Letters: Readers ponder tax cuts, airport convenience

What’s ahead

As we move our government from the far left to the far right, this comes from someone who considers himself a moderate, as are most working people in this country.

The course we are back on was done in the 1980s by President Ronald Reagan and later under President George W. Bush.

With the promises of better jobs and increased growth to cover the deficit, we are going to cut taxes — corporate and personal. The rates will go down, mostly favoring the rich, but the hidden increase will be in the elimination of deductions and credits, which are the lifeblood of the middle and lower classes.

When this tax cut comes in, it will go in people’s pockets instead of into jobs and we will see the deficit balloon. Then will come the usual discussion of how we now have a spending problem, conveniently forgetting why. And the place to fix it is always the so-called entitlements.

Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are programs that protect us. We have paid for them our entire lives. Don’t try this again.

Stephen Montgomery

Parkville

Target core cause

According to a 2014 Pew Research poll of American’s foreign policy priorities, 83 percent of respondents said “Protecting U.S. from terrorist attacks” should be a top priority. It did not, however, ask how people think we should go about doing that.

The best way to stop terrorism is to change the conditions that allow ideologies advocating terrorism to take hold in the first place, one of which is extreme poverty.

By building schools, increasing electrical and clean water coverage, and supporting strategies to empower people to create their own wealth in their own communities, we can stop terrorism before it begins.

When it comes down to trying to pick out a lone gunman in a crowded nightclub, it’s already too late.

That’s the difference between being proactive and reactive.

Regarding personal health, experts tell us that a plan of a clean diet and regular exercise throughout life are essential for longevity.

Why don’t we listen to the experts working in international development and promote policies to proactively stop terrorism by helping the people who are susceptible to its influence build something better to live for?

Lucas Woodling

Lee’s Summit

A-plus KCI

On Dec. 28, my daughter and I left from Kansas City International Airport for New York to attend a funeral.

As usual, our airport experience was just fine: easy passage through security, gates right at hand, adequate seating and so on.

As we went to the upstairs restaurant, an out-of-towner stopped and asked us for info, and then volunteered how handy our airport is compared with many others he’d used.

I related to him the ongoing desires of some to turn the place into a low-level theme park. He thought this was really ridiculous.

I agreed and added, “I go to an airport to catch a plane, not for a travel experience.”

What I see now at KCI is an apparent concerted effort by management to dial back some very basic things, such as cleaning walls, repainting, installing new carpet and other maintenance items. This amounts to demolition by neglect and is an unforgivable way to push for a remake.

With a few basic fixes, KCI could continue to be a first-rate facility. To add space, the present curvature of the terminals could be expanded toward the operations area.

Start with Terminal A. Use it, then do B. And change C if needed later.

George Pisani

Lawrence

First things first

The first priority of the Democratic-controlled Congress in 2008 was providing affordable health care for every American.

For many in this country, that was the first opportunity to get medical care, and millions of people could no longer be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

The first order of business for the new House Republicans this year? Gutting ethics oversight. The second item on their agenda? Repealing the Affordable Care Act and taking health insurance away from 20 million Americans.

I think that says everything we need to know about the two parties.

Lou Williams

Leawood

This story was originally published January 6, 2017 at 8:00 PM with the headline "Letters: Readers ponder tax cuts, airport convenience."