In the book \u201cMark Twain\u201d by Ron Chernow, I found the perfect explanation for why many people conformed to \u201cthe terrifying power of the environment to shape and distort human behavior.\u201d\u00a0 He was referencing the justification of slavery by so many otherwise good people, including clergy, but it explains so much more.<\/p>\n
I grew up in the 1940s and \u201950s in what is now referred to as a \u201cred state.\u201d And I must admit that I was a racist, believing that whites were intellectually superior to Blacks. My parents didn\u2019t use racial slurs and were kind, but they erroneously judged Black people harshly. Sadly, that was more liberal than many locals felt.<\/p>\n
I was an adult when I moved to a more neutral environment and was gradually exposed to reality.<\/p>\n
But this is not about racism per se. It is about sequestered groups and communities that seldom are exposed to other views of the world.<\/p>\n
That Chernow quote is the best explanation I\u2019ve found to understand how good, kind people can accept the travesties taking place.<\/p>\n
Yes, immigration is broken, but we turned our heads for years and took advantage of the workers. Send back the criminals and the more recent arrivals, but have empathy for those who have been here for years, raising families, serving the communities, and often serving in the military.<\/p>\n
We have known there has been waste in all government departments for decades. It must be corrected \u2014 but not with a chainsaw and mindless, inhuman, vindictive overkill.<\/p>\n
Congress and other branches of government must be more informed by their awakened constituents than they fear the president.<\/p>\n
David L King,\u00a0Erie<\/em><\/p>\n I recently traveled to Miami, and my GPS device warned me of red light cameras at traffic lights while I was driving. It turns out that many lights have cameras (at least in Miami Beach, where I was staying). They actually work as cars stop before the light turns red, rather than racing through as we often see here.<\/p>\n Why? Because drivers know a camera will catch them if they don\u2019t stop. I would like to see more of those here, and think the accidents they help prevent outweigh the arguments that these cameras are a threat to civil liberties.<\/p>\n Thomas H. Brady, Wheat Ridge<\/em><\/p>\n Those of us of a certain age grew accustomed to presidential administrations\u2019 intentional struggles with the truth a long time ago \u2014\u00a0 LBJ\u2019s falsehoods about Vietnam; Nixon\u2019s about Watergate and related matters; Reagan\u2019s about Iran-Contra; Clinton\u2019s about Monica Lewinsky; W. Bush\u2019s non-existent \u201cweapons of mass destruction\u201d; and, Biden\u2019s\u2026 let\u2019s just say his memory about stories he told failed him. But Trump takes the cake, hands down.<\/p>\nReconsider red-light cameras for safety<\/h4>\n
Presidential struggles with truth-telling<\/h4>\n