Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\nRegardless of political belief, we should all ask ourselves: how can we sleep at night knowing people are being treated this way in our name?<\/p>\n
MaryBeth Shapiro, East Dallas and Scarborough, Maine <\/p>\n
Greg Abbott\u2019s millions<\/p>\n
Re: \u201cAbbott awash in cash \u2014 Campaign has amassed $105.7M, far more than anyone seeking state office,\u201d Jan. 17 Metro & Business story.<\/p>\n
This story reports that Gov. Greg Abbott has amassed more than $100 million for his reelection campaign. That staggering figure should concern every Texas voter, regardless of party.<\/p>\n
This kind of money does not come from average Texans writing $25 or $50 checks. It comes largely from wealthy individuals, political action committees and industry interests that have very specific policy goals. When a candidate raises sums this large, it is fair to ask who really has a seat at the table in Austin \u2014 everyday Texans or those with the deepest pockets?<\/p>\n
Texas likes to boast about limited government and independence, yet our political system increasingly looks like one where access and influence are for sale. When one candidate can stockpile more money than all potential challengers combined, elections become less about ideas and accountability and more about financial dominance.<\/p>\n
We may have low taxes and a strong economy, but we also appear to have the best state government money can buy. Texans deserve leaders who are accountable to voters first, not to the interests that can afford to bankroll a $100 million campaign.<\/p>\n
Jerry Lawson, Allen<\/p>\n
No home yet for the Wings<\/p>\n
Re: \u201cWaiting for their new digs \u2014 Team coming to Dallas, but move hits another snag,\u201d Jan. 18 SportsDay story. <\/p>\n
Dallas taxpayers were once again reminded that City Hall cannot manage major projects, as highlighted by this Dallas Morning News reporting on the delayed Wings practice facility. What should have been a straightforward construction project devolved into missed deadlines, ballooning costs and ultimately an admission of failure.<\/p>\n
City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert agreed to hand the project over to outside oversight \u2014 paid for by taxpayers \u2014 because the city could not competently manage its own build. That decision alone should alarm every resident.<\/p>\n
When the city\u2019s solution to mismanagement is to spend more public money to compensate for that mismanagement, accountability has clearly broken down. This wasn\u2019t a weather issue or a supply chain anomaly \u2014 it was a failure of planning, supervision and execution.<\/p>\n
Dallas residents deserve a city government capable of delivering basic infrastructure on time and on budget. The Wings facility is not an isolated mishap. It is a warning sign of deeper administrative dysfunction that the City Council and the public should not ignore.<\/p>\n
Bonnie Maguire Brown, Dallas<\/p>\n
Keep all Dallas libraries<\/p>\n
The rollout of Dallas\u2019 new regional library model was not just poorly executed \u2014 it was disrespectful to both residents and elected officials. Council members learned that libraries in their districts could close not through briefings from city staff, but through news reports.<\/p>\n
That alone reflects a breakdown in basic governance. City staff, under the supervision of Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, failed to engage the very representatives accountable to the communities most affected. Council member Adam Bazaldua rightly described the proposal as a \u201cPR boondoggle.\u201d<\/p>\n
What makes this especially troubling is the city\u2019s spending priorities. Dallas routinely spends millions on outside consultants and grants generous tax abatements with little scrutiny, yet suddenly treats neighborhood libraries as expendable line items.<\/p>\n
Libraries are among the city\u2019s most efficient and equitable investments \u2014 providing internet access, supporting civic participation, promoting literacy and offering safe community spaces. <\/p>\n
Dallas residents deserve leadership that protects these vital institutions. Our libraries should be strengthened, not quietly sacrificed.<\/p>\n
Natalie LeVeck, North Dallas<\/p>\n
The death penalty as revenge<\/p>\n
Re: \u201c\u2018I still miss my daddy\u2019 \u2014 Innocent Black man, executed in 1956, exonerated in murder,\u201d Thursday news story.<\/p>\n
While I\u2019ve never been against the death penalty, I have to wonder if it actually is needed. I do believe that there are some monsters out there who deserve to die. But at what cost? Does it deter crime? I would say no. <\/p>\n
The true criminal doesn\u2019t take the punishment into account when committing the crime. There needs to be so many levels of accuracy and sureness in guilt to justify it. And then the penalty is absolute and final. No return. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s bad enough to be wrongly convicted, but to be killed for it is not unacceptable. For the amount of times the death penalty has been applied, was it worth the cost? <\/p>\n
In my opinion the death penalty is more of revenge or retribution disguised as justice.<\/p>\n
Rich Rigsby, Wylie<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Political theater There is a growing vindictiveness in how our country is approaching immigration enforcement, and it should…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":542830,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5135],"tags":[5229,1022,4219,1596,2470,16045,5026,409,7281,80,62,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-542829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-america","tag-books","tag-crime","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-wings","tag-death-penalty","tag-greg-abbott","tag-immigration","tag-letters-to-the-editor","tag-politics","tag-sports","tag-texas","tag-tx","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115958352989484248","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=542829"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542829\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/542830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=542829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=542829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=542829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}