Letters

Don't see the big deal

I fail to understand the hoopla over the name of the Washington, D.C., football team. What's the big deal about the name Redskins? Even Harry Reid has joined the melee.

Here's a plan for you Mr. Reid, et al.: Why not rename them the Washington Whiteskins? Why, because we don't care!

CHARLES NICHOLS

Maumelle

Done with partisans

I am the Tea Party. I am a patriot. Words like "freedom," "Constitution" and "liberty" are more than symbols to me. They're a core part of my belief system.

Arkansas Tea Party heroes Tom Cotton and Rick Crawford voted against the Massie-Lofgren Amendment to HR4870, which defunded the NSA's warrantless collection of Americans' electronic communications.

In short, and to not mince words, I believe they voted against the Fourth Amendment; they blatantly voted against the Constitution.

I supported Crawford heartily in his election, and I was looking forward to seeing Cotton trounce Mark Pryor this year. Because of their disregard for the Constitution, they've lost my vote.

I say this as a fellow veteran; they've either turned their back on their oaths, which makes them dishonest, or they don't know enough about the Constitution to faithfully follow it in their voting, which makes them unqualified for office.

Semper Fi.

SAM KEEFER

Batesville

On our foreign policy

Teddy Roosevelt's foreign-policy slogan was "speak softly and carry a big stick."

Barack Obama's should be "speak forcefully and don't break any eggs."

ROBERT SMITH

Springdale

Propaganda prevails

So the Kochs will spend $300 million this year to buy the ballot box. The GOP apparently will continue its attempts to reduce the votes of minorities--Hispanics, blacks, the working class, women. Citizens United will allow corporations to vote twice and propaganda to prevail over reason and research.

Meanwhile, the congressional millionaires will block legislation that gives American workers a livable wage. They will wage war against increased taxes, construction projects, and opportunities for bright, young students to become a more competent generation.

Superstition may prevail over science and tomorrow's specter will remain for tomorrow's generation.

The party with one talent will hold fast to the past, and the rest of the world will continue to surge ahead of us.

BILL RHODES

Mountain Home

His thinking's scary

How could anyone vote for someone who thinks like Tom Cotton?

It seems his plans are these: cutting school lunch programs for low-income kids, the only meal a day for many poor children; ending free health screenings for people who otherwise would not find out they have cancer, diabetes or high blood pressure until it's too late; opposing equal pay for equal work, keeping women constantly struggling; opposing disaster aid after tornadoes; keeping insurance companies from covering people who have had an ongoing health problem, locking them out; opposing the farm bill so people who are hungry and whose jobs got shipped overseas can't get food stamps to pay part of their grocery bill till they can find work again; trying to shut down the government to make some political point for his party; cutting the amount of student loans for people who want to go to college (needed by many and paid back with interest to the government); cutting Social Security by making us work till age 70 to retire; cutting Medicare benefits so seniors pay huge deductibles and do not get any Medicare till age 70. He's for tax breaks for the rich and more taxes for the other 99 percent.

I think he and the billionaire Koch brothers who fund his campaign should be ashamed. He calls himself a Christian on his website, but I call him selfish. In our Sunday School, we learned we should take care of one another.

DINA NASH

Maumelle

Marriage has evolved

Paul Greenberg is right that "we can change the formal definition of marriage ... but that doesn't mean our new definition will retain its old meaning and significance." But I believe Greenberg is wrong to suggest that changing marriage is inherently bad.

Furthermore, his column seems to incorrectly imagine that the institution of marriage has remained static and unchanging. Marriage has evolved, and continues to evolve, in ways that benefit our society. For instance, married women in the U.S. and England did not have the right to own property or control their wages through most of the 19th Century, which seems unthinkable today. Similarly, gender-specific marital roles have begun to shift in recent decades. My late grandfather raised three children, but he never changed a diaper--it wasn't part of the role of "husband" in the 1950s. In the 21st Century, many men are more involved in their children's lives, and marriage offers more potential for the rich rewards of equal partnership.

I am awfully glad things have changed. Aren't you?

MELISSA STRONG

Fayetteville

Help state's students

I'm disappointed to see the Arkansas U.S. Senate race descend into the politics of the personal with candidates attacking each other's character on the airwaves. Voters deserve more.

As a leader of the University of Phoenix here in the state, there's one very real issue I believe the candidates should be addressing: gainful employment regulations being proposed by the Department of Education. I believe these regulations would close the doors of access to thousands of students in Arkansas who want to attend quality for-profit schools like my own. I call on the candidates to put their personal differences aside and address this issue to help the students of our state.

LUKE CAMPBELL

Rogers

Editorial on 06/22/2014

Upcoming Events