Tax overhaul hurts children
I am writing this letter en route to Anchorage from Capitol Hill. I traveled there on Friday to meet with our Senate offices about the tax bill and its devastating $1.5 trillion impact on the federal budget. I brought letters from other Alaskans, echoing concerns for our social safety net programs — those that support health care, nutrition, and heat for resilient, hardworking Alaskan families struggling to make ends meet. We were told that our fears are unfounded, that Senators Murkowski and Sullivan have the best interests of Alaskans at heart. No tax breaks for those with wealth and power would be subsidized by harming the 1 in 5 Alaskan children born into poverty. And yet, already today, Senate leaders have said they won't fund health care for children (CHIP) because we don't have the federal budget. Somehow providing our children health care is less important than helping a billionaire fund his new yacht.
I want to believe that our senators want to do right by all Alaskans, so here is a message I urge them to support: No child should go hungry, freeze or have an illness go untreated in order to pay for this tax cut.
— Sara Buckingham,
RESULTS volunteer
Anchorage
Tax consumption, not labor
Tax reform — the great divide! One argument is that if I make $100,000 and you make $10,000 then I should pay 10 times as much tax as you. Well, some will say no, I need to pay 20 or 30 times more because I can "afford" it.
Another argument goes: If you and I make the same, why is it that you pay half what I do? Is that fair? Some will answer yes, because you have no children, therefore you can afford to pay more.
For policy makers, this is really difficult because we all have our own self interest in place, and as a result we have a very complex and in my opinion unfair tax system — it picks winners and losers based upon personal philosophy of fairness.
The best system should have no "winners or losers" but a simple means of generating sufficient income to pay the cost of government, and let the market place decide the rest. Perhaps it is time to really consider the Fair Tax Proposal — a tax on consumption and not on labor.
— Jim Mallery
Anchorage
Let's automate Congress
I keep reading that over the next couple of decades, millions of American jobs will be taken by robots.
They should start with Congress.
— Stan Jones
Anchorage
Lisa took the ANWR bait
I was disappointed in Senator Lisa's acceptance of the "drill in ANWR" bribe, which led to her vote for the GOP tax plan. (I expected it of Senator Dan.)
Many Alaskans might temporarily benefit from the new oil, if it is actually found, but that benefit will be far outweighed by the addition of a trillion or so dollars to the national debt. And, if that debt causes the nation's economy to disintegrate in a decade or two, as predicted by authorities far smarter than I, who's gonna buy our newfound oil?
I long for elected leaders who will put the good of the nation ahead of benefits to one region or state (or election).
— Don Neal
Anchorage
Thanks for helping students
Each semester students from East and Service High schools are given the opportunity to participate in the Pre-Employment Transition Services Program (Pre-ETS) through the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. This program introduces students to career exploration, job skills, and customer service skills while participating in a 40 hour paid work experience on a real job site. Students are able to practice and perfect those skills they have been learning in the class.
The following businesses past and present have been instrumental in making this program a huge success: Burger Fi, Plato's Closet, Color Me Mine, Pink Elephant, The Learning Farm, Lemon Tree, Once Upon a Child, Round Table Pizza, Nestle Toll House, Anchorage Community Mental Health Services Maintenance Department and the laundry facilities out at JBER. Without each of you we would not have been able to give these students the opportunities they needed in practicing their job skills, learning life lessons and gaining self-confidence. Our entire staff thanks you for working with these students and we look forward to working with you in the future.
— Lisa McInerney
RISE vocational program manager
Anchorage
Subscription will go the way of college football coverage
Did I miss the section on Saturday's college football games? Guess not.
Will I miss this paper when my subscription ends? Guess not.
— Rock Reed
Anchorage
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter under 200 words for consideration, email letters@adn.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@adn.com.