Guest column got it wrong
A recent guest column written by Michael Chameides was unfortunately placed in the Cherokee Scout, despite presenting a partisan, misleading and disingenuous perspective.
His very first sentence is incorrect when he states that the Trump Administration’s “top stated priority … is to give tax breaks that largely go to the wealthy and corporations.”
The fact is that the great percentage of tax cuts that were included in Trump’s 2017 tax reform law went to working and middle-income Americans. (Sources: the IRS and The Hill.)
Additionally, the statement that paying for those cuts will impact health care and public safety is not based on any factual data.
The most laughable argument made by Mr. Chameides is that small businesses are going to be hurt in a Trump Administration. I would suggest that the writer spend some time in the real world, and actually meet with small business owners to see just how crushing President Joe Biden’s administrative regulatory environment was to them – and how excited they are that President Donald Trump will be eliminating many of the barriers that they had to face in trying to run their business successfully.
Mr. Chameides includes another ridiculous statement: that “small businesses and their champions also support fully funding the IRS.” Even Janet Yellen, in congressional testimony while Biden’s treasury secretary, admitted that the new IRS agents hired were conducting audits at the same proportion that they always had – which is 90% on families and small businesses below the $400,000 income threshold.
Where I will agree with Mr. Chameides is his contention that “rural communities are ready for solutions.” This is why such a large majority of rural Americans cast their votes for Trump in the recent election, and adamantly rejected the Biden/Kamala Harris policies that have crushed many small businesses in this country.
Tom Smith, Murphy
A jump to the electrical past
I wear a CPAP because of obstructive sleep apnea. At 1:03 a.m. March 5, I was jerked awake by not being able to breathe. It didn’t take long to find out the electricity had gone out.
For once, weather reports were correct. The winds caused something to come in contact with Duke Energy transmission lines.
Cherokee County has been our home for 22 years and hopefully many more. During that time, we have experienced excellent service from Duke personnel.
When the power went out on March 5, I reported the outage as I have done on rare occasions, rolled over and went back to sleep. Everything was in good hands. I knew the dedicated lineman from Duke were working to get the power back on.
I woke up to the sound of rain and wind blowing hard, and knew the conditions for repairing the transmission lines were not good. I said a prayer for those workers. They had left their warm beds and families to help others by putting themselves in dangerous conditions. I wondered how many residents were complaining about the lack of power and the delay in restoring it.
I am not an electrician, but I have a lot of respect for electricity. In good conditions, accidents happen, but in strong winds, rain and cold temps the possibility for accidents increases.
Whatever caused the power to go out must have been out of the ordinary, because it took about 24 hours of hard work for Duke crews to bring the power back on.
This event brought back memories of many years past about not having the heat, light and water that electricity provides. I have taken for granted electricity and the brave men who keep it going, have you?
The great work and commitment of the linemen of Duke Energy, Murphy Electric Power Board and Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Corp. are to be commended for their commitment.
Mitchell Shields, Peachtree
Watching all your words
God’s word in His Bible tells us to be kind to one another, and in your anger do not sin, when you are on your beds but search your hearts and be silent. Resolve your differences before you close your eyes.
Sometimes it is easier said than done because when harsh words come forth from the mouth, the hurt has been voiced, tempers may flare, and walls may go up as you close your ears and hearts to one another. If possible, take time to calm down before working through your issue.
Give respect and kindness, even when you disagree and have a humble heart to forgive. We are all humans striving each day in relationships with our spouse, family members and even church folks who can rattle our cage if caught off guard.
Consider the part you played in the matter and be willing to listen, do all you can to understand each other’s feelings, confess any wrong you have done and ask for forgiveness. Do all you can to make peace.
How many times has God forgiven us for our wrongdoings when we argue with Him about some major issue we are dealing with because He knows full well what you are going through?
Jesus was always under attack by folks who didn’t believe He was the Messiah, and though they wanted to kill Him, He showed love instead of anger. He showed mercy and grace as He said to His Abba Father – Forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.
May we show this kind of love toward others as well. Words can kill, but forgiveness heals.
Frank Combs, Blairsville, Ga.
Is it Putin or Zelinsky?
Your choice – Vladimir Putin of Russia or Volodymyr Zelinsky of Ukraine.
Contact your national representatives and let them know your choice.
Keith Bruce, Andrews
Time to ax the Senate
We aren’t supposed to talk politics in the lodge, but I ran into Ron in the parking lot this morning, the third such warm spring morning in a row.
Ron, I says, “I figured out a prize big enough to convince the red states to give up their sweetheart Senate congressional deal.”
Ron says, with slight sarcasm, “How’s that gonna work, Sir Herald?”
“Well,” I said, undeterred. “You remember which state closed down their state Senate in the ’30s?”
“You told us about the Cornhusker Unicameral months ago.”
“Well, close up the Senate chambers, and give each state their own Supreme Court justice.”
Ron quickly replied, “That would give the president way too much appointment power.”
Then the solution quickly appeared in both their minds: “Have each state appoint their own justice for the Supreme Court, giving us three healthy governmental entities: the House of Representatives, a 50-justice Supreme Court and the president, each with equal powers.”
“Good thinking,” Ron replied. “Any other constitutional changes you care to propose this fine spring dandelion and daffodil morning, Sir Herald?”
“Yes, one other thing: convert all elections to ranked voting, where you make three choices. If your first choice didn’t receive a majority and your second choice received more votes than your first voice, then your second choice counts, etc.” (This is similar to Instant Runoff Voting, which is now used in Maine and Alaska.)
Harry Holdorf, Blairsville, Ga.
Finding ice on the moon
A team of scientists led by Durga Prasad of the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad analyzed temperature data by India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission, which landed on the moon’s South Pole in August 2023.
Analyzing the topography and temperatures of the moon’s higher altitudes on the South Pole area receive less solar energy, which leads to a cooler surface, which suggests accumulation of ice at shallow depths.
NASA with its Artemis Program will be looking for ice on its next mission. And if ice can be found and developed into water, it will reduce the astronauts’ reliance on Earth’s based supplies and help with their mission by producing rocket fuel by splitting water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen helping further their discoveries.
The varying degrees on the Moon are from 179.6 degrees Fahrenheit during the day to -168.5 degrees F during the night on the sunward-facing slopes. The temperatures on the flattened out area facing toward the pole, temperatures were much lower reaching 138.2 degrees F.
See details in the Communications Earth & Environment publication.
Shelley Dietrich, Murphy4