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A few thoughts from the founding fathers of our country. It has been said that they feared three things: Fear of an unscrupulous leader, fear of an unreflective people and fear of extraordinarily rich Americans whose aims did not align with democracy. This seems to be the situation we now find ourselves in. We would do well to reflect on these fears as the future of our Democratic Republic may depend on how we react to the present circumstances.
-Steve Bennett Newport
Celebrate spring!
So many of us watch world events, totally focused on the news of the day. This news travels down the neuro pathways of our brain, many times reinforcing thoughts and emotions we would rather not carry. In this frame of mind, it is easy to miss the Big News that is happening naturally all around us. The Big News I am talking about is Spring!
Spring is that glorious season when the sun and rain dance together and make rainbows. When Mother Nature gives birth to new life that awakens and greets the world. Spring is the season when fawns wobble, birds sing, frogs croak, and dandelions pop out their cheery face.
What is your Spring dance and song? Or are you like so many of us that have forgotten? Perhaps we all need some tall grass time, or a concert date with the birds under the trees. Relax into nature on a sunny spring day and let her take away your burdens. Follow the melody of the birds as they sing their song, and they will create new neuro pathways in your brain.
These are the moments and this is the treasure. Let us not forget.
-Stacy Cossey Oldtown
Unsettled
Article II and Article III of the Constitution are in a wrestling match. Article II is trying to do its job while Article III pushes back. America voted overwhelmingly for Article II and his agenda while III seems to be ignoring that.
If a person is in the US illegally, wouldn’t that mean they bypassed ‘due process’ to enter legally? Why do they need ‘due process’ to be deported? Does the illegal immigrant have the same ‘rights’ as a US citizen? Can they legally vote? What else don’t they have the legal ‘right’ to do?
I think politicians regret making Abrego Garcia their ‘hero’ as more truth comes out. What can easily be verified: his wife had two restraining orders against him. In 2022 when pulled over in TN, the SUV he was driving was owned by a known human smuggler and his eight passengers were affiliated with MS-13. Two more encounters with police had him with MS-13 members. He has MS-13 tattooed on his left hand. Two Judges noted Garcia was affiliated with MS-13 and he had a standing deportation order. He is a citizen of El Salvador and that’s probably where he should stay.
-Glen Pierce Spokane/Cusick
America is in trouble
Trump bought his chart listing the tariffs on other countries from the Dollar Tree store. Now the poster board costs 145% more. The tariff chart lacks planning or means to manage those tariffs. Also, many of the federal government employees that would administer and collect those tariffs were fired by Elon Musk. Trump’s tariff tax is paid by American importers and consumers. It doesn’t even have a set schedule for implementation. The tariff percentages change with Trump’s tweet cycles and his latest erratic thoughts.
Meanwhile, domestic prices are going up just on the threat of tariffs. Gasoline is nearly $4/gallon. The economy is close to recession. Our retirement accounts are bleeding, and the American dollar is collapsing.
If Trump was an economic police officer, he would handcuff his wrist to his ankle. America’s only ally is Russia after Trump has claimed that our world trading partners have ripped us off for years. Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine calls for total capitulation to Russia and lifts US economic sanctions on Russia.
Today, anyone living in America can be disappeared by ICE without any due process. We are all potential enemies of the authoritarian state run by a vindictive and vengeful Trump.
-Pete Scobby Newport
Due process is the American way
Snatching someone off the streets, whisking him onto an airplane, and “disappearing” him to the hellscape of a cruel foreign prison, all without providing due process – does that sound like America, the land of the free? Sadly, tragically, this is exactly what is happening in our nation today.
And when multiple federal judges agree that this extrajudicial kidnapping is wrong and must be corrected, the government argues that the judges have no right to protect Constitutional rights – is that what our Founding Fathers hoped our nation would become?
Although people on the right may disagree with me on the best governmental policies to make our nation strong, there are principles we should agree about. We should agree the government cannot arbitrarily arrest and throw people in a foreign prison without due process. Allowing a government to get away with such behavior puts us all at great risk of crumbling into an autocracy. If that happens, whom will the government target next?
And so I ask those on the right: please find common cause with liberal citizens to stop governmental cruelty and abuse of power. Our arms are open. We’re not the caricatures that Fox News scurrilously portrays. We love our nation, and we know that you do, too.
-Lisa Wolfe Kettle Falls
