LETTERS FOR 11/1/23

Smothers had huge impact on me

Dear Editor: A giant in the world of comedy has passed away.

Tom Smothers died of cancer at the age of 86. To me, the Smothers Brothers will always represent the epitome of bravery in the face of attacks by power, integrity in the face of corruption and harassment, and courage in tackling important issues in the face of television network censors intent on stifling freedom of speech.

Their legacy cannot be overstated. Tom and Dick Smothers paid a price at the height of America's strife surrounding the Vietnam War and the struggles over peace and the civil rights movement. Their firing by CBS in 1969 has echoed throughout the years, becoming a case study in mass media censorship.

Personally, I considered Tom Smothers a hero, a role model, and a friend. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour played a huge role in the development of my perspective on politics and on the value of humor in political discourse. On the occasions of my personal interaction with him, he was always encouraging and supportive.

I am deeply saddened by his death.

- David Clarenbach, Madison

Achieve peace in the new year

Dear Editor: As we head into 2024, people are making plans and setting personal and professional goals for the new calendar year. I believe that we must, collectively, try to achieve peace in the new year.

Regardless of our race, religion, gender and socioeconomic status, we are all affected by the events around us. Right now, there is unrest - both within and outside our country.

In the United States, people are divided because of differences in social and political views. Lack of patience is widespread, while civil dialogue has become limited.

Endless challenges hurt our society. Increasing poverty, growing homelessness, rising crime and shrinking economic opportunities continue to fuel frustration in American households. In the pursuit of happiness, people have lost sight of peace.

Beyond our national borders, military conflicts and fears of economic slowdown are intensifying. People around the world are on edge. Globally, we are drifting away from peace and prosperity.

In the new year, we must all make a commitment to try to achieve peace. No matter where we are, we should take individual steps to create a community that is free from bitter conflict. We must promote the value of peace to the younger generation, and we should also practice what we preach.

Our collective resolution for the new year should be to achieve peace.

- Tawsif Anam, Madison

Elect people who solve problems

Dear Editor: Thinking about New Year's resolutions yet? My first is to elect a state Legislature that talks to citizens, listens to us Wisconsinites and works with us to solve real problems and pass laws that improve life for all.

Why should a legislative committee have to again approve a pay raise for government employees, or other things already approved by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Tony Evers? This practice creates a bloated, inefficient government.

Other micro-management includes the estimated 120 laws telling local municipalities what they cannot do for their constituents. Outlawing local government activities solves no problems, but may outlaw solutions.

A proposed Republican bill would make sleeping outdoors a crime. Criminalizing this activity won't solve the homelessness problem.

We Badgers have to admit we have elected many control freaks to the Legislature. Let's hope we can elect practical legislators who pass laws and rescind some current laws to improve the lives of everyone.

This resolution will only come about if Wisconsin voters in 2024 don't vote for the current legislators that are trying to control everything we do. We need to find candidates that talk to, listen to and work with us citizens.

- Bill Dagnon, Baraboo

Democrats need a message

Dear Editor: I listened to a 20-second sound bite of Donald Trump explaining his immigration policy. The message was simple: "Following the Eisenhower model, we will carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history."

Trump supporters shrieked their approval.

I read the New York Times, the Washington Post and this paper, The Capital Times. I subscribe to many news podcasts. However, I cannot tell you what the Biden plan is to deal with our immigration crisis.

I watch as Florida and Texas bus tens of thousands of immigrants to New York and Chicago, causing the mayors of those cities to holler, "Uncle!" I have no idea what the Biden plan is to grant these mayors some relief. All I hear is that Trump repeats the rhetoric used by Hitler. Remember, that rhetoric carried Hitler to power.

Biden is down in the polls. Why? Democrats can't message; and worse, they don't have and can't formulate an easily understandable message. Many people are aware of the threat Trump is to our democracy. But as the polls show, there are many unaware people who seize on Trump's 20-second sound bites.

If the unaware prevail in 2024, this Democracy is finished.

- Norman Aulabaugh, Orfordville

It's not health care; it's capitalism

Dear Editor: A recent contributor to the Voice of the People lamented the rising cost of health care in America. And while he's absolutely right about that, I quibble with his use of the phrase "health care system." It's misleading.

In the first place, it's not a system. A system is something that's designed to achieve a particular end, in a coordinated way, usually as efficiently as possible (think computers or automobiles). In the second place, it's not about care, it's about capitalism.

What we have in lieu of a true health care system (you know, the kind that every other industrialized democracy on the planet has and loves) is a haphazard scattering of profit centers concentrated in areas where the money is, with vast swaths of the nation underserved or unserved.

By contrast, the U.S. Postal Service and the public schools are true systems that serve every square centimetre of the country. (And yes, the metric system too is a true system, well and intentionally designed, not like ACHU, the Accidental Collection of Heterogeneous Units that the U.S. alone in the world still clings to.)

So I recommend using the phrase "health insurance industry" because it's more accurate.

- Richard S. Russell, Madison