Letters on coronavirus: E-voting needed; idea for restaurants; thanks to governor

Develop e-voting

Last year when I ran for the Democractic nomination for secretary of state I proposed taking steps to move Kentucky closer to an electronic voting capability. With the ability to vote electronically, citizens would not have to congregate in large numbers at polling stations across the state. As the spread of the coronavirus and its subsequent impact has shown, Kentucky and America need to develop a safe and reliable way for citizens to vote electronically when public gatherings cannot be held for health reasons.

West Virginia and Utah have both already developed a limited form of e-voting. In the Baltic states, Estonia has moved so many government services online it’s now known as E-stonia. The technology is there; what we lack is the political will. If this outbreak gets worse and isn’t under control by the time election votes must be cast, what will happen to our government? Electronic voting can help us hold elections even under pandemic conditions. I would again like to congratulate Secretary of State Mike Adams on his victory, and I hope he will consider using his office to move Kentucky forward on electronic voting. And I hope citizens will urge their lawmakers to do the same.

Jason Belcher, Harold

Pass budget; leave

Attention. This is not 9/11 and I’m tired of the comparisons with COVID-19. On 9/11 we looked out our windows in horror and saw smoke arising from the Pentagon. We saw twisted metal and destruction. That was an act of war. COVID-19 is a silent killer and can only be detected and cured by science and medicine. Gov. Andy Beshear is right. Pass a budget and get out of town now. I have the same direct order to our elected representatives in Washington. Liberals, Democrats, Republicans, conservatives — pass a budget and get it signed to law now. Gag on it if you don’t like the details, but pass and sign a budget and get out of town. Get real, folks.

Susan Hopkins, Lexington

Thanks, governor

We congratulate Gov. Andy Beshear and his team of health experts on the frequent and comprehensive communication to citizens of the commonwealth about the coronavirus pandemic.

During these difficult times, our governor serves as a role model for health communication leadership.

Douglas and Carole Boyd, Lexington

Food for thought

An idea: Besides normal fare — or instead of — I hope many restaurants can begin serving inexpensive casseroles and/or easy carryout meals for pickup or delivery.

Government officials should make such an idea widespread.

And of course there should be widespread testing available to such workers filling this significant role for others, particularly for shut-ins.

These are times that will need creative thinking and sacrifice.

Don Pratt, Lexington

Dem Party uncaring

As I watched supposedly liberal newspapers and TV channels promote stories heralding Joe Biden as “presidential” after his debate with Bernie Sanders, I got sick.

Biden refused to acknowledge how our corrupt financial system has led to our current healthcare crisis. Biden’s response to every question was for the United States to “show” everyone else we’re so strong and powerful. Despite this, newspapers keep calling him more electable than the candidate who actually has plans and wants to make positive change.

Meanwhile, I’m paying $700 a month for a health insurance plan with a $3,000 deductible while struggling to pay off medical and student loan debt. I would wonder how we got this way, but it’s painfully obvious; before the debate, I had to watch an ad from an insurance lobby on CNN.com. And this is after so many Democratic nominees gave their support to Biden over Sanders.

I feel sick because it’s clear the Democratic Party no longer shares the beliefs of people like me or cares about our priorities. They would rather support corporations than American people, and corporate-owned media are helping them do it. Worst of all, they’re sticking us with the bill while giving tax cuts to billionaires.

Bronson O’Quinn, Lexington

‘Loss to us all’

I was saddened to read of the death of Kentucky journalist Ronnie Ellis. When I lived in Richmond I kept up with his columns and often watched him on Kentucky Educational Television.

By email we joked we must be cousins. I never met him in person. Anyone who ever read his columns or saw him on KET realized what a competent reporter he was. He kept everyone, Democrat or Republican, straight. What a loss to us all.

William E. Ellis, Lexington

McConnell’s priority

It instills great confidence for all Kentuckians that our senior senator’s first area of concern is apparently making certain every possible federal judgeship is filled before the 2020 election. For Sen. Mitch McConnell, coronavirus be damned until these appointments are made. He is spending his time calling judges who are eligible to retire encouraging them to do so. I wonder how much longer we can afford someone who feels they are in a position to follow their own personal agenda and disregard what is affecting our lives so adversely and directly.

Charles Myers, Lexington

Why the delay?

We now know just how bad the coronavirus is going to be for our country. The House of Representatives quickly put together a bipartisan bill to alleviate some of the economic difficulties and dislocations caused by the rapidly growing number of infections and subsequent shutdowns. The House bill was passed to the Senate last weekend for quick passage. But instead of fast-tracking this sorely needed legislation, Sen. Mitch McConnell chose to dismiss the U.S. Senate for the weekend. He himself traveled back to Kentucky with his favorite Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The bill was approved by the Senate earlier this week and was signed into law, but every day that passed buried the economy deeper under the slowdown caused by this pandemic.

Contrast this with McConnell’s desperate efforts to pass the president’s tax cut for the rich and the corporations in 2017. He pulled out all the stops, kept the Senate in session nights and over the weekend to get the bill passed. But that bill helped Republicans, not the people.

James Porter, Danville

More Prather, please

I get so tired of so many Christians trying to claim they’re preaching love when it sounds so much like hate.

There’s the “duck” test, of course, but I prefer the “results” test. If the end result of your “love” argument is indistinguishable from “hate”, then you’re preaching hate.

A firmly religious relative claims that God just has to burn 99.9999 percent of all humans in hell because 1. He hates sin, and 2. He loves us so much.

Substitute “hate” for “love” in point 2. The end result is the same.

That’s one reason I do admire Herald-Leader contributing columnist Paul Prather. He does not strike me as one who hates. And I can’t see him ordering his God to hate whomever Paul would hate.

Print more from him. He’s worth it.

H. Stephen Midkiff, Mount Sterling

Approve anti-doping bill

Regarding Herald-Leader sports columnist John Clay’s recent article, “Prominent horse trainer charged in federal indictment”:

The news that more than two dozen trainers, veterinarians, and others were charged in a widespread horse racing doping scheme should surprise no one. The sport’s continued reliance on performance-enhancing drugs to mask pain and push horses to compete past their limit — leading to catastrophic breakdowns — is a disturbing reality in the United States, while most other countries have banned race day medications.

As a largely self-regulated, multibillion dollar industry, horse racing is responsible for hundreds of American racehorses dying on tracks each year, a fatality rate that far exceeds that of other racing jurisdictions around the world. A 2015 survey found that 90 percent of Americans support efforts to regulate the use of medications and performance-enhancing drugs for racehorses.

Congress must move swiftly to pass the bipartisan Horseracing Integrity Act (House Resolution 1754), sponsored by Reps. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) and Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.), which would prohibit race day medications and establish an independent anti-doping authority that would set uniform national standards, testing procedures and penalties for the racing industry. Let’s stop allowing bad actors to rig the system and start prioritizing the safety of our equine athletes.

Joanna Grossman, Washington D.C.,equine program manager, Animal Welfare Institute

Solar helps many

The Polk-Dalton Clinic, Midway Christian Church, the Rogers family, Hemphill Community Center, and SouthDown Farm. What do these folks have in common? They’ve all installed solar panels as a way to lower their electricity costs, lock in a fixed monthly price (their loan payment), and be responsible stewards of the planet. They don’t have giant houses or tons of money, as a recent contributor claimed. And none of these folks are causing their friends and neighbors to have higher electricity costs. A lie, straight from the mouth of utility companies to try and turn us against each other instead of uniting against a common enemy--the monopoly utility that’s really responsible for our higher bills. Solar users feed extra electricity onto the grid which benefits the utility company, especially during peak demand. In return they pull an equal amount off the grid when they aren’t producing enough. This is a fair and simple way to credit solar users for their contribution to the grid. They still pay a monthly service charge just like everyone else. Solar is working for hundreds of people all across the state, saving them money and putting people to work.

Cara Cooper, Lexington