueled by burning CO2 to meet the needs of a dramatic rise in population, which has increased seven times during over this period. The rise in CO2 corresponds to the rise in global temperature.

Prior to the Industrial revolution and after last Ice Age, CO2 has been stable or balanced, resulting in a stable climate.

Given the above along with over 98 percent agreement among climate scientists and support from the vast majority of other scientific organizations, the science is settled. Human activity is the primary cause of global warming.

We are also approaching tipping points that would initiate feedback loops that would intensify the problem. We can no longer gamble that we can afford to delay action any further.

Given the above, we must act now.

Ronald Marshall, Petoskey