Letters to the Editor, Aug. 18: States shouldn’t have death-with-dignity laws; time for sensible gun regulation

Live life fully

Jon Meacham's Aug. 14 commentary, "Disruption comes to dying in America," seemed to favor death-with-dignity legislation, and noted that "only eight states and the District of Columbia have" such laws.

The historical lesson to be learned from those states and countries having such laws is this: Once we allow people to kill themselves or others motivated by "mercy," the circle of who dies and the reasons justifying their actions continue to expand, while initial "safeguards" in the laws continue to recede or be ignored.

Moreover, the "death as a solution" aura such laws endorse encourages abuses by relatives concerned about shrinking inheritances, and weary health-care workers dealing with difficult patients. The laws also have been known to result in insurance companies refusing to underwrite expensive medical treatments, while offering "death with dignity" instead.

Live life as it comes, as fully as you can.

Raymond J. Adamek, Kent

Sleeping bear

Surprisingly, I find myself agreeing with a board member of Ohioans for Concealed Carry when he was quoted in the Aug. 6 Beacon Journal article headlined "Ohio gun groups gird members to fight bills." The board member said, "The only good thing about having something like that come up in the political discourse is we can identify the politicians who need to be defeated at the polls. We will have long memories."

I could not agree more. Those of us who see the need for sensible, life-saving gun control will have long memories, too. The sleeping bear that has been waiting for our legislators to take action to ensure those sensible, life-saving gun control laws are in place is now awake, and taking notes.

Cathy King, Akron

Protect wildlife

I am writing in support of the Endangered Species Act, and in opposition to efforts to undermine this landmark wildlife conservation law.

The Endangered Species Act is a safety net for fish, plants and wildlife on the brink of extinction. Since President Nixon signed the law in 1973, hundreds of species have been saved from disappearing forever, including the American bald eagle, the peregrine falcon and the American alligator, and many more are on their way to recovery.

But now, the Trump White House and some members of Congress are trying to weaken the Endangered Species Act to benefit developers and the oil and gas industry.

Protecting endangered species is important. We have a responsibility to future generations to be good stewards and protect imperiled wildlife and the special places they call home.

Jane Ellis, Fairlawn

ICE raids unjust

I have been moved to tears listening to the audio of children affected by the workplace ICE raids in Mississippi in search of illegal aliens.

The injustice of these raids is staggering. Here you have a handful of wealthy business owners hiring hundreds of workers without documentation and yet the employees are the ones being put in detention? Isn't it illegal to hire folks who are not here legally?

It seems that a worker who is putting in honest labor along with hundreds of co-workers would be less culpable that the person who did all that hiring. I am waiting for the reporting that shows that these business owners are big GOP donors, and therefore, are being shielded from prosecution.

My only solace is that now the owners will need to hire Americans to do this work, and my guess is that it won't be easy to find replacements for the same wages and conditions.

Becky Weihe, Akron

___

(c)2019 the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)

Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.