Priorities are skewed

A pet dog dies after being placed in the overhead bin of a commercial airliner. Two U.S. senators file a bill to make it a punishable offense to do such a thing. They named the bill the “Welfare Of Our Furry Friends” (WOOFF) Act. I am not kidding!

Seventeen of our children are killed in one of our schools and the response from the Congress is a moment of silent reflection, followed by prayers, followed by a statement of how it is too early to think about legislation, followed by more silence. While not discounting the death of one’s pet, the obvious irony makes one weep.

We elect people to represent us in the Congress. They are professionals in what they do and they have access to reams of information unavailable to us. They also have the time to read and consider all that information in addition to our desires. After reflection we expect them to cast their votes on our behalf in the best interest of the country and society. What seems apparent is that we are getting people who buy our vote and then cast their votes almost exclusively on behalf of their interests with the intent of remaining in office.

Maybe it is time to revisit term limits. How about removing the everpresent need in Congress to raise huge sums of money for the purpose of being re-elected? A limit of one term for all. At the present time the only seemingly honest declarations from congressional members are coming from those who have declined to stand for re-election. Worth serious consideration? RICHARD PICARD

Little Rock