Letters to the editor: Vaccines, development, elections, impeachment
Positive vaccine experience
My wife and I received the first dose of Moderna vaccine at St. Luke’s Hospital. We were a little wary of doing this as we had seen long lines of people waiting outdoors for the injection in other cities and wondered what would happen if one of us had a strong reaction to the medicine. Well, I am delighted to tell you that our experience at St. Luke’s was a very positive one. The hospital had a huge cadre of employees to guide us indoors, schedule our second injection, inform us of any adverse reaction possibilities, and guide us to a private room for the injection. After getting the shots we were guided to a very comfortable lounge where we were to sit for 15 minutes, just in case we had any immediate reaction to the shots. We had none, but if we had, that was the place to be.
All this took about 30 minutes and everyone was very friendly and helpful. I certainly salute St. Luke’s for organizing such a well managed and productive program. They injected 1,500 elderly citizens yesterday and will do so again when they receive the medicine.
Robert Butler, Eagle
Costs of development
Regarding the Quarry Village in Eagle gaining initial acceptance by the Eagle City Council, the first review of the project by Idaho Department of Transportation stated that the project would require significant upgrades to intersections close to the project. State Street and Old Horseshoe Bend Road and State Street and Highway 55. In July 2019 it was estimated the cost would be $20 million to be paid by the developer, Ms. Greco. She stated “that was too much.” The (recent) article states the cost of upgrades regarding traffic issues was not addressed. Is this one more million-dollar project being approved that the regular taxpayer has to foot the bill for infrastructure upgrades?
Dennis James, Eagle
Election process
The events of the last several months, including the disputes surrounding the election and the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, have convinced me that a complete revision of our presidential election process is necessary. The sequence of events, including the selecting of electors in each state and their meeting to vote, the certifications of the states’ votes, the transmissions of the certified results to Washington, and the final acceptance of each state’s results by Congress, is way too lengthy and complicated. There are too many chances for mischief by those not satisfied with the results.
We need a simple system that replaces most of these procedures. Ideally there would be nothing but a nationwide tally of votes, but the various officials of each state wouldn’t sit still for that. So votes would need to be tallied and certified by each state’s election officials, sent to Washington, and certified there. This system would require dropping the Electoral College provisions from the Constitution.
Despite the reluctance of some who see a political advantage to the current system, recent events might convince many that change is required. I think that now is the time to make the change.
Walt Thode, Boise
Impeachment
Republican senators, including Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, claim not to support the rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. But by refusing to convict Trump, they signal the opposite. A vote to acquit emboldens the rioters and their supporters. These Republican senators are cowards. If the entire Senate instead voted to convict Trump, they would send a unanimous, unequivocal message that they condemn these actions. They would take the first step toward legitimacy, and the first step toward redemption. Instead, the Republican Party is now illegitimate, forever. They are the party of rioters and seditionists. What is the responsible conservative voter to do now? I recommend quitting the Republican Party, immediately. Register as independent. In the future, vote for the person, not the party. If you ever donate to a candidate, be sure the Republican party never sees a dime of your money. And call or email your senators and representative today and tell them you quit the Republican party. Their words are meaningless. Their actions show that they side with the rioters who tried to overthrow the government. They care more about their party than about the country. The Republican Party will never live this down.
Crista Worthy, Boise