To the Editor:
Our midterm elections beckon us to rethink our identity and face crucial decisions as never before.
Do we entrench ourselves in outdated fossil fuels, with costly subsidies to polluters and devastating wars, or do we trust that American ingenuity can pioneer clean and sustainable energy, as other leading nations do?
Do we hide our inadequacies behind shortsighted tariffs and closed borders, or do we welcome competition and new ideas, in order to better ourselves?
Are we a country where a personality cult and censorship provide fertile ground for insecure megalomaniacs, or do we value education, innovation and enlightened leadership?
Do we hide behind religiosity and spread fear and hatred for strangers, or do we summon the better angels of our nature and honor our country’s heritage by welcoming diversity, the foundation of our strength?
Do we make alliances with insecure bullies, or do we stand with the free democracies of the world in promoting universal principles of justice and human rights?
We are at a defining moment in American and world history. Let us choose wisely.
John Preudhomme Pompano Beach, Fla.
To the Editor:
Re “Even a Blue Wave Can’t Stop the President,” by Jeffrey Toobin (Opinion guest essay, Oct. 20):
Unfortunately, I have to agree with Mr. Toobin. Even a blue wave that could result in a House and Senate majority for the Democrats would not stop President Trump.
Short of behavior so egregious — can you imagine Mr. Trump behaving worse? — that it spurs the sycophants in the Republican Party to grow spines, Mr. Trump’s vetoes wouldn’t be overridden. The courts, which move slowly, would not suddenly realize that their complicity is seriously, and possibly irrevocably, damaging our democracy.
Yes, we would have headlines that make some of us feel better, but the reality is that we will have two more years of the most inept and immoral presidency in our history. Our position as the leader of the free world, and as the most powerful nation on the planet, will likely be over.
Mike Shlasko Las Cruces, N.M.
To the Editor:
Re “The Midterms Look Dark for Republicans. Their Future Looks Brighter,’’ by Michael Brendan Dougherty (Opinion guest essay, nytimes.com, Oct. 19):
Whether or not President Trump is his party’s “great unifier,” he certainly has been that for its opposition. If the Democratic Party leadership follows his advice to G.O.P. voters — “Pretend, please, that I’m on the ballot” — it will likely draw to the polls huge numbers of grass-roots Democrats who otherwise wouldn’t bother to vote in a midterm election.
So I say let him make this election as much about himself as he can. Maybe if the Republicans are humiliated at the polls on Nov. 3, as seems quite possible, they’ll learn a lesson about the consequences of turning a political party into a personality cult.
Eric B. Lipps Staten Island
Understanding Stuttering
To the Editor:
“Researchers Look Beyond Speech Therapy for Stuttering,” by Jack Tamisiea (Science Times, Oct. 20), brings welcome attention to research and the experiences of people who stutter. His own experience adds an important personal dimension. We share his hope that better understanding will reduce blame and open new possibilities for help.
At the Stuttering Foundation, we have long believed that one size does not fit all. People who stutter deserve to be heard, respected and supported in the goals they choose for themselves — whether they seek greater fluency, greater comfort with stuttering or both. No one should feel that the door to help is closing.
That means access to trustworthy information and thoughtfully considered treatment options, without promises of a cure or someone else deciding which goals are appropriate.
Jane Fraser Memphis The writer is the president of the Stuttering Foundation.
Conscious A.I.?
To the Editor:
I’m very surprised to see A.I. consciousness being taken so seriously. Does the machine ever breathe, seek food, feel hunger, support its children, get punched in the face, hug its mom, bleed?
What is there to be conscious of? The tiniest fish has more consciousness.
David L. Ross Lynnwood, Wash.
The post A High-Stakes Election: ‘Let Us Choose Wisely’ appeared first on New York Times.
