Fear, not power corrupts us today
The following aptly and surely describes the political climate in today's USA:
"It is not power that corrupts, but fear.
"Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it, and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it." — Aung San Suu Kyi, 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
Claudos Spears
Young Harris, Ga.
Ahh, billionaires! Their influence-buying goes to the top
Evidently billionaire friends of U.S. Supreme Court Justices — and the justices themselves — have no need to be transparent about what they give and receive.
Those one-way gifts are simply a token of friendship, and it is silly to ask for an accounting when cases appear before a court led by beneficiaries.
Those petty, ethical requirements are for the rest of us. We wouldn't accept a vendor buying a meal or someone claiming too many miles as "business duties."
Money — lots of it — must make the justices' hearts so pure they can do as they please. After all, they are the best that money can buy.
Helen Barrett
Where does blame for poor scores lie?
Former House Speaker Tip O'Neill popularized the statement "all politics is local." While the meaning may be ambiguous, at the very least it must mean that what is most important to most people is what is closest to them, what is most within their reach. Perhaps nowhere is this axiom more true than in the decisions parents make about their children's schooling, evidence of which is seen in recent years in the flight from public school systems and in pursuit of all sorts of educational options — options often predicated on parental knowledge of particular teachers, particular curricula and particular small school settings. An application of "all schooling is local" and school choice.
You reported in the June 19 edition that Atlanta's school superintendent is in danger of losing her job, in part because of poor student performance. She may or may not be competent in attempting to administer a system with thousands of teachers and staff and tens of thousands of students, but once those thousands of classroom doors are closed, she is utterly unable to effect significant change or outcomes. Only those individual teachers have any hope of affecting their students' performance. To blame her for declining student test scores only proves the impossibility of genuine progress in the context of massive public education systems.
Gary Lindley
Lookout Mountain, Ga.
'In the Bleachers' does not amuse
I'm sorry TFP, but I hope you are not paying any money for the "In the Bleachers" cartoon strip, which shows up in the inside page of the Sports section every single day.
If a cartoon strip's function is to entertain or humor me, this strip fails in a massive way. The only blessing is when I pick up my Sunday newspaper, and it is not there or in the comics section. Thank goodness.
Please find a better sports-oriented cartoon to replace or just go without. Trust me, you'll be doing your readers a huge favor.
Kurt Piepenbrink
Clean coal reliable, not solar and wind
Solar and wind power generation are not reliable and cannot be stored for any extended period. What's more, it appears technology to provide extended power storage is many years away, if ever.
If the Tennessee Valley undergoes a significant spell of cold or hot weather, without sufficient sunshine or wind, there will be extended electric power outages. This is occurring far more often in other parts of the nation.
As for coal, there is plenty of it available for many decades and costs of production are relatively stable, but more importantly, it can be burned far more cleanly. It is seldom mentioned TVA invested billions cleaning up coal power production decades ago, while private utilities were burning coal without environmental controls. I know for a fact this was and probably still is occurring in the Carolinas and in Kansas, to mention a few.
There are significant consequences when electric power is not available when its needed, including untimely deaths.
John F. Eary
Ringgold, Ga.
Reader imagines Trump plea deal
Let's say, just for the sake of argument, that Trump is indicted in Georgia for election tampering and in Washington, D.C., for fomenting an insurrection. Trump will shriek loudly that it is a political witch hunt and that he will be vindicated, just as Vice President Spiro Agnew did in 1973.
Trump's lawyers will tell him that the evidence in the cases is overwhelming, and each one has a high probability of conviction. More to the point, even if he miraculously prevails in three of the four trials, he could still go to prison. Like Agnew, he will have his lawyers arrange a meeting with prosecutors.
Here is the deal: He must plead guilty to at least one count in each case, he must never run for elective office again and he must not discuss any of the court cases in public or private. His prison sentences are suspended, provided that he does not violate the terms of the agreements. Trump signs the plea agreements, and the facts become part of permanent public records. Trump bows out of the presidential race, goes home to Mar-a-Lago and is never heard from again, just like Agnew.
Jim Olson
Griner swap suggests similar exchanges
Brittany Griner, a WNBA basketball star, was released from Russian custody as part of a prisoner exchange in December 2022.
She was arrested for supposedly having a narcotic substance in her luggage as she entered Russia. She served 10 months in a Russian prison.
Before going to Russia, she did not want the national anthem played at her games. She would not stand if the anthem was played. She supported Black Lives Matters.
Since returning to the U.S., she seems to have a new attitude. She does not object to the anthem, even stands as it is played.
At the border, maybe we could swap 20 protesters for 10 immigrants. We could call it "The Brittany Griner Swap." The protesters would need to find another country to take them.
What am I thinking? We allow protesters here to destroy our country, burn buildings, destroy businesses, steal merchandise, attack people. What country would let them in?
What can we do? Vote.
Ruth Cote