Remember the Golden Rule
Whenever I visit my son and his in-laws in Australia, they ask me about American resistance to the idea that health care is a human right — "what's wrong with those Yanks?"
Admittedly, this administration gutted its feeble excuse for a national health care plan to appease the medical associations, pharmaceutical corporations and insurance conglomerates even before bringing it to the negotiating table.
But "big medical" continues to squeal like a castrated hog. Why? Because despite its glaring flaws, "Obamacare" has silently conceded that in a just and civilized society, access to medical treatment shouldn't be determined by the size of one's bank account. Our corporate rulers demand such heresy be eradicated.
Such "corporatist" priorities find nothing wrong with squandering $1.7 trillion for the Iraq war (as long as Halliburton et al. get their $39.5 billion cut) while "trickling down" a miserly $35.3 million on the current Ebola outbreak. Americans blew $119 billion gambling last year. How's that a "right" but medical care isn't?
Mighty America's message seems to be: "They're just Africans. They have no money. Just build a wall at the border to keep 'em out."
Reminds me of a short story wherein the protagonist — bonnie Prince Prospero — converted an abbey into his private castle, welded the doors shut, and indulged in continuous revelry and excess with his thousand guests. Meanwhile, the population outside his walls died in misery, convulsing and sweating blood.
The party ended badly. A figure — masked as one suffering from the bloody plague — appeared in their midst, infected the prince and his guests, killing everyone. "And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all."
Maybe that figure was a Liberian aid worker. The Creator placed warnings against selfishness in the Torah, the Gospels and the Quran for OUR benefit. He needs nothing from us — that's true whether you believe in Him or not.
Conclusion: "Do unto others as ye would have others do unto you" — before it's too late.
— Al-Hajj Frederick H Minshall
Anchorage
Why do we keep fighting the feds?
I see from today's headline that the state of Alaska is once again bumping heads with the feds by appealing the court decision on same-sex marriage.
I was wondering if someone could answer these questions for me: How many times has our state government sued the federal government or appealed federal court decisions? How many of these actions have been successful? How much money, time and energy that could have been used elsewhere has been expended?
I was hoping that Gov. Parnell or his former attorney general, Dan Sullivan, could answer these questions. Or maybe one of the many fine investigative reporters at the Dispatch could explore them.
— Steve Waldron
Anchorage
State, reveal costs of prohibiting pot
I have received the state of Alaska official election pamphlet and like many others was disappointed with the bias shown on Ballot Measure 2. If the state is going to estimate the cost on how much to regulate marijuana, it should have published the $11 million a year it costs the public to maintain prohibition. On April 13, the Alaska Dispatch News released an article titled "Notable moments in 40 years of Alaska's history with marijuana." The article reported that the ACLU estimates it costs taxpayers $11 million a year to enforce marijuana prohibition. Every 4.32 hours an Alaskan is arrested for possessing marijuana. The No campaign claims the business community supports their cause, and therefore, they shouldn't mind picking up the tab as state revenues continue to decline.
Will someone please point out Deborah Williams' professional career with the federal government? UAA failed to do so in its biography for the Oct. 23 marijuana debate. This is relevant because as a former federal employee, she has a vested interest in maintaining government prohibition, because once a fed always a fed.
— Richard Pomeroy
Anchorage
Choose Respect makes a difference
Bravo!
The unspeakable horror of sexual abuse of our Alaska children is finally being publicly addressed. Having been a teacher in several village communities across our great state, I and other teachers have seen and fought this ravaging agony perpetuated and silently accepted for decades. Several years back I was extremely angry about such abuse and an officer told me he had grown up in a village; he told me it had been an accepted practice for the men to take young girls out on hunting trips for entertainment. I was horrified. As teachers we have tried, Office of Child Protection has been overwhelmed, village police officers (VPOs) tried, state troopers and others have tried to help.
Now help has been forthcoming. Gov. Sean Parnell, first lady Sandy Parnell, Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, former state Attorney General Dan Sullivan and others in office have, during the past few years, made "Choose Respect" an initiative, a movement, a voice of power for those victims of domestic violence, especially for the young girls and boys (grown up and silenced) who have been victims. Now VPOs and teachers and parents and especially children have a powerful weapon and armor. One VPO made "Choose Respect" his battle cry — his village went from almost all the teen girls having been victims to none. "Choose Respect" is making a difference. No one need be abused.
— Marilyn Connelly Memory
Fairbanks
Parnell mismanaged Guard scandal
Thanks to gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker and so many others who wrote and spoke out, taking on Gov. Parnell for his inexcusable mismanagement of the National Guard sexual assault scandal.
I know what it is like to single-handedly report a sexual predator CEO to the police, escort victims in to make statements and, ultimately, run him out of town — with no one covering my back. So yes, I can imagine what the National Guard chaplains and others were feeling when they took the unprecedented step of bypassing the chain of command by going directly to commander-in-chief Parnell with their concerns.
I acted within an hour of what I learned, while the governor waited four years, leaving victims languishing and justice unserved.
Ideological rigidity, anti-tribal and anti-fed bias, among other issues, have stymied progress out of Juneau in protecting Alaska women. Without multifaceted backup, "Choose Respect" is just hot air. A better slogan, based on what we've seen from the Parnell administration, would be "Choose Indifference."
— William M. Cox
Nome
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter for consideration, email letters@adn.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@alaskadispatch.com.