Tuesday's letters: Stop the Trump Train and let me off!
Change of heart
I'm a 42-year-old Caucasian Christian and a lifelong Republican voter. I view my votes this year as the emergency brakes for the runaway MAGA Trump train. That train has unfortunately dragged the whole party toward right-wing extremism. My aim is to render this stupid train inoperable.
I want it to be known that the actions, words and behaviors of the leadership of the GOP are no longer consistent with my values as a human. I'm out. I'm hoping to take as many of you sane GOP voters as possible with me to stop this embarrassing nonsense.
I'm embarrassed to be a Republican at this point in time, but I'm proud to support sane candidates who offer stability and rational thinking, which is something Donald Trump cannot offer. I'm a decent, humane Republican and I'm voting for Kamala Harris and Josh Stein. Join me in ending this silly, cultish MAGA nonsense.
I'm a Republican who is gladly voting for Harris.
Joseph Peascoe
Don't be fooled again
In 2020, America watched as the Democrats ran a "Hidin' Biden in the Basement" campaign. This seemed acceptable because we were in the thick of COVID-19. There were many voting "anomalies" because of this pandemic, some legal, some which violated state laws. We did it anyway.
In 2020, we were told that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were the "adults in the room." Scranton Joe was a steady, "middle-of-the-road" moderate grampa with 50 years of government experience. Even then, Biden's mental and physical limitations were there for anyone with intellectual honesty to see. This was successfully hidden by the Democrats and state-run-media until it became obvious. We were sold a pig-in-a-poke. Biden was an empty vessel immediately adopting the most radical ideas of the far left. America was fooled.
Now, in 2024, we're getting the "same-old, same-old" from the media. Now it's "Covering for Kamala." Harris won't illuminate her policy specifics, won't explain her election-year-conversion flip-flops and avoids spontaneous pressers. Corporate media are actively participating in the ruse.
Although Harris has not yet fallen three times up the stairs of her plane, called on a dead House member or wandered around stages lost, her political incompetence and hollow campaign are becoming clear to anyone who chooses to see.
Many Democrats and Republicans are already firmly siloed in their beliefs, but there are independents and voters on the edges who remain undecided. If I were one, I would be saying to myself: "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me!"
Steve O'Connell
Big debt. Bad outcomes.
Whenever universal health care is brought up there are always those who throw out comments like "We have the best care in the world" or "The wait for care in Canada or the U.K. is horrible — keep our system." The sad truth is that, when compared to other countries with socialized medicine, the U.S. generally has the worst outcomes.
The U.S. spends nearly two times what other rich countries spend on health care, yet we rank 60th in life expectancy. In infant mortality we are 54th. Maternal mortality is double compared to other developed countries. And prescription drug prices in other countries are about one-third of what they are here.
In the U.S., about 20 million adults have medical debt, with most owing more than $1,000. About 11 million of those owe more than $2,000, and 3 million owe between $5,001 and $10,000. Another 3 million owe more than $10,000.
Our medical system is not serving our people well. Managed care, insurance costs and pharmaceutical profits are hurting us all. With all our medical advances, and our money, we should be doing much better. It is way past time for some form of universal health care if we want to work our way back to ranking as one of the top countries.
Francie Portnoy
High Point
