As one of the poorest, sickest states, KY lawmakers are worried about diversity? | Opinion

Race to the bottom

Let’s see — Kentucky ranks near the bottom of all states in categories such as fiscal stability, healthcare, overall health, literacy, education funding, obesity and quality of life. In response, our essentially one-party legislature begins the legislative session by addressing the teaching of inclusiveness, equity, diversity and (wait for it) belonging! Say what? Criminalize the teaching of “belonging” in Kentucky?

Senate bills SB 93 and SB 6, whose framers self-righteously claim will prevent “indoctrination,” would have the actual effect of mandating the teaching of only state-prescribed “truths” about our social systems and history. I’m sorry, doesn’t that sound a little like forced “anti-indoctrination” indoctrination?

Enshrining in law that “inclusion is discrimination” sounds like something from George Orwell’s 1984. Regarding a single party with unlimited power, Orwell’s masterpiece warned: “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”

If books like “1984” could have been banned from libraries and curricula before my time, maybe I wouldn’t know this. I could be cheerfully reading to my grandchildren from state-approved texts and our kids (the majority of them) could skip home from school knowing their ancestors and country were always loving and fair and that any teacher who says otherwise is a lawbreaker.

Ignorance is Strength, right?

Glen A White, Lexington

Presidential candidates

I know President Joe Biden is old. SO, WHAT? He has that old people look. You know how some old people’s mouths never seem to close? Their mouths are always ajar, lips slightly parted, as they stare off into space. Biden’s does that sometimes. Just like those people in elderly care homes.

Having said that, he is still a better choice for our nation than former President Donald Trump is, hands down! As far as Republicans are concerned, I was hoping former S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley would win the Republican nomination until recently. When asked questions about the Civil War she said everything but what she should have said. She never mentioned SLAVERY as a reason for the Civil War. Now her opponents have her where they want her. She has dealt herself a fatal blow. I was shocked by her omission! How can someone speak about the Civil War and not mention SLAVERY?

So, Nikki, you had me on the “girl power” thing for a while. Competing against all of those little rascal “He-Man Woman Haters,” she was the best potential presidential nominee to coma along in decades. She’s dead in the water to me now. DAMN! She was SO close.

Yolanda Averette, Lexington

Educational priorities

During the recent gubernatorial race, Ky. Attorney General Daniel Cameron was critical of the academic decline during the first administration of Gov. Andy Beshear. Although he lost the election, the educational problems persist. Beshear promoted raising wages for teachers and other school employees to improve all schools. As expected, the General Assembly is treating this as a partisan issue. With the increased income from the sports gambling law and an excess in the rainy day fund, now is the time to fix this. With any budget, in businesses, governments, or families, priorities must be made for important expenditures. Educating the youth of Kentucky regardless of locale, is tantamount to the progress of the Commonwealth.

Cheryl Keenan, Lexington

Putin’s War

We need to realize that Russian President Vladimir Putin has been at war with the E.U., the West and Democracy globally for some time. His first mode of assault is through political instruments designed to infiltrate polities with authoritarian and fascist would-be autocrats, using corrupt transnational oligarchs to launder funds to them.

He has many targets, Poland being a main one. Uzbekistan is on his list, as is Finland, and yes, the United States. Thinking that former President Donald Trump is anything less than a planted agent for Putin in the U.S. is naivete. The trauma/drama of Trump is an affliction stifling and confounding our Democracy, much to the pleasure of Putin.

Not all wars are ground wars, air wars, or sea wars. Some invasions are through social media, as well as economic and political intrusions. The sooner the E.U. and the West realize and acknowledge this and purge themselves of these economic and political infiltrations, the better it will be for all of us.

While many are concerned about our geographical borders, the real invasion has taken much deeper root in our government.

Robert Moreland, Lexington

Primary alternative

I write this deeply concerned for America. We are facing a presidential election with possibly two candidates that cannot or will not bring this country together.

With former President Donald Trump we will see disruption, attacks against him, possible impeachments, and no effort by Congress to work with him. President Joe Biden is not much better. The ongoing investigations will continue as he bypasses Congress, our voice in government, to make sweeping change. Both parties have indicated that neither candidate is their first choice.

With Trump the voters have a chance to not have him as the candidate. The primaries are happening soon and just because his name is on the ballot does not mean he will win. If voters truly care about this country, they will not vote for Trump. Don’t just not show up - get out and vote.

With Biden the voters still have a choice. Go to the primaries and write in your choice or just do not vote for Biden to show your displeasure with his possible second term.

I recently started to visit Thyblackman.com. It presents views on why Biden should not necessarily be the automatic choice. Check it out.

Lauranne L Williams, Lexington

Anti-life GOP

I’m appalled, but not surprised that the GOP is, once again, proving they are pro-birth, not pro-life. They seem determined to kill off their constituents. The newest effort in making Kentucky less Christian is HB 5. Now a sector of the GOP wants to declare open season on the homeless, as well as making homelessness a crime.

Once again, as with abortion and immigration, instead of tackling the problem of homelessness, they want to outlaw it.

We could spend the time and money to create government-run hostels for the homeless, where they may sleep safely and be helped to find a place in society, which would also create jobs. But, no, the GOP would rather terrorize them, and send individuals and even families with children to prison.

Encouraging the populace to shoot them if they stop moving is immoral and deplorable. Citizens will no longer be able to shelter in shop openings or under awnings while waiting for the bus or for the rain to stop without fear of being legally shot. Heaven forbid you should stop to tie your shoe.

If not in words, the intent of the bill seems to be encouraging murder with no penalties.

Glenna Brouse, Lexington

Streaming football

I am writing to express my opinion about the showing of the NFL playoff game on Saturday night the Peacock streaming channel rather than on a regular TV Network. This seems to shut out the “little guy” who is trying to make ends meet weekly and may not have the extra funds to pay for a streaming service. The NFL needs to refocus on “people” and not “money.”

Linda Penn, Richmond

Book bans

The ongoing issue of book banning originates with the fact that so many people have lost touch with their country, the significance and value of living in a democracy, and U.S. history. This includes the very contents of our Constitution, particularly the Bill of Rights which insures the very freedoms of speech and the press of which these would-be book banners are trying to take away. Have these people ever cracked a history book? Do they even know what the rights provided to everyone equally in our Constitution are? Perhaps these pearl clutching, puritanical, busy bodies should read about their democracy at the next available moment and spare the rest of us any further misery.

In a democracy if someone doesn’t want to read a book, then they don’t have to! Simple as that! And really, nobody cares. Because in a democracy we can decide for ourselves!

Angela Arnett-Garner, Waynesburg

Jefferson Davis

Reading Larry Riley’s recent column, “What if Jefferson Davis decided to run for president?” elicited a couple of Sunday-morning chuckles.

The first was due to his well-written satire and the point he was trying to make.

Secondly, he stirred in me the memory of a joke making the rounds in the early 60s, when my grade-school and junior-high years in Lexington coincided with the 100th anniversary of the War Between the States as we were taught to call it.

The jokester would ask an unsuspecting classmate, “Who do you think is the greatest president?”

The victim would think for a minute. Washington? Jefferson? Lincoln? FDR?

Finally, he would either name one, or shrug his shoulders with indecision, and the joker would gleefully pounce.

“Wrong! It’s a trick question,” he’d say. “The answer is Jefferson Davis!”

Jim Hanna, Lexington

Compiled by Liz Carey