Letters: Voting rights, Captain Reynolds, Mass General, testing in schools, Putin's legacy
Voters should be required to show proof of citizenship
People in the Ukraine are fighting and dying to save their country and their democracy from this savage person who wants to have it under communist rule.
As Americans are you willing to stand up for democracy?
Voting rights to keep America's democracy:
Voting machines should be made in America.
Photo ID and proof of citizenship before you are allowed to vote. Driver's license, fuel and electric bills are not proof of citizenship!
No early voting until all debates have been heard!
No registering to vote and allowed to vote on the same day.
No mail-in ballots unless requested by a registered voter!
No ballot mailboxes scattered all over cities and towns!
Every person in America, including the handicapped, which I am one, are able to attend any kind of entertainment they choose. So why is there such a problem to go to your city or town hall with proper identification to show that you are a U.S. citizen and register to vote?
It is an honor and a privilege to vote, let's do it honorably!
America's democracy is on shaky ground. From a fearful registered voter who has seen attempts being made to change America's democratic voting system.
Carol McGill, Westborough
Disaster is nothing new to people of Ukraine
Disaster strikes Ukraine again!
From 1931-1933 Stalin sealed Ukraine's borders and seized all available food.
Mass starvation quickly set in. People had nothing to eat so they ate anything: grass, tree bark, dogs, rats, rotten potatoes, even corpses; 3 million died.
Anne Applebaum, in her book "Red Famine, Stalin's War on Ukraine," captures the horror of "ordinary people struggling to survive extraordinary evil."
Today, Putin uses bombs to destroy homes and hospitals. The people and children who don't leave, die for lack of food, medical supplies and water!
Paulette Hottelet, Worcester
May Captain Reynolds, an American hero, rest in peace
I was very disheartened to hear of the recent death of the young Marine captain who died in Norway. He was stationed at MCAS New River, North Carolina, which is next to Camp Lejeune where I was stationed in the mid ‘80s. Marines and sailors have been conducting periodic cold weather ops in Norway for decades. His attitude reminded me of much of mine at his age. We both had a strong sense of duty and eagerness to defend our country to maintain the freedoms we all enjoy.
Before I embarked on the USS Guam in 1986, I and another officer saw containers being loaded aboard which looked as though they contained coffins. The other officer remarked that on every deployment we lose at least one or two. This was my fourth deployment overseas in as many years. Each one involved at least one death in my Battle Group. Unfortunately, my fourth deployment was no different as a young Marine was crushed by a heavy vehicle. Our training exercises are extremely hazardous. Many people seem to not be aware of this. Capt. Reynolds gave his life for this country. May he rest in peace.
Mark Mooshagian, Worcester
Mass General Brigham a political power play
Mass General Brigham withdraws proposal for Westborough outpatient center story is a classic case where the politics are denying the science. The December cost analysis did not agree with their supposition that this new facility, a wonderful option for area residents, would raise health care costs. Despite that, the entrenched powers that run our government get their way anyway by pressuring MGB behind closed doors. This is power run amuck.
Joe Considine, Westborough
Testing in schools should happen later in the year
I am writing to you out of concern regarding our public school students in Massachusetts.
You see, they are taking "end of the year" assessments earlier and earlier in the school year.
As a veteran Worcester Public School teacher (33 years), I have no qualms with student assessments but I do disagree with the testing windows and high stakes testing that MCAS (Pearson) has created.
Factor in a pandemic and a 1.5-year learning loss — asking students (and teachers) to test in early April (ELA) and early May (Math) is a Herculean task.
The absences alone due to Covid exposure and illness have also played a pivotal discrepancy in learning this year. Many students are now on their second bout of the Covid variant.
In short, an end of the year test should be given at the end of the year. Asking students to read, write, comprehend and respond, takes an entire school year to learn, not 3/4 of it.
A 10-month school year doesn't end until June — not eight months!
If the state truly wants Reading/ELA and MATH data/results, test the kids quarterly.
Nothing is more frustrating for our students and teachers than to comprehend (and teach) a full curricula in the amount of time given.
Imagine being asked questions that you can't answer because the school year/hours didn't allow for it.
In my opinion, this is shameful, and the state can do better.
Amy Benoit, Rutland
Putin will forever be an outcast on the world stage
The sad and perhaps tragic thing about Vladimir Putin is the opportunity lost. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and his rise to power, it was widely accepted that there would be an economic integration with the West and that Western institutional norms, in terms of the criminal justice system and democratic processes, would follow.
In the United States, governmental accommodations were developed to facilitate cultural and commercial exchanges. Chamber of Commerce affiliates offered workshops, and universities and colleges developed special programs with their Russian academic counterparts.
I was a member of the staff at Mount Wachusett Community College at the time and recall our vice president and members of the criminal justice staff visiting Russian colleges. In exchange, Russian professors arrived at the Gardner campus. They sat in on classes, toured area grammar, and high schools, had lunch engagements with faculty and staff, and friendships developed. But Putin's poisonings and killings of rivals and journalists, and his crimes against humanity with genocidal wars in Chechnya, Syria, and now Ukraine have sealed his fate. He is an outcast on the world stage and no amount of outsized yachts or palatial estates will repair his reputation or fate.
Genevieve Fraser, Orange
St. Vincent Hospital a valuable asset to Worcester
I was a recent patient at St. Vincent Hospital and I can’t be too effusive about the care I received.
In my case, successful medical care required the talents of a team. After a year of steadily debilitating back pain that my primary care physician seemed indifferent to, I was finally able to schedule spinal fusion surgery at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Worcester.
My surgeon proved highly skilled in his specialty and performed brilliantly. Personal interaction with him, though, ended the moment I was wheeled out of surgery. From that point on I was in the care of the St. Vincent’s nursing team. The level of their performance was on a par with the skill of the surgeon and they had me back on my feet the next day.
When it was time for me to leave the hospital, St. Vincent’s passed me to the care of visiting nurses – another team of excellent professionals who not only provided post-surgery expertise and assessments but also gave me the encouragement and assurance that my recovery was exactly on track.
I found all levels of care at the hospital highly professional and caring. It is time to put the recent strike behind us, so that the city can once again embrace the hospital and its staff. It is a valuable asset to our city.
Bernard Whitmore, Worcester
Thank you for continuing to support Postal Service
It is a great honor to serve East Brookfield as your new postmaster. In my years with the United States Postal Service, I have seen firsthand the role the Postal Service plays connecting neighbors and our community to the nation. Our post offices serve as a lifeline for our small businesses to reach customers no matter where they are.
Under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s leadership and Delivering For America, the Postal Service’s 10-year plan, we are maintaining universal six-day mail delivery and expanded seven-day package delivery, stabilizing our workforce, and spurring innovation to meet the needs of our modern customers.
From an incredibly successful 2021 holiday mail and shipping season to our current role delivering COVID-19 test kits, the Postal Service continues to provide a vital service for our nation and our community in East Brookfield.
On behalf of the 650,000 men and women of the United States Postal Service, I thank you for continuing to support the Postal Service. Providing reliable mail delivery while strengthening the future of this treasured institution is our commitment to you.
Paula Moore, postmaster, East Brookfield
Why do WRTA busses always seem to run late?
It is difficult to understand why WRTA busses run notoriously late, and rarely on schedule.
Passengers are asked to arrive at bus stops at least 5 minutes early before the scheduled bus arrives, but this makes no difference. You arrive on time. The bus arrives late.
Even with automated systems on cell phones to help coordinate our interactions with specific buses, it makes no difference when drivers sit at end points and do not depart on schedule.
You can watch your phone at a stop where the cell phone app shows ARR but the bus almost never arrives on time.
This is particularly challenging for seniors, the disabled and those passengers with medical conditions. And overwhelmingly challenging in bad weather conditions at stops with no shelter.
Connections that could easily be made are often missed. This is particularly challenging on weekends when buses run hourly.
The bus drivers sit in heated buses while passengers stand in the cold or in the rain.
I have lived in many cities in the U.S. and internationally. Worcester bus service is the worst.
I use all of the technology necessary to avoid delays. I wish drivers did.
I appreciate free bus service, but on time bus service would be appreciated.
Dennis Cormier, Worcester
Bill in legislature would end human rights abuse
Did you know that there is a dangerous loophole in Massachusetts law that allows a practice that the U.S. State Department considers a human rights violation? Children of any age are allowed to be entered into marriage with judicial approval and parental consent.
What these so-called “safeguards” overlook is that parents are often the perpetrators of child marriage, and that judges are allowed broad discretion to approve a child marriage, even if the child is below the age of consent.
According to a recent study by Unchained at Last, 1,246 children were married in Massachusetts between 2000 and 2018. Some of those children were as young as 13 years old. That’s unconscionable. Fortunately, a bill in the state legislature would end this human rights abuse. Urge your legislators to pass S937 and H1709 today.
Simon Goodacre, Douglas
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Letters: Voting rights, Captain Reynolds, Mass General, testing in schools, Putin's legacy
