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Don’t excuse parents’
tragic decisions
Re: “Who failed baby Phoenix?” (Page A1, Nov. 12).
The headline of the Nov. 12 East Bay Times asks: “Who failed baby Phoenix?” The main answer is this: her parents. I know that some will be inclined to say that this goes without saying, but does it? I would say that this needs to be stressed because many today don’t really hold parents accountable enough for their children. Progressives today have a serious accountability problem hurting how they respond to many issues in life.
Frankly, I don’t care if parents like Phoenix’s have “substance abuse” problems, troubled pasts or any sort of mental health diagnosis. They’re responsible for the decisions that they make and for the consequences of their decisions.
We need to stop excusing capable adults when they do bad things. And we need to stop shifting blame from adults who are really responsible for what happens in their lives, regardless of their histories, race, sexual identity or mental health diagnoses.
Christopher Andrus
Dublin
Inflation due to rich
fleecing the poor
Re: “Biden’s policies let U.S. inflation flourish” (Page A12, Nov. 19).
Unfortunately, it appears Mr. Todesco sucked up gobs of Donald Trump’s lies. The wealthy leaders of commerce set prices. The profitable fossil fuel industry could not care less about our Earth, as long as their profits continue to rise. Face reality, it isn’t the poor who get richer from high prices.
Perhaps if Don the Con had been able to face reality, he would have done something, anything, to save the planet instead of giving the money to his rich friends through tax breaks. Wake up to reality before it’s too late.
DiAnn Hillerman
Oakland
UN has role to play
in era of conflict
Despite the ongoing wars, particularly the Ukrainian war and the Israeli-Hamas war, and the inability of the United Nations Security Council to adopt effective measures to end these wars, there is still an urgent need for the United Nations and its specialized agencies to provide needed humanitarian assistance to the civilians, particularly food and medicine, as well as to ensure the safety and well-being of the non-combatants.
Furthermore, there are roles for nongovernmental organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations that provide assistance to those in need. It’s important to emphasize that the rules of international law established since World War II have set standards and guidelines to protect civilians in cases of armed conflicts. These rules should be enforced by all countries, the United Nations, and other intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.
Amer Araim
Walnut Creek
Source: www.mercurynews.com