Build Back Better?

My house is nearly a century old. Its balloon frame is built with true dimensional lumber and rests on a rubble foundation. Wood sash windows with pulleys and weights still adorn the house, but, at some point in time, were augmented with storm windows, and the cedar shakes were covered with aluminum siding.

This well-built structure was constructed with the materials and codes of that era. Over the years, owners have updated its systems and made improvements. What once was a coalfed boiler is now an efficient natural gas system. The knob and tube wiring was replaced with insulated copper wiring and circuit breakers. Heat pumps now help with climate control, and insulation reduces air leaks. Modern appliances assist with everyday chores.

This home has the elegance of history and the comfort and efficiency of today. Never did any owner have to “build back” to make it better. Never was it razed so that it could be brought up to par with modernity.

In nearly a century, it has remained standing with improvements throughout the years.

I am bewildered by Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better.” Why, when our Constitution is the bedrock of our society, when this nation has evolved from slavery to civil rights, from one-room schoolhouses to universities, from stagecoaches to space shuttles, must we destroy everything? Why teach our children that their ancestors are bad when they have created such a wonderful place for us to live? We can always be better, but why must we destroy it all to do so?

The countries that have done this to themselves are much worse off than before. This administration is following the same path as Russia, China, Cuba, Venezuela and a host of other totalitarian regimes. The devastation in those nations was so complete that it has taken generations to build back any semblance of a civil society, if one exists at all. None have but a fraction of the freedoms and prosperity that we now enjoy. Why destroy it?

— Jim Dixon, Waltham