Letters: Des Moines drivers are too aggressive

Des Moines drivers are too aggressive

The Des Moines City Council deserves praise for deciding to lower the speed limit on Fleur Drive, next to where I live, from 40 mph to 35. I hope the new limit will slow traffic, but I suspect it won't.

That's because drivers around here simply love going fast!

I thought I was imagining this when I moved back to Des Moines in 2020, having spent the previous 40 years in Ames, the Quad Cities, Kansas City and Overland Park, Kansas. Here, they're right on your tail after you pull from a stop. Especially the muscle cars, when you make a turn seconds after seeing nobody coming either way. I truly haven't sensed this need for speed anywhere else.

I'll float a holistic approach: Just as the fast driving seems unique to me, so do the very long waits at Des Moines' lighted intersections. Perhaps a signal that should have changed 5 to 10 seconds earlier creates an impatience among motorists to make up for lost time.

Any other solutions out there? We need more of them.

Rick Montgomery, Des Moines

Speak out to Board of Medicine on abortion

The recent cases of Brittany Watts in Ohio and Kate Cox in Texas serve as disturbing examples of the consequences faced by women in states with restrictive abortion laws. Despite “exceptions” written into these states’ laws, these women’s health emergencies were not just neglected; their personal tragedies were compounded by legal prosecution and denial of essential health care.

In Iowa, the Board of Medicine will hold a public hearing on its proposed rules for enforcing Gov. Kim Reynolds’ and Iowa Republican legislators’ abortion ban on Jan. 4 from 10 a.m. to noon at 6200 Park Ave. in Des Moines. To submit public comments online, you can email Chrissy Grecco (Chrissy.Greco@iowa.gov) at the Iowa Board of Medicine by Jan. 2. The proposed rules can be found at https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/aco/arc/7170C.pdf.

I urge every Iowan to read the document and let the board know that no set of rules can ever adequately address the spectrum of pregnancy emergencies that could occur or make up for stripping us of the private reproductive healthcare decisions we are entitled to make for ourselves and our families.

Iowa’s abortion law has been stayed by a judge – for now. But the Iowa Supreme Court will rule on it in 2024. If the law is allowed to stand, these rules will go into effect. And Iowans will face the same dire situations and outcomes as girls and women in other states.

Jodi O'Donnell, Ames

Trump’s dictator remarks are not acceptable

Before the 2020 election, before even one ballot had been cast, Donald Trump started saying that, if he lost the election, it would be because of fraud. And, as we all know, many people absorbed that thinking and continue to hold that belief in spite of all the investigations that prove there was no fraud.

Now, Trump is grooming his followers to accept the idea of having a dictatorship as a form of government with, of course, Trump being the dictator. He has stated he would only be a dictator for one day. This rhetoric is dangerous. We have a democratic form of government with check and balances. Having a dictator is not acceptable, not for one day, or one hour, or even one minute. We all need to be assertive about protecting our democratic form of government. Think carefully before you vote.

Lola Peters, Ankeny

Better than a campaign donation: A newspaper subscription

Newspapers delivered to the doorsteps of subscribers are predicted to decline by one-third by the end of 2024, according to Axios. For democracy to survive in the United States, the printed newspaper is imperative. The paper increases civic involvement and knowledge of happenings in the community. Without this involvement and awareness, the community becomes more partisan.

The price of printed newspapers has risen due to an increase in the cost of newsprint, an increase in the price of gas, and an increase in salaries to retain employees. For newspaper doorstep delivery to continue, I suggest that voters purchase a subscription to their local newspaper rather than giving a donation to an individual campaign. Knowledge of all the candidates encourages wiser decisions. Newspaper subscriptions could then be considered “campaign donations” beyond a single candidate.

Barb Yankey, Clive

Women are well established on ‘the world stage’

I burst out laughing when I read someone express doubt about a Nikki Haley presidency, saying: “I think we are losing our place on the world stage. So, I definitely want a man as president” (“Haley fends off gendered attacks,” Dec. 18). Really? According to a 2023 United Nations report, 30 women were serving as heads of state and/or government in 28 countries as of Sept. 19, 2022. Look as well to the strong leadership of Margaret Thatcher, the United Kingdom’s prime minister for more than a decade, and Angela Merkel, who was the second-longest serving chancellor of Germany.

The person one should be worried about becoming president in terms of our standing internationally is Donald Trump. The U.S. became less respected and less influential under his leadership. Nikki Haley has already proven she can handle the world stage, and my bet is she’d be the best at it compared to the GOP male candidates.

Lettie Prell, Des Moines

Protecting Satan is offensive to Founding Fathers

What has happened to the Iowa Legislature? How could they permit an altar of Satan to be place in the Iowa Capitol?

Letters to the editor and opinion columns seems to have missed the essence of the outrage. The display is not like an exhibit of a Christian icon next to which some religious group such as the Mormons or Buddhists places their symbolism.

Doesn’t anyone realize any longer that Satan is a personal being, possessing intellect, emotions and will? He is the archenemy of God. Putting the Satanic altar on display is akin to placing a Hamas memorial next to a flag of Israel. Hamas is a terrorist organization that needs to be destroyed.

Satan was God’s most exalted angel until pride filled his heart. He rebelled against Jehovah and dragged one-third of the holy angels along with him (Revelation 12:4). Since then he has been the sworn enemy of God and, like a lion, seeks to devour God’s people (1 Peter 5:8).

Through Satan sin entered the universe. The evil being, to whom the church of Satan dedicated the display, is called by Jesus Christ, “a murderer from the beginning … a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). This being needs to be despised, not honored. It is ingenious for those who placed the image of Satan in the Iowa Capitol to say they do not worship Satan and do not believe that he exists. He is very much alive! Let the Satanists carry on their worship of Satan privately, to their eternal harm.

To allow the display of an image of the most depraved and despicable being in the universe is an affront to the Founding Fathers of our republic. Back on Feb. 29, 1892, Supreme Court justice David J. Brewer declared the United States “a Christian nation,” citing numerous proofs.

In their first written form of government, the Mayflower Compact, the settlers asserted that “we have undertaken this voyage for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian gospel,” not to honor the Devil. In our Pledge of Allegiance we confess that we are “one nation under God,” not under Satan. Our American currency testifies “in God we trust,” not in Satan.

Manfred E. Kober, Bondurant

Handle asylum applications online

As much as Democrats want to help the "huddled masses" of sad immigrants, they should consider what they want the United States to be. There are several billion people in the world that would fit the "huddled masses" description, with a couple of billion more to be added in short order. A large proportion of them would love to come here if they could.

Do you like our wide-open spaces and scenic vistas? Part of the reason they still exist is the population density of the U.S. (average people per square mile) is about 94 people. Contrast that with places like India (1,300 per square mile), Bangladesh (3,500), and Haiti (1,100). If we just open our doors, the desperate of the world will overrun the country. I can't imagine anyone wants that.

We need to stop the craziness of families dragging their kids through hundreds or thousands of miles, being robbed and raped, swimming a river, crossing razor wire, then turning themselves in and waiting years for a hearing. This is the 21st century; the internet is everywhere. Let them apply for an asylum hearing online, but not at the border. The coyotes who guide them through the jungle can switch to guiding them through the app process.

Frank McCammond, Redfield

If you want to talk about poisoning

What is poisoning the blood of our country is the hate and fear that Donald Trump is spreading. He has no other idea. No one supports illegal immigration and yet Congress refuses to develop a coherent policy.

What is literally poisoning our blood here in Iowa is "less government" leading to the unregulated and extreme use of nitrogen fertilizer, out-of-control use of poisonous pesticides, leading to reproductive health problems, some cancers and neurodevelopmental disorders among children. In Iowa, it is the unregulated massive livestock operations, polluting the air, poisoning the bloodstream of rural residents near them.

Kamyar Enshayan, Cedar Falls

Where were images of Israelis’ suffering?

I studied all 12 pages of “2023 The Year in Photos – The power of an image and the beauty of visual storytelling” (Dec. 17). Then I went back and looked again.

Why no images of Israelis grieving the attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, and balancing those showing the suffering of Palestinian children and families? There is agony on both sides of this conflict, but “The power of an image” missed its chance to tell that story. It could have been powerful.

Gretchen Beckley, Clive

Iowa has too few workers

Could it be that we simply do not have enough workers in this state? All around us we see staffing shortages. There are more job openings than there are people who are unemployed and looking for work. Many people are asking government to increase required staffing levels in nursing homes, child care, and other areas of our economy.

To the extent that our government creates incentives to encourage people to move into one sector of the economy, it only pulls workers from other employers. It appears that we have a worker shortage.

Maybe we should consider increasing the number of legal immigrants we allow into our country. We can have a good-quality vetting process to prevent criminals or terrorists from entering the country. There are plenty of honest, hard-working people who would love to immigrate to our country and to our state.

Kurt Johnson, Urbandale

Not convinced DART is using good stewardship

A letter writers said we should volunteer more tax money to assist the Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority to drive “countless” bus riders to their destinations. I disagree, as those riders can be easily counted. I know because I'm old and I have nothing better to do than walk, during and after rush hour.

I never see more than a handful of people, if any, on a bus. I do live near two major bus routes, so these observations are not without merit, and I do see a good number of buses every day. Instead of higher taxes, maybe more study of rider patterns may be in order. I just realized that for some time that I haven't seen those double-length buses, so there may be some efforts at common sense.

Do we need so many large buses driving all the route all day? Would smaller buses, maybe even minivans, be an answer at some times? Could DART even negotiate with driving services for single riders who don't have the means to get to important destinations if it saves money?

There should be efforts at helping riders and taxpayers both achieve their goals before giving more of our money away.

John Wade, Des Moines

Words inflict pain

Remember the old rhythm? “Stick and stones may break bones, but words can never hurt me.”

That is not true anymore.

Alex Jones said that the Sandy Hook murders did not happen. His followers made life hell for the families of the victims.

Rudy Giuliani said two women were guilty of ballot fraud. His supporters made their lives hell.

Donald Trump said COVID-19 was not a threat. So, about 27 million of our family and friends suffered from it. And at least 471,000 of them died.

I am sick of lies and the people who believe them.

Jone Culp, Des Moines

Protect recess for elementary students in state law

I am a student at Grinnell College. I recently completed a policy analysis project on protecting recess in Iowa that I would like to bring to your attention.

Since the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, nearly 40% of school districts in the United States have decreased or eliminated daily recess in an effort to improve standardized test scores. Although research has linked recess to several important student outcomes including prosocial skill development, enhanced concentration and attention, improved grades and test scores, better mental and physical health, and an overall sense of belonging, the state of Iowa has not taken any legal action to protect recess for its children. Iowa is among only 13 states and territories of the country that have yet to acknowledge the importance of recess through policy action.

The solution that I came to is simple: if recess is associated with such a long list of benefits, let’s make sure that all children in Iowa are guaranteed access to it. Drawing from a statute in Arizona, I recommend that Iowa creates a state law that requires each school district and charter school to provide at least two recess periods of 15 minutes or more during the school day for students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

Iowa policymakers must work to develop a solution now, before recess and its benefits are gone for good; the future of our children is in their hands.

Elsa Kasten, Grinnell

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Letters: Des Moines drivers are too aggressive