Herald reader remembers Mike Lawrence, while another weighs in on Brittney Griner

Mike Lawrence a man to remember

With Mike Lawrence’s passing this month, he should be and will be remembered as a talented leader, a tireless community advocate, a man of great honor and a true friend to all. He wholeheartedly embraced the Tri-Cities as his home, and we should all be grateful that he did. Rest in peace, Mike, you’ve earned it.

Mike Talbot, Kennewick

U.S.-Russia swap was a poor trade

Biden shows once again he doesn’t care about the veterans. Trading a Russian merchant of death prisoner for a WNBA player and leaving a Marine veteran in Russian prison. The Russian is Viktor Bout who has ties with Al-Qaeda. The Marine who was accused of spying has been in prison for four years.

And let’s not forget the infamous trade President Obama made. He said we do not negotiate with terrorists yet gave up five of the worse in Gitmo to get a possible traitor marine who left his troops.

None of these were good trades.

It’s no wonder our military can’t recruit with examples like this.

Ira Johnson, Kennewick

‘End TB Act’ is worth supporting

While COVID-19 is still an important global health issue, other diseases not as prevalent in the news continue to kill millions. Tuberculosis (TB) is one such disease. A WHO report shows that 1.6 million people worldwide died of TB in 2021, 4 million people are not being treated, and global spending on TB has actually declined since 2019 to $5.3 billion dollars from $5.8 billion, less than half the funding target.

The End TB Now Act currently before Congress will direct USAID to set aggressive targets for protecting populations most vulnerable to TB as well as strengthen U.S. bilateral coordination with global organizations, including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and malaria.

While statistics on the scales of millions of lives and billions of dollars may numb one’s conscience, they are indeed real lives lost, and real dollars going toward real efforts to prevent suffering. We cannot forget our responsibility as a prosperous nation to help — where we can — others prosper as well, or that our fates are intertwined with those far outside our borders. Please write to our representatives, Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray, and Congressman Dan Newhouse, expressing support for the End TB Now Act.

Daniel Claborne, Richland

Stranded Afghans need all our help

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has” - Margaret Mead

A small group of American veterans, citizens and government personnel are working night and day in a mission to bring Afghan allies to safety in the U.S. They are also fighting for the Afghanistan Adjustment Act. This act would require the Biden Administration to relocate Afghan allies still in Afghanistan and provide a pathway to legal residence for Afghan allies already in the U.S. The bill also requires rigorous vetting, equivalent to the vetting requirements for refugees.

It’s a bipartisan bill, but Congress just isn’t getting around to voting on it. So let’s add a postscript to Margaret Mead’s saying — Never doubt that a larger group of moderately committed people can spur Congress into action. To this end, I called my representatives to ask them to push this bill forward and stood at the John Day Plaza with a handmade sign on which I had misspelled “families.” If a large enough group of us help, even if, like me, slightly incompetently, we can get the Afghan Adjustment act passed. Call your representatives!

Marjolein Oostrom, Richland