Letters to the Editor: Robin Hood forcing AISD to cut jobs
Robin Hood is forcing Austin ISD
to cut jobs; it's time for a change
Re: April 8 article, "Austin ISD looks to cut 632 jobs and boost pay as recapture payments expected to rise."
Something is seriously wrong when more than half of the taxes Austinites pay for our schools is going to property-poor districts, requiring our schools to make cuts.
Austin should not be having to support the rest of Texas under this Robin Hood scheme. The buck stops at the Texas legislature where it’s clearly time for a change.
Rona Distenfeld, Austin
We should enact policies that care
for children and empower parents
The late Congressman Elijah Cummings often said that "children are the living messengers we send to a future we will never see." This visionary message holds an even deeper meaning in the midst of global pandemic and major war crimes. In the throes of such suffering, our leaders must ensure that our families stand on solid ground.
A plethora of politicians talk about protecting the next generation. However, they do so by stripping the living, in particular our incredible American women, of the inherent right to possess bodily autonomy and determine their destiny through the freedom of choice.
Rather than attack medical privacy and individual liberty, we ought to live up to Cummings' timeless words by passing policies that genuinely empower parents and care for our children. I call on President Biden, who supported a permanent expansion, and the United States Congress, to legally immortalize the child tax credit.
Henry J.H. Wilson, Barrington, Ill.
In law, there's no such thing
as an illegal asylum seeker
In his Easter sermon, Anglican senior cleric Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said, "After all, there is in law no such thing as an illegal asylum-seeker. It is the people who exploit them that we need to crack down on, not our sisters and brothers in their need."
This concept has universal application. Should we stop referring to asylum seekers as "illegals"?
Fred Newton, Lakeway
Putin's totalitarian government
welcomes conspiracy theorists
For those who want to “Make America Great Again” or “Save America,” Mother Russia is calling you home.
Putin will give you a platform to spin conspiracy theories and a totalitarian form of government you crave. The Fox News Network is especially welcome, as Putin’s Russia is using Fox News talking points and viewpoints to support the invasion of Ukraine.
The Jan. 6 insurrectionists and their leader can whine all they want about “Stopping the Steal” on the steps of Putin’s palace. The Republican Party can spin all the lies it wants and become an honorary legislative body in the Russian government, since they have made countless attempts to kill our democratic way of life, enact and enforce voter suppression laws, commit flagrant voter fraud and use fear tactics to keep themselves in office.
Moving to Russia is a win-win situation for our political health and your pursuit of happiness.
Abel Villarreal, Austin
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin American-Statesman Letters to the Editor: April 25, 2022
