Letters: It’s what Himmler said as much as that he said it

It’s what Himmler said as much as that he said it

The Indianola Community School District’s “Respect Quote of the Day” on Nov. 20 garnered attention because someone realized and complained that the source, Nazi war criminal and head of the SS Heinrich Himmler, was inappropriate. Apologies were forthcoming with promises to check the source in advance of forthcoming quotes of the day.

This effort was narrow. Beyond the cautionary message, to check your sources, might the quote itself be inappropriate? The instruction is that if you fail to be loyal to a leader, an institution, a government, or a team, you are a dishonorable person. It is a rubric that loyalty trumps the primacy of personal morals and ethics.

Context is important. Himmler’s use certainly confirms the idea communicated in the quote. History should drive home the lesson of what is wrong with this quote in any future context. Examining the quote of the day tool should lead to a reboot and discussions among students and faculty that stimulates thinking.

— Dan Gervich, West Des Moines

Iowa can afford to support caregivers, honoring Rosalynn Carter’s legacy

Rosalynn Carter was honored for her humanitarian efforts throughout her life. One of her lesser-known legacies was her recognition of caregiving. According to the AARP, an estimated 38 million people in the US are taking care of loved ones either aging, ill, or disabled.

Carter held the belief that "everyone is a caregiver now, has been a caregiver, or will either be or need a caregiver in the future." Yet, the role can take a toll emotionally, physically, and sometimes financially. The former first lady raised awareness around this issue in the 1970s, and now, we are at a crisis point in Iowa. It's time Iowa heeds Carter's legacy and dedicate some of our billion-dollar surplus to the support of Iowa's caregivers.

What will it be, Iowa legislators? Care for our most vulnerable, or tax breaks for the rich?

— Julie Simanski, Ankeny

Churches drive exclusion in rural Iowa

It makes me sad that, according to the Register, Santiago Church is one of the 149 churches that have left the Methodist Church “over differing beliefs on same-sex marriage and ordaining openly LGBTQ clergy.”

At my church in downtown Des Moines on a recent Sunday, the sermon was on welcoming and all that goes with it. The pews were not full. Our church is still recovering from COVID, like many others. That is why I shake my head and am so annoyed at this huge rift in some very old congregations. With the multitudes of messages in the Bible on loving your neighbor and welcoming the stranger, there are very few texts, six maybe seven, that address what some have interpreted as who you are allowed to love. The scholars who study the meanings of these old and overly translated words do not agree on their interpretations. The word homosexual didn't show up in some versions until the 1950s. These texts, recently named the Clobber Texts, are being used as invisible but very real bars across many church doors. And do I really need to tell you that they cause people actual harm.

Santiago, formerly United Methodist, Church, is a church that I attended a few times with my family in rural Polk County. It was a church with a message of love and acceptance. During a meeting at my urban church last week, our very cool pastor was asked, “Why is this even a thing today?” He said a big hurdle to Iowa being more welcoming appears to be more prevalent in our rural communities. The very next day a Signs Now truck drove down our road and began removing the United and Methodist from Santiago's sign.

This, and our current political situation in Iowa, make it hard for rural Iowans to meet any LGBTQ+ people. If you can’t meet someone, certainly you can’t love them as yourself. Some of my friends, and most of the authors I have read, who share their stories, have not been treated equally in churches and are more than reluctant to return. Taking united off of a sign is the opposite of a welcome statement.

— Betty Wolfe, Mitchellville

No help for the helpless

Nursing homes and puppy mills. If you're defenseless in Iowa, you're on your own.

— Sarah Gold, Des Moines

Iowa nursing-home-inspector ranking is embarrassing

As a frequent visitor to Des Moines nursing homes, I was not surprised but indignant how the Reynolds administration has put improving Iowa's ratio of inspectors to Iowa nursing homes on such low priority. After hearing her repeatedly speak of budget surpluses, I might suggest she address this issue rather than continued tax cuts. Being second from the bottom is both dangerous and embarrassing. Perhaps our governor could ask her fellow governor and friend Ron DeSantis how even Florida surpasses us?

— Lloyd Kaufman, Des Moines

What's inside Iowans’ heads?

A recent poll conducted by Iowa State University and Civiqs found that 55% of likely Iowa caucus voters are planning on voting for Donald Trump as their Republican nominee despite him leading the insurrection on the Capitol on Jan. 6. But any vote for Trump is to condone dishonesty, untruthfulness, deceit, and criminal activity. Should we worry if America’s democratic way of life will be in jeopardy again?

Is it Trump or his followers we should worry about? In 2020 after having been impeached, he received over 74 million votes nationwide. In the 2016 election he was supported by 51.2% of Iowa voters and 53.1% in 2020.

With Trump now facing four indictments with a total of 91 felony charges, people have forgotten what the Lancet commission found. The US could have averted 40% or around 150,000 of the U.S. COVID deaths after examining Trump's policies. They have also forgotten that, although the Mueller investigation did not conclude that the former president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.

I am equally curious about what’s in Iowans’ hearts and their heads. With caucuses imminent, Iowans need to open their eyes and envision the future they want for our country. Although I’m not her fan, even Gov. Kim Reynolds is supporting someone other than Trump. Hopefully Iowans’ visions hold the promise of integrity and truthfulness from our elected officials. Christians make up 77% of Iowans, but you would never know it to see who they support politically.

— Steven Wikert, Cedar Falls

DEI shows contempt for ordinary people

DEI is the latest fad from the affluent, relativist left. Like affirmative action, it’s smoke to disguise what it is: a quota system. Despite its stated goal, it is indoctrination that will itself will result in discrimination. The very idea that there should a selection process based on race or gender is offensive. I encourage everyone to think about DEI, its origins, its underlying philosophy. You’ll find what I did. It’s motivating force, its guiding light, is plain old annoying white liberal guilt. Like moral relativism itself, it’s vast and empty. It will be ruinous to our country and our culture.

At last the people of our fine state has seen fit to push back on this out-of-control education establishment. It’s been infected by the smug elitism wisely rejected by Iowans. It’s an underlying contempt of ordinary people.

Let’s have a debate about DEI. There will be the usual emotional blackmail by the usual suspects from the left. The truth will win. It must.

— Michael Devine, Fort Dodge

Marshalltown librarian acted appropriately

Randy Evans, in his Nov. 26 guest essay about the culling practices of the Marshalltown Public Library, couldn’t be more incorrect. He has taken aim at one of the best libraries in Iowa. The Marshalltown Public Library has been the only two libraries in Iowa to win the National Medal for Library Service. Also, the Marshalltown Public Library is the only one in Iowa chosen for the National Traveling Holocaust Exhibition, which people traveled from all over the country to see. We are so proud of our library that in 2015 we voted to give extra property tax to keep our library open for longer hours and offer more services.

The library has an excellent board and competently trained and experienced librarians. There is an established process for choosing subscriptions to shelve. When a complaint is made, there is an established process for considering the complaint. All those procedures were followed.

The Marshalltown Public Library is the jewel of the community.

Our head librarian, Sarah Rosenblum, has 38 years of service, but her last 12 years in Marshalltown she considers a highlight of her career. She works with Joa LaVille the Youth Services Manager who is so effective at her job that she gets calls from all over the state from librarians wanting to duplicate her successful program.

— Kristy Hibbs Burr, Marshalltown

Experts for hire have a reason for their conclusions

The professors whose work is highlighted in a Nov. 27 story "hypothesize" psychological reasons for what they claim to be faulty findings in firearm identification tests.

Professional "expert witnesses" like these two academics charge steep fees to testify on behalf of criminal defendants. Journal publications like theirs, reported in articles like this one, are how they market their services. It isn't difficult to "hypothesize" the psychology underlying their conclusions.

— Thomas H. Miller, Des Moines

Why is there no alternative to Joe Biden?

A society is decadent when it passively accepts the irrational and ineffective as normal. We have a decadent political system.

Let me just focus on the Democratic Party part of the political system. Republicans have their own problems. No rational political party would give no option except Joseph Biden. I will vote for Biden over Donald Trump and even give money. But that is far from my good or enthusiastic choice.

Where are the governors and senators who should be running for the Democratic Party nomination? At the moment there is no reason for me, or any other Democrat, to go to caucuses or primary elections to rubber-stamp someone who is merely the better of bad choices.

Decadence only ends only when people refuse to accept it. They can nominate Biden without me.

— Ivan T. Webber, West Des Moines

Politicians are running scams on us

Scams comes in all sorts of forms. Over the last year I have gotten several texts in which the sender seems to be familiar, like: “Can you pick me up at the airport?” These messages invariably come from senders who send a picture of an alluring Asian woman. I might engage with them for a short while, but then block the numbers. I actually changed texting apps so that it would be easier to block these scam/spam texts.

But something new has been coming to my in box: Warnings of dire consequences if I don't click on the provided link. I got one that said: “Immediate threat warning: Your mobile device's security is compromised by (4) apps. Delete them now to protect your device” then it of course provided the essential hypertext upon which to click.

I wrote back: “Yes, I know: You!”

What I got back was a rather vulger invective about my mother's and my relationship. I think you can imagine.

I responded with a “HaHa”!

Then I got a “Don't ever text this number again”. So I dropped it.

What this brings to my mind is our current political dialogue. People like our Iowa Governor Reynolds, candidate Trump, and other right wing politicians are telling us: “America is at a precipice: Democracy and the American way is on the line. Vote for us!” What we need to recognize, as these politicians cry Wolf, is that they are the threat to democracy. It is the Republicans that hail autocrats like Putin, Erdogan, Victor Orban of Hungary, even Kim Jong Un. Trump wants to invalidate the US Constitution, build concentration camps for immigrants (even his family were German immigrants) and fire the entire government civil service workers, to install loyal political appointees.

Meanwhile the Democrats seek to rebuild our roads, water lines, keep people insured for their health, and allow women to manage their own health care. Not to mention record job levels, low gas prices, and moderate inflation. I have no problem with Bidenomics.

Yes, Biden is old, but he is the kind of politician we know won't mess things up.

— Don Fish, Davenport

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Letters: It’s what Himmler said as much as that he said it