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As long as I can remember, the U.S. Coast Guard has approached vessels suspected of transgressions and forced them to stop, boarded them and proceeded with appropriate action. Of late, Secretary of War (No longer Defense) Pete Hegseth has caused our attack ships to fire on “suspected drug smugglers,” destroying them and killing several individuals. As far as I’ve heard, they’ve located no real evidence of drugs or other illegal activities. Of course, destroyed small craft leave very little evidence to be investigated. We apparently are just firing first and asking questions, or not, later. Can you see that this is one step from ICE personnel approaching a person on the street and, without provocation, shooting him/her because they might have drugs on them or may have committed some crime? My gosh, what about the rules of law, probable cause? Are none of these now necessary? I shudder at what our country is becoming.

Philip Reinecker

East side

Just one small question

One small question: How many times will the $300 million ballroom, twice as large as the entire White House, be used in a year? In a decade? (And how many of those uses could have fit in the old ballroom?) Is there anything more urgent that money could be used for? Nah — surely that’s this country’s greatest need!

I guess that’s more than one (easy) question.

Shawn Campbell

Midtown

Universal health care

On Jon Stewart’s Daily Show on Oct. 20, he had Bernie Sanders as his guest. The subject of health care costs was discussed as the reason for “No Kings Day” and the government shutdown by the Democrats in Congress. As usual, Trump was vilified. Bernie wants “Universal Health Care.” I am also in favor and have been for many years.

In Obama’s first term, he had an overwhelming majority in the House and Senate. There was a clamor to enact. He and his compatriots gave in to the lobbyists and produced Obamacare, which has never been truly successful.

The Democrats, led by people like Bernie, could negotiate for a compromise, but of course, they won’t, as hatred is their driving force. They are willing to penalize citizens rather than cooperate.

Jack Walters

Northeast side

Who are we?

Things we have lost as a nation under God: We have lost compassion and kindness for those suffering around us. People just like us, who are fleeing persecution and poverty. We need to show tolerance and understanding toward those who are different from us. We are all children of God, no matter our skin color or our sexual differences. We need to show more empathy, or at least more sympathy ,toward those in pain or in need of our help. To accomplish this, we need courage. The courage to overcome our prejudices and preconceived notions. The courage to stand up for what we know is right in the eyes of God. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no greater commandment.”

Love.

Peter Morales

Midtown

Mike who?

The USDA has an emergency reserve fund of $5 billion that was designed to be used to continue SNAP payments in case of a government shutdown. The Trump administration (read that as Trump) has decided not to use that money for the purpose Congress intended. Although the Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, and his Republican Congress supposedly have responsibility for funding in their Constitutional job description, they have abandoned any pretense of governing and become instruments of Trump’s will. Trump himself has joked that he is Speaker of the House as well as President, making Johnson’s position in Congressional decision-making clear. Trump’s ally Steve Bannon has compared them to the Russian Duma, the ceremonial and powerless parliamentary body that rubber-stamps Putin’s proclamations.

Barbara Hall

Midtown

Autism

What causes autism? Based on my over 30 years of research and clinical experience as a psychologist, here is a brand-new hypothesis: Autism may be caused by a combination of genetic factors and hormonal changes in utero associated with exposure to light at night when our bodies expect (and need) darkness. The hypothesis is the fruit of a larger study of the human consequences of light and Neanderthal genes (we all have them). The hypothesis is explained in my new book, The Neanderthal-Human Hybrid Is Us: Bipolar Disorder A Behavioral Fossil. I don’t know if the hypothesis is correct. It is certainly plausible. Autism is associated with genes from Neanderthal; it has greatly increased in the last 50 years, and so has women’s exposure to light at night. Light influences the secretion of the hormone melatonin, which is known to affect fetal development. You can find references to my work and credentials online.

Julia Sherman, PhD

Northwest side

Democratic Party today

My parents were Kennedy Democrats, fiscal conservatives and social moderates. Today, the extreme left has dominated the party to one that believes men can participate in women’s sports, open borders, no cash bail, sanctuary cities, etc., etc.

The high-profile Democrats — A.O.C., Jasmine Crockett, Bernie Sanders — embrace socialism/communism. Mamdani, an avowed socialist running for Mayor in N.Y., was endorsed by Gov. Kathy Hochul and U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. Once he is elected, he will be the poster child of the Democratic Party. Tax the rich is their mantra, free lunch for everyone. It is shocking to see this position being embraced by part of our electorate. As we approach our 250th year next July, all of us who love America and understand we have arrived here as a Democratic Republic believing in free enterprise and capitalism, take note of what is happening to this political party. For those who identify as a Democrat, you need to open your eyes and be aware of what your party has become.

Bill Dowdall

Oro Valley

MAGA nonsense

My goodness! Methinks Mr. McConnell may need a few sessions of anger management therapy. His rage list of silly statements (Oct. 28) may be unusually over-the-top, even for him, but it still represents the usual fare of rabbit-hole nonsense regularly put forth by the MAGA crowd when a defensible position is not available to them (a frequent occurrence). Mr. McConnell has chosen instead to throw out a slew of absurd distortions of reality in a rancor-filled and truth-challenged tantrum, much like one of Trump’s “rage tweets,” and we all know how seriously any rational person takes those.

Hope Gastelum

East side

Demolition of East Wing

Had to respond to Linda Schaub (LTE on Oct. 26)

After reviewing your list of taxpayer-funded renovations to the White House, I noticed a common theme. All the projects listed did not require demolition of any existing buildings in the White House, for example, the East Wing. Do you think maybe that could be the cause of the uproar?

Sarah McKasson

Midtown

Yes on Prop 414

TUSD is asking for a budget override for more money with Proposition 414. Absolutely! The public schools have been trashed by bad policy coming out of Phoenix. Allowing seemingly unrestricted funding for almost anything is bad policy. The schools should all be held on an even keel. If TUSD wants each student to go to Disneyland under Horne’s rules for charter schools, it would be funded as an educational expense. But as a public school, it cannot be done. It should be each school gets a set amount of money per student, no extra because charters are different. Weird expenses reported for Arizona’s Parent Choice Funding include luxury items like skis and pianos, recreational activities such as ninja warrior training and trampoline parks, and expensive equipment like high-end sewing machines and hydroponic gardens. Some reports highlight a broad range of purchases, from extravagant items to common homeschooling materials like pencils and books, leading to controversy over what qualifies as an educational expense.

Peter Bisschop

East side

Resistance

Currently showing in Tucson is a remarkable movie: “Truth and Treason” documents the true story of Helmuth Huebener, a 16-year-old member of a religious community (LDS — the Mormons) living in Germany when the Nazis took over. Despite the hostility of his Nazi stepfather and some members of his church, he was determined to expose the lies and evil of the Nazis. Armed with only a typewriter and a mimeograph, he and two friends produced thousands of leaflets telling the truth about the Nazis and spreading them as far as they could. When he was finally caught, the Nazis considered him so dangerous that they tried him for treason. He was sentenced to death and executed at the age of 17. Today, we often hear that there is nothing we can do about abuse of power, about lies and hate being voiced at the highest levels. But if we have one-tenth the courage of this teenage hero, we can and we must.

Abraham R. Byrd III

North side