LETTERS: By Titus’ reasoning, every group needs own health care branch
To the editor:
Regarding Rep. Dina Titus’ op-ed on the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Nevada congresswoman may have provided health care a solution to a more comprehensive and efficient system (“Private sector lacks capacity, expertise to care for veterans,” Tuesday Review-Journal). By Rep. Titus’ reasoning, only a VA physician can understand and treat a veteran. Head trauma in Mosul needs to be treated differently than head trauma in Elko. A prosthetic applied by a VA physician is completely different than one applied by a civilian physician.
So, by Rep. Titus’ reasoning, we should create agencies that administer health care for homeless denizens, minorities, alcoholics, schoolteachers, carpenters and jazz musicians. No physician educated in our medical universities is capable of treating all these diverse groups. And being that the Silver State is severely lacking in physicians, she probably would have preferred a separate agency for the uninsured, rather than forcing them into our overburdened sector.
Rep. Titus, if you care as much as you imply, open private care to veterans, at least until you correct the horrendous disservice the VA provides now.
TOM HOOVER
LAS VEGAS
Titus op-ed on mark
To the editor:
How refreshing it is to read a commentary in the Review-Journal that is informative, knowledgeable and well-written (“Private sector lacks capacity, expertise to care for veterans,” Tuesday Review-Journal.) Rep. Dina Titus’ response to the Review-Journal’s July 24 editorial (“No more money: Don’t give VA $17.6 billion; privatize it”) is written by someone who has knowledge of the subject and clearly explains to the reader the issues that would make privatizing the VA an option that is not viable.
On top of that, Rep. Titus has proposed common-sense solutions to the problem, which have been included as part of the agreement between the leaders of the House and Senate committees on Veterans Affairs.
This is in contrast to the Review-Journal’s approach of throwing the baby out with the bath water to solve all government agency problems. The Review-Journal followed up its call for privatizing the VA with a call to privatize the Transportation Security Administration (“TSA as the IRS,” July 26 Review-Journal). In both cases, the only justification given for privatizing was that private businesses could do it better and cheaper. There were no examples given as to how private businesses could do it better or cheaper.
If the Review-Journal could point to specific expertise in the private sector or a solid business plan that would result in better outcomes at lower cost, I would be inclined to listen to them. But just trying to solve problems on the cheap is not going to cut it. We need quality long-term solutions at a reasonable cost, and $17.6 billion sounds reasonable to me, considering the problem.
RICHARD PRATT
LAS VEGAS
Terrorist tactics
To the editor:
There was an interesting article in Monday’s Review-Journal. A Metro SWAT team member was punished for saying on Facebook that the defenders of Cliven Bundy were being sighted by police (“Two officers kicked off SWAT for online post”). A picture published with the article shows an individual pointing his rifle at officers. I guess our officers should just wait to be shot at before taking action.
That same picture also shows a woman sitting beside the armed Bundy supporter. If you go back and look at the pictures of the standoff, you will see armed men intermingling with women and children. They knew full well that this was the safest way to play soldier in the United States.
There have also been reports from the Middle East conflict of Hamas hiding its rocket launchers in packed neighborhoods, religious buildings and hospitals. Hamas is considered a terrorist group, so what does that make the armed protectors of Mr. Bundy? Give them whatever name you want, but their methods of self-protection are the same as those used by Hamas.
JAMES FORD
LAS VEGAS
Enforce immigration law
To the editor:
Regarding the massive immigration problem our federal government has given us, we do not need additional laws or immigration reform. What we need is the backbone and guts to enforce the laws now in place. There is no country in the world that can survive open borders and support the massive influx of people invading such a country, yet we sit here and let it happen.
What are we supposed to do with all of these immigrants? We will have to feed, house and educate them. Our pockets are empty and our welfare system is broken. We can barely support our own citizens, never mind taking care of all of Central and South America. Please send all the children and their families back home.
THOMAS C. MALICH SR.
LAS VEGAS
Reid’s space odyssey
To the editor:
It’s painfully obvious by now that Sen. Harry Reid is senile or living in a world far, far away from ours. The embarrassment extends from Nevada to Arizona, where we have to put up with derision because the Senate majority leader is from a neighboring state.
The borders are secure, indeed. Thank you, Sen. Reid, for that uplifting and very accurate information. Your spaceship should be here soon to take you away, just as happened with Wilford Brimley and Don Ameche in “Cocoon.” Good luck with your journey home on the mother ship, Sen. Reid.
RICHARD COX
FORT MOHAVE, ARIZ.
