LETTERS

— Help our own nation first

Donald Trump has asked the government: “What’s in it for us?” A lot of thought can be given to this question.

When the U.S. has a national crisis (hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.) do other countries come to our aid? If so, do they provide us with any help?

When other countries have a national crisis, why does it seem the U.S. is the first to respond? I would be very curious to know how much aid we have provided and continue to provide for Haiti. It’s like adopting a puppy. It’s yours forever or at least its lifetime. Does Haiti have any way of sustaining its economy without foreign help?

It appears that the U.S. is acting as the moral conscience of the world when our own country has extreme poverty and our government spending is out of control with no end in sight. I am not saying that charity is a bad thing-far from it. I am of the opinion that we should help our own first. We give aid and political assistance to other countries that do not necessarily require it.

Why are we involved in civil and religious wars around the globe? History has proven that there is no winner in these wars. We are still involved in Iraq and Afghanistan with a war that shows no end. These countries are no better off after our soldiers have given their lives for this cause. In actuality, the last war we won was World War II. Korea wasn’t a win and neither was Vietnam.

Wake up, America, before it is too late.

PAM MILLS

Little Rock

That can happen here

Voices reader Bill Nelson got it right when he said that the Second Amendment is to defend our freedom from tyranny.

To give you an example, watch The Battle of Athens: Restoring the Rule of Law on YouTube. It’s based on a true story about the local government in McMinn County, Tenn., and years of political corruption. The Department of Justice had investigated allegations of electoral fraud several times but no actions were ever taken. There were other types of corruption going on as well.

Men in the county finally rebelled. They were led by World War II veterans who were fed up with what was going on in McMinn County; several of the ex-GIs ran for local office to fight back.

It was election day, Aug. 1, 1946, and after the polls closed, sheriff’s deputies took the ballot boxes to the jail. The veterans demanded the ballot boxes to get a true count, but they were denied. They raided the National Guard and State Guard armories, getting guns and ammunition, then returned to the jail. The shootout started. The veterans even threw dynamite at the jail. The deputies finally surrendered and the ballot boxes were recovered.

The GI candidates won the election. They scoured out corruption in the government and yes, they repaired the damaged jail.

DONNA DAUGHERTY

Gravel Ridge

Portrayal despicable

The political cartoon published on the Voices page that depicted National Rifle Association members as wild eyed, paranoid lunatics hiding in a bunker while the enemy was actually themselves was beneath contempt.

If any other group was subjected to the personal insults and derogatory commentary that NRA members endure on a daily basis, there would likely be a national outrage. But for some reason it is apparently permissible to portray NRA members as stupid, insane or otherwise mentally deficient. It also appears acceptable to liken them to the KKK and the Nazis, as often happens in the national media.

I expected better of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. I had hoped this paper would hold itself above such vile slurs. Apparently I was mistaken.

FRANK LATIMER

Little Rock

Statement was cruel

What a cruel statement the man from Scotland made about Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly. I pray from experience that he never has a serious head injury in his family.

By the way, what is wrong with bald headed men? I know there are many of us around.

DENNIS SATTERFIELD

Brinkley

More important issue

In all the discussion and debate about gun control, we seem to be missing what is even more important: how we raise our families. It doesn’t matter if it’s guns, drugs or alcohol, it starts at home with how we raise our kids.

That doesn’t mean a parent can guarantee that their child won’t do something harmful. People make decisions every day, and as a parent, you hope that you’ve done the right things so that your kids make good decisions.

What our country needs is less talk about gun control and more focus on raising solid, healthy families.

If we let our families deteriorate, gun control will be the least of our worries.

LEO HOELSCHER

Pocahontas

Hillary indeed correct

I believe Paul Greenberg is wrong and Hillary Clinton is right about her statement about what difference the department’s response in Benghazi makes now.

It took nearly 40 percent of a page to editorialize on why Secretary of State Clinton was wrong in her statement about the Benghazi mess. She, however, was right in that we can’t bring back people from the dead but we can do all in our power to see that this situation doesn’t happen again.

Clinton had already removed from their posts or otherwise disciplined some of her staff who failed to notify her of the request for more security in Benghazi.

She also assumed full responsibility for the failure, and had already notified the president long ago that she would not be serving during his second term.

What more does Greenberg want, her head on a golden platter?

Hillary Clinton is probably by far the most experienced and popular female political leader in America. Polls show her to be ahead of other potential candidates for president in 2016 but, unfortunately, she has said she will not run.

Could she change her mind? Yes, but I doubt she will.

VERNON McDANIEL

Ozark

Help people in need

I am an international student and have noticed that giving to charities is common in the U.S. Although giving a portion of what you have to help other people isn’t a must, helping those in need is a great thing, not only for society but for yourself.

You can be proud to save the life of a child affected by malaria, for example. Society should work together to achieve greater things.

If you support a child in the Boys and Girls Club,that child will become a better person who will always be grateful for the support. Therefore, charity can be a great investment in the future.

In other countries, the money that is given to charity by donors often does not reach those in need. Some people may decide to run a business by creating a charity center and taking the money of the donors for their own purposes.

I think charity is a great thing. People who have more should always share with people who have less. Charity funds should be controlled and be well-coordinated so that those funds reach those in need. However, since charity is not a must, people should not be forced to contribute to it at their place of work if they don’t want to.

PASCAL DUSABE

Conway

Easing poverty’s bite

According to census data, Arkansas’ 18.8 percent poverty rate is higher than the national average poverty rate of 14.6 percent, leading to a bigger concern. Currently, Arkansas is experiencing significant poverty, but there is no clear-cut solution. However, efforts to improve education have demonstrated a major effect on decreasing the poverty rate.

Studies have shown that education is a step to pull people up from below the poverty line. Improving the education rate is difficult, especially with the burden of college tuition and low motivation from families, but can be changed with government-sponsored programs. Introducing scholarships such as the El Dorado Promise in various counties can provide an incentive for students to attend college. These types of programs have diminished poverty in Union County, and could be beneficial for the rest of the state.

Another solution is increasing the minimum wage of employees in Arkansas. The current wage should be raised from $6.25 per hour to at least $8.25 per hour, as suggested by state Rep. Butch Wilkins. This can raise the average family income and lessen the poverty rate, but we have to think of the pressure it would put on the state budget.

Thus increasing the minimum wage to $8.25 per hour should be considered and poverty in Arkansas should not be overlooked.

ZEEL MODI

El Dorado

Expand Web access

In Arkansas’ rural areas, Internet users struggle to have acceptable connections. A vast number of daily interactions now occur online, including banking, shopping, social networking and entertainment, as well as many careers. As much time is wasted waiting on important pages to load, the lack of broadband has become a major hindrance on our society. In 2012, Arkansas ranked in the lowest 10 states in terms of average Internet speed. With its dense rural farming areas, much of the state must still rely on dial-up.

Though there are many possibilities to get broadband to the people, I believe that the best feasible solution would be for cable companies to expand their networks for high speed cable Internet access. Due to the cable TV lines already being moderately widespread, laying more cable would be much more reasonable than newer technologies such as fiber optics. After fiber optics, cable provides the fastest form of Internet for most residential consumers at 30 megabits per second.

The cable companies apparently have not yet been willing to carry the expense to lay the cables. I believe that in reality, laying them would be a very profitable move for them. Over time, the large boost in customers would cause respectable long-term profits. Also, as much cable would have to be laid, there would be a large boost of jobs to help our nation’s struggling economy. Hopefully, this proposal will be considered by Arkansas’ cable companies.

JACOB STANBERY

Forrest City

Feedback

For their protection

All of this media hubbub about wanting to make the names and ZIP codes of concealed-weapon permit holders open to the public is ridiculous.

Those who want to be able to have such information published should really stop and think twice before doing so-for their own protection.

If they are foolish enough to proceed with such silly plans, they need to be prepared to suffer the potential consequences of “the bad guys” being made aware of who to obviously avoid and who to concentrate on as victims because they are apparently more vulnerable.

Too much information can be a double-edged weapon.

DOUG LEMM

Bella Vista

May be connection

Well, the Postal Service has done it again, and raised the price of our first-class stamps.

Yet they had enough a few years back to give Lance Armstrong $32 million to sponsor his team. Maybe that’s why our stamps went up. Hmmm?

MARSHA HEIEN

Stuttgart

Editorial, Pages 11 on 02/11/2013

Upcoming Events