Letter to the Editor: Discouraging Direction

As a citizen of this wonderful, diverse, and democratic country, it’s discouraging to see the direction our country is heading. We have a president who governs by Twitter, by untruths, by name calling, by distraction, and by quietly dismantling many environmental regulations that protect our water, land and air. This is not healthy for our democracy or Americans’ sense of community and country.

The Affordable Care Act is the law of the land. Yet, the president is ending the federal subsidies for the ACA. This is an attempt to repeal without any replacement. Health care experts have warned this could put health care insurance exchanges into turmoil and will certainly leave millions of Americans without affordable health care. Is this the kind of country we want to live in…where an executive order may leave millions of us without affordable health care?

The use of nuclear weapons is unacceptable and potentially catastrophic. So far the Iran Nuclear Agreement is working. Do we want a nuclear Iran while we’re already confronting a nuclear North Korea? Of course not. Wouldn’t an intelligent, prudent leader listen to his advisors and pursue as much of a diplomatic course as possible with North Korea and certify the Iran Nuclear Agreement?

The president decides to rage against the NFL players who are peacefully protesting what they see as systemic racism in the United States threatening their children and neighborhoods. Yet he had little to say about the ugly spectacle of white supremacists in Charlottesville carrying Nazi flags and bats. Ours is a nation that strives for tolerance and equality. The President should be the moral leader of the country, not the divider of our country.

When our democracy, our social fabric, and our sense of decency are being challenged by our president on a daily basis, we have to speak up. We’re all Americans. We’re all in this together. I think most of us want the same things:  good jobs, safe neighborhoods, freedom to pray or protest peacefully the way we want to, good affordable health care, a clean environment, a government that is working for all Americans, and a sense of past and present that binds us all together.

Our Senators and Congressmen have to step up now. We need to see bipartisan legislation that will work for all Americans. We need to be vigilant and keep our democratic institutions robust and strong. I urge you to contact your elected representatives and let them know your thoughts and concerns. They are elected by us, and it’s their job to listen to us.

Glenna Peters

Sister Bay, Wis.