Letters: KC readers discuss Afghanistan reality, Kansas drug bust, COVID incentives
Wise words
Sitting here in Portland, Oregon, recovering from COVID-19 and conflicted over our inept politicians here in Portland and whether it is moral to set an end date to the Afghanistan evacuation, the opinions expressed by Marine veteran Lucas Kunce about both topics rang true for me. (Aug. 24, 7A, “Two-sentence Afghan truth”)
Thank you. I hope Missouri embraces the leadership offered by former Marine Capt. Kunce.
- Gary Tyler, Portland, Oregon
History just is
With all due respect, please read this, then read it again: History is not there for you to like or dislike. It is there to learn from. And if it offends you, even better, because you are less likely to repeat it. History is not yours to change or destroy.
- Jack L. Hatchitt, Lee’s Summit
In the know
I must take umbrage with Toriano Porter’s Aug. 19 column, “Was this arrest for 17 pounds of pot illegal?” (8A). He questions the legality of a recent arrest of an individual found to have 17 pounds of pot when he was stopped by a Kansas police officer for a traffic violation.
Why is it appropriate to question this even before the courts have had an opportunity to hear the evidence? I’m quite sure the accused, Landon Kerekes, was well aware that possessing and transporting that amount of narcotics is illegal.
Is it really a bad thing for a police officer to use his experience in similar cases when pulling someone over? I would think that when Porter seeks medical assistance, he would prefer someone with experience who can apply that for his benefit.
- Bob Chaney, Blue Springs
The real prize
OK, where’s my prize? For more than 18 months, I did everything right. I wore a mask. I didn’t see any friends. I stayed socially distant if I left the house. I learned how to use Zoom just so I could have some human contact. When the vaccine became available, I got my shot as soon as I could.
And now I see that incentive prizes are being offered to the foot-draggers who have refused to wear masks or get vaccinated. Where is the fairness in that? Those folks should be punished, not rewarded. They are responsible for the dead and dying now flooding our hospitals. They are providing a reservoir of infection so that even more variants can become even more lethal.
But actually I have my prize. I get to hug my kids. At Thanksgiving, there will be no empty places at my table. I can go to a movie, play cards with my friends or go out to my favorite restaurants.
That’s worth all the million-dollar lotteries in the world, and I weep for the folks who don’t understand that.
- Fran Abram, Overland Park
Helping hands
It’s a sad fact that our region is no stranger to homelessness. It’s important that we come together to ensure these individuals have access to resources to keep them healthy and safe. This is why I am thankful for Healthy Blue’s recent grants to reStart Inc. and Hope House.
Kansas City-based reStart Inc. will use the $85,000 grant to provide housing stability and related services to support the whole health needs of area individuals and families at risk of becoming homeless.
Hope House in Lee’s Summit will use its $25,000 to help eastern Jackson County residents facing homelessness because of domestic violence start new lives for themselves and their children by providing services such as emergency shelter, a 24-hour crisis hotline, therapy and education on domestic violence.
These partnerships are important because access to stable housing is a critical component of integrated health care and community health.
I applaud Healthy Blue for promoting public health and improved overall quality of life for Missourians.
- Missouri state Rep. Chris Brown, Kansas City
Missed opportunity
I fail to understand why we abandoned Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Its location, east of Iran, is of strategic importance and would provide us flexibility to exert force — if needed — in the years to come.
We ought to have negotiated a 99-year lease with the Afghan government when we had the opportunity.
- Thomas E. Hankins, Village of Oakwood, Missouri
This story was originally published August 26, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Letters: KC readers discuss Afghanistan reality, Kansas drug bust, COVID incentives."