I’m an ex-inmate. I didn’t need a phone – and Texas prisons don’t need air conditioning | Opinion
Let ’em sweat
Texas prisons do not need air conditioning. (May 5, 4C, “Texas should cool its prisons before a court turns up heat”) Sorry, those inmates made mistakes. They should not get special benefits. I have been in prison. I did my time without air conditioning, phones, tablets or commissary access. Prisoners are getting too many privileges.
There are homeless people and older Texans with no AC. Worry about them, not those who are in Texas prisons.
- Liz Tony, Lufkin
Not antisemitism
Cynthia M. Allen wrote “It would seem that the greatest source of antisemitism in Texas and beyond doesn’t look very right-wing anymore.” (May 9, 10A, “Antisemitism in Texas comes more from left than right”) Allen either doesn’t get what is happening on college campuses across the nation and the world, or she has warped her words to fit her belief system.
It cannot be denied that some antisemites, and possibly even a few Hamas supporters, have attended the anti-war rallies. But the overwhelming majority were humanists seeking an end to U.S. support for the aggression that has killed tens of thousands of innocents. We supported neither side. We advocated for an end to the killing.
When every hospital and school is bombed out, when aid workers are targeted, when refugees are pushed against a closed gate, it ceases to be about Jews versus Palestinians. It becomes premeditated murder.
- D.E. Barnes, Alvarado
Fund schools
Texas has a budget surplus of at least $11 billion. Lawmakers and the governor have chosen not to properly fund public school districts because they didn’t get their way on school vouchers. So now we face closing school campuses and increasing class sizes for teachers who are already overworked. Schools are expected to pay for campus safety, too.
The state could easily fund the public schools and provide safety improvements. The governor should be about improving the quality of education for all our children, regardless of race, creed or color.
- Nancy Foster, Arlington
Rules on vaping
Whether you agree with the law on students caught with vaping materials, the law is in place. (May 12, 4C, “Vaping is a problem. Pulling kids from class isn’t answer”) And as long as it is, students should abide by it. If they get caught breaking the rules and face negative consequences, I say, “too bad” and don’t feel sorry for them.
There’s an old saying: “If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.” Simply follow the rules, and there will be no negative consequences.
- Rusty Bowden, Crowley
Clear the air
As an outsider to Village Creek, the Fort Worth neighborhood affected by industrial zoning, I can’t speak for its residents. (May 10, 1A, “City wants to block warehouse despite potential legal issues”) I see an opportunity, though, for the groups involved to address the main issue: diesel pollution. The businesses say they want to be good neighbors, but they aren’t offering a solution to this basic problem. Electrifying the trucks would reduce noise and air pollution for all.
There are many financial incentives for such a transition. The city could help with the street issues, and power companies could ensure a supply for electric trucks. Is there a leader, public or private, who is considering a way to break the impasse without legal action?
- Eric Pratt, Fort Worth
Students owe us
President Joe Biden says he wants to help hardworking Americans by forgiving some federal student loans. Who is going to pay the bills? It’s the hardworking people who never took out loans and never went to college, as well as people who did take out loans and paid them back. Is Biden trying to buy votes?
- Lucille Bida, Arlington
