Speak Out is a reader-generated column of opinions. If you there’s something you’d like to comment on in Elgin or beyond, send an email to [email protected]. Please include “speak out” in the subject line.
Gas companies greedy: It would not make much difference if the president reversed his position on new oil drilling. There are thousands of drilled wells and unused oil leases out there. The question you should be asking is why are the oil corporations not taking advantage of what they already have access to? Perhaps the most obvious answer is simple greed. By being able to keep the prices high, they will continue to be the most profitable corporations in the world.
Guns = victims: The violence that occurred in that New York subway on Tuesday is a stark reminder that over 45,000 Americans died of gunshot wounds last year. Until this country comes to grips with the uselessness of the Second Amendment and the simple fact there are too many guns on the streets (with easy access to many more), people who compile statistics will have job security well into the future. That is, if this nation has one.
Restoring the U.S.S.R.: Putin said Moscow had no other choice but to launch a military operation to protect Russia, and that a clash with Ukraine’s anti-Russian forces had been inevitable. The Ukraine posed no real threat but was Putin’s act of aggression meant to expand Russia’s borders. Putin’s overall plan is to bring those countries that were past Russian territories back into the fold!
Too late to help: Under Obama-Biden, Putin took Crimea. No effective response. Under Trump, Putin made no incursions into any of his neighbors and was confronted with his aid to Assad’s Syria. Under Biden-Harris, after the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, Putin was emboldened to mass his army along Ukraine’s border. While one may argue Biden took all the correct steps, every step has been too late to be effective. As a result, Putin invaded Ukraine resulting in deaths of thousands, displaced millions and untold destruction to many cities.
Let parents decide: One recent column attacked Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida for his so-called war with Disney over the recently passed Parental Rights in Education bill, which the Post-Dispatch inaccurately calls the “don’t say gay” bill. Why should innocent children as young as 5, 6 and 7 be taught about sexual matters of any nature? Arguing for secular government and woke corporations like Disney rather than parents to determine curriculum usurps the parental right of choice.