Letters: First responders should be higher priority for vaccine; Keller’s support for pipeline makes no sense

First responders should be higher priority for vaccine

I‘m thrilled so many in our community are anxious to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The enthusiasm to fill the limited vaccination slots makes me hopeful that summer 2021 might be more normal. However ...

My husband’s an Alpha Fire volunteer, and has been risking virus exposure throughout the pandemic. Every time a Penn State student overcooks a pizza, or someone suffers a bad traffic accident, he runs to the station to help our community. He also risks COVID-19 exposure and bringing it back to our 1-year-old.

I appreciate that health risks are highest for certain populations — elderly, those with preexisting conditions, etc. However, it’s frustrating that smokers or those moderately overweight are being vaccinated in Phase 1A, before first responders. I realize the state Health Department is responsible for the vaccine rollout, and my protests at that level would be ignored. But, why can’t our local vaccine sites give surplus or near-expiration doses to first responders (instead of non-Phase 1A friends/family of vaccine sites’ staff or whoever is conveniently on site)? I’ve heard of a frustrating number of instances of “they had an extra dose, so I got the vaccine too!” from people who don’t qualify for Phase 1A.

If instead, vaccine sites called Alpha and said, “get a firefighter here in 15 minutes before this vaccine dose expires,” I’m sure someone would get there in time. Their average response time to an emergency in our community is typically under 7 minutes, even if the emergency is just burnt popcorn.

Keller’s support for pipeline makes no sense

Rep. Fred Keller’s argument in support of the Keystone XL pipeline is ridiculous.

It’s difficult to know where to start in criticizing Keller’s claim that President Biden’s actions on energy are bad for the country. His claims about job loss are grossly exaggerated, but his claim that the Keystone XL pipeline would eliminate emissions is ridiculous.

How can he claim that a pipeline that moves tar sands oil from Canada will eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions? Because apparently there was a plan to power the pumping stations with wind and solar energy. It’s similar to saying my gas-powered car is zero emissions because I plan to power the fuel pump with a solar panel. Ridiculous.

If you assessed the environmental impact of all of the ways we produce energy, by far the worst is tar sands oil. The USEPA estimates that tar sands oil emits 17% more greenhouse gasses than conventional oil. Mining the tar sands devastates vast areas of forest and has created toxic waste ponds equivalent to filling 500,000 Olympic size swimming pools. Keller would like us to believe that this is good for us. Ridiculous.

Partisan spin unhelpful in budget message

The CDT Feb. 3 Associated Press article about Governor Wolf’s budget proposal states, “The personal income tax increase would take the flat rate to 4.49% from 3.07% — among the nation’s lowest — but increase the exemption for the lowest earners. ... The tax exemption will expand to $15,000 for single filers from $6,500 currently, and from $10,000 for each dependent from $9,500 currently. The exemption for a family of four would go to $50,000 from $32,000 currently, meaning that households earning under $50,000 would pay not (sic) state income tax, the governor’s office said. ... A household of four earning above $50,000 but below $84,000, would see a tax cut, it said.”

In Sen. Jake Corman’s E-Newsletter of Feb. 4, he states under the headline “Governor’s Budget Plan Features Massive Spending and Tax Increases,” “The governor’s plan also includes an increase in the Personal Income Tax that would boost the amount of state tax taken out of every Pennsylvanian’s paycheck by 46%, as well as another new tax on natural gas that would be passed on to consumers in the form of higher energy bills.”

Senator Corman says nothing in the e-mail about the tax exemption in the governor’s proposal. Partisan spin does little to inform the people he serves and only perpetuates the extreme divide we are in. It does not show leadership or serve the citizens of Pennsylvania well.