LETTERS

Purple for the cause Pink is great. My mom died from breast cancer.

My husband also died, at the age of 45, from pancreatic cancer. It is the only cancer with a survival rate in the single digits of all major cancers, and it has a five-year survival rate of less than 20 percent. There are at least 30,000 deaths in the U.S. per year from pancreatic cancer, and very little funding for research.

Let’s all wear purple to show our support on the Capitol steps at the Purple Light Vigil today at 6 p.m.

There were only 300 in attendance at last year’s event.

November is National Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. Let’s show support for this cause and help eliminate this devastating disease.

RHONDA M. COMPTON

Sheridan

Bigger issue remains The blame game continues. Who is responsible for the government shutdown of 2013? I fix the blame on three entities: the president, the senators and the representatives. The intransigence of each is deplorable.

The unwillingness to moderate and negotiate is unacceptable.

That being said, the whole affair is a distraction to the building economic catastrophe that is fast approaching.

The rapidly growing national debt, now more than $17 trillion, is going to bankrupt our nation. Why are the president, senators and representatives not focusing on bringing this staggering and catastrophic debt under control?

While campaigning in 2008, Barack Obama made this statement concerning the national debt, then $9 trillion: “Number 43 [speaking of George W. Bush] added $4 trillion by his lonesome, so that we now have over $9 trillion of debt that we are going to have to pay back-$30,000 for every man, woman and child. That’s irresponsible. It’s unpatriotic.” I agree that it is irresponsible, it may be that unpatriotic is a stretch, but if $9 trillion is irresponsible and unpatriotic, what could we label $17 trillion?

Where have all the political statesmen gone, those who work together for the nation’s good, not for raising the poll numbers of their party?

There is a solution to this political gridlock-the ballot box-but it takes we the citizens diligently scrutinizing every politician in an effort to select those who will work for the betterment of the nation while forgetting the betterment of their political party.

JIMMY CURTIS

Benton

That’s truly awesome

What a wonderful world. The Republican congressmen never cease to amaze me.

For the past two years, they have actually voted more than 40 times (without a single success) to repeal,limit, starve, delay, cut off and deny health insurance to millions of Americans who need insurance.

Now, when a computer program malfunctions, making the federal Affordable Care Act insurance exchange mostly unavailable-virtually the next best thing for Republicans-they are in an uproar demanding an explanation.

Oh, stupid me! Now I understand.

They do not want the computer problem fixed. They want to find out how to make sure it never gets fixed.

Their wisdom is truly awesome.

JIM W. RAWLINS

Bigelow

Proved he’s a human

Wonders never cease. Just about the time some folks get all they can stand of liberal columnist John Brummett’s constant bashing of conservatives, the old boy pulls a rabbit out of the magician’s hat to redeem himself with the readers. Houdini would applaud this one.

I’m referring to Brummett’s recent toast of former Texas quarterback James Street, who passed away recently. Writing with sincere courtesy, tribute and respect of the legendary football adversary who denied Arkansas a national championship in 1969, Brummett showed us that indeed he can be nice when he wants to be.

Why can’t we have more civility like that? Mama used to tell us, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.”

BILLY BOOTH

Hazen

Brummett getting pay John Brummett’s recent column, “For the community,” expressed his determination to be paid for his services: “… you cannot give away on the Internet your essential product-the one in which you significantly invest-meaning news content.” His declaration results from a shooting match. Some of his readers, he says, say they resent him linking them to a paywall, so he “shoot[s] back that I resent that they’d expect to avail themselves of the service I provide for a living without paying for it.” There is nothing wrong with Brummett’s demand to be paid for his work, but I think this shooting match provides a great opportunity to exemplify his apparent core political philosophy that many people should be paid for not working. He can expand that by arguing that his readers should also pay him for not writing.

GOODWIN WHITE JR.

Camden

Pryor won’t get vote

It seems John Brummett’s column has become nothing more than a “Reelect Mark Pryor” billboard.

While the Democrats continue to blame their mistakes on George W.

Bush, Brummett seems to want to blame everything on Tom Cotton. Cotton’s greatest attribute may be that he will not be a Democrat voting to keep Harry Reid as leader of the Senate.

Senator Pryor’s current TV ad calling Cotton a liar gives not a single example. Instead it accuses him of going to Texas to raise money from fat cats for his campaign. I am not a fat cat, but I will contribute to Tom Cotton to make Democrats the minority party.

MIKE PHILLIPS

North Little Rock

Strategy looks familiar

I support Eric Posner’s idea of a constitutional amendment authorizing the president to borrow money in the event of another bout of debt-limit lunacy. Unfortunately, even if the House and Senate had enough votes in support of an amendment, which is doubtful, there are probably at least 13 states that wouldn’t ratify it.

The Tea Party reminds me of the alien in the movie of the same name, gestating in its host then killing it when it emerges.

MIKE WERKMAN

Hot Springs Village

Editorial, Pages 82 on 10/27/2013

Upcoming Events