Observer Forum: Letters to the editor 01.18.16

Charlotte shorted on road funds – again

Find another comparable city in the country that still has two-lane interstates serving as the primary access.

There are available funds to do the I-77 toll project – they just aren’t being spent in Charlotte.

Our illustrious back-stabbing, former mayor is asking you to vote for a $2 billion infrastructure bond.

Anyone who votes for it or for any elected official who supported the I-77 toll project is a fool.

Time to revisit, push for I-77 rail options

Norfolk Southern is playing hardball in not offering reasonable rights for use of its freight line that parallels I-77 in North Mecklenburg.

Thousands of travelers could use the line forever, and that use could make a tremendous difference economically and environmentally.

Teachers should benefit from lottery

An organization that calls itself an “Education Lottery” should put more of its funds into actual education.

Noneducational school workers benefiting from the lottery is not a bad thing, but you would think that the amount of money created when people hear about a chance to earn $1 billion or more surely allows some room to help the state employees who educate our children.

State must stop shortchanging CMS

North Carolina teachers are grossly underpaid, even by the country’s low standards.

Recent proposals to decrease assistant teacher pay, as well as the described financial shifts to support staff, hint at a bigger problem.

Few other service careers require lottery support, like teaching. We treat teaching as an afterthought, not as an integral part of children’s growth.

Trump repeatedly bullies protesters

It may be legal to remove a protester from a private event, but the manner in which Donald Trump handles such instances speaks volumes about his character, or lack thereof.

At one rally in which the removal became physical, Trump stated that “Maybe he should have been roughed up...”

At a Vermont event he instructed that protesters be thrown out into the cold without their coats.

The Hamid incident involved a woman who never said a word and wore a shirt that read “Salam, I come in peace.”

Trump’s audiences may cheer such confrontations, but this immaturity will not serve our country well should he become president.

Hamid inspires me; Hough not so much

Thank you for printing the article by Rose Hamid. It makes me want to learn more about the religion of Islam and the similarities between religions.

In contrast, Jibril Hough, the spokesperson for the Muslim community in Charlotte, was once again forcibly removed from an event for disruptive behavior.

If Charlotte’s Muslim community wants to foster a better understanding of its religion, removing the current radical spokesperson would be a great start.

Don’t hide behind mental health issue

Those who are against any gun control measures redirect the issue to blame inadequate mental health care.

A Jan. 12 article in the Journal of the American Medical Society stated that 95 percent of violent acts are done by non-mentally ill people.

It has also been shown that reduced access to guns reduces homicides and suicides.

Putting assault weapons in the hands of citizens enables mass shooters.

Having sensible rules on guns does not violate the Second Amendment any more than traffic laws violate your right to drive.

Let’s not hide behind mental health as a solution. Address the actual problem.

This story was originally published January 17, 2016 at 12:45 PM with the headline "Observer Forum: Letters to the editor 01.18.16."