Revise license renewal letter
There is a problem with the driver’s license renewal letter sent by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. People over 60 may apply for a driver’s license with or without a photograph. They may also register to vote with this form.
The application does not mention that, without a picture, the license will not be considered sufficient identification for the purpose of voting.
This omission needs to be corrected immediately. Better, the recent law requiring only certain specific photo IDs – which serves only to disenfranchise the poor and elderly – should be repealed.
SHARON N. FARBER, M.D.
Fleischmann is unresponsive
One year ago this month, Congressman Chuck Fleischmann told the Pachyderm Club that “This country made the greatest mistake it ever made when it elected Barack Obama.”
Since then, I have been trying to get Congressman Fleischmann to clarify his remarks. (Does he think it to be worse than slavery, denial of voting rights, treatment of Native Americans, unnecessary wars.) I have emailed the congressman, had a letter published, participated in a “town hall” meeting and phoned his office over 30 times in the past year and have still gotten no response.
In fact, the last time I called his Chattanooga office, the person who answered the phone hung up on me when he found out my inquiry. It seems that the congressman’s arrogance is spreading to his staff.
I would still like an answer to my question, Congressman Fleschmann, and I do not think it unreasonable to expect one.
AL EZZELL
Put Medicare reform in play
I am still puzzled as to why a number of us feel that the health-care reform bill is the “great Satan” that must be destroyed at any and all cost.
So you don’t like your children to have health care coverage to age 26 under your family employer health- care plan?
So you don’t want your spouse, who is uninsurable due to a pre-existing condition, to be able to purchase and have health insurance coverage?
Well, if we must destroy this mandated coverage then let’s not discriminate.
Medicare coverage is mandated as well. You cannot refuse Medicare coverage.
If we must repeal the health-care reform act, then Medicare coverage must be repealed as well.
WILLIAM P. GALLOWAY
Signal Mountain
Supportive parents make schools great
Normal Park Magnet School has been in the news and David Cook’s column a lot lately.
Why is this school so good? Ethnic and economic diversity? No. Money spent by the school board and outside benefactors on facilities and programs well above the norm? Partially yes. Great teachers at the school? Partially yes. High-performing parents supporting the school and their kids’ academic achievement? Yes a thousand times.
I conclude the best money to spend to improve all schools across all of Chattanooga and Hamilton County is to reach out to the parents (and the rest of the community) to support our schools, to get involved in making the schools be successes.
Spend school tax money. Spend community money (foundation, business, church). The goal is to reach all people, parents and community, to spend time making the schools good, to be involved.
If there is one first answer to all society’s problems, it is education. All education gives hope to people. It empowers people, so they can learn to and can really, actually take care of themselves. All other monies spent are just to enable this education to take place, whether for food, housing, health care, transportation, day care.
JOHN HUBBARD
Remove Limbaugh from the airwaves
Even by Rush Limbaugh’s vile, hateful standards, he may have dug even deeper into the cesspool. You know the things he said about Ms. Fluke. She was trying to defend health care for all women.
I call on all of you with any decency to not only denounce this filth, but to demand that Limbaugh be removed from all U.S.A. airwaves permanently. We the people of the U.S.A. own these airwaves and should have a say as to what is allowed.
The last I heard, he was on Armed Forces radio.
There is no excuse for allowing such garbage. Politicians, people of faith, ministers, priests, rabbis, please protect the decency and common good of our country. This is nothing but divisive hatred. If you stand idly by or pretend to claim “free speech,” you show that you condone this disgustingly despicable hatred. When Rush began losing advertisers, he issued a non-apology “apology.”
As for men, do you not respect or have concern for the health of your mothers, wives, sisters, nieces, daughters, or any female?
WALTER M. BENTON
Signal Mountain
Knowles’ service makes voting easier
On “Super Tuesday” (March 6), I voted, as I have done for over six decades.
When I first learned I had to provide a government-issued photo, in order to vote, I thought I might forego this important activity rather than going to the trouble of having my picture made for this purpose.
I had two picture IDs, but neither was issued by a governmental agency. Drivers of my age are exempt from having their picture on their driver’s license.
I am not persuaded that acquiring a governmental-issued picture ID was necessary to cement the integrity of the franchise, but needing to be in the courthouse and having learned that County Clerk Bill Knowles had made arrangements to provide such a picture ID, I decided to get one.
Mr. Knowles’ department treated me with respect, and I soon had a driver’s license with a photo.
I could have voted absentee without the picture ID, but prefer the ambiance of the polling place. Kudos to Mr. Knowles for providing this service to those of us who needed it.
MARK S. WOMACK
Why no coverage of Gingrich visit?
Newt Gingrich visited Chattanooga on the eve of Tuesday’s Republican primary, speaking to an energized crowd at the airport.
Herman Cain warmed up the crowd with an electrifying support speech for Gingrich.
Although several news media people were there, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, with apparent intent, omitted any coverage of the event in your newspaper the next morning – no article, no photo, nothing about his Chattanooga visit.
The only article in your paper was from the AP, focusing on Romney and Santorum, with a photo of Newt walking through a grocery store in Kingsport. Why was your calculated omission of Newt’s visit to Chattanooga so noteworthy? People here would cast their ballots on the following day. Newt spent time, energy and money to come here, and his election eve visit deserved your news coverage.
Newt Gingrich has the experience, proven track record, intellect, unparalleled debate skills and bold vision to win in November. He would not go to Washington to politely manage a failing system, but would address our nation’s problems with bold measures. Obama fears Gingrich and is using a complicit national media manipulation to ensure Newt’s defeat.
PAUL SHEARER
Congress created Post Office issue
Our Post Office problems are caused by an act of Congress in 2006 to financially break it because they thought it was an evil institution and unconstitutional.
The Post Office is specifically authorized by the Constitution. This act of Congress requires the Post Office department to pre-pay all medical care and retirement cost in advance and is now pre-paid for more than 20 years.
No other governmental agency – federal, state, county or city – or any corporation has ever been required to do this.
This was a deliberate act to break this agency.
A patriotic act? About on a par with a “corporation” equals “a person,” or “money” equals “speech.”
There is legislation before Congress now to correct this. Call your senators and representative now. Your service can be restored with little or no added cost.
THOMAS A. GREER JR.
Dunlap, Tenn.