Here’s how to submit a letter to the editor to the Providence Journal
Community opinions matter to us and we make sure there’s a space to hear what your neighbors are thinking. Here’s how to submit your own.
Journal Staff
Leave government out of healthcare
Democrats have shut down government, their primary reason being to force a continuation in perpetuity of Obamacare subsidies enacted during the COVID emergency. This is an admission of Obamacare’s failure (remember how Obamacare promised a $2,500 annual reduction in premiums per family?). Now premiums are so expensive that we need to spend tens of billions that we don’t have per year to keep people on it. This would be a giant step toward the Democratic dream of Medicare for All.
The closest comparable scheme to that dream is Britain’s National Health Service. In the most recent year for which we have data, 120,000 people in Britain died while on waiting lists for care. 50,000 people have been waiting more than 2 years to see a doctor! This where healthcare is considered a “right,” and where that very NHS is bankrupting their country. Accounting for our population differences, adopting such a plan in the U.S. would result in over 600,000 people dying annually while waiting for care, and 250,000 on waiting lists in excess of two years.
Government involvement invariably produces two things: high costs and low quality (see: public education, housing, healthcare, the Postal Service, tariffs, and other examples too numerous to mention). This is a lesson we never seem to learn.
Competition and open markets tend to produce the lower costs and better quality, but these are anathema to the progressive religion. Until our policymakers recognize this, I fear we’ll find ourselves on the road to Britain’s plight. Robert A. Richer, Charlestown
Letter discredited Flynn, Heritage Hall of Fame
Roberta Feather’s letter to the editor (“Michael Flynn resurfaces,” Oct. 5) discredited the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame and its past president, Patrick T. Conley.
Lt. General Flynn’s induction ceremony was postponed in view of warnings from law enforcement sources that paid political protesters would be present to destroy the proceedings. We were not about to put our patrons and inductees – especially the four from Rhode Island’s minority communities and who have waited in the wings to receive the honor and distinction they richly deserve – in harm’s way!
We (foolishly) had thought cooler heads might prevail with a future induction with Lt. General Flynn present. It was not to be with the leftist lunacy that pervades the country and now includes condoned political assassination in its playbook. Lt. General Flynn has been honored by the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame for his 33 years of distinguished military service to the nation; not the political persecution of the Russia hoax he endured and which, we now know, was a total setup and fabrication.
Lawrence C. Reid, president, Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame, East Providence
Barriers facing special education students
In Rhode Island, the four-year graduation rate for students receiving special education services in the Class of 2024 was 65 percent, compared with 88 percent for students not receiving these services. This gap should concern us all. It reflects the barriers that students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) face and raises important questions about how well our schools are meeting their needs.
Some students in special education take longer than four years to graduate. That is not failure. It reflects their individual learning journeys and the extra time some students need to succeed. When schools provide strong transition planning, inclusive classrooms, and meaningful collaboration with families, students with IEPs graduate better prepared for college, training, or the workforce.
Rhode Island must make closing this gap a priority by investing in targeted supports and celebrating all pathways to a diploma. Every graduate deserves recognition, whether they walk the stage in four years or six.
Carolina Roberts-Santana, Providence
Don’t blame the Democrats
Really, Dace Potas (“Blame Democrats for shutdown – and the politics that got us here,” Commentary, Oct. 11). Your response to millions of Americans losing their healthcare to benefit the ultra wealthy is the Democrats started it?
The sandbox is no place to solve the many challenges facing this country.
If the Democrats’ biggest sin was extending healthcare and student loan forgiveness to the neediest Americans, then count me a sinner! Lynda Dickinson, East Greenwich
URI should keep communities in mind
To start, Rhode Island has a first-rate medical school at Brown. As the smallest state, I don’t think there is any need for a second medical school at URI (“Feasibility study recommends Medical School at URI,” News, Oct. 6). There are facilities in Boston and New Haven that serve most of our state very well.
As to my second point. URI first needs to figure out how to accommodate their students on campus vs sending them all “down the line” where our towns are being inundated and overwhelmed with the student population. It is forcing out families that want to live here. Families that send their children to school. Families that support local businesses of all sorts, not just liquor stores and bars.
URI has acres of property that were originally turf farms that can be used to develop housing and “mini-towns” to create a nice campus environment for students. The university programs keep expanding, which I am all for, but the school needs to do that while keeping the local community in mind.
Linda Reich, Narragansett
Superman Building proposal makes sense
While Rhode Islanders, like much of the country, can be fiercely divided by politics, I’m sure we can all agree that we should not see another 14 years go by with the Industrial Trust Building still being batted around and vacant.
Joseph Paolino’s proposal (“Superman Building an ideal home to store state archives,” Commentary, Oct. 5) makes sense, especially at a time when there will be a glut of office space available, between AI and corporate departures. Let’s get moving before we have another Washington Bridge on our hands.
Gary Smith, Wakefield
Bottle bill would hurt small businesses
This past spring, our state legislators made the right choice and stood with Rhode Island working families and small businesses by rejecting a proposed 10-cent bottle tax. Their actions sent a clear message that now is not the time to increase the price of groceries and everyday purchases when Rhode Islanders are already struggling to make ends meet.
Proponents will argue that a 10-cent deposit fee is too small to hurt, but as the owner of a market store, I know that’s not true. In tough economic times like this, asking families to pay $2.40 more for a 24-pack of water or $1.20 more for a 12-pack of sports drinks adds up, leading to fewer sales and more customers heading to stores in Massachusetts to save money.
We all want to increase recycling rates and protect Rhode Island’s environment. But that cost shouldn’t be put on the shoulders of families or small businesses trying to keep customers coming through the door. I look forward to seeing what alternative our state legislature proposes and I hope the Providence Journal holds lawmakers accountable by publishing the name of every lawmaker who votes to raise prices on families and swipe sales from Rhode Island’s small independent stores.
Ines Delgado, Providence
