Letters: Readers discuss John McCain’s honor, pre-K plan and wise Mike Pompeo
The McCain I knew
I was a Navy pilot during the Vietnam era and had the good fortune of being stationed with the then-Lt. John McCain in Meridian, Miss., where we were flight instructors. I knew him as a brave, hard-working officer whom I respected very much.
Later, while flying his A-4 Skyhawk over enemy territory in North Vietnam, he was shot down by a missile, ejected and landed in a swamp. He was badly injured, then captured and tortured by the North Vietnamese before spending five years in a POW camp.
But our president prefers soldiers who don’t get captured. And this coming from a man who never served his country. Please!
Arlin J. Buyert
Leawood
Wrong plan for kids
The League of Women Voters of Kansas City, Jackson, Clay and Platte Counties opposes the pre-kindergarten measure on the April 2 ballot. We have a long history of supporting public education for children, but this proposal has multiple problems.
The three-eighths-cent sales tax is regressive, and people on low and fixed incomes will be disadvantaged. It is unconstitutional because it would give public money to religious institutions. Legal fees would accrue to defend the inevitable lawsuits.
The majority of the funds would first be spent on building projects, not children. The number of children served initially would be 700 or fewer, despite the needs of the 6,500 children eligible.
The pre-K program would be managed by an appointed board, not educators, so accountability is an issue.
We join with most of the mayoral candidates, school districts, the NAACP, More 2 and the Urban League in opposing this ballot measure. Pre-K is important, but this proposal has downsides in funding, constitutionality and accountability. It is a flawed plan for addressing the needs of children.
Rosemary Durkin
Evelyn Maddox
Co-presidents, League
of Women Voters of Kansas
City, Jackson, Clay and
Platte Counties
Kansas City
Not right or left
On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on a “red flag” bill introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio. We must support this initiative that would address gun violence.
Four and a half million American women alive today have been threatened with a gun by an intimate partner. Thousands of lives could be saved by the proposed law, which would allow police or family members to petition a state court to order the temporary removal of firearms from the possession of people who may present a danger to others or themselves.
This is a nonpartisan issue that has been adopted by several states. If someone is a clear and present danger to him- or herself or others, that person should not have easy access to firearms.
We have to think of saving lives, and that’s why I support red flag laws.
J. N. Hernandez
Kansas City
Wrong on Pompeo
The Star’s March 19 editorial about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo does a troubling disservice to this good man and public official from Kansas. (7A, “A Mike Pompeo candidacy? Kansas doesn’t need the secretary of state’s kind of swagger”)
The assertion that his statement, “America has always been, and always will be, a liberating force, not an occupying power” ignores history — and demonstrates ignorance of that history by editorial board members who are apparently too young to appreciate America’s role in World War II, as well as World War I.
Pompeo probably studied more history at West Point and Harvard than board members were able to learn.
This nation has indeed been a liberating force, giving resources and the lives of many Americans (including my father in World War II) to liberate other people around the world from tyranny. The board should read the historical works of former Kansas City Times reporter Rick Atkinson.
As a reader grateful for Pompeo’s service and his experience that informs and influences our national defense and foreign policy, I take strong exception to the editorial insulting the secretary of state as “the tea party Republican he has always been.”
The editorial board should be capable of better than this.
Ronald C. Spradley
Prairie Village
Back to basics
Too many of us have faced real danger on the roads from poor snow-removal efforts and huge potholes. The potholes, though, reflect more than just the bad weather. They reflect that City Hall has too often neglected providing the basic city services we taxpayers expect and deserve.
We need our next mayor to make us, the residents and voters, the priority. We need a mayor who will take control of snow removal, pothole repair and trash pickup. We need a mayor who understands that Kansas City is great because of its people and who will deliver for us no matter where our neighborhood is.
I encourage everyone to examine all the candidates and choose the one who will prioritize basic city services.
Molly Hufferd
Kansas City