蜜柚直播

much to answer for

In 2015-2016 during the last years of the Barack Obama/ Joseph Biden administration, the National Institutes of Health awarded $3.7 million in research grants to study Chinese bat-borne coronaviruses. Of that, $3.7 million, $600,000 made its way to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. Just what did we get for our money?

In November 2019, COVID-19 began infecting people in Wuhan. By October 2020 the virus and related illnesses had caused the death of over 1,092,864 people worldwide.

At a time when the progressive, liberal Democrats should have been focusing their attention on COVID-19, they were focused on the insidious once-you鈥檙e-impeached-you-will-be-impeached-forever clown show and other attempts to remove President Trump from office.

The inability of the liberal, progressive Democrats to pass additional coronavirus economic aid since March is shameful, absolutely shameful.

Bill Kendall

Downtown

Existential threat to our democracy

This current occupant is an existential danger to our democracy. He鈥檚 severely weakened our foundational institutions in just four years.

Congress is no longer a co-equal branch. He uses the Justice Department to reward friends and punish opponents. National security advisers don鈥檛 provide critical briefings if the topics anger him.

Science is ignored. His recorded words prove he lied about the pandemic that has killed over 225,000 Americans. Most worrisome, he refuses to commit to the election results.

Trump is exactly what the Founding Fathers feared 鈥� an authoritarian president, bordering on totalitarianism. A second term with a subservient Republican Senate will likely destroy what鈥檚 left of our great American experiment.

There鈥檚 one force stronger than this lawless, unfit president. 鈥淲e the people鈥� have the power to vote and end his reign. Joe Biden is a decent, honorable man and an experienced statesman.

The alternative invites disaster. We decide what kind of country we will have and whether our democracy survives.

Dan Gipple

Southeast side

We have to live our values

We all claim to love the values this country was founded on. Our ancestors immigrated because these values were missing from their country. Values like free speech, religious freedom and equal opportunity for education, advancement, voting and treatment under the law. Unfortunately, many Americans seem to support those values only for people who look like them and share their religious and political beliefs.

Despite their claim of supporting these American values, they willingly deny them to people who they see as different. Now that this system has enabled them to achieve power and privilege, they have no problem preventing others from fully participating and benefiting from that same system.

Since 2016, we鈥檝e seen: self-dealing, lies, hypocrisy, denials of facts and science, using our government institutions (extorting foreign governments) against political opponents, pardons and tax breaks for friends, fear and hatred reinforced, white supremacists endorsed as 鈥済ood鈥� people and finally, voter suppression.

So, before voting, please decide whether you really support our founding values 鈥� or just claim to.

Bert Veenstra

Oro Valley

Proud of father, others who served

Re: the Oct. 14 article 鈥淲WII jungle fighting unit earns approval for congressional medal.鈥�

I read this with great interest. My dad, Bernie, was a sergeant in Merrill鈥檚 Marauders and was one of the 200 who survived to the end of the mission.

He was individually awarded the Bronze and Silver Stars and Purple Heart. I understand from a recent article in Army magazine that their mission was the second longest uninterrupted period of jungle fighting in WWII.

They hacked their way through the Burmese jungle and across Himalayan Mountains while dealing with a tropical climate and carrying everything they needed to fight and survive. They lost soldiers to battle, jungle animals and disease. All but a handful did not get either wounded or sick from tropical disease.

Imagine walking 1,000 miles under those conditions. The unit also got the Presidential Unit Medal and now the Congressional Medal. My dad would have been so proud.

Dan Strausbaugh

Tubac

Trump鈥檚 drift toward authoritarianism

I cannot think of an American president who has drifted more towards authoritarianism than Donald Trump. Authoritarianism happens when a leader creates his own set of facts, undercuts and demonizes people and organizations with opposing views and creates crisis and division.

Voters must be aware of this drift and protect our democracy by voting Trump out of office.

Phineas Anderson

Catalina

Grijalva stands up

for Indigenous people

I am writing to express opposition and concern to recent propositions by the Air Force and Republican senators for a land grab in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge 鈥� land that is not only sacred to local Paiute tribes, but also incredibly important for local biodiversity.

All too familiar are these military land grabs, disturbing landscapes across the American West with destructive infrastructure and noise, unsettling to local human residents and wildlife populations. In an era of pandemics and extreme biodiversity loss, we can鈥檛 continue to ignore the importance of these areas, upon which the health of our societies depend.

We must protect the lands that support us, not divide them in the name of ever-increasing military budgets.

I am comfortable knowing that the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee is our very own Rep. Ra煤l Grijalva, a champion of environmental issues. Rep. Grijalva, please continue fighting these important battles and protecting our beloved lands.

Nicholas Matthews

Midtown

A great blow

to democracy

The Senate鈥檚 rushed confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett was neither a Republican win nor a Democratic loss 鈥� it was a huge blow to the impartiality of the Supreme Court, the integrity of the United States Senate and the political norms under which our political institutions function.

Mitch McConnell鈥檚 blocking of President Barack Obama鈥檚 nominee for the Supreme Court in February of an election year while ramming through Donald Trump鈥檚 nomination just before an election is the antithesis of everything conservatism stands for 鈥� character, responsibility, integrity and respect for institutional norms.

McConnell鈥檚 cynical court-packing scheme, his party鈥檚 gerrymandering and voter suppression rig the system so that a minority party can stay in power. Our politics aren鈥檛 broken 鈥� the GOP is.

Be not deceived 鈥� undermining our institutions won鈥檛 make America great, breaking norms won鈥檛 restore morality, the ends never justify the means.

Ron Nason

North side

Essential worker

has a request

An open letter to those of you who endured lockdown: Congratulations on all you鈥檝e accomplished during your hard-fought time at home. While you baked bread, I went to work. While you read books, I risked daily exposure. While you stressed over what to do with your hair, I stressed over dealing with people who think it鈥檚 a hoax. While you stressed not visiting your friends, I went for another COVID test.

I could have it worse. I could be one of those who lost their home. I could have gotten sick. I still can get sick. Because I鈥檓 still at work. Because I still have to be around people who say it鈥檚 fake.

So please. Put on the mask. Use your free time to help convince those around you to do the same.

And when this is all over, let me take a paid vacation.

David Reynolds

East side

We breathe through our noses, too

I am both a registered nurse and a teacher. Because I see too many people in retail businesses (employees included) who are not wearing masks properly, I am taking this opportunity to educate them on how to properly wear their masks. You should know that we breathe through our noses, whether or not we are also breathing through our mouths! Therefore, your mask should cover your nose at all times!

Miriam Pattison

Midtown

Why I will vote

for McSally

This 2020 election has unfolded a plethora of political rhetoric that will either promote tyranny or law and order, reduce or increase taxes, harm or protect the unborn, defend reasonable health-care cost that includes preexisting conditions, stimulate jobs and halt undocumented immigration. Martha McSally is a fighter and will continue to fight for 蜜柚直播. She advocates cutting taxes, defends 蜜柚直播ns鈥� health care (which includes preexisting conditions) and bringing jobs home from China.

I admire Martha鈥檚 integrity as proven by her voting record. After checking Mark Kelly鈥檚 background, his advertisements are distorted.

Mark Kelly is a counterfeit! He built a sophisticated political operation that funded the most radical elements of the Democratic Party (check out his photo with Ilhan Omar) which only proves he is groomed to be a far-left Democrat.

Do you really want liberals controlling you, the average middle-class tax payer?

Arlene Stassinos

North side

Media just got fooled again

After five years, the mainstream media has not yet learned how Donald Trump is playing them. It has everything to do with ratings and dollars.

The most recent gambit was NBC running his last-minute 鈥渢own hall鈥� opposite Joe Biden鈥檚 previously scheduled town hall. Prior to that travesty, the media covers every single one of his stupid antics, ad nauseam, which attracts viewers like it鈥檚 a 24-hour 鈥淭rump Show.鈥� It all amounts to billions鈥� worth of advertising dollars that his campaign doesn鈥檛 have to spend because it is 鈥渘ews.鈥� This is reminiscent of what happened to Hillary Clinton in 2016.

I find it very sad that viewers are so easily distracted from the real issues of the day and continue to be entertained by this man. 蜜柚直播 should be informative and educational. Just the facts, people.

Cindy Soffrin

Northeast side

McSally will uphold independent judiciary

Democrats like Mark Kelly are determined to upend our judicial protections by packing the courts with judges who promise to uphold their activist agenda even when it conflicts with our basic constitutional protections. Eliminating the Senate filibuster would be the first step, and so far Kelly has refused to reveal where he stands on it. That tells us all we need to know about Kelly鈥檚 intentions.

Politics have no place in judicial reasoning. A vote for Sen. Martha McSally is a vote to preserve America鈥檚 strong, independent judicial branch of government.

Diane Salgado

East side

I鈥檓 voting

for freedom

If anyone asks, I鈥檓 not voting for Donald Trump. I鈥檓 voting for the Second Amendment. I鈥檓 voting for the next Supreme Court Justice. I鈥檓 voting for the Electoral College and the Republic.

I鈥檓 voting for the police and law and order. I鈥檓 voting for the military and our veterans who fought and died for our country. I鈥檓 voting for our flag, for which it stands. I鈥檓 voting for the right to speak my mind and not be censored.

I鈥檓 voting for secure border walls. I鈥檓 voting for the right to praise my God without fear. I鈥檓 voting for rights of all lives. I鈥檓 voting for freedom and the American dream.

I鈥檓 voting for good against evil. No, I鈥檓 not voting for the man Trump. I鈥檓 voting for the future of the United States of America.

Paul Hansen

Marana