Letters to the editor for Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015

Supports voting reform bill

I was on a national conference call with Representative John Delaney of Maryland to discuss the Open Our Democracy Act, HR 2655, which he reintroduced. The call was convened and hosted by Jackie Salit, president of IndependentVoting.org, the largest association of independent voters in the country, of which I’m a part. On the call, we got the inside scoop on this important legislation.

The bill does three things: enacts Top Two nonpartisan primaries for all Congressional elections in the United States, makes Election Day a national holiday, and creates a road whereby the practice of gerrymandering could be replaced with a more citizen friendly redistricting process.

In other words, it’s an anti-corruption package of reform designed to empower voters and give our country some much needed breathing room from the partisanship that now over-determines every step of the political process.

Delaney said, “Politicians always make the mistake of underestimating the American people. Three hundred million smart Americans are not going to let some 500 members of Congress stand in their way forever.” I couldn’t agree more.

Given the vested interest of most politicians in the status quo, it’s going to take a grass roots movement of independent-minded voters to pressure our local representatives to support this bill. I will be contacting Congressman Amodei this week to ask him to support it. Please join me.

We can open our democracy and unleash the innovation and creativity needed to solve old problems in new ways. We’ll have to free ourselves from the grips of partisanship to do so.

Catana L. Barnes

President of Independent Voters of Nevada

Set emotions aside in political process

The political hyperbolic appeals are flying like crazy right now and will continue for quite some time into the future. Let’s take a few moments, on a regular basis throughout this process, to set our egos, our entrenched fears and unquestioned values aside. Just breathe. And breathe again. Now imagine what kind of world you want to live in. What should America stand for? What kind of America do you want your children and grandchildren to be asked to lose their lives for? What is America worth? How will the details, not the generalities, of candidates’ proposals contribute to your vision?

Think it through, rationally, scientifically, with emotions set aside. Future generations will be grateful.

Leslie Sexton

Dayton

Thanks Bauman for his column

This is a past due thank you to Sam Bauman! Thank you for time and thoughtfulness in writing an always interesting column, and not always for seniors only.

Sam covers many helpful subjects in good humor, making all his columns one of our favorites.

Lyn Hite

Carson City

Need to stand up to humanists

Former Treasurer Dan Schwartz states in the article written by Geoff Dornan of the Appeal that the state has a “problem” dispersing funding for the voucher system of education to faith based or home schools. I would like to remind everyone that our state sponsored religion of secular humanism is taught as fact in our public schools, yet there seems to be no hesitation spending huge quantities of tax dollars on them.

Did you realize that secular humanism is a religion? In the 1950s the Supreme Court found that secular humanism was a religion and usable as a way to obtain conscientious objector status to avoid service during the Korean “conflict.” There have been several other notable cases where the court found secular humanism to be a religion. Google it — “Secular humanism religion in the public schools.”

In more recent history, the courts have determined a sort of “dual citizenship” for secular humanists where the courts find that for “establishment clause” purposes they are not a religion and therefore can take tax funds, yet still also legally find that they can keep the “free exercise clause” exemption as a religion where it suits the purpose!

Is it any wonder that thinking folk home school or take advantage of faith based education? We must stand up before we are crushed by the tide of humanists!

John Wood

Carson City