This is Viewpoints for Monday, Feb. 29, 2016
Baseball stadium study
My yard is slowly washing away from the county street pipe going through my yard along with the drainage ditch in my backyard. The water mains are old and breaking or leaking on a regular basis and the study shows we could support a new stadium for baseball.
I wonder do the people doing this study live in Bibb County or pay taxes here? How about somebody else besides the Taxpayers foot the bill for this idea?
— Steve Huff
Macon
Who is the best?
Republican voters need to ask some serious questions before choosing a presidential candidate. It is imperative that more than boastful words are considered in order to keep America safe, improve our economy and bring dignity to the office.
Seven hundred and one international relations scholars were asked to rank the candidates as to who would "most effectively manage the most important foreign policy issues facing the U.S." Kasich received 54.38 percent of the votes, Rubio 6.04 percent, Trump 1.66 percent, and Cruz 1.51 percent. (This poll was conducted by the Teaching, Research & International Policy project at the College of William and Mary). While the other candidates have minimal foreign policy experience, Kasich has 18 years of service on the House Armed Services Committee.
Another area that deserves serious consideration is the economy. Neither Rubio nor Cruz has ever written or balanced a budget or created jobs. Many economists have panned Trump's economic plan for adding trillions of dollars to the deficit. While a congressman, Kasich was the chief architect of the last balanced budget, and as governor of Ohio, he turned an $8 billion inherited deficit into a $2 billion surplus. In addition, he created 400,000 new jobs.
Last is the question of which man will evoke respect from citizens and world leaders. Trump has insulted and belittled many people and uses language unbecoming a president. Cruz has problems with honesty and fair play. Kasich is the only candidate who has risen above the mud slinging. Wisely vote for John Kasich.
— Karen Mannng
Medina, Ohio
Democracy
The Telegraph's editorials are usually well-informed, well-reasoned and spot-on. But Feb. 19's "Watch out, here they come," about political advertising during the lead-up to the March 1 "Super Tuesday" primaries, was an exception because it missed the big picture.
Yes, we are about to be "carpet-bombed" with political advertising; yes, seeing the same ad over and over again can get monotonous after a while; and yes, some of the negative ads can go so far as to seem ridiculous, which makes them the most entertaining thing on television for some of us, but never mind that. The big picture is that this is democracy in action, and anyone who cares about freedom should celebrate it and be grateful for it. Millions of oppressed people across the world would pay a very high price to have the equivalents of American political campaigns and elections in their countries. Would The Telegraph prefer that our disagreements be settled by coups, civil wars, massacres and wholesale imprisonment of dissenters, as happen in so much of the world?
An American presidential campaign and election is among the most exciting dramas on Earth because the stakes are so high and the outcome, at least in the earlier stages, is so in doubt. This is completely unlike even the most exciting movie or fictional TV drama, no matter how many car chases or shootouts it might contain, because in those cases we all know, more or less, that the good guys are going to win. It is also immeasurably more exciting than any Super Bowl, World Series, boxing match, car race or other sporting event, because those contests involve no real stakes other than bragging rights and financial compensation, whereas American presidential campaigns can determine the fate of the country and indeed the world.
Yes, our democracy, like all democracies, is deeply flawed. Yes, in every election cycle some of the ads, and this year even some of the candidates themselves, seem absurd. But those are prices we pay for democracy. As Winston Churchill said, "Democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried." I hope The Telegraph will develop a more sanguine attitude toward democracy — warts and all.
— David Mann
Macon
Stand up for others
It has come to my attention that the Georgia Senate has passed House Bill 757 (a bill allowing discrimination of any non-heterosexual man, woman or child in businesses across the state) and I would urge my fellow Georgians to stand in solidarity with those now legally discriminated against through this bill. I respect the ideals of freedom our nation is founded upon, but we must not use these freedoms against ourselves.
Paradoxically, the religious freedoms afforded to us by the First Amendment can perversely be used to limit the freedom of others. Regardless of your personal beliefs on homosexuality and bisexuality, we can all stand as Americans behind the ideals of equality and justice. What have we learned from the civil rights movement other than the absolute necessity to observe the sanctity and humanity of each person? This is but another incarnation of the prejudice that has held back millions of people.
This bill reopens the ability for business owners to discriminate as they did through Jim Crow. It gives them carte blanche to deny service to anyone they see as unworthy. Even if this bill does not affect you personally, we cannot ignore the fact that it will change other people's lives in a very real way. Which is why I again implore you to stand up and exercise your right as an American to let your voice be heard by our lawmakers. Please, for the security of other's rights, be on the right side of history.
— Ian McConaughy Williams
Macon
This story was originally published February 28, 2016 at 10:07 PM with the headline "This is Viewpoints for Monday, Feb. 29, 2016 ."