Opinion

Every crisis an opportunity

Published on Wed, 04/22/2020 - 4:25pm

This week, the price of oil futures collapsed catastrophically. In fact, the prices collapsed into negative territory in the near term. This bizarre situation, prompted by lack of consumer demand and lack of storage facility, led the irrepressible Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., to tweet: “You absolutely love to see it. This along with record low interest rates means it’s the right time for a worker-led, mass investment in green infrastructure to save our planet.” This tweet was too dumb even for her — an extraordinary bar, given her past commentary — and she deleted it.

Pandemic fallout tracks nation’s political divide

Published on Wed, 04/22/2020 - 4:24pm

WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s entrenched political divide is now playing out over matters of life and death. 

Republican governors, urged on by President Donald Trump, are taking the first steps toward reopening parts of their states’ economies in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and without adhering to the president’s own guidelines. Democratic governors are largely keeping strict stay-at-home orders and nonessential business closures in place, resisting small pockets of Trump-aligned protesters and public pressure from the president. 

Why? Why?

Published on Tue, 04/21/2020 - 4:16pm
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In The Mail

Published on Tue, 04/21/2020 - 4:14pm

Lowering flags for virus victims

Editor:

What would it take for everyone across the country to lower the flags to half staff to honor the 35,000 Americans that have died from this virus? We did it for 9/11. We do it for fallen firefighters. Lowering the flags would also be a reminder to every citizen that there are hundreds of people in this town alone keeping us safe and it would also honor their service. 

Joanne Lowell

Livingston

 

The other U.S. epidemic

Published on Tue, 04/21/2020 - 4:13pm

COVID-19 is focusing attention on another epidemic in the United States. It is the national debt, now at approximately $24.3 trillion. To that, of course, will have to be added the at least $2 trillion in federal funding to save the economy from being another victim of the virus.

Think about that number. Even at $24.3 trillion, it amounts to more than $72,000 for every man, woman and child in the nation.

What do we get for that? Nothing. It represents money the federal government has spent already, without revenue to cover it.

Words for the Class of 2020

Published on Tue, 04/21/2020 - 4:12pm

There will be no graduation festivities this spring at dozens of American colleges and universities, including Ohio State, Brigham Young, Howard, Swarthmore, Notre Dame, Duke, UCLA and Yale. That means this year’s graduates and their closest relatives and friends will not have the benefit of sitting on hard chairs and listening to the commencement speaker.

Early Bird Sale

Published on Mon, 04/20/2020 - 3:21pm
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In The Mail

Published on Mon, 04/20/2020 - 3:19pm

Confusing message

Editor:

The April 16 Enterprise photo of Dale Sexton and his “Timber Trails crew and families” sends a confusing message about community safety. It flouts local, state, and federal directives concerning COVID-19. My question for local health officials: Is it safe to congregate as the photo suggests?

Sheila Royston

Wilsall

Mail-in ballots and upcoming elections

Published on Mon, 04/20/2020 - 3:18pm

“Republicans should fight very hard when it comes to state wide mail-in voting,” President Trump tweeted on April 8. Mail-in voting, he explained, “doesn’t work out well for Republicans.” The relevant question, though, is not whether mail-in voting would “work out” for Republicans, but whether it would work out for American democracy during the coronavirus crisis. If Mr. Trump has a better alternative, he should present it.

Wilderness protects biological diversity

Published on Mon, 04/20/2020 - 3:18pm

In the current election cycle, three things are clear. First, it is apparent that for the next four years, the president will, like me, be an old white guy. Second, the global biodiversity crisis, unfortunately, is not a campaign issue. And third, neither is human overpopulation — 7.8 billion and counting — the root cause of most environmental problems.