Manitowoc letter-writers on ending the War on Drugs, impeaching Wisconsin Supreme Court justice
Here are this week’s letters to the editor of the Herald Times Reporter. See our letters policy below for details about how to share your views.
We should demand an end to the War on Drugs
I read the article about the shortage of cancer drugs ("You need an antibiotic, but it's not available. How drug shortages force doctors to pick frustrating alternatives," online Aug. 25). That isn’t the only drug that people are having problems getting access to. There are a bunch of drugs that are critical to a person’s well-being that have been difficult for people to get. There are many reasons for these problems.
For the longest time, our government didn’t negotiate prices for drugs. Most other countries did. That made drug prices in the U.S. higher than everywhere else. I understand the whole free-market philosophy they espouse. Drug companies need to be rewarded for their efforts to create and manufacture quality drugs. However, the majority of people in need of those drugs can’t afford them.
People in other countries have more access to the same quality drugs at a much cheaper price. It is encouraging that Medicare is going to start negotiating prices.
With how litigious our government is, it has made doing business in this country more costly and risky for drug companies and their employees. That is why there have been supply chain issues and companies have problems retaining quality employees. All of it is caused by the War on Drugs.
There should be no excuse for a person to not have access to drugs that could either save or improve their life. For that to happen, we have to demand an end to the entire misguided War on Drugs and the demonizing of people with health issues.
Tom Denk
Reedsville
More letters to the editor: Manitowoc letter-writers on eliminating electoral college, thanking fish derby supporters
Move to impeach Wisconsin Supreme Court justice is 'irresponsible'
As a Wisconsin voter and resident of Manitowoc County, I am outraged by the threat to impeach Justice Janet Protasiewicz from the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Our Founding Fathers intended for the three branches of government to remain separate, as a check on each other. Separation of powers is a foundation of our democracy. It is irresponsible for the Legislature to consider compromising this bedrock principle for selfish political goals.
The stated grounds for impeachment are that Judge Protasiewicz has stated her views on our voter maps in Wisconsin. But this is precisely why she was elected by such an overwhelming margin earlier this year. Polls have clearly shown that the majority of voters in Wisconsin want fair voting maps. We don’t want Democratic or Republican maps – we just want them to be fair. How can any reasonable person argue with this?
Impeachment should be reserved for true misconduct. It is not intended to be used to remove those whose views do not agree with a partisan Legislature, particularly when the voters have clearly stated which views they want for this important seat on the Supreme Court.
Democracy is based on the will of the voters, not the will of the Legislature. The proposed impeachment of Justice Protasiewicz is overtly political and patently outrageous, and will further embarrass Wisconsin in the eyes of the nation. The Legislature should stand down, and allow us voters to fairly and democratically elect our leaders in all three branches of Wisconsin government.
Steve Lankton
Manitowoc County
More letters to the editor: A response to concerns about Manitowoc's Narcan vending machine, in this week's letter to the editor
Our letters policy
Letters to the editor are published in the order in which they are received and letter-writers are limited to having one letter published per month. Letters can be emailed to htrnews@htrnews.com and Editor Brandon Reid at breid@gannett.com. Letters must meet specific guidelines, including being no more than 250 words and be from local authors or on topics of local interest. All submissions must include the name of the person who wrote the letter, their city of residence and a contact phone number. Letters are edited as needed for style, grammar, length, fairness, accuracy and libel.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Manitowoc letters on ending War on Drugs, Supreme Court impeachment
