Public was shut out of Braves decision
The recent Cobb County Commission meeting to approve the stadium deal with the Braves reminds me of an episode of an old TV show, “Hogan’s Heroes.” Kinchloe, a black man, was to box a German champion. For the German to lose to a black man would have been a national disgrace. The judges and referee were announced, and Hogan made an comment: “Three (German) judges and a Nazi referee. All the makings of a fair fight.” This commission meeting had all the makings of a fair fight, too. Whatever happened to participatory democracy in this country? The public is shut out of all of the deliberations, while the elite make all of the decisions. Shame on you, Cobb County Commission.
VERNON PEPPERS, ATLANTA
Don’t conflate VA problems with ACA
The reader who thinks the Veterans Affairs Administration health system is comparable to the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare (“VA woes portend Obamacare for all,” May 28) misses an important difference: While the VA system is under complete government control, the ACA relies on the private health industry to administer care. The vast majority of Americans will promptly get the treatment they need, but that might not always be the case for our vets.
In a country that supposedly reveres the men and women who serve their country, the sad truth is they’ve been largely ignored or caught in an administrative morass upon returning home since World War I. VA hospitals generally provide excellent care in the face of a bureaucracy that leaves many lacking prompt attention. The blame goes to Congress, which should be making our servicemen and women a priority, allocating more of the defense budget to their immediate needs, instead of weapon systems the military doesn’t want.
MARC MARTON, ROSWELL
Rest of us should get mad over guns
Mass murderer Elliott Rodger brought three legally purchased, registered guns to his demented mission. Like other recent mass shooters, Rodger was one of the NRA’s “good guys” right up until the moment he began slaughtering the innocent. When will we have had enough? How long must we simply hope that some punk strutting around a ball park smugly flashing his gun won’t start firing on our children? When will we get past the myth that every civilian openly carrying a firearm is a mentally stable, solid citizen we can depend on to protect us? The extremist gun lobby gets its way because its followers are more vehement and demanding than the vast majority of Americans who favor sensible gun control. That means we must be just as vehement — and take out our wrath on any politician who lacks the courage to tell the NRA to go to hell.
CHRIS MOSER, LITHONIA
