IMMIGRATION
Federal government should pay medical tab
A very caring commentary was presented by Dr. Doyt Conn (“Do we let Grady dialysis patients die?” Opinion, Jan. 12). He cited the ethical principles as to why we should provide lifesaving care to illegal aliens needing this treatment, and he was right. Conn then proceeded to point fingers at Fulton and DeKalb counties and the Georgia Legislature. Never once, while presenting his case, did he include the federal government as a potential source of needed revenue. The federal government, through invitation or lack of enforcement, allowed these persons entrance into the U.S., and should be the first asked to pick up the tab.
Don McAfee, Roswell
AIRPORT SAFETY
Passenger searches won’t stop terrorists
Remembering 9/11, a letter writer recently said that we should gladly accept full-body scans at airport security (“Readers write,” Opinion, Jan. 10). I totally disagree.
As an airline pilot, I believe that airport security for passengers has been little more than a show. There will never be any way of assuring that a well-organized group cannot take down an airliner, from inside or outside of the cabin.
Airline transportation is only one issue in our nation’s anti-terror agenda. Threatening the financiers of terrorist organizations with massive destruction is the only way to stop such events. As a U.S. citizen and military veteran, I’m past tired of my own government making me “jump” when some terrorist outfit belches.
E. Martin, Peachtree City
POLITICS
Foes always on lookout for a reason to pounce
We are all guilty of saying things that we don’t really mean. Sen. Harry Reid stated that Obama had a lot going for him in the presidential race because he was a fair-skinned black man, able to speak distinctly. This was his opinion, and he probably had no idea it would arouse criticism a year or two later.
Reid can be admired for his background of extreme poverty as a youngster. I doubt if he had any malice whatever in stating what is a fact about Obama, even though people looking for something to pounce on saw this as an opportunity to hit Reid and the Democratic Party.
I am not a Democrat or Republican — only an independent thinker, who believes in fairness among all people.
Denton Harris, Atlanta
GOVERNMENT
Lawmakers will hide behind budget issue
So, Georgia House members “feel like the storm has blown over” (“Lawmakers arrive with their plates full,” News, Jan. 11). I’m so happy for them. Now they can return to the corruption of business-as-usual.
If Georgians don’t actively and emphatically continue the storm of public disgust and constituent pressure, watch for lawmakers to use state budget issues as an excuse to put off ethics reform. Many legislators will continue to quietly betray our trust whenever it conflicts with self-interest. That’s why strict lobbyist limits must be first on the agenda.
And is the idea of an ethics panel controlled by the people it’s policing not preposterous?
Tom Tortorici, Atlanta
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