Prohibition didn’t work for booze and won’t for pot

Bravo to Dr. Jeffrey Singer for his well-reasoned opinion piece, “History shows us why marijuana prohibition doesn’t make sense.” If prohibition is such a great public policy for marijuana, why do we no longer use it to control and regulate alcohol?

— Show Low

Voting system needs to change, but not with a popular vote

I’m hearing a lot of people asking to do away with the electoral college and go with the popular vote. However, these bleating souls fail to realize that receiving a majority of the popular vote doesn’t always happen (it probably won’t this time either).

Heck, Bill Clinton won with just 41 percent. Think about it: two out of five people gave him 68.8 percent of the electoral vote, because the vast majority of the states are winner takes all.

Winner takes all is the issue. It produces red, blue and swing states, giving the individual voter in say Ohio or Florida much more power than the average Arizona citizen.

Let’s adopt the system used in Maine and Nebraska. There, the candidate with the highest popular vote in each congressional district gets one electoral vote and the candidate with the highest popular vote statewide receives two. I believe that Trump will carry Arizona, and thus receive all of our 11 electoral votes. Clinton will probably carry 3-4 of our congressional districts. Wouldn’t an 8-3 or 7-4 split be more representative? Adopting the Nebraska-Maine system would bring every state into play, and every citizen’s vote, throughout The Republic, would have equal value.

— Mesa

Despite his flaws, Trump will bring an end to big government

I am voting for Donald Trump because, though his personal challenges and weaknesses are many, at least they are laid out there on the table for all to see and judge. He will be closely watched and will be kept in check. Hopefully, his general governing thrust will be for less government intrusion into our lives.

He will be more amenable to fiscal responsibility due to his business experience. He will lead government out of all its extracurricular activities and back to its original purpose of defense of country and law and order. Private enterprise can take care of the rest.

Americans will get back to the virtue of personal responsibility instead of the malaise of dependency on government. Most people probably will agree that most government programs are not well managed. The rigor and discipline of private enterprise with its relentless competitive pressures will produce far superior results.

Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, is a fanatic for big government involvement in just about everything. — Tempe

Sun Devils too preoccupied with uniforms and not their playing

Perhaps if ASU spent more time focusing on playing the game and less time focusing on which uniform to wear on game day, they could win a game. Wonder what the uniform budget is?

— Sun City

Customer service at Phoenix VA some of the best in country

I am a recent Texas transplant having moved to Scottsdale just two weeks ago. I had the opportunity to sample the level of care provided by the Phoenix VA hospital after getting extremely sick just three days after arriving here.

My daughter pushed me up to the window, and in less than five minutes my vitals were taken by a nurse. Within an hour after further testing, I was admitted to the hospital. Having been a patient numerous times during my 82 years, I feel qualified to make judgments about the quality of hospital care. My level of care and attention than I received at this hospital was superior. I was seen by three doctors, dozens of nurses, numerous technicians and all were dedicated to my comfort and well being. Service above and beyond to make me well was the order of the day.

Fellow vets, take what you read in the paper with a grain of salt. You will receive the finest care available anywhere at this VA hospital.

— Scottsdale