Careless act can hurt the innocent

Careless act can hurt the innocent

Hopefully people will read this and take a little more time when securing items to or in their vehicles. My 18 year old son was injured June 29 on state Route 11 when a semi-truck cut into his lane to avoid a ladder on the road.

My son’s car became lodged underneath the truck and he was seriously injured. Yes it was the driver’s fault and she was cited for improper lane change, but I feel this never would have happened had someone made sure the ladder they had in or on the vehicle had been secured.

Whether it is a mattress, a bike, furniture, etc., please make sure it is secure to your vehicle to prevent this nasty domino effect that could easily take someone’s life. We are truly blessed that the accident wasn’t worse. My son is pretty banged up and the next few months are going to rough, but he is alive and that is the most important thing.

Christine Wehr, Austintown

An embarrassing Obama flub

I was ashamed and offended that during his stop in the Valley, President Obama decided it would be a good idea to allow Dan Potkanowicz, a person who violated trade secrets and stiffed his former employer for $500,000, to introduce him at the rally in Poland.

Sadly, this error made its way into the national press and hit media outlets across the country.

Is this the type of example President Obama wants us to live up to in the Mahoning Valley? I suppose this president is really more out of touch than he leads us to believe. Despite the barriers thrown up by President Obama, our area is coming back, and the last thing we needed was this black eye, which shadowed his visit here.

Mr. President, please, do your homework next time, so our area does not end up getting negative attention in the national media because of your lack of judgement.

John J. Brown, Warren

Obama kept his promise

The Affordable Care Act, known derisively as Obamacare, has now been sanctioned by the United States Supreme Court. It is the law of the land. It is another promise kept by President Obama.

This law, which represents the fulfillment of a dream first conceived more than 100 years ago by Republican president Teddy Roosevelt, will provide health insurance to millions more Americans. By requiring everyone to purchase health insurance, the law will make the cost of health coverage more affordable.

The fact that a Republican dominated Congress has voted to repeal this legislation smacks of politics. That’s all it is. They offer no alternative. Instead they would rather see Americans deprived of essential health care than recognize that a good idea can be offered by a Democrat.

Under the Affordable Care Act, young people can remain on their parents’ health insurance until the age of 26. Americans with pre-existing condtions cannot be denied health insurance coverage and many of America’s senior citizens have already received $250 to help them pay for the cost of prescription drugs in order to help close the “donut hole.”

Besides enactment of the Affordable Care Act, President Obama put an end to taxpayer bailouts with the Wall Street Reform Act. He signed into law the Lily Ledbetter Act guaranteeing to women equal pay for equal work. He lifted the ban on federal funding for stem cell research.

Internationally, he restored America’s position among the nations of the world.

And finally, who among us can forget that due to the efforts of President Obama, General Motors is alive and well today and Osama bin Laden isn’t.

John T. DeFazio, Lisbon

Speak out for Social Security

I have just returned from Wash- ington, D.C., where I joined 100 advocates from around the country for the White House Senior Community Leaders Summit sponsored by the National Committee to Preserve Social Security, Medicaid and Medicaid. I represented the Ohio Organizing Collaborative in partnership with the Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative as a Retirement Security Fellow.

We met with senior staff from the Obama Administration and members of Congress to remind them that we need our Social Security and Medicare programs preserved and not just for us but for our children and grandchildren.

I am one of millions of Americans whose husband has died and never collected a dime of the thousands of dollars they paid into the system during their working years. No one talks about what happens to those excess dollars. We told them that more than half of seniors today rely on Social Security for 90 percent of their income, so cutting benefits is not acceptable. We were critical of the House GOP budget which would end traditional Medicare as we know it through privatization and their framing of our rights as an entitlement rather than an earned benefit. Thankfully, they listened, but with more than 120 days left before the election and the billions of dollars of outside money coming through the super PACS with the lies and distortions attached we must keep educating our seniors on the facts.

Candidates and incumbents must listen and hear us loud and clear if we want these lifelong programs protected because advocacy works. During recess in August we will be conducting local Care Congresses, inviting our elected officials to come and hear from their constituents putting a face and voice on the people they represent. A Caring Congress will be Aug. 23 at the Westminster Presbyterian Church, 119 Stadium Drive, Boardman.

Charlene W. Allen, Warren

America’s future is in your hands

Big things were happening in the small community of Poland, Ohio, on July 6. there was the preparation for the Relay For Life event being held at the Poland High School, holiday sales were occurring at various stores, cleaning up of fireworks displays, and oh yes, I almost forgot, Poland got to foot the bill for the President’s Dog and Pony show at Dobbins Elementary School.

Perhaps no one realizes what that staged show cost this community in overtime and logistics for our Poland police force. A community, by the way, that has financial issues and can ill afford the expense involved with a presidential visit with little or no reward in return.

Did I attend the presidents’ address. No, I wasn’t invited. Would I have gone if invited? No, would rather watch paint dry. I spent that morning doing something much more important. I stood along with my wife and four other Americans holding signs encouraging other Americans to consider the status of our Constitution this November. Until Friday, I had never protested a darn thing. I guess I can cross that off my bucket list now. I’ve never had a political sign in my front yard. I’ve never campaigned for a single candidate. On the other side of the coin, I have voted in every election since I became eligible in 1968. Sometimes for Democrats and sometimes for Republicans. This time I am not voting for a party, I am voting for America.

Our Constitution has served us for 225 years and it is not ready to die.

Aside from the declaration of war, the most powerful responsibility entrusted to the president is the appointment of U.S. Supreme Court justices. His philosophy on America will influence the court long after his term has expired. By appointing judges that lean to the far left, freedoms that you and I take for granted will erode away leaving us to ask, “How did that happen?”

Vote this November like the future of your grandchildren and America depends on your decision. It does.

Ted Montgomery, Poland