OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: After his own heart | Shredded democracy | Political orientation

After his own heart

Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. If I could elect a president, if I could seat nine justices, if I could enact 10,000 laws against unrighteousness, this will not keep one soul from his destination to eternity in hell.

Take a lesson from Abraham. When God revealed he would destroy Sodom, Abraham lifted up righteousness. The sins of Sodom were that of being arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy, and did detestable things before God. If Abraham could have lifted up Jesus, I believe Sodom would still be standing.

God is sending a fresh arrangement of grace to America. Love your neighbor as yourself. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other. Just as in Christ, God forgave you. This is loving forward. God loved us while lifting up Jesus on the cross for our sins. He loved us while lifting Jesus in the resurrection for our salvation.

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, lifting up Jesus gracefully. Be a Christian after God's own heart.

B.W. FERGUSON

Lonoke

Shredded democracy

Chris Spatz nicely defines the behavior of our U.S. senators and congressmen as they announced from their foxholes their accomplishment for ducks while Trump does his maddening best to dismantle our democracy. Who can blame them for preferring waterfowl over standing up to the man-child who'll have to be pried from the White House?

But "duck" brings another image, one that crosses time and place, and carries us to a bloody battleground. An artillery burst lights the night sky and bullets are traced inches above Willie and Joe's dented helmets, unshaven faces, them lying prone in the muck, and Joe says, "I can't git no lower, Willie. Me buttons is in th' way."

Bill Mauldin's Willie and Joe earned him the first of his two Pulitzers. Using his pen and rifle, crawling in the same mud and rain and bitter cold as Willie and Joe, the cartoonist showed us men who fought and died their way across Europe to crush the Nazi regime, one that arose from the nightmares of a psychopath.

How does a despot rise to power within a democratic nation? Battered as it was by the Great Depression, intensified by a ruinous peace accord, Germany remains a lesson of humankind's worst savagery where a psychopath became a despot because others enabled him for their own gain.

That brings us to Leslie Rutledge, Arkansas attorney general, who took an oath to protect the Constitution, a commitment she shredded when she chose to become an enabler by joining the Texas attorney general's lawsuit meant to steal the 2020 election from voters, to rob them of their constitutional rights.

Fortunately, two Republicans in Georgia stood against Rutledge's abuse of law. Other Republicans dug in as well, and conservative judges kept their oaths when they threw out the shameful lawsuit Rutledge joined for political gain.

BOB REYNOLDS

Conway

Political orientation

If any of the people mentioned in last Sunday's column by Rex Nelson were to act on their words, I believe that would certainly be considered a hate crime.

Include political orientation in the proposed bill by Sen. Jim Hendren.

JOHN SENNER

Little Rock

The immunity fallacy

Early on, President Donald Trump called for an early exit from the covid-19 pandemic by using the logic of herd immunity. Definition of the statement really means that 70 percent of the population needs to get the virus quickly, which would then bring about an immunity to the greater population ... community immunity. Trump gave no consideration for the hospitalization requirements, the equipment needs, or the extended complications. He just wanted to get it over with quickly.

It was projected that 3 to 5 percent of the people infected would die; a problem, but it would be a necessity. We are actually experiencing about a 3 percent death rate. Those who would most likely die would have had pre-existing conditions and would be the elderly. And to this day Trump has stated that young people resist the virus and cause no complications for the pandemic.

Of all the cases, young people are experiencing a new case rate of 27 percent, and are the most likely to pass the virus on to someone else. Seventy percent of the American population of 330 million people would be 231 million. Five percent of that number is 11.55 million deaths. Three percent would be about 7 million deaths. To this day, Trump reminds us that we should have accepted herd immunity. Review these facts. This was Hurricane Donald.

P.L. GUSTAFSON

Hot Springs Village

Cops' excessive force

In a democracy, our elected representatives are supposed to pass policies and programs that we the people support. Just like we support strengthening our Social Security system, protecting small businesses, and providing job opportunities in tough times, a majority of Americans also support ending qualified immunity. This is a common-sense police accountability reform that makes sense for those across our diverse ideological spectrum.

Recent surveys have shown that about two-thirds of Americans support allowing civilians to sue bad cops for excessive force and other misconduct without special liability protections. If we cannot pass a simple police reform like ending qualified immunity, how can we ever expect our voices to be heard? The House has already passed bills that could end qualified immunity tomorrow. We need to come together and demand that our elected representatives pass legislation we actually care about and overwhelmingly support--including ending qualified immunity.

ART WILLIAMS

Mountain Home

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