Letters to the editor July 4

Make America Whole Again

Which issues are most important? Extremism, white supremacy, racism? Culture wars, conspiracy theories, disinformation? Gun control, slaughter of children, power of NRA? Inflation, Ukraine, supply chain? Women’s rights? Education, book bans, CRT? Climate change, extreme weather, the environment? Flag-waving jingoism, the Capitol assault? Gas prices, recession worries? Religious intrusion into government?

Overwhelming?

Yes, but more important than all is the extreme polarization in this country. Fighting each other is tearing the fabric of democracy apart. As Pogo said, “I have met the enemy and he is us.”

How do we heal the deep divide? I suggest: Place country over party. Vary your news sources. Think critically. Be curious. Reaffirm our nation’s values. Choose dignity and respect. Vote for people with a strong moral compass. Hold politicians accountable. Write civil letters. Be open-minded. Get to know your neighbors. Listen deeply. Create dialogue, not drama. Welcome “others” in. Remove mean bumper stickers and expletive laden slogans. Travel if you can. Practice love, not hate.

Idealistic? Yes. But our founding fathers based our republic on idealism. My bumper sticker will read: Make America Whole Again.

— Nancy Teggeman, Polson

Ethical question

With sadness I see that the protections for true ethical action that were embodied in Roe V. Wade have been removed. This is a superficial victory: who does not love babies and want children to be born and thrive? It seems marvelous and life-giving. Yes!

But the deeper reality is that immediately the search for “exceptions” will begin. It has already begun. Unambiguous and simple situations are not the bulk of the cases that have now been changed. Each time a woman turns to this medical remedy, an ethical question is at the heart of the request. Ethical questions require knowledge of ethical principles: autonomy, beneficence, and so on.

By nature each ethical question is unique. In those states that will now implement a categorical ban on abortions, one of the ethical remedies has been removed. That decision has been taken from the individual ethical actor, the woman and her family. Ending the pregnancy has been turned into a crime.

And that is going to cause crimes (lying, impoverishment, physical injury to women, loss of livelihood, stigmatization) instead of giving the best ethical path forward in each unique case.

How did this deeply nuanced decision turn into a political cause?

We have all lost something with this decision.

— Janet O’Flynn, Kalispell

Reproductive rights

Stop abortion at the source. Vasectomies are reversible. Make every young man have one. When he is deemed financially and emotionally fit to be a father it will be reversed.

What’s that? Did the idea of regulating a man’s body make you uncomfortable? The government should not regulate a woman’s body either. It should be her inalienable right to control what happens to her body and only her right. It should not be up to politicians, religious zealots, or people in black robes who sit on the Supreme Court, and those who lied to get there.

Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black famously stated “The First Amendment has erected a wall between church and state,” and that “That wall must be kept high and impregnable.” That wall has now been shattered.

A monumental freedom has been ripped from every American woman. A freedom that should belong to all women to control their reproductive rights. Many of the same people who espouse freedom of religion, of gun rights and less government are celebrating the removal of a woman’s most significant liberty, a liberty that will affect her life for years to come. This ruling is the height of hypocrisy and injustice to every woman in America.

— Barbara Palmer, Kalispell

Homelessness and mental illness

A week ago the Inter Lake published a story about the increasing homelessness in the Flathead and possible solutions.

It was a good and useful article, but with an omission. Since it’s estimated nationally that approximately 40% of the homeless have serious untreated mental illness it’s logical to assume that a portion of the Flathead Valley’s homeless have untreated mental illness and also lack insight. Some of these will end up in jail for various infractions and add to an already overburdened detention system. Ask the sheriff.

Montana is only one of five states that still has imminent dangerousness as a criterion for involuntary treatment. The other 45 states have changed to “seriously disabled” or similar designations, as well as laws to ensure follow-up treatment and conditional release from a crisis center or hospital. Time for our legislators to step up to the plate.

— Mitzi Anderson, Whitefish