Grammar ‘likes,’ dislikes

I have my own personal pet peeves about poor grammar. So many people, including news anchors, say “like me” and “as me.”

You don’t say “me am” and “me do.”

If saying “like I” or “as I” sounds too stilted, carry the sentence out by saying “like I am/do” or “as I am/do.”

Here’s to better grammar.

Teddi Oppenheimer

Overland Park

VA helps veterans

In 2001, at age 61, my health coverage ended when I lost my job. Not being old enough for Medicare, I went to the VA to see whether health-care professionals there would help this veteran.

They immediately accepted me and gave me a complete physical, new eyeglasses and hearing aids.

In 2006, I had a quadruple bypass, which the VA took complete care of, including all prescriptions.

I have had Medicare for the past five years, but my Veterans Affairs medical care is so complete I have never used Medicare. There is no reason to.

Any veteran who is not using the VA but would like to should try it. You’ll love it.

Charles D. Donovan

Belton

God help America

As President Barack Obama frequently reminds us, “I won.” If you listen to the Democratic power that is now leading the country, if the Republicans don’t agree on the agenda and the president no longer needs them, he can rule by executive order.

Maybe Congress can just take a four-year vacation, because members of Congress no longer have a say in governing America.

As Obama keeps reminding us, “I won,” and America agreed on Election Day.

Will we finally realize elections have consequences? May the soon-to-be-forbidden word, “God,” help us now.

Jerry Jackson

Liberty

Bishop Finn must go

As a Catholic, I am appalled at Bishop Robert Finn’s delusion that his opinion means anything to most Catholics in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph (1-28, A4, “Bishop criticizes Catholic Reporter”). His frustration with the National Catholic Reporter doesn’t come close to the frustration we feel over his presence as our bishop. Finn has failed to administer the teachings of the faith, lead the members of the church and follow the moral teachings of Jesus Christ with his criminal coddling and naive ambivalence of child abusers within the church.

Bishop Finn is an embarrassment to the church and should question his position as a Catholic rather than that of the National Catholic Reporter.

Bishop Finn’s continued presence in Kansas City reflects the failings only of the church’s hierarchy, not of the Catholic faith.

Although many continue to pray for Bishop Finn, the prayers will not be answered until he resigns or is dismissed from the priesthood.

The National Catholic Reporter doesn’t say anything we Catholics don’t already know. It’s time for Bishop Finn to leave.

Patrick Riha

Kansas City

Political flimflam

“The American republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.” — Alexis de Tocqueville, 1805-1859.

It looks like we’re there now.

Joe Weiler

Kansas City

Gun class for 1st-graders

I’m a retired teacher. My children and grandchildren have taken required gun-safety classes and are gun owners and hunters.

I disapprove of the bill that would require all Missouri first-graders to be taught National Rifle Association gun safety and would require all Missouri teachers to take eight hours of training in how to thwart gun attacks in schools (1-30, A4, “Bill would require gun-safety lesson in first grade”).

The money needed for the proposed eight hours of teacher education could be better spent in our schools. It’s also a bad idea to entrust the NRA to implement a mandated gun-safety curriculum for our schools.

The organization is a powerful lobby for the gun industry. Allowing the NRA to teach our children about guns is like letting a Colombian drug cartel design our schools’ DARE program.

In the NRA’s instructional cartoon video, we see grampa’s old single-shot, bolt-action rifle and a parent’s six-shot revolver, which threaten children’s safety. Where are the large semiautomatic guns with large magazines the NRA is fighting to protect?

My guess is the NRA doesn’t want something so insidious associated with its purported care about children’s safety.

Jim Babcock

Kansas City

Legal drinking age

Some letter writers think we should maintain the legal drinking age at 21 because anyone younger than that is or might be an “irresponsible teenager.”

These young people are, at 18 years old, legally the age of consent and able to marry, have a family, vote and fight or die for our precious country.

It seems ludicrous that they cannot legally buy or consume a beer or a cocktail.

Amy Brown

Leawood

Cheers for Brownback

It has been a long time coming for Kansans. Sanity and responsibility have finally returned — in large part because of the efforts of Gov. Sam Brownback.

He made a pledge to grow Kansas, and grow Kansas he shall.

His plans to implement his pro-growth tax reform are some of the most sensible pieces of legislation to come out of the office in decades.

Economics and history teach us that when you close loopholes but lower rates, an interesting phenomenon occurs. People have more money at the end of the day. They spend less time and energy trying to get around taxes, and more time being productive.

We saw this happen in the 1980s, and the result was economic growth.

Brownback is doing just that — eliminating loopholes and reducing rates across the board, which will result in more growth and prosperity.

He is also proposing a change for married couples.

They will see a 50 percent increase in their deduction amount. The standard deduction for couples of $4,500 will jump to $9,000.

That means more money for families at the end of the day.

Support this plan.

It’s one of the best ways we can get Kansas back on track.

Todd Templer

Lenexa

Offensive team names

The mayor of Washington, D.C., is encouraging the Washington Redskins of the National Football League to change their name.

The use of Redskins has a horrible influence on anyone who watches the NFL, especially children.

I would encourage anyone who follows the NFL or anyone concerned with human rights to contact the NFL club and demand change that will have a positive influence on the future.

David Whitlock

Kansas City

Don’t text and drive

When traveling at a speed of 55 mph, the average time you take your eyes off the road just to read a text is five seconds, or the time it takes to travel the length of a football field. This fact is not just among teens but among adults, too.

While adults are allowed to text while driving, no one under the age of 21 can legally text and drive in Missouri.

Although most people under the age of 21 think this is unfair, the advantage on the other side isn’t great either.

People over age 21 are allowed to text and drive, but the accidents don’t stop.

A fact from www.stoptextsstopwrecks.org indicates that a texting driver is 23 times more likely to get into an accident than a nontexting driver.

Many people argue that an emergency text needs to be handled while driving. If you have to reply, just pull over.

Whether it is legal or not, people are going to still text and drive. The question is, are you still going to text and drive?

Bry Nettleton

Blue Springs

Silencing the gun lobby

The loud voices coming from the “We need assault weapons” crowd is so disturbing.

It seems as though the argument is that we had an assault weapons ban in the past and it didn’t work.

Why not try something new?

How about a law banning assault-type weapons and high-capacity magazines that isn’t “shot” full of loopholes to satisfy the gun lobby and keep those campaign contributions flowing in?

It would be refreshing if the majority in this country was represented instead of the lobbyists with money to spread around.

Just because these voices are unbelievably loud doesn’t mean they make sense.

Linda Christian

Greenwood

NRA gun imposition

National Rifle Association executive vice president Wayne LaPierre, asked, “What if, when Adam Lanza started shooting his way into Sandy Hook Elementary, he’d been confronted by qualified, armed security?”

I ask: What if those weapons and ammunition had never been available at all?

How convenient that the NRA’s solution to school violence is to impose its will on everyone.

Cathy Callicoat

North Kansas City