'Position on health care is disgraceful' and other letters to the editor

Friday, January 1, 1904

Position on health care is disgraceful

Scottie Mayfield is either unaware of what he is saying or choosing to ignore the facts when he says Medicaid is welfare that should instead be left to churches and charitable organizations.

In Tennessee, 1.2 million people benefit from TennCare, our state's Medicaid program. Most are low-income children, parents of dependent children, pregnant women and elderly and disabled adults. TennCare was designed to expand health insurance to the uninsured. How does he propose that churches fill this need? Many churches are struggling with declining membership, aging buildings and increased maintenance costs. Even if they were flush with resources, they are in no position to offer the network of services Medicaid provides.

Programs such as Medicaid were begun because churches, charitable organizations and families could only assist in limited ways for people with extensive needs.

I am amazed/appalled that as a society we seem oblivious to the importance of health care that is available and affordable. Faced with the increased health care needs of an aging population, an obese population, a youth population that already shows alarming rates of high blood pressure and diabetes, we are a nation of obtuse ostriches, with our heads in the proverbial sand. What a disgrace!

KATE STULCE, Ooltewah


Hoss possesses high standards

Growing up in and being a lifelong resident of Soddy-Daisy gives you the opportunity to see how strong a small community can be. As part of the family that is heading up the reconstruction of Poe's Tavern and the City Park, I have a personal interest to make Soddy-Daisy the best it can be. Over the years, it has become apparent that the local community has the same desire. I feel that Bryan Hoss will bring what the city needs to continue building our community's strength.

Bryan has been practicing law since 2001 and has earned a lot of respect from his peers, clients and employees. As a prior employee at Davis & Hoss, I can personally say that Bryan and his partner, Lee Davis, have extremely high standards, integrity and the desire to do the right thing for all people whose lives they touch.

Soddy-Daisy is growing but still has a hometown feeling. Bryan would feel right at home as the Soddy-Daisy judge. I feel that the community would be honored to have him sit in on their bench. Vote Bryan Hoss on Aug. 2.

JESI CARNEY SHAHAN


Get rid of GOP to protect health

Seniors, if you want to keep your Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, food stamps, Meals on Wheels, any good program, you had better vote these Republicans our of office. If you don't, you are going to have the Paul Ryan plan. which is a voucher. Without Democrats in there to block them, the tea party Republicans will take all programs for middle class and poor people and cut them up so they can go on giving tax breaks to themselves (the top 1 percent) and their friends.

You had better start listening and checking your facts. I have read some editorials in this paper that are nothing but lies. President Obama is trying to help seniors, not hurt them. Health-care reform doesn't take anything from regular Medicare; it cuts from private insurance companies that offer the advantage plan.

Believe me, the Republicans are the ones who hate Medicare and Social Security. They want them gone or privatized.

CAROL PROCTOR, East Brainerd


Wage boost starts a vicious cycle

If raising the minimum wage to $10 per hour is a good idea, then raising the minimum wage to $100 per hour must be a great idea! Any argument against raising the minimum wage to $100 per hour can also be applied against raising it to $10 per hour!

The minimum wage should stay frozen where it is and perhaps gradually reduced. Every time the minimum wage is increased it is like putting the economic ladder a worker climbs during their career on top of quicksand. The worker may climb a few rungs only to find that they are back on the bottom step due to a minimum wage increase. Those who are further up cry foul as they look down to see that their comparative progress has been reduced. Initiative is diminished. Demands for increases are made and met. To pay for this, productivity and or prices must go up. Sometimes jobs suffer as businesses both cut back to meet the extra costs and others that are less skilled are considered unemployable and become a further burden to government help. It is a vicious cycle that perpetually repeats.

DEAN YANKAUSKAS, Hixson


Norton's listening sets him apart

I will vote for Judge David Norton for General Sessions Court judge.

When I met David Norton, I was under the impression that he would be like all other "big shots" I've met throughout my life. I couldn't have been more wrong.

David has a sense of compassion and understanding that any man in his position must have. He is connected with the community in a way that shows humility and respect. However, David's ability to listen is what sets him apart. Anyone who has been successful is eager to tell you about the success they have, not David.

I appreciate what he has done for Hamilton County, and it is obvious to me why David was appointed after the loss of Judge Bob Moon. I am excited to know I can vote for a very qualified public servant.

TIM CARTER, Collegedale


Issue about prayer in name of Christ

The battle over the County Commission's praying is really not about praying, but about praying in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is a great effort in the United States to abolish Christianity. Why? Isn't it because it is the only way that offers a true, definite way of salvation? Isn't it because it demands holiness and purity, just like the Lord Jesus Christ Himself?

I do not speak of those who commit evil in the name of Christianity or a church, but of Jesus Himself, who "... suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow His steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth." (1 Peter 2:21-22).

Christianity has been practiced in this country since its beginning. Those who are offended are wrong. Christians, even missionaries, do not go into nonbelieving countries demanding that their leaders stop praying in the names of their gods because they are offended.

Hating Christianity reveals the condition of one's heart, using the excuse of not offending anyone. What about offending the Lord?

BARBARA F. SWYGART, Sewanee, Tenn.


Wall must separate church and state

The recent, disturbing trend of theocratic entitlement oozing from letters on this page is enough to make even the most jaded of us sick to our stomachs. Religion does not govern the United States. The people of the United States govern the United States, regardless of where they spend their Sundays.

If the framers meant to establish a Judeo-Christian utopia, then they did a horrible job of it, with their godless Constitution and limitations of religious influence on government -- and vice versa. If you are a Christian, you have no more of a right to govern this country than any other citizen of any other faith, or non-faith. Your religion is your business and yours alone. Do not try to pervert our democracy to make it mine. Indeed, Jefferson's "wall of separation between church and state" is as essential to the rights of the religious as it is to non-believers. For if one religion claims hold on the power of governance, it becomes a threat not simply to freedom of religion, but to freedom itself. And so I say, Mr. Jefferson, build up that wall!

CHARLES DUESLER, East Ridge