The government continues to go after immigrants when employers are the real culprits
Penalize employers, not migrants
The recent immigrant round-up shows exactly why the laws need to penalize the employers and not the immigrants.
How many of those illegal immigrants would stay here in the U.S. if they could not get jobs? How many would be here if they could not send their kids to school?
The government continues to go after the immigrants when the real culprits are the employers who hire them and the government and charity groups that offer assistance, encouraging immigrants to come and stay illegally.
Chris Weiss, Waxhaw
Kudos to the 4 ex-governors
In this age of political division, I do wish the citizens of North Carolina would all realize what a threat to our democracy that gerrymandering is.
In our gerrymandered system, politicians too often cater only to their bases and too often are only looking out for their own backsides, rather than the greater good.
I applaud former N.C. governors Jim Martin, Jim Hunt, Bev Perdue and Mike Easley for joining the effort to restore real democracy to North Carolina. (4 ex-NC governors urge end to partisan gerrymandering,” Aug. 9)
Larry Lyon, Cornelius
Trump gutted Obama’s progress
Regarding “Obama, Biden didn’t deliver results” (Aug. 9 Forum):
When President Obama took office the world was in the middle of financial crisis.
As the crisis was brought under control things started to get better slowly. Jobs became more plentiful as evidenced by positive job growth quarter after quarter for years.
Many of the bills passed by Congress during the Obama administration have been gutted or repealed by Trump.
Is it progress to remove EPA restrictions allowing our air to be contaminated again? Turn the consumer protection bureau into an owner/management protection bureau?
Seems to me we are moving back, not forward.
Jane Felton, Charlotte
Focus on root issues, not just guns
Too many people want to downplay the other phenomena closely paralleling the advent of mass violence, the moral decay that is occurring in this country.
The violent video games, the random violence on TV, internet, etc., together with lack of respect for authority and lack of adequate home training are bound to have a deleterious affect on troubled minds.
If as much effort were directed at these problems as trying to blame the problems on the availability of guns perhaps some progress could be made in better control of this problem.
Bill Marlowe, Rock Hill
NC GOP leaders blocking bills too
A previous Forum writer was correct last week when he said Mitch McConnell was blocking gun safety bills.
However, the same thing is happening in our state as Speaker Tim Moore and Senate Leader Phil Berger have also kept HB86 and HB454 for even coming up for debate.
Why are these leaders so afraid of even having a debate on gun safety?
Laura Reich, Matthews
NC senators are beholden to NRA
The recent mass shootings in Texas, Ohio and California once again shed a spotlight on the fact that GOP leadership cannot be bothered to lift a finger to stop gun violence in this country.
N.C. Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis have both received millions in donations from the NRA. Blood is on their hands.
It isn’t a mental illness problem. It isn’t a video game problem. It isn’t a lack of religion problem. It’s a gun problem.
And our senators are complicit. I look forward to voting against Tillis in 2020 and to seeing Burr’s retirement.
Gordon Olson, Davidson
Talk is cheap on federal deficit
Campaign season is well underway, and we’re beginning to hear the perennial political promises of a balanced budget amendment to reduce our national debt.
Talk is cheap, however, and the courage to take real steps to reduce our annual deficits is politically expensive. It’s much easier to support a big tax cut and pretend — against all the evidence — that it will “pay for itself.”
The road to trillion-dollar deficits is paved with such promises; we need to do a better job of studying the road signs for the sake of future generations.
Roger Coates, Charlotte
A new slogan for a hacked bank?
Regarding “Capital One target of massive data breach,” (July 30) and related articles:
A new slogan for the Capital One television ad: Instead of “What’s In Your Wallet?” How about “Who’s In Your Wallet?”
J. Ronald Martin, Charlotte
This story was originally published August 11, 2019 at 5:00 AM.