LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Americans deserve better
So, Rep. Jim Jordan wants to put forth legislation related to the border, big tech censorship of lies, and Department of Justice and FBI investigations into matters involving misconduct by some members of Congress and past presidents.
Jordan asked why the Democrats did not solve the border problem when they had the House, Senate and White House earlier.
Well Jim, why didn’t the Republicans solve it when they had Congress and Donald Trump in charge? You didn’t solve anything, did you?
And probably won’t do anything useful for the nation going forward. It seems all you can do is bad mouth someone else.
Plus, you don’t like that social media platforms hold the GOP accountable for lies about elections and you want to censor them, or you don’t want the FBI and DOJ maybe looking into who in government took part in the Jan. 6 insurrection?
Why don’t you check on your colleagues buying defense stocks days before Russia invaded Ukraine, or do you agree with Marjorie Taylor Greene when she said “War and rumor of war is incredibly profitable and convenient?”
People elected Congress to get the nation running, not for some personal vendetta against anyone who doesn’t agree with you. So Jim, get to work and quit grandstanding.
John Dirina, Columbus
We need a renter’s tax credit
It was disheartening to read the well-researched Feb. 20 article “Housing voucher program failing many.”
While the concept started out offering hope of assistance to low-income renters, the fact that only one in four people who qualify for a voucher actually gets one and may wait years for it is a disgrace.
Even more upsetting is the dehumanizing treatment of tenants described in the article. It’s hard enough to be threatened with the loss of one’s home without being treated so callously.
A new idea for aid to low-income renters is using the tax code to assist with the high cost of rent; much like how homeowners are helped by a mortgage interest tax break.
A renter’s tax credit would supplement the difference between a person’s rent and 30% of their income (which is what housing is supposed to cost so people have money left for food, utilities and other needs) It would go directly to the renter on a monthly basis and eliminate all the red tape, waiting, humiliation, stigma and insecurity attached to Housing Choice Vouchers.
There is no one thing that will fix this overwhelming and growing affordable housing crisis but increasing the affordable housing stock over the next few decades and enacting a change in the tax code to immediately give some relief would be two steps that would go a long way toward relief.
A renter’s tax credit should be seriously considered by our legislators as a way to right some long standing wrongs in seeking the American Dream of having secure housing.
Virginia M. Vogts, Columbus
Don’t give our water to the west
I write today to help sound the alarm about our water crisis.
Water, one of our most precious natural resources has been so abused and misused that the situation out West is not sustainable.
The Colorado River is siphoned off to maintain the
lives of some 40 million people.
With the Southwestern border collapse, this number dramatically increases every day. Immigrants coming in from virtually all corners help drink, flush and drain this priceless commodity from Washington to Mexico and California to New Mexico.
The recent increase in rainfall and snowpacks in the west are only a stopgap happenstance. The on-going drought situation there has been known and slightly-heard alarm bells heard for many years. But between area greed and politics little has been done.
More recently we see messages from “experts” suggesting obtaining water from more remote sources, ie. Mississippi River or Great Lakes.
Already, there have actually been overland shipments from Kansas. This gives us some idea how acute the shortage has become.
When one is confronted with the degree of dependence on the Colorado River and the bare walls of canyons not exposed for decades and the small number of feet the Lake Mead water has to drop to lack enough volume to generate electric power for Los Angeles and Las Vegas, the problem comes into focus.
What to do?
I suggest one thing NOT to do. That is to give in to demands for sharing the water from Old Man River or The Great Lakes.
Even if the technological and financial problems could be solved, the fact remains that the westerners not only do not deserve it, but we will need it just as much when the time comes. And it is coming.
A step in the right direction would be a plan which is in the works now.
The western states are making the effort with a concrete plan- although the liberals in California are refusing to flush less and use less water for irrigation. This plan along with closing of the border may help use fewer gallons from the Colorado.
Have they really considered that fewer people drinking and flushing will help?
Hopefully, they can set it right.
Don Denton, Westerville
Stop kicking the Medicare and Social Security cans
Although everyone knows that Medicare and Social Security systems are heading toward insolvency, politicians on both sides of the aisle have declared and promised that they will keep the status quo.
Politicians are just kicking the can down the road in order to avoid making hard decisions that may scare and alienate senior citizens. However, these delays will make the problem harder to handle in the future and sooner or later they have to face the issue.
Our leaders should make it clear that reforming the system doesn’t necessarily mean inflicting pain on senior citizens. If the reform is done right, we would avoid insolvency, increase efficiency and eliminate fraud.
George A. Elmaraghy, Columbus