Dear Editor,
“A Layman Speaks Out” – a title I like, and the name of a book by my husband’s great uncle, the late Frederick Reissman.
Fueled by the somewhat degrading article in Friday’s Daily Herald by Eugene Robinson, “Trump’s Obsession with Obama Spurred Iranian Crisis”, I too am alarmed but for a different reason, which I will so note.
First, I notice not mentioned was the correct title when referring to a past president, or current president, which I believe is a bit disrespectful of the office held by either president.
Differing from your opinion, I believe President Trump used tremendous restraint by not taking action sooner than he did, considering past atrocities that
have been committed.
I prefer not to use name-calling, or direct self-identifying quotes that have
been used in recent times. I also believe President Trump’s speech following the most recent attack was well done, without regard to any political parties, nor personal associations. I too, am alarmed about the threat of further division of USA, by people using politics to create even more division, which I believe is at least part of their motivation.
As a legal, tax-paying citizen of the US, I always wanted an explanation from a knowledgeable source, the purpose of a tremendous amount of money (so large in quantity that it had to be placed on brick pallets packed in a large airplane). It has been reported that the money was in small currencies, and in different countries’ legal tenders. I was not close enough to identify the origin of an abundant amount of this cash, whether pounds, euros or whatever. I did see with my own eyes it being loaded on plane, bound for Iran. Please don’t tell me this was frozen bank account money, nor interest due from such accounts, from a bank or banks in North America. It was more than millions for sure. I would be happy to hear of the purpose of this money from a reliable, authenticated source. My email is available at The Daily Herald in St. Maarten.
Also mentioned was a racial issue. There was nothing racial about this cash.
I am not racist now for many years, although honestly I admit many years ago, I did have an undercurrent of a form of racism, which I rid myself of with education, advancing years, and life’s experiences.
I personally had great expectations for Past President Obama, in spite of some of his remarks, especially being our first man of color to be our President. However, I was more than disappointed.
As for Obamacare health insurance, it proved to be too expensive for those it was created for. I am fortunate enough to purchase my own insurance. I also know from my background that everyone gets taken care of. Unfortunately, it does sometimes require a lot of effort though. Most level 1 trauma center hospitals in the US budget a sizable amount each year for free care. I am not going to get into specifics of fiscal budgets, which I personally have experience with, as they are lengthy, complex, and hard for many to understand.
Also realize teaching hospitals most often need to give an amount of free care, not only for society, but for their residents’ experience, under credible and authenticated supervision of private staff physicians, always assigned to individual or appropriate groups of interns and residents. It’s a two-way street, even though, at times in the past, it has been somewhat one-sided. Having personally experienced this situation, I feel qualified to address it, and am pleased to report it has improved in recent years. Nonetheless, there is still much that can be done to improve the present health coverage, although it is present in many forms, often too complex for some elderly to comprehend.
I am happy to have a strong military force to back up our country, which makes me feel safe; hopefully never to be used to its maximum capacity.
Differences of opinions are always good, providing an educational forum as long as they are always kept in a respectful form.
Isn’t that what we are all about – learning from each other, and exchanging ideas, for the betterment of all people regardless of religion, color, or political agendas?
Respectfully,
Ruth Macdonald
