Letters: Region has opportunity to learn from tragedy; Imposing religious beliefs
Region has opportunity to learn from tragedy
The tragic death of Jose Sajbin in State College must be a clarion call to Centre Region decision makers to take traffic deaths seriously and act in haste to create a fully protected and connected bicycle and pedestrian network. Let’s build a network that’s safe for all ages and abilities and takes people where they need to go.
The Governors Highway Safety Association estimates that drivers killed an estimated 7,500 pedestrians in 2021 — the highest level in 40 years. Horrifyingly, the percentage of speeding-related crashes involving “children 15 and younger more than doubled in the previous three years.”
We can choose to avoid these trends. All residents of the Centre Region benefit from devoting more resources to non-car transportation. Safe bike and walking networks let all income levels participate in the social and economic benefits of our area. An “all ages and abilities” network allows children the individual freedom necessary for personal growth and can encourage older residents to “age in place” and avoid the social isolation that can come from not being able to drive.
Safe walking and biking are widely supported by the public. Let’s not waste more time and wait for another inevitable death or injury. We can learn from this crash and build a safer and more equitable Centre Region.
Imposing religious beliefs
On June 23, the author of “Missing pieces in pro-choice arguments” claims the only question to consider about abortion is whether to take the life of a “pre born” child.
Actually the question is whether 100% of Americans must follow the religious beliefs of the 38% who find abortion morally wrong. Our Constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion.” Therefore, the government cannot make all Americans follow the moral beliefs of a group of religious people. Which is what the author wants.
I won’t debate the wide-ranging belief systems of different groups of Americans. There is great variety in who believes what, and why, in our pluralistic country. Jews may believe life begins at the first breath. Some Muslim scholars say abortions up to 120 days of fetal development are permitted. Though many Catholic and Protestant churches say life begins at conception, their congregations differ, with a majority in both saying abortions should be allowed in most or all cases. And 3 in 10 adults have no religious affiliation. But 52% of all Americans in a recent, post-Supreme Court leak Gallup poll find abortion morally acceptable, the highest ever recorded
We are a secular, pluralistic country with people who believe a lot of different things. For those who believe abortion is morally wrong, please, don’t have one. But please don’t require me to follow your religious beliefs in our free America.
Guns and babies in GOP agenda
Two successive days of Supreme Court decisions accurately illustrate the commitment of the conservative majority to the agenda of the Republican Party:
More guns for men.
More babies for women.
Elect honest politicians for a change
Nowadays, it is the norm to hear politicians of both parties lie “through their teeth,” as the expression goes. We do not have to believe them. We are supposed to be able to discern the truth from falsehoods, even if we get fooled sometimes.
What we don’t have to do is to keep electing the same liars time after time. We, the voters in this country, can “kick the bums out.”
I suggest that all of us voters look deeply into our souls and decide it is time for a change and to hold politicians accountable to us — the voters — and not to those who supply huge amounts of money to buy their own cronies in elected offices.
Let’s truly make America great, not by electing liars but by putting people in office who actually listen, hear and react to what voters expect.
It has been long, long time since we had “honest Abe” or Harry Truman in office.