HEALTH CARE
Rhetoric leaves behind the Republican faithful
E.J. Dionne Jr.’s “Romney is the canary in the GOP coal mine” (Opinion, June 6) was on target. As an “Eisenhower Republican” (not in age, but philosophy), I continue to be left behind with the rhetoric that has transformed a once-great party.
If you support the current health care delivery mechanism, you are essentially saying, “pay or die.” Every one of us is an illness away from losing our life savings. Could we all sleep better knowing that if a medical tragedy occurs, we will not be financially ruined?
It was not long ago that the public spoke ill of the insurance industry for tightly (and sometimes unfairly) managing health care. Now many have fallen in love with the for-profit insurance approach. They forget most health insurance plans use “preferred providers” and if you do not use them, you are “out of network” — and a lot of money. And those “preferred providers” don’t always remain in our plans.
Max Epling, Canton
ECONOMY
Demonizing those with money isn’t the solution
Regarding “Making villains of the rich won’t help economy” (Opinion, June 7), as the son of a working-class family, I grew up out of a Depression into a war; came off active duty to work 48 hours weekly to support a family while a full-time student; worked 60 to 80 hours weekly for years as a manager; sent three children to college without scholarships or debt; and retired debt-free.
I wonder what the underprivileged and disadvantaged (at whose expense my small success was achieved) were doing during these years.
Richard E. McCown, Lawrenceville
GLOBAL WARMING
We should act, plan now as weather intensifies
Is it hot enough for you? Is it windy enough? How about that fierce drought in Texas?
Climate scientists have long warned that global warming could contribute to the intensity and frequency of such weather extremes. More worrisome still is that carbon dioxide concentrations are approaching levels not seen on the planet for millions of years.
Global warming deniers have ensured that we will be unable to mitigate all the negative effects. But we can act now to prevent even greater intensification and develop plans to address the effects we cannot prevent.
The best way of preventing what we can, and marshaling the resources to adapt to what we must, is through pricing carbon to reflect its true cost.
Peter C. Sederberg, Atlanta
TRANSPORTATION
Inadequate train station is a disgrace to Atlanta
We recently took our neighbors to Amtrak’s Brookwood station to go on a trip to Boston. The small building had no place to park, no porters to help with luggage, and we had to let our passengers out of the car in a narrow space beside the building.
This train station is a disgrace to a city like Atlanta. We have a well-equipped airport. I realize most people fly. But if you like to travel by train, that station is inadequate. Let’s build a new one.
Fay M. Russell, Atlanta
