Letters: Biden mispronouncing mayor's name is not headline news

So often I hear people complain about the media and how they influence how people react to things. Today, I saw an example of an article written and published in the Enquirer that I thought was really out of line.

President Joe Biden came to Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area to discuss the Brent Spence Bridge project. We have needed this for a long time and were so glad he came. That was the main reason for the visit. He also spent time with Mayor Aftab Pureval and went to visit a restaurant in Walnut Hills.

Instead of highlighting this, the writers highlighted the fact that he mispronounced the mayor's name. How many people in Cincinnati mispronounce his name? It is very common and not really that important. We really haven't talked with or about him enough to be fluent with the name yet, but Biden is being called down for his error in pronunciation. It was a headline!

This $1.6 billion project took a backseat to the  mistake our president made and went on to infer that he really should have known better, etc. Give the man some slack. How many names does he have to say and remember in all the travels he makes?

Now lets look back at the years of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He had polio. The fact that he was in a wheelchair was disguised from the public for years. Great pains were taken not to show him in a wheelchair or even mention it. President Lyndon B. Johnson gave interviews in his bathroom. Was that ever a headline? We need to stop this kind or reporting.

Making fun of someone who trips, stutters, has a wardrobe mishap, or anything that is uncomfortable for that person is not something that we should promote in our country. Accepting these behaviors is not the way to achieve unity and respect for others.

Shirley Gallagher, Mason

Biden's trip to southern border being sanitized

I am a legal immigrant. The Christmas before the COVID-19 pandemic happened, I took 30 migrant families, handpicked by a local priest, to an area Walmart and allowed each to spend up to $300 on necessities and Christmas presents for them and their children.

In the city of El Paso, Texas, that has been sanitized for President Joe Biden's visit, is he going to see the two million plus migrants that have crossed the border illegally, among whom might be convicted criminals or potential terrorists? Will he see women and girls being raped and molested, children being sold into sex slavery, thousands of pounds of drugs and the faces of hundreds of thousand family members who have lost relatives to fentanyl deaths? Will he see migrants in overcrowded detention centers and sleeping on the streets. Will he listen to anyone there?

The answer is no.

Remember the border is secure and safe and any problems that exist are the fault of Donald Trump, the Republicans, the immigration system and anyone else but his administration. Numbers don't lie. People do. Look at the statistics on border crossings, apprehensions and drug deaths before Biden took office and implemented his own idea of what the border should be like. As an immigrant, I cry for those migrants who are being used and abused by an administration that does not really care about them.

Peter Ulbrich, Union Township

A football game started and humanity broke out

I am so very proud of our city. Proud of how Bengals fans stood and clapped as the Buffalo Bills left the playing field. Proud of the Bengals fans, Bills fans and other Cincinnatians who stood outside UC Medical Center. Proud of our blue lights downtown. Proud of the "Pray for Damar Hamlin" billboard.

This is us, Cincinnati, and we have shown our stripes.

Mary Ann Fleischer, Montgomery

Speaker's concessions will prevent business as usual in House

The more the Enquirer talks about presenting both sides of an issue, the less it happens. The latest example? Two letters to the editor on Jan. 8, excoriating Republicans for the "disarray" that occurred when attempting to elect a speaker and none congratulating the minority for forcing concessions in legislative procedure that will help prevent "business as usual" in that body. Yes, editors and letter writers, there is another side to the story and it's very positive in nature.

James Owens, Liberty Township

Republicans growing list of investigations a waste of time

Add Dr. Anthony Fauci to the list of people to be investigated by the slim Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives ("Wenstrup focuses on finding COVID answers," Jan. 8). Others on the list include President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, the January 6th Committee and anyone or anything that can waste time while the so-called People's House ignores the people's business, such as education, health care and climate change.

Rep. Brad Wenstrup, a graduate of the William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine, better get some serious expert medical advice before questioning Dr. Fauci, who has his medial degree from Cornell University where he was first in his class. While his medical honors are too numerous to mention, it is noteworthy that he is board certified in Internal Medicine and Allergy, Immunology and Infectious Diseases.

Besides getting his name in lights for the noise and nonsense of another endless investigation, Wenstrup could serve the nation better for which he was elected by promoting COVID-19 immunizations and boosters and wearing masks where appropriate. It would respect those COVID researchers who have and continue to labor over their benches in the best interests of science and the nation. This in spite of the needless death, suffering, financial hardship and disruption to the country while  medicine became a political tool used for nefarious purposes by the former president. That is the "COVID answer" the country needs − how could anyone act so recklessly with the whole country’s well-being? Enough already.

Nancy Rowles, Covington

Higher death rates for Republicans from COVID-19

Rep. Brad Wenstrup’s announced focus to find COVID answers to prevent another "biowar" might more efficiently start closer to home, especially in the rural Republican majority counties he serves.

A recent report by the National Bureau of Economic Research reports that average excessive death rates in Ohio and Florida were 76% higher among Republicans than Democrats. Why? Another report from Yale says vaccine hesitancy in counties with Republican majorities had measurably higher death rates. The partisan gap in death rates widened from April to December 2021 when all adults were eligible for vaccines. Compliance with mask use and social distancing also contributed to the unnecessary loss of life. What actions did Wenstrup take to promote vaccine use, mask wearing and social distancing in the counties he serves? Rather than investigate the wet markets in China, maybe the next "biowar" needs to be fought closer to home.

The most significant accomplishment of former President Trump’s administration was "Operation Warp Speed," which marshaled a public-private partnership to develop extraordinarily effective vaccines, in record time, using extraordinary American scientific genius. Why did Republicans reject this godsend? Why didn’t Republican politicians, especially health care professionals like Wenstrup, capitalize on this victory? What steps did Ohio politicians − besides Gov. Mike DeWine − take to provide good, reliable information and incentives to fight a deadly pandemic? When will Republicans − including our veterans − realize that their death rates were unnecessarily high?

With our porous economy and underfunded public health and VA systems, we will face another pandemic, bringing new contagions to Ohio. Rather than struggling to analyze external threats such as the "wet markets" of the world, maybe Wenstrup could more wisely clarify the role of political leaders when constituents are dying unnecessarily.

Why not strengthen our defenses − scientific research, respect for the truth and advocacy for strong public health systems − closer to home?

Ellen Frankenberg, Springfield Township

Americans will benefit from McCarthy's concessions

Unlike most Republicans, I enjoyed the spirited discussions and the double-digit ballots it took to elect Kevin McCarthy to the speakership role. The "other side" secured some meaningful concessions from him that show that, at least in the early months of this Congress, it won't be business as usual in that body. And, if you look closely at the aforementioned concessions, it might even be possible that the American people will benefit from a Republican majority that has the average American's interests at heart.

Marion Shaeffer, West Chester

Loveland native worked on Scooby-Doo, Pinocchio movies

The Scooby-Doo article in the Jan. 6 edition of Weekend, "Mystery solved: Here is what kind of dog Scooby-Doo is," brought a smile to my face. Not just because the cartoons entertained my children for years, but because there is a "Velma" connection to the Greater Cincinnati area.

Loveland native Noah Pfarr is one of the many story board artists currently working on the HBO movie. He was also a story board artist for the Guillermo Del Toro's "Pinocchio," released Dec. 9. John and Margaret Pfarr, Loveland

Vote for what you want instead of who you want

It would make much more sense to vote for what you want and not who you want or who you want to vote against.

I will vote for securing the southern border. Some people might be voting to let millions of people, including criminals come across, with fentanyl, which killed 100,000 young Americans in a year.

I'm voting for drilling for oil and natural gas and for pipelines to be built. Some might be voting to stop drilling, stop pipelines and buy our oil, which we're going to be using anyway, from Russia, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Iran.

I am going to vote for dangerous criminals to be locked up. Some people might be voting for attorney generals and governors who let dangerous criminals out and to let those arrested for dangerous crimes out with no bail to continue preying on the public.

I'm voting for education choice and for parents to have a say so in their children's education. Some might be voting to let the teachers union to stop all education choice and determine everything about your children’s education.

I'm voting to stop giving welfare or other money to able-bodied people, requiring them to get a job. Some people might be voting to give more money away and make more people dependent on the government as some politicians would like.

I'm voting to stop inflation by reining in the tremendously wasteful government spending. Some people might be voting for more wasteful government spending and more inflation.

There are many more issues that I will be voting on, rather than who.

William C Schmidter, Montgomery

Bills to restrict voting target people of color, disabled and military

Regarding, "Voting rights under attack: How substitute House Bills 458 and 294 will hurt Ohio voters, " (Jan. 6): Terrible voting restrictions targeting Black and brown voters, active-duty personnel, voters with disabilities and many more were introduced in Ohio Substitute House Bills 458 and 294.

Substitute House Bill 458, which has already been passed by the Ohio House of Representatives and Senate, will discard voters’ right to vote with an alternate form of ID, such as a government document or a paycheck. Military IDs won’t be acceptable for voter registration. Voters won’t be able to vote on the Monday before Election Day. In addition, absentee ballots arriving more than four days after Election Day, as opposed to the previous 10 days, will be discarded.

Substitute House Bill 294 eliminates several things from the original HB 294, such as automated voter registration and verification, as well as curbside voting provisions. It requires a person’s citizenship status to be listed on their Ohio driver’s license. In addition, the bill makes proposing an alternate form of county government more difficult. This bill is on its way for a vote in the House.

James Harrington, Mt. Washington

Donate revenue from canceled Bills-Bengals game to worthy cause

I'm concerned some of "We the People" will take legal action to seek compensation for the unprecedented decision by the NFL to cancel the Bills vs Bengals game, claiming it to be biased and unfair. As an alternative, we should consider taking all the revenues generated from ticket sales, wagering, TV and players, coaches and commentators compensation and donating the proceeds to a cause befitting the Monday Night Football tragedy. Let's dedicate the remaining games before the Super Bowl to the love of football, not the love of money. For now, our thoughts and prayers should be directed toward Damar Hamlin's full recovery.

Robert Kisro, Milford

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Letters: Biden mispronouncing mayor's name is not headline news