1 week Ago
Boycott Purina productsAs reported in The Morning Call on March 4, Teamster Local 773 at Nestle Purina remains on strike for fair wages and benefits. Please honor the picket line by refraining from purchasing Purina products during the work stoppage. The Lehigh Valley has always been made up of proud union towns.
Consumers have the ultimate power in standing up to big corporations by voting with their wallets.Lehigh Valley consumers should stand with their friends and neighbors in their fight for good-paying union jobs that make our community better.Jason RomanoAllentownPennsylvania’s closed primary system is unjustWhen voters show up on primary election day, May 20, it’s not just about who’s on the ballot.
It’s also about those who can’t cast a ballot.Pennsylvania is one of only three big states (New York and Florida are the others) that completely prohibit independent voters from participating in primary elections, even though their tax dollars pay for the election. It’s hard to think of a more blatant example of taxation without representation.
This isn’t some niche issue that only affects a handful of voters. There are more than 1.4 million independent voters across the state, and they are the fastest growing political group in Pennsylvania politics.
This is disenfranchisement on a mass scale.The injustice of this system becomes even clearer in so-called “off-years,” like this one, when voters choose the local officials who directly affect how basic services are delivered in our communities. Many of these races are decided in the primary election.
Pennsylvania’s closed primary system is fundamentally unjust, and it’s making government at all levels worse. It’s time for the state to open our primaries and give every voter a voice.David ThornburghPhiladelphiaThe writer is Chair of Ballot PA.
Trump administration flaunting the rule of lawMost of us know how to clean our own houses. Similarly we know how to clean our work environments of waste. We do not need an outsider to come in.
We do not need Elon Musk.Recently the Musk/Trump administration laid off thousands of workers from key agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Defense, Veteran Affairs, Park Service and the IRS, among others. These agencies were very capable of doing their own house cleaning.
Are we going to allow this outsider to fire our employees and eliminate services? The Department of Education cannot be eliminated without congressional action.Justices Roberts and Sotomayor of the Supreme Court have warned recently of our need to guard the rule of law which is being undermined by this administration. Our president’s flagrant disregard for our Constitution is now evident in his talking about a third term.
Join us in protest every Monday at noon in front of U.S. Rep.
Ryan Mackenzie’s office 1125 S. Cedar Crest Blvd., Salisbury Township.
Margaret BilheimerSouth Whitehall TownshipFederal program helps feed hungry childrenI am a teacher. One day, one of my students started eating paper. When I asked why, he replied that his dad taught him to eat paper when he was hungry and there was no food.
I worked in two public school districts where the majority of children received federal Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program benefits. For children facing food insecurity over the weekend, a teacher organized an in-school food bank where we provided children snack packs.Please remember to urge your political representatives to vote to keep SNAP benefits.
Mark BushekUpper Milford TownshipAmerica’s economy is still a world leaderAlthough there are a handful of small countries with a higher gross domestic product per capita than the United States, their economies are much smaller than the U.S., and certainly aren’t economic heavyweights in the world.
Our economy is dynamic, productive and the envy of most of the world. Would someone please tell me how we’ve managed to accomplish this while at the same time being “ripped off” (as President Trump said) by the rest of the world?Glenn WagnerUpper Macungie TownshipThank you to Ryan MackenzieThank you to Rep. Ryan Mackenzie for your support for proxy voting in Congress for new parents (The Morning Call, April 3).
With all the letters to the editor denouncing the congressman as a mere lackey for the speaker and the Trump agenda, this shows us that we have a representative in Washington who will stand up for our community.As a new congressman with about 100 days in office, he has withstood the unfair barrage of far left criticism, weekly protests outside his congressional offices, and sham town halls where he is called a coward.Mr.
Mackenzie is committed to representing everyone in Pennsylvania’s 7th District, whether you voted for him or not. He will protect Social Security and Medicare while maintaining fiscal responsibility. He is committed to legislation that will protect our communities and families.
His principled stand shows that he is no lackey for anyone.Mike O’HareBethlehemFired federal workers complaining too muchLately we are listening to shouts of “federal job cuts hurt families. Federal job cuts will harm for generations.
” As Charlie Brown would say, good grief! Have none of those who spout such bleeding heart lyrics ever worked in a private industry where hiring, layoffs and terminations occur on a regular basis at the whim of management? In today’s age rarely does a person work just a single job for their lifetime, as our parents and their parents did. When a blue-collar worker loses their job through no fault of their own, they are told to suck it up, buttercup, and get retrained, words federal employees seem to believe shouldn’t affect them.Terry MurphyMoore TownshipThe Morning Call publishes letters from readers online and in print several times a week.
Submit a letter to the editor at [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece are those of its individual author(s), and should not be interpreted as reflecting the views of this publication.
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