Letters to the Editor: ‘Ashamed’ of those who won’t protect community by getting vaccine

‘Ashamed’

I am so tired of several recent letter writers. They are so outraged that they have been asked to get a safe and effective vaccine that could possibly save their lives, the lives of their family members, and the lives of members of their community. What has happened to our sense of community spirit and cooperation? Why is everything just about “my rights” and “my freedom”? When I think of the sacrifices that U.S. citizens have made in the past (fighting in wars, working in munitions factories, risking their lives to march for equality, etc.), it seems incredible to me that people rail against a vaccine that would put an end to a pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. Our government wasn’t designed to protect our individual freedoms. Not if those freedoms come at the cost of harm to others. I am embarrassed and ashamed of what this country has come to.

Cindy Frase, Lexington

Community paramount

A letter writer recently compared “…smoking, alcohol, diabetes, (and) drunk driving…” death rates to those of COVID, with a flawed conclusion that COVID-19 is not such a big deal. I can’t catch diabetes from a diabetic’s sneeze. We have laws punishing drunk drivers. Smoking is not allowed in public spaces or on airplanes; open containers of alcoholic beverages are also not allowed in public.

Every time people stop at a stop sign, drive on the right side of the road, or stub out their cigarettes before entering a theater, their “rights” are curtailed. It’s called the common good.

People do not live in a vacuum. Simon and Garfunkel had it wrong: You are not an island. Humans live in a community, and that community needs to be healthy to survive.

Remember this when you or a loved one gets COVID and you must rely on vaccinated, masked community members to save those lives.

Judy Schwender, Paducah

Thanks, vaccines

I am not a person who likes to brag, but I need to reply to a recent letter to the editor in the Herald-Leader. I am an older person and in good shape, too. Since June 1 I have logged 900 miles either walking or running. I have had the flu shot since 1976, I have taken the pneumonia shot three times since 2010, and now I have taken all three COVID-19 vaccines. On Dec. 28 I will be 79 years old. I have made it this far by playing and working hard, with a little luck, help from the Almighty, and a whole lot of modern technologies.

I think the last time I got a cold was back in the 1990s and I believe my doing what I have done has kept me from getting the coronavirus.

And, in reply to the letter writer, there are a lot of lies coming from the Republicans, the Far Right, Donald Trump, and Sen. Rand Paul on the subject.

Victor Privett, Nicholasville

Keep recycling

In the early 1800s, a preacher traveling to Kentucky for the first time described the sight of our rolling hills and bluegrass by writing, “O my dear honeys, heaven is a Kentucky of a place.”

We are lucky to call Kentucky home, and on America Recycles Week, Kentucky’s beverage industry is especially proud of our work to help protect our beautiful state. By making investments to help educate residents and initiate recycling opportunities, our members are committed to making sure bottles don’t end up in Kentucky’s landfills, rivers or lakes.

The Kentucky Beverage Association is always looking for ways to ensure a cleaner Kentucky. By using 100 percent recyclable materials, our bottles can later be made into new bottles or everyday products. Our members create innovative solutions to help the industry use less plastic, supporting each other and sustainable solutions for Kentucky.

Known around the world for our beautiful horse farms, fabled waterfalls and even our smooth bourbon, Kentucky surely is a heaven on earth. Let’s keep it that way.

Sara Massey, executive director of the Kentucky Beverage Association, Louisville

Word choice

I was very interested to read Herald-Leader reporter John Cheves’ excellent article on overcrowding and health issues in Floyd County jail. I found the article poignant and emotionally evocative regarding the plight of Floyd County inmates. I was somewhat startled, however, to find “sodomy” listed among such matters as drug smuggling and health code violations. I would urge your writers to consider the implication of suggesting that presumably consensual relations are as formidable problems as addiction, death and illness. If by “sodomy” Mr. Cheves meant to convey assault or concerns of STI transmission, it would be pertinent to say so plainly instead of counting on the reader to associate homosexuality with violation and sickness, an affiliation which I’m sure was unintentional but nevertheless gave me pause.

Mark Whitney, Lexington

Power key

Power trumps truth. If I have enough power, truth is whatever I say it is. What is the source of the power? Stupidity and grievance, both of which are in plentiful supply. It turns out they have been there all along, just waiting for someone to say it is OK. In hindsight it was all remarkably easy.

Dan Berry, Stamping Ground

Repeal WEP

I am a retired federal employee writing to raise awareness of the devastating effects of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) experienced by nearly two million people. This policy reduces the earned Social Security benefits of local, state and federal retirees who worked in Social Security covered private-sector employment, and who also earned an annuity from their non-Social Security covered government employment. The WEP can result in a monthly Social Security benefit that is $498 lower than deserved, causing undue financial distress

I wonder why we should be penalized for working hard for our country.

Additionally, spouses are feeling the burden of the Government Pension Offset (GPO), a similar penalty, which prevents them from collecting the Social Security benefits their spouses earned from private-sector jobs due to their public service. The GPO affects 716,662 beneficiaries, 47 percent of which are widows or widowers, and 83 percent of whom are women.

We rightfully earned these benefits in exchange for our dedication and hard work to the nation, and, as such, I am inviting other retirees affected by the WEP and GPO to join me in calling on Congress to repeal these unfair provisions. It’s past time to stop punishing us for our public service and allow for us to collect what we rightfully earned.

Kenneth W. Overhults, Lexington

Powell a role model

I’ve thought about General Colin Powell a lot since his passing. What a great person who loved our country so much and served it so well in various important roles over the years.

He was a rare Republican who put country over political party. He voted for Barack Obama twice, for Hillary Clinton in 2016, for Joe Biden in 2020 — all Democrats. Powell knew that Donald Trump was a serious threat to our democracy.

The Jan. 6 Trump-incited insurrection on Capitol Hill was the last straw for General Powell. He could no longer associate himself with a Republican Party of Trump.

I hope many Republicans all over our country will follow General Powell’s “country over party” example. As great as he was , Colin Powell possessed what truly great people have — humility.

Paul L. Whiteley Sr., Louisville

Barr voted no

The infrastructure bill that passed the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support was not supported by our own Congressman Andy Barr. Our transportation infrastructure has been declining, bridges and roads deteriorating, and a future with more electric vehicles and autonomous vehicles, light rail and less gas taxes to support them ignored. Barr’s done nothing to address these issues.

Barr had no problem supporting a tax cut and jobs bill in 2017 (HR 1), that provided tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations, but zero dollars directed toward guaranteeing any good paying jobs for working Americans. Fast forward four years, and Barr votes against a real jobs bill that addresses social problems and provides people with good paying jobs at the same time.

The need for electric vehicle charging stations, improving our electrical grid, enhancing pedestrian and highway safety, removing lead pipes from city water systems, modernizing highways,and implementing pilot efforts to reduce wildlife-vehicle accidents are just a few issues this infrastructure bill addresses.

Apparently, the reason Barr believes the government can’t do anything right is because he holds a seat in Congress and attempts to repeatedly make sure it doesn’t. Let’s vote him out of office next year.

Peter Wedlund, Lexington

Voter ID

Apparently the Democrats in Congress have forgotten how they objected to scrapping the filibuster in 2017 when President Donald Trump wanted to do so. but now they are screaming to do away with it. They have also been pushing a “For the People” voting bill that does away with voter identification requirements. I know that President Joe Biden won the 2020 election, but it is also acknowledged that some illegal voting occurs every election. if just one illegal vote is cast it negates a legal vote. Voter ID needs to be mandatory in every election nationwide.

William Riffe, Lancaster

Remember Trump?

A recent letter to the editor suggests that those who voted for Joe Biden may be having voter remorse. I guess that means that Biden voters now wish they had voted for Donald Trump. Remember him?

He is the man who said the American free press was the enemy of the people. He was also the guy who told more lies than any president in modern history. (Remember the wall that Mexico would pay for or the really great healthcare plan that would replace Obamacare? ) He is also the man who has cast doubt on the validity of elections held in this country which are the basis of our democracy. The topper was inciting the assault on the Capitol on Jan. 6. Voter remorse? I hope Americans are smarter than that.

William Farnau, Lexington

So many lies

I’m not exactly sure what it should mean, but when the world’s greatest mega-liar, Donald J. Trump, calls Sen. Mitch McConnell a liar, it causes a conundrum. Who should we believe, the world’s greatest mega-liar or our own Kentucky liar who places slightly behind Sen. Rand Paul in a very close race for the title of Kentucky’s mega-liar-in-chief? All these accusations about lying are only about who wrote the introduction to Mitch’s new book. Why would anyone bother to read the book when we don’t even know who wrote the introduction. Mitch says Donald wrote it; Donald says he didn’t write it. Perhaps we should be wondering who wrote the rest of Mitch’s fairy tale. Kentuckians would be better served by reading Matt Jones’ book titled “Mitch, Please!” which outlines how Mitch conned all of America, including Kentucky. The Christian Bible indicates strongly that God hates liars. I would say God has his hands full with Trump, McConnell, and Paul.

Lt. Col. James Stuart Emery, U.S. Army (retired); Valrico, Fla.