LETTERS

LITTLE ROCK — Put country’s welfare first

How does a citizen grasp and deal with the complexities and magnitude of problems that are ripping apart our great country? We have freedom, unlimited rights, boundless natural resources, a high standard of living and so many other good things. Yet, we are beset with a me-first attitude that results in rampant greed and dishonesty.

Further, never has there been such divisiveness, such name-calling, such hate, racism, such distrust in elected officials. This situation permeates all facets of American life, from individuals through the news media, local governments, the halls of Congress and the White House.

As a veteran who many years ago proudly fought for our freedom (and saw less fortunate people die for it), I am appalled at being called un-American, a racist and a terrorist, and being compared to the Ku Klux Klan, all for attending a few town halls and tea-party meetings.

Is this our America? The people I saw at those meetings appeared to be good, honest citizens who are very, very worried about two ongoing wars, the economy, the lack of jobs, the future of the dollar, and foremost, the humongous deficit and crushing debt. So what is our hope? Can we appeal to or even beg citizens, especially congressmen and the president, for once to put themselves second and start giving back to our country first? Are you willing to sacrifice something?

JACK MURPHY Little Rock

Use common sense

Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, explained that he and almost all of the Republicans in the Senate voted against extending benefits to the unemployed. He said that the Republican vote was based on not wishing to increase the national debt, and that is right.

He asked for reduced government spending. He did not say that such a reduction would lead to increased unemployed and those workers would then have to go on the unemployment roles. He did not say that 10 percent of Americans own 90 percent of the wealth in this country, and that 10 percent could easily afford the increased taxes that would pay the [possible] $36 billion [increase in the national debt].

He did not say that just some bonuses paid out to individuals on Wall Street in the last eight years were a substantial fraction of the increase in the national debt. (Read “Too Big to Fail” by Andrew Ross Sorkin.) He did not say that Wall Street used the money in your certificates of deposit, your retirement accounts, your investments and your life insurance policies to play its financial games to your loss, and that the consequence has been a massive redistribution of wealth from Main Street to Wall Street.

Look around your empty stores, at your losses of jobs, your lowered wages. Consider that meanwhile Wall Street has become wealthier. Use your common sense in voting when it comes to your money.

OTTO H. ZINKE Fayetteville

Blooper uncorrected

Re “Two late touchdowns propel Naturals”: Who in the world proofreads your headlines? Do you jokersput such bloopers in to see if anyone is actually reading your so-called newspaper?

Your readers suffer through spelling gaffes, grammatical gaffes and just plainstupid stuff to try to keep up with the news. Spell-check was invented years ago. Use it. Unfortunately, there has yet to be invented Stupid-check.

ANNA KAY BAKER Searcy

Proofreader AWOL

Re your headline on the game between the Travelers and the Naturals, “Two late touchdowns propel Naturals”: Did you let all your proofreaders go or did I miss the touchdowns altogether?

DON RENSHAW Little Rock

Give license to steal

Re my idea as per some sort of permit for our beloved pols to steal: The retort would be that they don’t need a permit, but this plan is a fix for the nosey press that can’t carry on about their thieving, which is super entertaining, but there are more important subjects such as the national debt.

There are Tulsa preachers sending literature pleading for seed money to persuade God to loosen up and provide unheard of bundles of cash, so dear ole Uncle Sam might ought to try sending seed money; the Tulsa people would fix the details.

I reckon my plan would possibly require a retaliation of the first so that the politicians would be allowed to intimidate and stare down the idlers who enjoy harassing them. A happy politician, once free of the tormentors, would be free to solve problems and enjoy life.

H.E. HARVEY Clarksville

Racism still powerful

The saying is that the only sure things in life are death and taxes. I postulate that there is one other.

Liberal apologists for NAACP president Ben Jealous, who recently labeled the tea party racist, have come out of the woodwork in defense of an ideological brother’s leverage of the race card for purely political reason. And why not?

Why shouldn’t the party and its media supporters, which remain the foremost purveyor of racial politics in the U.S., defend their own who embrace the same industry? Racism pays big in America. It paid handsomely in the Old South for the white political establishment at the expense of black citizens.

The election of a black president seemed a promising sign that America had gotten past much of its historical racism and bigotry. Why, then, does it continue to disrupt? Don’t blame the people. It’s because most of today’s racial discord is instigated by politicians. As long as unprincipled politicos can make a buck, win an election or retain power by fostering suspicion and distrust one race to the other, racism in America will flourish.

It’s not my purpose to accuse anyone of racism, but rather to address a cancer within our society. Worse are the deceptive and the self-serving who accuse a neighbor of planting bitter crops while themselves skulk about sowing tares.

VANDER HUGH ATWELL Alma

Homework slighted

Pat, Pat, Pat, Pat! What’re we going to do with you? You were “taken in” by the ACORN videos? What do you need to believe that there was vast corruption in that organization? Huh?

Pat Lynch says that the “same wrecking crew” that went after ACORN selectively edited the video of Shirley Sherrod’s NAACP speech. If he’ll take the time in his busy schedule, he’ll find that she resigned before anything was mentioned about her ordeal on FOX News.

Glenn Beck actually stood up for her. Bill O’Reilly bit the same hook that the Obama administration bit hook, line and sinker, but he immediately and at length apologized for his mistake.

It appears that Patrick has not done his homework. Shame, shame.

LARRY GENTRY Benton

Make petitioner pay

It was reported that Secure Arkansas was almost 10,000 signatures short in its recent constitutional amendment petition drive. Because of this miscount, taxpayers will absorb the $18,700 fee that was charged to count the signatures.

I think Secure Arkansas should pay this fee, since its error caused the problem.

J.E. FORD Little Rock

Attitude hereditary

I really enjoyed Herbie Byrd’s piece on his adventure on Hagerman Pass in Colorado.

I lived near and worked for three years in the early ’80s at the Homestake Tunnel, which feeds Turquoise Lake. That is on the road he took up to the pass, and I’ve traveled that pass a number of times. I couldn’t help but grin and chuckle a few times reading his adventure.

Herbie took a modern passenger car into one of the most rugged, inhospitable spots in the contiguous United States. Hagerman Pass is a monument to the hundreds, maybe thousands, of miners and railroaders who died building it in the gold and silver rush years in the late 1800s. When the local police gave him “advice,” he bumped into the culture of the great-greatgrandchildren of the men who builtthat pass and mined the gold and survived the -30-and-below winters. The locals reflect their environment and their heritage-not a real warm and fuzzy bunch, and maybe a bit harsh for tourists and ski bunnies and the greenhorn tenderfoot, but that’s who they are and where they are from, and they have earned their attitude.

A wonderful place to visit, full of history and drama and adventure, but being there makes Arkansas seem so much sweeter by comparison. Thanks to Byrd for the blast into the past. Well done.

PAUL ABERNATHY Pleasant Plains

Economy is growing

Re the letter from Mickey Jordan: The new health care laws are not a government takeover. Insurance companies are independent, for-profit businesses and remain so.

If some insurance companies have gone out of business, then that is due to bad decisions, since the new regulations just went into effect a couple of weeks ago. The recession started in 2007. We have hit bottom and the economy is growing.

The president loaned money to the car companies to keep millions of people employed with the manufacturers and suppliers and others dependent on them. In return we taxpayers were given stock in the companies. As these loans are repaid,the stock will be sold on the open market.

A banker would not lend Jordan money without collateral. Why should we? According to one day’s recent headlines, Simmons First National Corp.’s earnings were up 45 percent, Home BancShares’ profits have soared 65 percent, and Airbus and Boeing were getting plane orders while the Arkansas Stock Index was soaring. These are just a few of the positive signs CHRIS SEAMAN LakeviewGet tough on abuse

I would like to commend Pamela Rush of Jacksonville for writing the much-needed letter regarding animal abuse.

There is too much abuse by children, teen-agers and adults to warrant anything but jail time as well as remuneration from these knuckleheads. The citizens, if you can call them that, have no heart or empathy for hurt things. What would happen if that [kitten on the freeway] had been a human?

Stop animal abuse now. Lock up these criminals and fine them. That is the only way that some of these criminals will be made to think twice before doing what was done to this defenseless little kitten.

DONNA GREEN West Memphis

Feedback Lock up vehicles

Re the use of state-owned vehicles by elected officials and whether the officials are skirting the law: It seems rather obvious under “Governor’s Policy Directive 3” provisions that state vehicles [assigned to the executive branch] should be locked in a compound lot or garage each night, thereby forcing the employee to commute in his or her own vehicle.

If this were done, it would stop virtually all personal use of state-owned vehicles and should be a simple matter to know exactly how many such vehicles exist. It should also cut the amount of fuel used.

As for those who have not filed for reimbursement by the June 1 deadline, why not enforce the deadline (deadline meaning that the matter is dead after the date specified)? That’s the way it works with other deadlines. Coupons and entries are no longer valid and there is a penalty to pay if it involves taxes or payments owed. It’s just not that hard to understand.

It seems laughable that the state constitutional offices of lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor, land commissioner and treasurer do not fall under the authority of the governor. Pray tell, then, exactly who do these people answer to?

JOY STEFAN Hot Springs Village