Letters to the Editor: Bergman needs to set record straight on voting integrity; GOP, supporters on the wrong side of history

Bergman needs to set record straight on voting integrity

I call on U.S. Congressional Rep. Jack Bergman to stand up and publicly tell his constituents that they can trust the accuracy and integrity of Michigan elections. Voters who might still question November 2020 Michigan election results can and should be (re)assured that those fears are unfounded.

Rep. Bergman knows this. And so can anyone who reads the 41-page April 2021 report from Michigan’s Bureau of Elections, which summarizes results from more than 250 election audits from across our state. These audits included a full hand tally by local clerks in Antrim County of all ballots cast for president in that county.

By the way, that full hand-count also showed that the Dominion voting machines used in Antrim County accurately counted ballots. Statewide post-election audits have taken place in Michigan for many years. They are conducted (mostly by Michigan’s County Clerks) specifically to ensure the accuracy and integrity of elections, and to identify opportunities for process improvements.

So, Rep. Bergman, in this important election year, please set the record straight: Voters can and should continue to trust the accuracy and integrity of Michigan elections.

Beth Freeman

Boyne City

GOP, supporters on the wrong side of history

As the GOP in their various states enact restrictions on LGBTQ rights, women's healthcare choices, and the honest teaching of American history, they seem like Taliban USA enforcing an orthodox code of morality on people who largely don't share their extreme views. They've got the upper hand, so they flex their muscle.

They are on the wrong side of the American argument, which has been about evolving understanding and inclusion rather than negation and rejection. And by doing the most they can right now to hurt as many innocent bystanders as possible while fighting a losing battle it seems even more that these politicians emulate Russia and Vladimir Putin.

John Podulka

Wolverine

Let MI Kids Learn just another tactic to weaken public schools

The new name for school vouchers is scholarships. This petition drive to "Let MI Kids Learn" is just another attack on public schools so private corporations can make huge profits without accountability. These for-profit schools have failed to produce in our most vulnerably poor cities while raking off millions of dollars.

Now Ms. DeVos wants to give the money to families to be spent as they see fit. This can lead to all kinds of scams while taking money from our tax dollars.

Presently, our schools are accountable to many layers of government regulations (state and federal), local school boards and local voters with millages. This new system would neither control what "school supplies" mean nor what would define a "school."

Will a few hundred dollars to a poor family actually enable them to attend a private school or will it just harm their chances for a good education at a good public school, because the public schools will definitely be harmed with this proposal?

Dean Fleury

Petoskey

Holding grief, hope together in the fight against climate change

I was heartened reading "How climate scientists keep hope alive as damage worsens” by Seth Borenstein. The challenge is daunting and it’s natural to feel overwhelmed and hopeless.

The United Nations Environment Programme Director Inger Andersen said working to mitigate climate change requires “realistic optimism.” She does not subscribe to “holding one’s ears and waiting for doomsday or dancing to the orchestra as the Titanic sinks.”

Like many of life’s challenges, climate activism requires doing what you can and trusting that some of the seeds you plant will flourish. Individual actions like eating local food, including pasture raised and finished meat, eliminating food waste, composting, driving and flying less, and participating in solar energy projects are important but individual actions have limited effects.

Consider joining a climate-based organization where your actions are amplified. The Sierra Club, Northern Michigan Environmental Action Council, and the Citizens’ Climate Lobby are all organizations advocating for effective climate policies. The Citizens’ Climate Lobby supports taxing polluters like fossil fuel companies and returning those dollars to citizens to help pay for the transition to clean, renewable energy.

Carbon fee, dividend, and border adjustment (to keep the U.S. competitive in global trade) is the most efficient way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and put us on a path to a safer, healthier planet. Act today and join a group like the Citizens’ Climate Lobby citizensclimatelobby.org. There’s a chapter in Petoskey! Contact Sens. Stabenow and Peters: senate.gov/general/contacting. Ask them to pass climate legislation that includes putting a price on carbon.

Susan Holcombe

Ellsworth

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Letters to the Editor: Bergman needs to set record straight on voting integrity; GOP, supporters on the wrong side of history