Trump’s trustworthiness, postal rates and the NFL’s business

Reliable Trump

My favorite definition of a politician is someone who tells us what he or she will do if elected, then tries to make us feel good about never actually doing any of those things.

Viewed through that framework, President Donald Trump is a breath of fresh air. He told us what he would do and is trying to do it.

The list: lower taxes (check), conservative judges (check), supporting law enforcement (check), supporting our military (check), better trade deals (work in progress), effective border security (work in progress).

He is the first president since perhaps Ronald Reagan to really try to deliver on what he said he would.

Like him or hate him, his focus on the “ball” is impressive.

Graham Marcott

Fairway

Inspirational words

I want to express my appreciation for the story Star reporter Katy Bergen wrote about the hardships church youth group sponsor Timothy Abbott endured. (Jan. 20, 1A, “Faith helps Kansas man survive double tragedy: fatal van crash and, soon after, death of his wife”) My local paper, The Decatur Daily, published it here in Alabama.

It is rare to read such a well-written report in our newspaper. Bergen truly has a gift. The story was moving and the presentation exquisite. I would love to read more from this writer.

Ken Smith

Decatur, Ala.

Not competitive

In the Sunday story “Cost of first-class Forever stamps increases to 55 cents,” a United States Postal Service release is quoted saying, “The governors (of the Postal Service) believe these new rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the agency with needed revenue.” (12A)

Really? Since when did raising prices make any company or agency more competitive? An increase is precisely the wrong direction, because the competition is providing better service for a better price. And if the private sector were allowed to deliver first-class mail, could the USPS be forced out of business, except for junk mail?

Having lived in several states, I have experienced anything but the quality mail service I used to expect from the USPS. This includes inconsistent and unreasonable delivery times, lost mail, damaged mail, misdirected mail, stolen mail, mail not held when requested, mail held when not requested, mail left in a basket on the doorstep unprotected, signatures not obtained on special deliveries — and even identity theft by a USPS employee.

This national workforce needs better accountability, not higher prices, to protect the reputation of the employees who do try to provide the customer services expected. Otherwise, Americans’ use of USPS services will continue to decline as people find alternative ways to communicate and do business.

Russ Klement

Lee’s Summit

Confident?

As we’ve been reading, the British Parliament has access to a “no-confidence” vote. Wouldn’t it be interesting if the U.S. Congress could act on something similar? If so, what do you think the results would be at this time?

Ruth Fine

Paola

Follow the money

About the New Orleans Saints, the Kansas City Chiefs and Super Bowl LIII: In my opinion, everything makes sense. Having teams from Los Angeles and New England play is just good business.

Los Angeles has two NFL teams. A stadium and sports center are being built at a cost of several billion dollars. The NFL estimates that each team’s revenue will be hundreds of millions of dollars annually from merchandise sales alone. The population of Southern California is more than 23 million people, compared with about 1.27 million in the New Orleans metropolitan area. Which fan base is more profitable for the NFL?

Kansas City suffered from a few bad or missed calls, but its fan base draws from a metropolitan area of just more than 2 million. New England’s is more than 14.5 million. The profit potential is greatest from a game between New England and Los Angeles

Was there a reason for the hand-picked crew with four officials from the L.A. area in the playoffs for the Rams-Saints game? I wonder if there was a reason nobody got fired. Were they just doing what the boss wanted?

Integrity has always taken a backseat to profits. If the fix was in, it’s just good business.

August Wise

Hernando, Fla.

Back and forth

This is not the first time The Paseo had a name change, even if unofficially. In the not-so-distant past, it was always known Paseo Boulevard. I must have been asleep at the switch when it became The Paseo.

I wonder how long it will be before the name is changed again. Perhaps this time the name is secure. I’m just glad it’s officially called a boulevard again.

Teresa Peck

Prairie Village