Letters: Thanks from Duke Energy, 'truth' in trouble, drift toward theocracy
Duke Energy thanks Hoosiers after storms
The storm that ripped through Indiana June 29 proved to be one of the most devastating to ever hit Duke Energy’s Indiana system. It was followed by multiple waves of storms that added to the destruction.
Approximately 330,000 power outages occurred as more than 150 miles of power lines and over 200 utility poles succumbed to the storms’ violent winds. Only Hurricane Ike in 2008 caused more damage in our Indiana service area.
We’re grateful to our customers who waited patiently for their power to be restored. Storms are rarely convenient, disrupting evenings, holidays and weekends. However, they also have a way of bringing out the best in communities.
We brought in more than 1,000 additional workers to supplement our statewide labor force, and when they needed staging areas, institutions such as Indiana University stepped up and provided Memorial Stadium as a base for our crews. To those line workers, damage assessors, vegetation crews, call center representatives and others in Indiana and outside our service area, thank you for your long hours and dedication. When it was needed, you answered the call for help.
Stan Pinegar, president of Duke Energy Indiana
Liz Irwin, Duke Energy government and community relations manager, Monroe County
Duke Energy: Indiana had most outages in recent storm since Hurricane Ike
The truth is in trouble
The truth is deep in trouble, and (if) the truth is so are we.
We let our leaders lie now with complete impunity, rewarding them with cash and votes that bring them victory. They then destroy our planet and our dear democracy.
We blithely let the internet spread every kind of lie, from phony news to fake reviews of everything we buy. With social media, of course a world where falsehoods thrive, the newspapers, our local source, must struggle to survive.
We've made our bed and now must lie with liars, cheats and scum and hope our mess can be redressed by people yet to come.
Gene Arnholt, Bloomington
Drift to theocracy happening
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions — including the overturn of Roe v Wade last year — and some new state laws, appear to be leading us back to 19th century nativist Protestant values and pushing us into a theocracy.
Last year, the Court ruled that a Christian football coach had a constitutional right to pray at the 50-yard-line although some of his players felt coerced to participate to get playtime. Would coaches from other religious traditions be allowed this activity?
A recent ruling decided that the First Amendment prohibits a state from mandating a business to create a product that has a message contrary to the owners’ religious beliefs. Could this result in others being denied interracial, interfaith, or secular marriage or celebration messages?
We are now a multi-cultured, multi-religious, and secular nation. This is likely frightening to some who feel they are losing power and influence over behaviors which are against their religious values. So, they are coercing others to conform to their belief systems through state laws and the courts.
This is not the separation of church and state that our nation’s founders envisioned. We need to be aware of this creeping tendency to drift into theocracy.
Ruth Engs, Bloomington
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Letters: Duke Energy thanks, 'truth' in trouble, theocracy trend
