Trump and ‘thin the herd’: Letters to the editor, Aug. 2, 2020
Trump rallies, the pandemic, the herd
I encourage the president to hold more giant rallies.
Have one or more a week between now and Election Day. Hit those regions where you're the strongest and really show the unbridled enthusiasm of your supporters.
Fill those stadiums and arenas with wildly enthusiastic supporters. Pack those venues.
Thin the herd.
Jim Doyle, Fresno
COVID response a crime against us
Trump’s response to COVID-19 has been described as incompetent, but it isn’t. Everything Trump has done has been the result of a conscious decision on his part.
He downplayed the virus and delayed action because he didn’t want it to adversely affect the stock market. He never set national mitigation standards because he didn’t want to take the heat for them. Instead, he dumped the responsibility on the states. He insisted the country reopen economic activities too early because he knew a bad economy would hurt his re-election chances. We are suffering the consequences of those decisions now.
Americans are becoming ill at an increasing rate and people are dying because of decisions made by Donald Trump.
Now he wants to reopen schools fully with no mitigation at all . Trump’s response, to COVID-19, has been the worst in the industrialized world. Americans have been banned from Europe.
This isn’t just incompetence. Trump can’t be let off that easily. We are where we are today because Trump has lead the country to this point. Trump’s actions with regard to this virus constitute crimes against humanity. He should be held accountable.
Gordon Fake, Fresno
Classrooms not safe in pandemic
My wife Martha is a teacher in Madera County. Her students need guidance from an early age to learn the skills necessary to interact with others. Young children come to school, don’t wash their hands, hug and laugh with their friends, and don’t give it a second thought.
According to public health officials in the Central Valley, as of mid-July there were more than 18,000 active cases of the virus in our area and nearly 300 deaths. My question to you is this: if we tried to reopen beaches and businesses in California and saw a surge in hospitalizations and deaths after Memorial Day, why would we want to send our kids back to school during a pandemic?
Our teachers love their students. But they are terrified at the thought of schools reopening at the height of a pandemic. Why would you want to put your children’s lives at risk?
Let’s rethink the way we teach our children during a crisis. Let’s invest our tax dollars in available computer technology for schools. Our grandbabies Mia, Jackie and Kiara will not return to a classroom anytime soon, neither should your’s.
Santos and Martha Garcia, Madera
More male control of women’s rights
In 1946, as my mother lie on a gurney in the crowded halls of a maternity ward worrying about giving birth for the first time, a woman began writhing and screaming in pain. A male doctor approached the woman, slapped her hard in the face and yelled, “Shut up, you little sissy. It doesn’t hurt that bad.” Consequently the entire maternity ward went silent.
The recent verdict by the Supreme Court (6 men, 1 woman) allowing charities, churches and corporations to opt out of paying for women employees’ birth control costs is just another slap in the face for women. Men continue to control the reproductive lives of females as they have for eons. What’s next? Opting out of prenatal care and childbirth?
As a tax-paying nonbeliever, I resent being asked to pay taxes to protect the health of my sisters while charities, churches and corporations get a free ride. To compensate for the costs and consequences of all the unnecessary births, these organizations should lose their tax exempt status.
Judy Johnson, Fresno
This story was originally published August 2, 2020 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Trump and ‘thin the herd’: Letters to the editor, Aug. 2, 2020."