Letters to the Editor

+ Einstein had points on how to treat others
Dear Editor:
We think of Albert Einstein for his contributions in the field of physics, but he was also well known and respected as a humanitarian. One of his views is as follows: “As we go through life, occasionally we must reflect on how we have lived our lives.  If we have not strived to leave the world a better place, we must question the justification for our having lived.”

Do you think Einstein meant that we must strive to leave the stock market at a higher level or to see the wealthy pay lower taxes? I don’t think so.

The difference in the two major political parties today has never been more striking and transparent.  It is obvious that one party is on the side of the vast majority of Americans, while the other party has become shockingly callous toward American people in general. 

Republicans favoring large corporations and the wealthy has taken precedence over responding to and supporting the rest of us. Forty years ago, Republicans were very different. Back then, they seemed to be much more attuned to basic American values. What changed? 

These days, they appear to be out of touch with the common American and no longer interested in making this world a better place for all of us. 

When we vote next November, the choices are clearer than ever before. 
Sandy Walker
Venice

+ Scott rail rejection was obviously right
Dear Editor:
Rod Thomson’s article on the high-speed rail project was good. The long-term consequences far outweighed the immediate effects of approving that project.

We would have had federal funds to assist in the construction costs and temporary construction jobs. The result would have been a white elephant for the Florida taxpayers to subsidize for years into the future. Those are not going to be years when we need more costly and ineffective “good ideas.”

From the minute I heard the proposal, I thought the same thoughts Thomson expressed in the article. One of the main reasons we are in the fiscal position in which we now find ourselves is the application of short-term thinking to long-term projects.
John Rich
Sarasota