Government offers lifeline to hurricane victims
We just returned from riding out Hurricane Helene in the North Carolina mountains. All the Trump signs locally got me thinking about what his second administration might look like, even without Project 2025 influence.
For instance, government entities such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are mentioned as targets by folks objecting to “big government.” I guess there could be an upside to this; without NOAA, you would be spared all the stress associated with knowing a storm is bearing down on you. And as for that agonizing wait for help after the storm? Gone. No help will be forthcoming.
We need to vote for the candidate whose administration promises us the best chance for a functioning government. Because, despite their inefficiencies, these (and other) government agencies offer a lifeline to our friends and neighbors. Hopefully, the Trump supporters up there and around the country will wake up and vote for their own self-interest.
TOM FOLEY, DECATUR
Shame on GOP for hurricane falsehoods
When a mass shooting happens, and common-sense gun reforms are proposed, Republicans wring their hands while claiming we should not politicize a tragic event. They ramble on about the Second Amendment and rights as they raise money on the trauma. Oddly, with the incredible disaster of Helene, their mantra of “don’t politicize” seems to have floated away in the current.
The fabricated conspiracies online and on the air are quite stunning. Each is aimed squarely at Democrats and/or government agencies to incite anger and division. Bizarre claims include that FEMA is refusing to help Republican areas to help sway the election, there are not enough funds to help all in need, FEMA is turning away volunteers, and the topper (thanks to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene) is that “they” can control the weather.
All of these falsehoods are pitched, promoted and profited from by the Right while creating less confidence in the government workers whose efforts often go unheralded. Shame on them.
MICHAEL BUCHANAN, ALPHARETTA
