Tucson Speaks Out: Oct. 18 letters of the day

Poll workers are not the enemy

I will be a poll worker at the election on November 5 for the third time. We have extensive training, swear to run the polls in a fair and legal manner, and do our jobs to the best of our ability. This has been done at both elections I have worked and will be done according to instructions and procedures approved by Pima county again on November 5. All of us are volunteers, no one does this job for the pittance in pay. I am not complaining, it is just a statement of fact. Without poll workers we would not have elections or a democracy. So why is one candidate and one group attacking poll workers, issuing death threats and harassing the people who make democracy possible? Please think about what you are doing, we are not the enemy.

Don Ries

Southeast side

Honoring local history: Rename the park

A park in southern Arizona named after Christopher Columbus? Gee, how original. Columbus wouldn't know Tucson from a cactus. Worse, his legacy is tied to the genocide of indigenous people.

Renaming the park for Danny Lopez actually makes sense. Lopez spent his life preserving the language and culture of the Tohono O'odham Nation, who lived on this land long before Columbus "sailed the ocean blue."

Lopez was a cultural powerhouse, passing down traditions and language for generations. His legacy is still felt today, and renaming the park in his honor would finally recognize someone who contributed to our region's real history.

This isn't about erasing the past — it's about celebrating someone who truly represents Tucson and the people who shaped its future.

Kim Miklofsky Bayne

Yes on Prop 140

Re: "Vote YES on Prop 140 for greater fairness and participation" And "Let's make elections fair by opening primaries"

The Democratic mailer that went to homes of AZ voters got it wrong when it indicated voting "no" on this important proposition that aims to revise our current election system. The Make Elections Fair Arizona Act seeks to allow all Arizona voters to vote in primaries and does not require non-affiliated voters to change their affiliation to either Republican or Democrat in order to vote. Additionally, it makes it easier for third-party candidates to get on the ballot by decreasing the number of petition signatures required. In a single, open primary election all candidates appear on the same ballot irrespective of party affiliation and all voters use the same ballot. It moves the primaries away from our typical extreme partisanship and toward fairly represented elections.

Pamela Aronson

Northeast side

My wish

I wish there would be another Harris/Trump debate, but where I get to be the moderator asking questions. My first question to Kamala Harris:

"Madam Vice President, so you're this big-time fancy-pants prosecutor protecting America from the vilest of criminals. My question: You've been the VEEP for 4 years now, so how come this criminal mastermind Donald Trump is standing next to you? Why isn't he already in jail? He was convicted of a felony for one of his lesser crimes, and yet we still don't have a trial scheduled for his major crimes of stealing classified documents and inciting violence in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election. More than 750 people have received sentences of up to 22 years of prison time their part in the January 6 riot, yet this crime lord not only walks free, but is allowed to run for president. How do you explain that?"

John McConnaughey

Oro Valley

Vote Lappin and suspend Nanos

Sheriff Nanos doesn't seem to understand how free and fair elections work. He has repeatedly suspended deputies who campaign against him and he's done it again to his opponent, Heather Lappin. It is wrong for the chief law enforcement officer in the county to use his authority to stifle opposition and dissent. That's not how a democracy operates.

I'm a Democrat but I cannot vote for Nanos. I'm voting for Heather Lappin, an experienced officer in the department.

Nanos thumbs his nose at the County Supervisors, ignores department rules to protect an accused rapist on his staff, and now he's attempting to thwart a legitimate election by suspending the folks who are campaigning against him. He must go.

Corinne Cooper

Trump is unfit for office

First it was the complete disrespect for John McCain. Then the Access Hollywood tape. Then the indifference to the Covid pandemic. Then the treatment of the social justice protests. Then the lies about the election that fed the Jan. 6 insurrection. Then the conviction as well as numerous criminal charges. Recently the complete dehumanizing of illegal immigrants and lies about Haitian immigrants (reminds me the ending to the Twilight Zone episode "He's alive.") What is it going to take for the MAGA crowd to see that Donald Trump is a self-absorbed con artist? At least those in the Democratic are not afraid of dissent. They question President Biden and others within the party.

Gabriel M Bustamante

South side

Republicans bad for our economy

Fortis Incorporated, owner of Tucson Electric Power, recently released its 2024 second quarter earnings report.

To quote from the report, "The Corporation reported net earnings ... of $331 million for the second quarter of 2024. The increase was driven by strong earnings in Arizona, reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power effective September 1, 2023 and higher retail electricity sales associated with warmer weather."

A popular myth says that Republicans are better on the economy.

Right......

The ACC is a classic example of regulatory capture, with Republican members responding to the whim of the big power companies. Time to break their grip. Give the Democratic candidates a chance. Vote for Ylenia Aguilar, Jonathon Hill and Joshua Polacheck.

Edward Beshore

North side

Volk represents public service over politics

I'm fairly new to Tucson, so I did some research on my district's candidates for Arizona state House. I feel it is important to be informed about where candidates stand on issues that are not just important to me, but to our whole community.

I am impressed with Kevin Volk's commitment to "Public Service over Politics." The current lawmakers (McGarr and Jones) have accomplished so little for their constituents. McGarr, serving as a lawmaker for two years now, has "made" zero laws. This so-called "Arizona Freedom Team" does not believe in women's freedom to make our own decisions. I am appalled at how the misguided school voucher program, without any accountability, has brought Arizona's education to the bottom in national rankings.

When I vote, the ballot gives me two choices for state House but Kevin, from my perspective, is the only one deserving of a vote. I trust he'll do the right job.

Gretchen Winters

Oro Valley

All that talk about a wall that would keep illegal immigrants out and how Mexico would pay for the construction. Well, Mexico has not paid one dime of the estimated $15-40 billion cost. American taxpayers paid for it. The money that was spent was money diverted from the military. It is estimated that the construction costs between 15 to 40 billion dollars and the contracts that were given to the construction companies were to those who donated money to Trump. Competitive bidding was not used by the businessman President. Some parts of the wall have been breached over 3,200 times since 2019. Some parts of the wall have been cut by ordinary tools. Repairs cost additional money and have made portions of the wall easier to breach.

Democrats stopped funding the construction of the wall in 2021 saving the taxpayers money and the number of illegal crossings is the same as before. I think they deserve more time to set things right.

Morgan Pritchard

West side

Letter supporting Lea Marquez Peterson

Bankruptcy is relevant, it reveals a business-decision mindset. When your debt is 32,000 times your assets (as in Peterson's $3,200,000 debt to $100,000 assets) that shows common sense was relegated to the back of the bus. Gas cheaper than solar? May 2024 from Wood Mackenzie, the leading data analysts for the energy industry: "But even with increased borrowing costs, wind and solar remain the cheapest source of energy in many markets".

Rate hikes. Questioning Peterson's record of rubber-stamping rate hikes is not tantamount to saying there shouldn't be rate hikes. Everyone knows prices go up and everyone knows it would be shocking to see prices for gas, coal and nuclear based electricity generation go down. But to swallow whole utility dogma: fossil fuels reliable; solar unreliable, with unquestioned acceptance, is not what ratepayers expect from their constitutionally enabled watchdog agency the ACC or its Commissioners.

Oh, and that climate-change thing. Peterson fiddles while Tucson burns. That's the real truth here.

Rick Rappaport

Oro Valley

Supporting Jennifer Allen for Supervisor

I live in Arivaca, a rural community south of Tucson, and am supporting Jennifer Allen for Pima County Supervisor District 3. She has shown a great interest in our town and its needs. Our previous Supervisors have supported Arivaca with Community Development Block Grant monies to restore old historic buildings and build new ones for community use, including the Caviglia-Arivaca Library, Arivaca Community Center, Arivaca Fire Station, Arivaca Human Resources, Arivaca Clinic, the old Arivaca Hotel (Helping Hearts) and the Arivaca Schoolhouse, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, courtesy of Pima County. Pima County supports our after-school program, health and wellness services and preschool at the Action Center, besides the Human Resources services to the under-privileged and elderly. Because of her extensive background and experience, I believe Jen Allen will continue to help keep Arivaca a fun, safe, active and healthy community in which to live.

Mary Kasulaitis

Choose your flaws or choose your issues

I have a liberal friend on my social media. She listed the issues driving her presidential vote. Some include climate change, abortion, LGBTQ rights and gun safety. As such, she likes Harris while ignoring Harris's obvious shortcomings. Here are a few: She lacks coherency while speaking off script. Having stood around while Biden's mental capacity declined, she appears deceptive, weak and easily manipulated.

I'm a little different. The issues driving my presidential vote include: the economy, border security, and promoting American interests. My candidate also has obvious shortcomings. Liberals keep reminding us that Trump is a felon, a liar, a racist, a narcissist ... That hasn't swayed me. The latest is that he is a fascist. Seriously? You folks have lost all credibility. What's next? Is he an alien from a hostile planet?

The issues important to me will determine my vote. Period. And Trump, with all his faults, has shown his fortitude to activate solutions while being immune to the influence of special interests.

Kevin Wohlford

Northeast side

Consequential election

For those of you who remember the rhetoric of 1939 Nazi Germany, then you know how eerily similar Trump's demonization and lies about immigrants are. If you plan to vote for him, then shame on you. For those of you who were too young to know the horrific events that took place because of this rhetoric, I suggest you pick up a history book and educate yourself. Trump is not a conservative. He is, though, a successful con man who has convinced many people gullible enough to believe the poison he is spreading. Many real conservatives are voting for Kamala Harris because they know how Trump will destroy this country and they care about their children and grandchildren's futures. One Republican official said you can still be Republican, but vote for the person who cares about this country, not the person who is running for revenge. Policies can work themselves out, but it will take decades to fix our broken country if Trump wins.

Ilene Scannell

East side