Beware deregulation

Contrary to what many Republicans say, deregulation or less government is not a solution to our many problems.

In fact, chemical dumps and arsenic in Estill County soil, polluted water, botulism, the abuse of opioids and the outrageous price of EpiPen are due to the lack of regulations or enforcement.

Ironically, the Republican Oklahoma governor has finally admitted his state’s 900 earthquakes in 2016 are due to fracking, which his administration has promoted. The abuses in chicken factories are notorious.

Here in Kentucky, hundreds of miners have died due to lax safety measures. Yet our political leaders advocate even more deregulation. The banks which caused our economic recession under George W. Bush have been bailed out by taxpayers while Congressman Andy Barr and others claim we need to reduce the weak regulations on the banks. He recently drafted a bill to that effect and has received a huge contribution to his re-election campaign. This should raise red flags.

Hopefully, voters will study the issues closely and vote all of these deregulators out of office.

This story was originally published October 26, 2016 at 6:17 PM with the headline "Beware deregulation."