Homeland Security will be getting about $46 billion to complete the US-Mexico border wall as part of new funding passed by Congress this summer. Painting the wall black 鈥 President Trump鈥檚 idea to make it hotter and harder to climb 鈥 will also help deter rust, U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks said.
Where鈥檚 DOGE?
Estimates for painting the border wall black range from $500 million to $3 billion to fund a project to increase the wall temperature to further discourage anyone from climbing it. To point out the obvious, during winter months, the temperature and color of the wall have no impact on border crossings. During summer, plunging nightly temperatures make paint color irrelevant to early morning wall climbing. And as has already been stated, gloves are cheap: a pair of $20 welders鈥 gloves vs a $500M paint job 鈥 the gloves will win every time. So, black paint will effectively reduce border crossings on exactly zero days. $500M or more to accomplish absolutely nothing. This is exactly the type of government waste that DOGE was created to eliminate. Where are they when you really need them? Strangely silent.
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James Johnson
Vail
We cannot stand on the sidelines
The Aug. 26 op-ed about the clergy speaking out about the 鈥渉armful policies and actions鈥 of President Trump and his enablers, is important and timely. Not only are Trump鈥檚 actions and daily assaults harmful to 鈥淕od鈥檚 beloved creation,鈥 that is, to all of us, but also to what our country stands for: the rule of law, human decency, separation of church and state, extending a welcoming hand to those in need. As pastors Daub and Vagts say that the clergy 鈥渉as too often been complicit or silent in times of crisis,鈥 but is now making their voices heard, one sees positive signs that the local business community, our local politicians, our school administrators and faculty are not far behind. Without question, our democracy is in crisis, and no longer can we Americans stand on the sidelines.
Phineas Anderson
Catalina
Project Blue water usage
Like many (most?) other people, my reaction to the facility鈥檚 water usage of more than 100 million gallons/year was a decisive 鈥淣o way!鈥 But then I realized that鈥檚 less than the usage of a single golf course ... of which there are about 40 in the Tucson metro area. So all the fuss is about the equivalent of adding just 2% to our golf course inventory! The economist Thomas Sowell points out that there are no solutions, only tradeoffs, so I ask: Would Tucson be better off with slightly fewer golf courses or one fewer data center? Thinking in those terms forced me to reconsider my initial knee-jerk reaction.
PS: Admittedly, energy usage is a concern. One interesting option is a Small Modular Reactor from Westinghouse, GE, or others. We鈥檒l see a lot of these off-the-shelf installations in the next year or two.
Jerrod Mason
Green Valley
Work practices of elected local officials
For too many years, City of Tucson elected officials received pitiful yearly salaries 鈥 $24,000 for Council, $40,000 for Mayor. Official meetings were/are squeezed into two PM Tuesdays/month. Appointments could take six weeks to get.
Now, Council members receive $96,600 and Mayor $120,750 yearly, salaries tied to those received by Pima County Board of Supervisors.
So what impact has the monetary increase had on the work practices of elected City officials? More available? More public accessibility to their interactions with staff? More Call-to-Audience time during Study Sessions/General Meetings? More accountability to boards, commissions, committees?
If the Star or an online service were to research how Council practices have or will change to reflect full-time pay, I am sure it would attract increased reader interest. And, please, do not limit it to the City. I have followed public issues for two decades; I have no idea how my Pima Supervisors鈥 work has impacted my area 鈥 I have seen one once.
Ruth Beeker
Midtown
America鈥檚 gun violence crisis
Donald Trump claims the title of 鈥渓aw and order鈥 president, yet Americans continue to face threats in places that should be safe 鈥 schools, churches, mosques, and synagogues.
The United States is home to more guns than people, with approximately 470 million firearms in circulation. Strikingly, just 3% of Americans own half of these weapons. Although Americans comprise only 4% of the world鈥檚 population, they possess nearly half of the world鈥檚 civilian firearms.
The consequences are staggering in 2023 alone; gun violence claimed the lives of over 46,728 Americans. Deploying the National Guard to cities might make for powerful imagery, but it fails to address the root causes of gun violence 鈥 guns.
Every day, families endure the anxiety that a loved one could fall victim to a mass shooting or the ongoing tragedy of everyday gun violence. If true law and order means protecting families and children from harm, then Trump鈥檚 loud proclamations offer little more than hollow slogans and the prospect of more funerals.
Lawrence Mazin
SaddleBrooke
To Supervisors Heinz and Christy
I want to address Supervisors Heinz and Christy directly. Unfortunately, many of us in Tucson work demanding jobs, shuttle kids, and take care of family. Making a supervisor meeting at 9 a.m. on a workday is impossible. To that effect, I want to say, stop doubling down on your mistake. Your votes were horrible. You sold out working people. The data center has resistance on all sides of politics, and we all understand how the centers hurt communities more than help. You should acknowledge this and not blame Tucson citizens and folks in Pima worried about water and energy cost. Beale lied every step of the way in the process, kept things quiet, and TEP had a blatant error in their presentations. Their excuse, 鈥楤eale gave this to us鈥. Then you write Tucson should have negotiated and worked with them? To what end? You should be responsible to have not approved the sale until you knew more and 鈥渨orked with them.鈥 Take accountability.
Carissa Sipp
Midtown
Adelita Grijalva
I have utter disdain for Trump and the MAGA movement but am forced to vote Republican in the election to fill Raul Grijvalva鈥檚 seat in Congress. Adelita Grijalva has no qualifications to be in Congress other then her family name, and like her father, has never worked a real job in her life. She and her father have always fed at the public trough, and if elected, Adelita as the incumbent will most likely spend the rest of her life in Congress sucking up federal benefits and salary. Politics should not be inherited, and Adelita does not deserve a free ride for the rest of her life.
William Kent
Midtown
Robert Kennedy Jr.
Are you comfortable with RFK Jr. as director of HHS? If so, maybe you should rethink your comfort level. RFK Jr.鈥檚 educational experience is as a lawyer and so-called environmentalist. His life experiences have nothing to do with scientific medical thinking. Yet here we are, thanks to our stable genius Trump and the gutless Republican Congress. RFK Jr. in his ultimate ignorance, has just fired yet another prestigious PhD medical scientist with 20-plus years of experience in the medical field. Susan Monarez is not just a globally renowned medical scientist but has contributed greatly to the field of immunology. Her appreciated pushback to RFK Jr.鈥檚 anti-vaccination agenda is what has resulted in her termination as Director of the CDC. This by an ignorant man with no experience in the medical field, who, himself, has been vaccinated along with his children. Please, write your congressman and demand his resignation before his ignorance results in the death of many, primarily children. Resist.
Peter Morales
Midtown
Follow these steps to easily submit a letter to the editor or guest opinion to the 蜜聊直播 Daily Star.
Normalize Trump?
A recent LTE says letters with grievances about world events will be 鈥渁llowed to complain鈥 (by whom?) if certain conditions are met.
After Donald Trump鈥檚 Big Ugly Bill passed, he appeared on TV news, gloating about having even more power. To do what? He declares more fake national emergencies to grab more power. He seeks to put armed soldiers in our cities like a third-world country under a tinpot dictator. He orchestrates gerrymandering in Texas to rig elections.
In the face of LTEs that are deceptively sweet siren songs of surrender to the lawless abuses of power of Trump鈥檚 regime, critical letters are important to counter the normalization of Trumpism. Some people may normalize Trump and ultimately accept his thugs pressing boot heels on their necks. Instead, continue shooting arrows of criticism without apologies at this gangster regime. Resist.
Ronald Pelech
Midtown
