EDITOR
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Flawed
To the editor: Bryce (Luchterhand), your continued onslaught of letters to the editor, constantly complaining about President Trump’s COVID response, is getting old. You can cite all the stats you want, complain about the opinions voiced by our president. It will make no difference, because it is a virus and it is here.
In my opinion, President Trump’s handling of the supposed pandemic has been exemplary. The fact is the president has done as much as the constitution allows. He has offered help and hope, ramped up production of essential items, provided naval hospital ships, constructed field hospitals, just to name a few actions he took. He denied no governor’s request for help in this matter.
If Joe Biden were president, we would be in real trouble; he has problems reading a teleprompter. Joe Biden claimed 200 million people, two-thirds of the United States, died from COVID in a speech recently. He can’t even get his numbers right.
Bryce, in your recent letter you cited the number of cases in Wisconsin. The question I would like you to answer is, where are your complaints about our Governor Tony Evers? You seem to blame Trump for the rise in Wisconsin cases, but give the head of Wisconsin’s government a free pass. Governor Evers is the individual who shut down the state of Wisconsin. Governor Evers is the individual who closed schools, closed religious services, closed businesses all across the state, and caused rampant unemployment in Wisconsin.
You seem to fail to realize the Constitution of the United States of America limits the power of the federal government. The response to COVID is more the responsibility of the governors. The blame belongs more on the shoulders of the governors than the executive branch. Perhaps our national COVID numbers would be lower if we had fewer Democratic governors.
So, in closing, I prefer a limited federal government. I believe the people of Wisconsin can solve our challenges and problems better than politicians in Washington DC. When I have an issue with government, it is much easier to solve locally than nationally. If you wish for an all-powerful federal government, you only have to go 90 miles south of Florida. If you would chose to move to Cuba for the benefits of an all-powerful federal government, I would advise that you learn to speak Spanish.
Finally, please remember: do not worry about the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye when you have a tree in your own.
Rick Weber Colby
Thank you, blood donors
To the editor: Another blood drive has come and gone, and I’d like to take this opportunity to say “thank-you” to everyone who had any involvement in its success.
First and foremost, thank you donors. Without you, none of this work would mean anything. If you came in but were deferred, please don’t be discouraged. Try again...you are important as well, and I do so appreciate the efforts you made coming in.
Thanks to my team of volunteers. The drive doesn’t run itself, and your willingness to be involved makes my job much easier, especially since there were many extra safety measures to consider. I am so grateful to be in such a caring community.
The numbers were a little down from July, but the current quarantine situation did not help. The September drive is usually held at the school, and we have many student volunteers and donors. This time we did not have that, so I am quite pleased with the outcome.
We had 47 presenting donors, and between whole blood and double red blood cells, 44 total units were collected. Thank you everyone!
Karen LaPine Abbotsford Lions blood drive coordinator
People need to take this pandemic more seriously
To the editor: I can’t decide what is more disturbing… the COVID-19 pandemic, or the fact that so many people think it is a hoax.
How many times have you heard that it will magically disappear the day after the election? It’s one thing to hear it from the general public, but to have it foolishly perpetuated by various leaders of businesses, schools, and governments is alarming. The mountain of evidence that the pandemic is real is overwhelming. In case you have your head in the sand, Wisconsin is having a major COVID- 19 surge right now, which could overwhelm health care systems in the near future if left unchecked.
Do you deniers need to wind up in the hospital gasping for air to take this seriously? Many say it really only affects very old, frail people who were going to die anyway, so it’s not a big deal. First, that is a cruel approach. Their lives have value too. Second, they are not the only ones succumbing to this disease. According to CDC statistics, as of Sept. 23, about 80,000 people aged 35 to 74 have died from complications of COVID-19 in the United States. And nearly 2,000 people aged 0 to 34 have died from it in the U.S.
The impact of COVID-19 goes way beyond deaths. There are many documented cases of young adults getting serious blood clots and strokes from COVID-19, which may leave difficulties for the rest of their lives. Even people who exhibit mild or no symptoms may have longer term organ damage according to recent studies.
I personally know several healthy young folks who recently had COVID-19 with what is considered mild symptoms. Even that was not pleasant, with a solid 10 days of flu-like ailments and fatigue. It is estimated that at least 40 percent of the adult U.S. population has underlying health conditions that put them a greater risk for more severe outcomes from COVID- 19.
Northcentral Wisconsin has been one of the last places in the U.S. for the pandemic to really settle into. In the many months it took to get here, have we learned anything from the trials and mistakes from those areas that had it before us? Based on how many people refuse to wear masks, socially distance, or avoid high risk indoor gatherings to slow the spread of COVID-19, it doesn’t seem like it.
I get that it isn’t fun or convenient to maintain such health measures. It stinks that we can’t do all the things that we find enjoyable right now. It stinks that so many of us have been struggling financially during this pandemic, my business included. But, in the end, what is more important? Is it activities, money, and stuff, or is it human life?
If we can’t work together to tackle this pandemic, what is going to happen when an even greater pandemic or non-medical calamity comes along? Come on, we can do better than this! Let’s not live in fear, but let’s be socially responsible.
Tony Schumacher
Stetsonville
