Ending Obamacare could hurt those with pre-existing ailments
Anyone who hasn’t yet voted should consider that if Republicans retain control of the Senate and/or the White House, it is likely they will do a full-court press to eliminate Obamacare, including coverage for pre-existing conditions. Obamacare is not perfect; however, it ensured that I received coverage from June 2014, when I was first diagnosed with breast cancer, until 2018, when I was eligible for Medicare. According to Karen Pollitz, a senior fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation, COVID-19 “absolutely could be” considered a pre-existing condition in the future. And cancer and COVID-19 are just a few of the many conditions that are, or could be, considered pre-existing.
MARGARET PERRY DANIEL, ATLANTA
Trump’s clueless on how to resolve America’s challenges
“The Emperor’s New Clothes,” a Hans Christian Anderson folk tale, comes to mind almost daily now. I recall the 2016 election, when certain family members voted for Donald Trump out of a vague desire to “mix things up.” That was the campaign spin, right? Well, our nation mistook for genuine leadership a carnival barker’s instinct for keeping attention focused his way. In some ways, it’s an American tradition. Except Trump is the president. As this season has progressed, it becomes ever clearer Trump has no clue how to address health crises, social tension and unrest, the climate crisis, or the economy. Heck, he can’t even run his own businesses. And he won’t listen to people who could help him. He utters lies often, fueling onslaughts of misinformation and hysteria that reveal the bare-naked truth: The emperor wears no clothes. He’s hardly even pretending otherwise any more.
TRACEY E.W. LAIRD, DECATUR
‘Racism’ now an overused, meaningless word, thanks to Left
Just what does Leonard Pitts Jr. mean when he says, “We will not forget. And we will not forgive” (“Can’t forget those who did not stand up for America,” Opinion, Oct. 25). Will I be sent to a re-education camp for supporting President Donald J. Trump? Will voter registration rolls and social media be used to blacklist conservatives? Other TV “journalists” are saying the same thing. Where is the AJC on this? By supporting the racist Pitts and comedian Luckovich, how does this bring us together? What makes 50% of the population think the other 50% will just roll over and love each other again? Obviously, it will not happen, and the AJC is complicit is promoting hate and the overused and now meaningless word, racism. See you on Nov. 4.
RONALD J. WEAVER, CUMMING
Programs that have benefited many are not socialism
Social programs are not socialism. Among the accusations that have been hurled this election year is that the Democratic Party is all about socialism. I wonder how many people really know what socialism is. Its two underlying premises are state ownership of resources and collective control over the means of production. The Democratic Party supports neither. Social programs to improve conditions for middle- and lower-class America are not socialism. Social programs include the entitlements of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, housing assistance, welfare assistance for those in need, and a host of other programs too long to list. Work programs from years past, such as the interstate highway system, TVA and energy dam construction, were all social programs and helped make America great. Unfortunately, the GOP seems to use the word “socialism” to refer to any program that benefits the majority of society as a scare tactic to make the unknowing and uneducated support its candidates. Shameful.
ROBERT DICKINSON, ALPHARETTA
