Letters: Fighting against Musk’s attacks; Paterno deserves field named after him
Fighting against Musk’s attacks
Billionaire Elon Musk, an immigrant from Africa, recently said that the U.S. government should be privatized “as much as possible” and named Amtrak and our Postal Service as two prime candidates. He threatens to slash and privatize the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA provides the life-saving information that AccuWeather and other weather stations rely on. Locally, the world’s richest man has decided we don’t need our U.S. Fish and Wildlife office either.
Musk wants to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs. Senator Tammy Duckworth, a decorated war veteran, calls this a move to “privatize the Department so they can fund tax cuts for billionaires.”
Elon has called Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” and wants to close offices and fire the people who help retirees receive the benefits they’ve paid all their working lives to get. DOGE may eventually end Social Security altogether.
Musk is sabotaging these services so they can’t function properly and work for us. Later, he will claim they failed, then sell them off to his rich buddies at bargain-basement prices.
This vandalism will hurt us all. Some of our representatives are fighting against this attack, but all of them need to be. Call and write to let them know you support their efforts. And ask your out-of-state friends to do the same. It’s not too late to safeguard the jobs of workers who do so much good for American citizens.
Paterno deserves field named after him
In 2011, the Penn State Board of Trustees made the decision to fire Joe Paterno in an attempt to cast a shadow of guilt upon him in the context of the Sandusky scandal. Despite Joe reporting everything, the board apparently wanted the public to believe otherwise. They paid for backup with a now debunked report by Louis Freeh.
Joe Paterno loved coaching. Using the football field as his classroom, he taught his players so many of life’s necessary lessons: responsibility, accountability, honesty, loyalty and respect, demanding they exemplify these traits while under his guidance and beyond. Evidence of his influence can be found in decades of his players.
Alumni have persistently advocated for the football field to bear Joe’s name. For 61 years this was where he dedicated his heart and soul to his team and the university. He built that stadium and the program. His contributions extended beyond the field. The board did the unforgivable and named it after a company who offered a donation. Joe is the one and only person who deserves this honor.
The board hierarchy refuses to repair its own damage. They were blessed with a well respected, legendary coach and a loyal alumni base, but their reign of abuse continues. Like petulant teenagers, they’ve held a statue hostage for years. Now they’re censoring our ballots. Where is the president and the athletic director in this chaos? We deserve better than this! We deserve sanity and some integrity.
Actions don’t show ‘America first’
Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans pledged global security and respect for America. Trump promised he would achieve world peace even before he was inaugurated. Instead, wars drag on, our global alliances are tattered, and Republicans have created a dangerous world.
Around the world, Trump abandons American policy supporting democracy, fighting tyrants and respecting the autonomy of other countries.
He bullies and insults allies. He embraces and emulates dictators.
In Ukraine, Trump reverses American policy, and makes false and dangerous claims about Zelenskyy. He sides with the authoritarian leader of Russia, insults the elected leader of Ukraine, and turns his back on European partners – the same ones who came to our aid after 9/11.
Shockingly, the U.S. joined Russia, North Korea and Iran to vote against a UN resolution condemning Russian aggression in Ukraine and calling for the return of Ukrainian territory.
Trump fares no better in Israel. Hostages remain in captivity. His planned takeover of Gaza violates international law. He ignores humanitarian norms.
Elsewhere, Trump violates the sovereignty of other countries, proposing to take over Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal.
Simultaneously, by eliminating USAID, Trump undoes the goodwill generated by foreign aid and jeopardizes Americans’ well-being. U.S. farmers lose markets. People in developing countries turn to China and Russia for support. Diseases being controlled in Africa (like Ebola and Mpox) spread here.
Meanwhile, cowardly Republicans allow these dangers. They won’t even defend their own past statements supporting allies and opposing dictators.
America first? More like Russia first.