A lobbyist kept Jeff City from hiking beer taxes. Big money speaks louder than voters
Loud lobbyists
Reading the Sept. 29 front-page story “Busch family name playing role in Missouri Senate race” about Eric Schmitt and Trudy Busch Valentine, one part reminded me just why you and I — average taxpayers — don’t matter to legislators and that they couldn’t care less what we think.
About three-fourths of the way through the story, it noted: “Before his death in 2014, Anheuser-Busch’s longtime lobbyist John Britton was considered one of the most powerful figures in Missouri. Using his influence, Britton regularly defeated legislative efforts to raise taxes on beer.”
Think about this a second: A lobbyist held what appears to have been ultimate power over the entire state legislature. He single-handedly dictated what taxes would be levied and, more important, what taxes would not. He was even powerful enough to dodge the smoking ban in the capitol.
How? He was a Missourian no different from you or me. Oh, but there’s one extremely important difference: Britton had boatloads of money. And we all know that money is the only thing legislators care about. Because money talks, garbage walks and plumbers get paid on Fridays. He could buy legislators’ votes, and you and I can’t.
It’s a simple equation, folks, but it always comes back to the adage “Follow the money.”
- Lane Sekavec, De Soto
Not for them
The Oct. 3 front-page story “Missouri districts remove books from school libraries” reports that conservative parents and politicians are using a new Missouri law to remove books with LGBTQ themes from school libraries. It says, “Proponents argue the legislation will protect children from inappropriate content and indoctrination.” As the article further reveals, such parental and political use of the legislation in fact achieves just the opposite.
Subjected to this latest round of school library censorship, students who experience gender dysphoria learn quite visibly that their struggle with their identity is “inappropriate content” and that the legalized removal of reading material addressing their struggle is itself a nonverbal demonstration of “indoctrination.”
The lessons for these students are clear: The public school library (which shares the roots of its name with “liberty,” by the way) is not free from legally sanctioned bias. Many students’ gender-identity struggles are deemed unsuitable subjects for personal consideration in public spaces, and the students themselves are, by hapless extension, not welcome in school spaces that should be serving them better.
Finally, these students learn that inclusive representation and considerate due process are often missing from public school policy that has the force of law. Tough lessons in applied civics to learn from the practice of today’s public schools.
- James Heiman, Independence
Whose slurs?
I found it quite ironic that the writer of a Sunday letter to the editor (19A) takes issue with President Joe Biden’s word choices in referring to “MAGA Republicans” but is willing to overlook that the great divider-in-chief of the MAGA wing of the Republican Party uses the term “RHINO” and other slurs about members of his own party.
- P.C. Jaros, Leawood
Save the GOP
When I was born, Herbert Hoover was president. So, I’ve lived a lot more history than most of you, and I think I’ve gained a fair amount of wisdom along the way. In addition, I am an independent who has voted for both Republicans and Democrats. Lastly, I am not given to hysterical thinking.
So, with that in mind, believe me when I say that our democracy is in peril and the upcoming midterm election is pivotal in saving it.
The Donald Trump-controlled Republican Party has become dangerously radicalized. Its primary goal is to gain power, and it will do whatever it takes to hold onto it — for example, voting restrictions and unfair redistricting.
I make this plea to all Republicans who dread the possibility of America following the global trend toward autocracy. In the upcoming election, shock your party into cleaning house and restoring its former role as a defender of our democracy. Put your country above party, swallow the bitter pill and vote for Democratic candidates. They have plans to tackle some of our problems. Give them the majorities they need to enact them.
- Patrick Shannon, Lawrence
