So much for transitory
In 2021, Biden’s Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called inflation “transitory” and assured Americans it was unlikely to be a long-term problem.
Well, not so much. It’s not “transitory,” it’s a disaster for all Americans. According to the Consumer Price Index, inflation for June of 2022 reached a 40-year high of 9.1%.
The only thing that should be transitory in 2022 is Democrat one-party control in Washington, D.C. Nebraskans need to reclaim the power of the purse by taking back the House and sending Don Bacon back to Washington in November.
Steve McCollister, Omaha
Fine doctor remembered
I want to pay my respects to Dr. David Bolam, the long-serving neonatologist in the NICU at the Nebraska Medical Center, who passed away one week after his retirement. On July 20, 1984, we found ourselves, shocked and terrified, in that NICU with our 1-pound, 14-ounce micro preemie. They told us she had a 1-in-4 chance of living and being normal.
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Dr. Bolam was one of the fine doctors overseeing her care. He was serious, quiet and intense. And I was not sure I trusted or even liked him. Then one day, as I sat beside my daughter’s incubator, I watched Dr. Bolam kneel down and spend quite a long time talking to and playing with a precious little toddler in a bouncy seat. He was not treating her, just pouring love out on her. Nurses had told me the little girl had spent her whole life in the unit, fighting for her life. I watched him smile and laugh and his eyes sparkle. At that moment, I saw how much he cared and I was never afraid of him again.
Thirty years later, when I volunteered in that NICU, I was amazed he still remembered my daughter, Natalie and asked about her. I am so grateful that when we walked through the valley of the shadow of death, Dr. Bolam (and many others) walked with us and made all the difference. Amazingly, she turned 38 recently and is indeed normal — except when we argue about politics! Ha!
Delores J. Cantu, Omaha
Non-existent militia
The National Rifle Association supposedly has printed in large letters on it’s Washington, D.C. office building part of the Second Amendment “… The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” Why did they omit the first part of that amendment and the whole basis for it’s existence? They must have realized how ridiculous the first part now seems when it reads, “A well regulated militia being necessary for the security of a free state.” To my knowledge, we have not had any use for a militia for over 150 years. Why do we spend billions of dollars annually funding the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force if we still have to cater to a non-existent militia? The Second Amendment has long outlived it’s original intent.
Ernie Rousek, Lincoln
Security and sovereignty
A deputy sheriff last year almost died just from an exposure to fentanyl.
If another deputy hadn’t immediately provided him with NARCAN nasal spray, he could have died.
Fentanyl is pouring over our border. Of course, the human and sex trafficking, terrorists and other cartel drug and criminal activity even make it more necessary to protect the security of our nation.
We need to wake up to the fact that this is not just about illegal immigration. This is a huge threat to the security of our nation and the protection of our citizens. If this isn’t enough to want to shut down our border, I don’t know what is.
Close the border now, ensure immigration is done legally.
We cannot have national sovereignty without secure borders.
Chris Darrell, Plattsmouth
Marriage equality bill
The House has passed by a wide, bipartisan margin a marriage equality bill that the Senate should pass immediately. The Supreme Court has shifted dramatically and acts as legislators for the country in our elected officials’ absence. That needs to end.
The Senate needs to bring this bill up for debate immediately and codify the protections for same sex couples to be able to marry and have the same protections, financial, social or otherwise, as every other person in America.
It’s way past time for our elected officials in Congress to do their jobs and legislate to the needs and wants of the country.
Justin D’Angelo, Gretna
The price we pay
In an election, we tend to vote our pocketbooks. But is the price of gas, a gallon of milk or a dozen eggs worth the cost of losing our democracy? Our Constitution, designed as a democracy, is under threat by conspiracy theories, the “big lie” and the politicians whose primary concern is their own power. We can no longer survive the division of those ideas as they have created a growing separation within our country. We once fought a Civil War because of division within the states and both sides lost too much. We need to re-read the Constitution with its Bill of Rights and learn that the liberties are guaranteed for all Americans. Then we can decide if those rights are worth more than a tank of gas or an assault weapon. For me they are.
Barb Wagner, Omaha
Assault on Capitol
Dan Beeson’s letter, “Congressional hearings,” implores Congress to stop the Jan. 6, 2021, Select Committee’s work because “nothing more is going to happen to Trump.” The committee has methodically and convincingly presented evidence that the attack on the Capitol was planned, that Trump was aware that armed thugs would be marching to the Capitol to try to disrupt the electoral college count, and that he did nothing to stop the siege until he realized it had failed. The committee’s great work has raised the possibility that Trump could be indicted for inciting the insurrection.
There is a higher bar to prosecute an ex-president than an ordinary citizen, so it’s possible that the Justice Department will decide that available evidence falls short of the required standard. On the other hand, perhaps DOJ will find sufficient evidence to pursue an indictment. Even if Trump is not charged, there could be indictments of some in his inner circle who planned and abetted the shameful attack.
More important, perhaps, the committee is showing America what really happened on Jan. 6, 2021.
The assault on the Capitol was much worse than the attack on Washington during the War of 1812. The British merely burned buildings; the Jan. 6 insurrectionists tried to stop the orderly transfer of power after a free and fair election.
MAGA supporters may be beyond the reach of reason, but there is still a majority of Americans (and voters) who recognize the danger that the radical right represent. The hearings are highlighting the most important political issue of the day.
Patrick H. Brennan, Omaha
OWH Public Pulse June 2022
