Want to save USAID? Here’s what it does
So one of the frequent contributors in the Times Free Press letters forum is a big fan of USAID? I doubt very seriously he can name many positive results of our spending billions of dollars in the last 64 years. Here are a few boondoggles: $11.75 million measuring effectiveness of DEI in Nepal; $20 million to promote “Sesame Street” in Iraq; and $4.5 million to individuals in Kazakhstan to combat internet trolls.
How bad is it? On a recent appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-New York, pointed out the absurdity of many funded programs. He said he uncovered a USAID grant of “$3 million to a rap artist in Gaza producing anti-Israel, anti-Semitic songs.”
I’m sure the letter writer is a big fan of anti-semitic songs. Yes, USAID is a small percentage of the federal budget, but it should be eliminated and folded into the State Department.
Douglas Jones
Ooltewah
Dense development: Why we must be wary
A response to the Feb. 27 TFP report, “Proposed housing density change withdrawn”: Hamilton County residents need to be aware and beware of the commission’s high-density development “Plan Hamilton.” How are your roads? How is your commute? Hamilton County Citizens for Responsible Development (HCC4RD.com) has been the tip of the spear, working hard to protect the county’s rural character against high-density housing and commercial development contributing to more traffic congestion with zero consideration for infrastructure improvements.
Road and infrastructure improvements have long been ignored. The roads have become increasingly unsafe and deadly. If left unchecked, the only solution to fund necessary infrastructure improvements will be to increase taxes.
Responsible development means residential and commercial density limited by a methodology of what an existing road can support for commuting, emergency vehicle response time, as well as emergency evacuation for a natural or nuclear disaster. It also means development density limited by net buildable land and not total acreage.
Hamilton County needs an independent planning commission. Elections have consequences. Visit HCC4RD.com for more info.
Rodney Spooner
Ooltewah, Tennessee
Governments only do things to help us
I have heard and read many times about the waste in government and I’m sure it is true, just as there is in every business. What I can never find out is what the waste specifically is. When I ask that question of politicians, I never get an answer. Lots of “you know” and “everybody knows,” but no answer. I generally get very good service from the government, regardless if it is local, state or federal. Frequently the service I get from business is not satisfactory. I just spent an hour on the phone because there was a glitch in the business computer system, and I couldn’t get into my account.
Government is very different from business. In government you can’t just cut costs willy-nilly. The public doesn’t want you to. They want to make sure the prisoners can’t get out. They want neglect and abuse of children investigated. The public likes to feel secure that the food they buy is safe and restaurants where they dine have been inspected for health and safety.
Please, the next time you speak of waste in government — know what you are talking about!
Jane Elmore
Not a dime to rebuild Grace Baptist, school
Where’s Elon’s DOGE when you need it? What bigger case of fraud could there be than FEMA giving tens of millions of dollars to a church whose management failed to properly insure its assets?
The American taxpayers don’t owe Grace Baptist church a dime. The church doesn’t pay into the system, so it shouldn’t get to benefit from it. It claims it’s for the school, but the magnificent campus it wants the taxpayers to build isn’t just a school; it’s a church that runs a school whose stated purpose is to promote its biblical viewpoint. That’s a church disguised as a school.
For FEMA to squander $40 to $50 million precious tax dollars on one badly managed church is sickening, and perhaps unconstitutional. How far would $50 million dollars go for the thousands of tax-paying victims of last year’s hurricanes? The audacity of Grace Baptist to expect, or even ask for, such a payment from the public is simply beyond comprehension. If the parishioners want a magnificent campus, then let them pay for it.
Come on Elon, here’s your chance to make a real difference and shut down this farce. Not a dime.
Bill Harris
Ooltewah
Allies can no longer depend on the U.S.
A sad day for America, and the world, took place in the Oval Office on Feb. 28. The undiplomatic exchange between our president and vice-president with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine was disgraceful.
This berating of President Zelenskyy, with the world watching, was a horrible display of American arrogance, Trump took Vladimir Putin’s side against an ally, while Ukraine is fighting for its very existence, against this bloodthirsty communist dictator.
Remember when Republicans said Harry Truman was soft on communism? That was laughable; this is not.
Vance lied, and Trump praised Putin, saying, “Putin went through a lot of hell with me.” With that, he embarrassed himself, our nation and every thinking person on the planet.
Our nation lost tremendous respect; our allies now know they can no longer depend on the United States, as they have for the past 80 years. We are no longer, as Ronald Reagan put it, “That shining city upon a hill.”
Sadly, Old Glory sends a different message across the world today.
Wilbourne C. Markham Sr.
Signal Mountain
Is Trump preparing us for the actual DOGE?
After becoming president for his second term, Trump announced the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). It was assumed that Elon Musk, the reported richest man in the world, was the leader. Mr. Musk was the person who unleashed his young computer geeks upon federal employees. Mr. Musk was the publicized face of DOGE, issuing orders to department heads to lay off and/or terminate thousands of federal employees, which in many cases may be in violation of the law. He was the one sending emails to employees demanding they account for what they did in the last week. He attended President Trump’s first Cabinet meeting and applauded the actions of DOGE.
But now it seems Amy Gleason is the acting administrator of DOGE.
Did you know the term “DOGE” has a much older reference than the current one? It was the title bestowed on some of the princely rulers of the city states of Italy during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The term derived from Latin meaning “the leader.” This makes one wonder whether the current acronym was accidental or intentional. Trump can’t run for president again; maybe he was shooting for DOGE. He was getting the country accustomed to the term.
Archie Thurman
Trump’s how-to guide on being president
How to be president of the United States in 2025:
› Train by pulling wings off flies.
› Hire only ill-equipped people with no experience.
› Disregard the deaths of innocent children, starving poor, frightened immigrants.
› Fire thousands of federal employees who voted for you.
› Suck up to despots.
› Mouth open? It’s a lie.
› Get a second-in-command to train in shameful, rude, inappropriate bullying.
› Show no respect for anyone except billionaires.
› Humiliate a world hero and take his country’s mineral rights.
It’s enough to make you stop believing in evolution. I want to go back to the Age of Reason.
Helen Barrett
Trump keeps us from loving our neighbors
Do you know that the U.S. has been operating a small but very successful program for resettling refugees who have fled their countries because of persecution? These are people whose lives have been turned upside down. Operating since 1980, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) thoroughly vets applicants and admits fewer than 100,000 people. Resettlement agencies and private sponsors around the country assist these newcomers with basic necessities and help them become contributing members of society.
Tragically, President Trump has abruptly suspended funding for USRAP. His rationale is that the U.S. “lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees.” Yet USRAP has nothing to do with immigration problems at our borders and has operated for decades with bipartisan support. Now, USRAP agencies are suddenly without funding for the refugees currently in their care.
Trump’s actions toward USRAP and other humanitarian programs have broken our country’s longstanding compassionate traditions. He has brought shame not only on the world’s richest country but also the country with the world’s largest Christian population. Christians are commanded to love their neighbors, are they not? Who are our neighbors? Read the answer Jesus gave (Luke 10:25-37).
Betsy Darken
A primer on use of word ‘quasi-‘
Sorry, recent Ranters, but definitionally “quasi-” means “seemingly; apparently but not actually or really.” Thus, “quasi-legal” means “without any actual or real legal authority.”
Moreover, per Roget’s Thesaurus, the antonyms of “quasi-” are “genuine, authentic, bona-fide, real, certified, legitimate.” It’s also worthwhile to note “legitimate” is derived from a Latin word for “legal” — “lege.”
Claudos Spears
Young Harris, Georgia