No Pepsi Generation in today’s America
How sad it is that Pepsi had to pull its ad that tried to project a message of unity and cooperation. It indicates that our entire culture has transitioned from working together to solve problems to simply assessing blame and fighting.
Witness also the recent “nuclear option” invoked in Washington. This behavior doesn’t produce sustainable solutions. Real solutions start with simply understanding that there is actually a person on the other side.
Sorry Pepsi. You had the right idea. But quite unfortunately, our culture today is not there. We need to change back. Not you. — Doug Metzger, Phoenix
Assad, who uses poison gas, should fear Donald Trump
With each passing day now the situation in the Middle East grows more dangerous. There are Russian, American and Iranian soldiers present in close proximity. Israeli warplanes are hitting targets in Syria. Sarin gas is a terror weapon. That it would be used against a civilian population is a grave evil.
My advice to Bashar Assad: Dissabuse yourself of the notion that Donald Trump is a nice man. He has incredible power at his disposal, and he isn’t afraid to use it.
Listen, bro, either fish or cut bait. Step down, and get out of the mess that you’re in while you still can.
— Michael J. Beisch, Skull Valley
Handing a fledgling new business over to Big Tobacco is dangerous
In the next century, nearly one-billion lives will be lost to tobacco. For decades we have known the harms it causes, but the addictive hold it has on our communities, families and friends is strong.
To make matters worse, traditional nicotine replacement therapies are only 6 percent effective in accomplishing cessation. Making them woefully inadequate.
In 2010 electronic cigarettes appeared widely on the market, and since then we are seeing historic lows in new smokers and new highs in former smokers. Youth smoking uptake is down. Cancer rates are down. Small business is flourishing in this new market. It’s incredible to see.
But a year ago, the FDA decided to obliterate all the small businesses and hand the industry to big tobacco. They did this by placing a regulatory burden that’s insurmountable on these new products.
The FDA ensured that the only players in the market would be the billiondollar tobacco companies. All we ask as for the opportunity to allow these lifesaving products to stay on the market and for small business to be allowed to continue to exist.
Protect small business. Protect American lives and health. Save us.
— William Cohen, Anthem
What if we turned downtown hotel over to the dispossessed?
The Sheraton Hotel can be a win if converted to affordable housing for many of our citizens locked out of shelter due to the price of rent and utilities.
Federal funding for affordable housing
We can only imagine how frustrating things must have been for Trump in the White House on Thursday evening.
He must have been drooling over the opportunity to distract from his declining polls by a military distraction in Syria.