To the editor:
Make America Great Again Yes, I am all for that! But when are we going to start?
I guess that I must be confused or unclear somehow, because I have been looking at what has happened in our country over the past couple of years. I’m looking at things like:
Gun violence: Nearly 40,000 people died from gun violence last year. There were 23 recorded school shootings in 2018, which was the highest number of incidents ever recorded. We are exceeded in per capita gun deaths largely by the countries of Central America, where poverty and violence are driving so many citizens to walk hundreds of miles north seeking a better life,that we are requested to spend something like $15 billion to build a border wall to keep these folks out, but next to nothing to address the issues involved.
Climate change: Global warming is accelerating even more rapidly than was anticipated and if we do not take dramatic action soon, we may face the collapse of human society. At the same time, the United States withdrew from the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation treaty.
Income inequality: The United States exhibits wider disparities of wealth between rich and poor than any other major developed nation. Can you believe that three men own as much wealth as the bottom 50 percent of all Americans? Concurrently, we have given huge tax breaks to the wealthiest among us.
People in prison: The United States has the largest prison population in the world, and the highest per-capita incarceration rate. This cost the U.S. $80 billion per year. The FBI recently reported that hate crimes increased for the third consecutive year.
So I look at that list, and I say, help me out here. Yes, if you are incredibly wealthy or part of the billionaire class, you may be very happy indeed about recent developments, but for the rest of us, I’m just not seeing it. When do we get to start making America truly a great country?
John Richards
Peterborough