Letters: Kool-Aid drinker, group home location and Medicare | Feb. 6
Rebutting points of Kool-Aid drinker
Earl Martin’s Kool-Aid-drunk ranting needs to be rebutted.
“Booming economy.” Since Trump took office, the DOW is up 44 percent, but in the same period of Obama’s first term, the DOW was up 53 percent. The difference between Obama and Trump’s first terms was Bush handed Obama a train wreck and Obama handed Trump an expanding economy, and a budget that had cut deficit spending in half. Trump, with the “greatest economy ever,” has the debt at $22 trillion and rising at a $1 trillion per year!
“Most affirmative things Trump has accomplished . . . canceling . . . Obama’s supposed legacy.” We may be on the brink of war because Trump unilaterally backed us out of the Obama agreement with Iran, even though England, France, Russia and China are still in.
“Many judges . . . Constitution.” How about “separation of powers?” The House has the sole power to impeach, the Supreme Court ruled 8-0 in favor of the House subpoenas, yet Trump refuses, hoping the court will side with him? Both Gorsuch and Kavanagh indicated that they held with “settled law.” Is Trump going to make liars out of them to defend him?
“Nuff said.
Michael Lavering, Richland
Target shooters a drawback to site
Regarding the plans of Mirror Ministries to place a group home for abused girls at a location overlooking the Columbia River: There is a drawback to that location, which was not mentioned in the Jan. 26 Tri-City Herald article.
That site is located near two spots where target shooters frequently practice shooting despite the fact that there are homes nearby. The noise from that shooting is loud and traumatic. The trauma would likely be greater for the young girls at the proposed home than for the rest of us.
The noise can also cause physical injury. A few years ago I was making repairs to the outside of my house when shooting started. My involuntary reaction to the noise caused a physical injury which required medical attention. Hearing loss is another potential problem.
The presence of those sites is something that Mirror Ministries and the county should consider.
Marilyn L. Young, Pasco
No free lunch for medical insurance
Is Medicare for all a good deal? It could be a great deal, but telling voters it’s free is a lie.
I’m 70, on Medicare for 5 years. I love it, but if you believe what Bernie Sanders is telling you about it, you’re in for a rude shock.
Bernie says no premiums, no deductibles and no co-pays. In reality, Medicare has all three. Premiums are deducted from my Social Security. Every year, there’s a deductible before anything is covered. Plus, what Part B does cover (doctor visits, diagnostic tests, outpatient treatment, etc.), it covers 80 percent - the rest is on me, or on supplemental private insurance that I also pay for. When I was hospitalized for knee surgery, Medicare Part A paid 100 percent for everything – that was great.
Another cost of Medicare is taxes I paid during 40 years of employment. Now that I’m retired and working part-time, I’m still paying Medicare tax on every dollar.
Could we have totally free Medicare? Of course not. The money has to come from somewhere. There would be significant taxes. Tax-funded universal coverage could be less expensive overall – the devil would be in the details. There is no free lunch!
Ken Ames, Pasco
This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Kool-Aid drinker, group home location and Medicare | Feb. 6."