Letters to the editor March 4

Attorney General Tim Fox testified for HB 86 during the 2019 legislative session and used his influence to push it through. HB 86 made it more difficult to obtain needed pain relief. Seniors and veterans are especially suffering. In-depth examination of the destructive repercussions of HB 86 are covered in a three-part series in Montana Senior News beginning this month.

Why would Fox, a savvy politician who hopes to be elected governor, promote suffering? Why did he support legislation that unfairly targets two groups of people valued by Montanans — seniors and our beloved veterans?

Too often politicians react to a perceived need by taking action without thinking the problem through. In their quest to avoid public criticism, or to portray themselves as problem solvers, they pass laws that do more harm than good. The citizen is better served when elected officials do what’s right, including thoughtful, rational evaluation based on the effect the law has on their constituents.

I ask legislators and Fox to read this series in Montana Senior News to understand the unintended but damaging consequences to Montanans. Fox would do well to consider the advice given to us physicians: “First do no harm.”

—Annie Bukacek, Kalispell

In the wake of Trump’s executive order on immigration, many critics have stated the Statue of Liberty slogan representing American immigration: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”

I don’t recall seeing an (*) as long as you are white.

The Trump administration has made building a wall along the southwest border a cornerstone of its overall agenda. The proposed wall has generated intense debate, and Congress, even while under unified Republican control from 1/2017 until 12/2018, repeatedly refused to appropriate money demanded by Trump to fund the project. At the end of 2018, the standoff resulted in the longest government shutdown in American history. As Trump continues to, blatantly misappropriate government funds, including $3.6 billion in money allocated for military construction to build this wall, he has ignored an equally important element: land.

His point in building the wall on the southern border is to keep immigrants out. However, many news sources reported, part of his wall blew over in Calexico, California, and a number tunnels have been discovered in numerus border cities, recently one over 5,000 feet long.

History has shown, no wall is impregnable, like the Wall of Jericho, Roman Walls, the China Wall, Berlin Wall, even Wall Street came tumbling down. If his goal is to keep out bad elements like MS 13, he’s too late. They have lived in the USA since 1970.

Maybe he needs a new bunch of bad guys. At his next pep rally, he needs to rally his loyal followers into building the wall to keep Ali Baba and his Forty Thieves out of the USA. Then, all Ali Baba would have to say is, “open sesame.”

—Frank DiNenna, Lakeside

Democrats claim taxing the rich is the way to help the middle-class and poor. That the rich get rich by taking wealth from others. Norm would have said, “idiots.”

Bill Gates and Paul Allen, worth billions, created an operating system for computers enabling the average person computer operation. Microsoft products and stock have created millions of jobs, businesses and many billionaires, millionaires and middle-class people.

Microsoft is presently a trillion dollar company, employs 148,000 people; starting engineers at $91,500 with health care, retirement and stock share programs. If you passed up the motorcycle, vacation, ATV, etc., in 1986 and spent $2,100 on 100 shares of stock (Gates risked everything he had) you would now own 28,800 shares (stock splits) worth $5,184,000 today. None of this wealth existed before Microsoft; so Gates (Allen and others) the billionaire, did not get that way depriving the ordinary person of anything. Indeed, the opposite is true in spades. His vast wealth is a trickle compared to the wealth he has created for others. Ironically the biggest single beneficiary has been government where taxes on employees, large and small businesses, products and capital gains are incalculable.

Gates just bought a yacht which runs on climate saving natural gas. It employees 31 crew and of course the builders and suppliers of the yacht employed many. Service, food, fuel and the usual licenses and taxes will employ many more. Poor guy can’t buy anything without creating jobs and taxes. Ah, capitalism; every dollar you spend benefits someone else.

Democrats would take the money Bill used for his yacht. They claim it will provide food stamps, public housing, medical care and free college, for all those people who used to have a job building and crewing his yacht, and of course investigate Trump, give aid to any nation who will employ their relatives and make sure Pelosi has a private jet.

There are no good taxes. They deprive everyone (except public serpents). The more money spent by the rich the better for everyone. Think about it, what benefit did your town receive when a rich person sent a couple million to the federal government; did it build a school, or fund a public pool or build a local brewery which employed local people?

—Gary Fitzpatrick, Lewistown