POLITICS
Many critics of Obama are guilty of hypocrisy
If Sen. John McCain had been elected president, you would see Republicans excited at the prospect of American military intervention in the conflict in Libya. The opportunity to send our troops into another Arab nation and to gain access to another significant source of oil would make them giddy with anticipation. But we have a Democrat in the White House named Barack Obama, and the Republicans have made a religion of criticizing him — no matter what he does. They demanded he implement a no-fly zone in Libya. Once he did this, they tripped all over each other to be the first to denounce him for doing what they wanted in the first place. Hypocrites.
Larry Peck, Dunwoody
HEALTH CARE
A cure for Alzheimer’s will be worth the cost
Thank you for publishing “Let research outpace Alzheimer’s” (Opinion, March 30).
After losing my husband of 60 years to Alzheimer’s, I became a volunteer, ministering to those suffering with the disease and to their caregivers. I believe there is no disease that impacts the whole family in the way dementia does. The statistics are certainly alarming.
Dr. Allan Levey knows what he is talking about, and his point about the cost to our nation (if a cure is not found soon) is well taken. It is going to take a concerted effort on the part of the brightest scientists we have to discover a medicine to conquer it, and that kind of effort takes big dollars.
But the cost in terms of mental and physical health to family members spending their days caring for an Alzheimer’s patient ought also to be a big concern for this country. The primary caregiver often wears out before the patient, so two people are killed by one disease.
Ellie Farrington, Newnan
MIDDLE EAST
Israel surely deserves international protection
In the president’s recent speech regarding the military action in Libya, there appears to be a precedent being set that we have a responsibility to protect civilian life from catastrophic harm. Well, I believe we have another candidate for this concept for protection: Israel. With evil elements firing mortars and rockets into civilian neighborhoods (who have an avowed aim of driving it into the ocean), I believe that Israel needs international help in protecting its population.
Nowhere on earth is this situation allowed or permitted.
James Van Valkenburg, Snellville
TAXES
Feel-good tax plan will hurt in the end
While Gov. Nathan Deal’s tax cuts for individuals sound good on the surface, that’s misleading at best. It has been proved time and time again that cutting taxes for corporations is not a major factor in attracting more businesses into states. While the taxpayers feel like they’re getting a great deal, they are only helping big businesses get richer.
What happens when we wish to buy groceries or need to repair our cars? We will pay higher taxes. So even though we may feel better on tax day, we may not understand the collective taxes we will pay for necessities. Where is the outrage?
Wendy Anderson-Spencer, Atlanta
