Missing leadership
In a state with one of the lowest covid vaccination rates in the country, and one of the highest rates of cases per capita, it is ironic that a former first lady of the state of Arkansas, Betty Bumpers, was the foremost advocate for immunization against childhood illnesses both in Arkansas and throughout the nation.
When Dale Bumpers became governor in 1971, Arkansas had the lowest childhood vaccination rate against measles, mumps and rubella. Mrs. Bumpers initiated an effort to change this, and through her "Every Child by '74" campaign, Arkansas became a leader in childhood vaccination.
After Dale was elected U.S. senator, Betty teamed with first lady Rosalynn Carter to take this campaign nationwide, with great success. The national Vaccine Research Center in Washington, D.C., is named for her and her husband.
Think what a difference it would have made in the present pandemic if we had seen such leadership on vaccinations from the spouses of the U.S. president and various state first ladies.
Arkansas can be very proud of Mrs. Bumpers' role in the fight against communicable diseases. It is sad that such leadership on the state and national levels is, unfortunately, a thing of the past.
DAVID CRITTENDEN
Fayetteville
Beware consequences
Why would Donald Trump, and a large portion of the GOP, continue campaigning to have the 2020 presidential election overturned? They allege there is widespread voter fraud. There is only one way that I know of to have near-100 percent certainty that there is no voter fraud. That would be to make ballots traceable to each voter so they can be audited. That would require doing away with the requirement that all ballots should be secret. Before anyone stands up and suggests that we do away with the secret ballot, we need to look at the probable consequences.
If ballots are no longer secret and thus traceable to each voter, what would stop government officials from knowing who voted against them? If a voter has voted against the winning side; that voter can be black-listed from government employment and government contracts. Voting against the winning/controlling side could create increased government scrutiny and harassment of yourself, your family, and your employer. You could lose your access to insurance and health care. Your credit score could be negatively affected.
If you don't really believe in equal rights for all, you might be for a system to oppress those on the other side. You should be warned that whatever tool you give government to damage the other side, it will probably be used against you when the other side gets into power. I used to only think that our slide into serfdom was a threat from the left wanting to make us all dependent on the government. I now see that the right is attempting to change the style of serfdom by government controlling who are the winners and losers.
WILLIAM BARGER
Little Rock
Height of hypocrisy
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
When I was in grade school, we used to have to stand to recite the pledge each morning. We were pledging our allegiance to the flag and to our country. However, when one pledges their allegiance to a person, problems will occur.
The Germans pledged allegiance to Adolf Hitler, who led them into World War II, and the extermination of millions of Jews. Today, the Republican Party has pledged its allegiance to Donald Trump, rather than to the flag and to the country. This explains why so many felt justified in rioting against the nation's Capitol, and committing insurrection to try and prevent the certification of the presidential election on Jan. 6, 2021.
This allegiance to Donald Trump is why it seems the vast majority of Republicans in Congress refuse to refer to the events that took place on Jan. 6, 2021, as an act of violence and insurrection. Also, this allegiance to Donald Trump is why only one Republican member of Congress (Liz Cheney) attended the solemn ceremony at the nation's Capitol this past Jan. 6 to mark this tragic event. (It is my understanding that Adam Kinzinger would have been in attendance, but he and his wife were having a baby.)
During the Jan. 6, 2021, riot and insurrection, we saw American flags being used as weapons on police officers. Police officers were beaten with flag poles and other metal objects by Trump supporters. These individuals who used the American flags as weapons are the same people who denounced Colin Kaepernick and other African American athletes who quietly took a knee during the national anthem. This is the height of hypocrisy.
AUSTIN PORTER JR.
Little Rock