Dear Editor:
Donald Trump has the luck of a Satan’s child! The U.S. Supreme Court, that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President Donald Trump packed with a conservative majority, lets Trump escape the law. This court of his sends the precedent-setting case back to the federal trial judge, to determine whether Trump’s actions on January 6, 2021, when his supporters attacked the Capitol, were official or unofficial. Time is on Trump’s side. Nothing will be decided before November’s election.
At a Plymouth State University Sidore Lecture, history professor Bill Blum once told his audience that “history is made of surprises.” Still lots of room for surprises with our upcoming election. There’s what’s happening in our U.S.A.-world, and (not to forget) what’s happening in the larger world. For my children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and all their planetary peers, I hope for sanity and justice.
Lynn Rudmin Chong
Sanbornton, N.H.
Lynn:
Thanks for introducing us to a trope with which we had not been familiar. In a quick tour of the Googleverse, we found it more often expressed as “The devil’s children have the devil’s luck.”
It may be superficially satisfying to attribute Dolt#45’s continued freedom to a malevolent supernatural entity, but doing so would let too many other miscreants off the hook, beginning with New York City prosecutors in the 1980s and 1990s, through NBC executives and Mark Burnett, and more recently the entire Republican Party.
The Editor
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The Day the Court Killed Our Republic
Dear Editor:
July 1, 2024, three days shy of our nation’s 248th Birthday, will go down in history as the day the Republic that the founders gave us was killed by six radical Supreme Court Justices. On that day these six unelected justices transformed America from a Democratic Republic to a quasi-monarchy, where one person has been placed above the law.
Over the past 248 years we have suffered many traumatic events and threats to our Republic: The Civil War; Pearl Harbor; the assassinations of Lincoln, JFK, Martin Luther King, and RFK; Watergate; 9/11, and January 6th. However, as a nation we were able to recover and maintain our Republic in spite of these events because our Constitution and the rule of law were upheld and kept intact. Unfortunately, this is not the case with the Supreme Court ruling granting Presidents legal immunity from prosecution for any illegal actions they commit while in office as long as those actions are considered to be part of their “official acts.”
The Court left very vague any criteria that separate and distinguish “Official acts” from unofficial acts by a president. Who will determine what acts performed by a President fall under the criteria as official acts? Any president could easily perform actions legal or illegal that personally benefit him or her and contort those actions so as to be considered “official acts.” Mr. Trump has already demonstrated how easily his criminal behavior can be construed as “official.”
After most of the traumatic events listed above, our flag was ordered to be flown at half staff to commemorate our loss. If there was ever a time that our flag should be flown at half mast it would be today, to commemorate the death of our Democratic Republic and the rule of law. While most Americans will not shed a tear or consider today’s Supreme Court decision a monumental disaster, history will mark this day as the day the great experiment in democracy and self-rule died in the U.S. Our founding fathers, who were steadfast against creating a monarchy, are spinning in their graves.
Rich DiPentima
Portsmouth, N.H.
Rich:
Comatose? Yes, absolutely.
Prognosis? Not good. Not good at all.
Dead? Our Magic 8 Ball says “Ask again later.”
The Editor
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Overthrowing The American Revolution
To the Editor:
The corrupt-to-the-bone Republican Supreme Court has hit a new low. In case after case the majority of “justices” have ignored long-standing precedent and ruled politically to suit their own religious beliefs, party affiliation, and disdain for the law—cloaking it all in legalese nonsense.
Their latest stunt boggles the imagination. In Trump vs. The United States, the court stalled for six months on a very straightforward case, materially helping Trump whose big hope is that none of his three remaining criminal trials take place before the election.
The case (and the ruling) are ridiculous for several reasons. First the appeals court wrote a thorough decision, completely debunking Trump’s contention of immunity from prosecution. Second, these so-called originalists (who claim to honor the original intent of the Constitution) made a “decision” that is the absolute opposite of what the founding fathers wanted. It is laughable.
Perhaps the single most important concern the founding fathers had was to make sure the chief executive did not have absolute power (like the king). Now, these six party hacks have given Trump (who appointed three of them) immunity from prosecution for his actions! It is outrageous.
We the people need to make sure Trump doesn’t get reelected. If he does, he will commit more crimes, which he has promised to do, for which this decision grants him immunity.
And we must demand that this court be reformed.
Michael Frandzel
Portsmouth, N.H.
Michael:
Your letter got is to thinking—what we need is some new Hercules to re-route the Potomac and clean out originalist crap the Federalist Society deposited in the Supreme Court.
The Editor
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The Partisan Supreme Court
To the Editor:
Last December the Special Council prosecuting Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court to hear Trump’s claim of absolute immunity. The Court refused. Only after the Appellate Court ruled unanimously against Trump did the Court declare it would hear the case. However, they delayed hearing the case until the last day to hear cases and delayed ruling until the last day of the session.
This all but assured no Federal trial would happen until after the election, and would not happen at all if Trump were elected and fired the prosecutors. The six republican judges went even further. They declared presidents have total immunity for “official acts,” even when acting with criminal intent. A president now has immunity to order the assassination of a political opponent or Supreme Court justices, to accept bribes for ambassadorships. He can openly weaponize the Justice Department.
Anyone who thinks none of this could happen was deaf, dumb and blind during Trump’s first presidency. That was when he had appointed people who cared about the law, their oath of office and would not do illegal things for him. That will not happen if he is reelected.
We are witnessing a highly partisan court putting their fists on the scale to help a want to be dictator regain the presidency. This must be stopped.
Walter Hamilton
Portsmouth N.H.
Walter:
But…but… they assured us that they were non-partisan! And they promised us—under oath!—that they would honor stare decisis! Why, it’s almost as if the progressives were right about these sons of bitches all along—how can that be?
The Editor
–=≈=–
Stopped Clock Was Briefly Correct
Dear Editor,
My husband, Douglas Harris and I both agree. President Biden’s grasp of what it takes to be a president, in terms of domestic policies and getting things done, was on display Thursday evening despite his frail appearance and overlong pauses. But Trump was Trump, unfortunately, full of bombast, or as Shakespeare would say, “full of sound and fury and signifying nothing.”
However, former President Trump did speak truthfully and with knowledge on one occasion, and caught Biden in an outright lie. Regarding the war on Gaza, Palestine by Israel, Hamas is willing to accept the Biden peace plan if the ceasefire can be made permanent. It’s Benjamin Netanyahu who wants to continue the onslaught, despite a possible arrest warrant that might soon be issued by the International Court of Justice for war crimes and possible genocide.
Though we wish the President would impose an arms embargo on Israel as long as the war continues, we sincerely hope Biden will show stamina in the next debate. Doug and I shudder to think what might happen if Trump were to regain power.
Genevieve Harris-Fraser
Orange, Mass.
Genevieve:
There’s a strange symmetry at work here: two megalomaniacs, one in-power, one wanting back in, conducting scorched earth campaigns for their own aggrandizement.
For Israel, of all countries, to be engaging in such criminal acts is mind-boggling. For America to be supplying the means neccesary to do it is horrifying.
We used to think that Vietnam had at least taught the U.S. something. Then came Reagan and the Bushes.
The Editor
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Will He Listen?
Dear Editor,
President Biden succeeded in accomplishing good policies for our future, recovering from Trump’s chaotic disaster.
But, presidents don’t get to create and administer good policies unless they can communicate them well to the public, and debunk the opponent’s “policies” and character. Biden failed to do that during the “debate.” Repubs will play and replay the debate’s many cringe-worthy moments endlessly.
A wise man knows how to see himself. Wise people understand that aging is inevitable and final. Wisdom knows when to step aside, victorious, rather than remain in a final competition that will crush one’s reputation into ignominy.
Democratic accomplishments need another standard-bearer who can represent, with vigor, the values and vision our country needs to continue. The threat of losing this election requires putting the good of the country above personal ambition.
Some kindly suggestions to Joe Biden are necessary. The question is: To whom will he listen?
Bruce Joffe
Piedmont, Calif.
Bruce:
Call us chicken, but we’re on the fence.
Almost anyone would make a better #47 than the goon the GOP is backing—especially now that Leonard Leo’s SCOTUS Loonies have decided we’re a monarchy after all. The question is how best to prevent that.
Biden, unfortunately, seems to be acting his age. His opponent, of course, is still acting like a two-year old.
Chucking Biden overboard would spare us the uncertainty caused by his lack of youthful vigor—and introduce a whole new set of unknown unknowns.
All we can say is thank god the world is not relying on us, at our age, to definitively answer the question by our deadline for this paper.
The Editor
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Think of the Climate
To the Editor:
After Debate Disaster: Joe’s got to go—spread the word. A new candidate must lead the fight for climate sanity.
The election of Donald Trump will mean global climate catastrophe is far more likely to be unleashed.
This night’s debate performance shows that President Biden, who has been a global leader in climate action, is unlikely to defeat Trump given his debate performance. I looked forward to the strong and articulate Joe Biden of the State of the Union. He was far far from that tonight. It was more than just a bad day.
It’s time for Joe to step aside in the interest of us all.
Candidates like California Governor Gavin Newsom and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer have clear records as climate leaders.
We need Joe to withdraw and call for an open convention to choose a Presidential candidate.
Spread the word.
Roy Morrison
Slingerlands, N.Y.
–=≈=–
Happy Birthday, America!
To the Editor:
This 4th of July our country will celebrate the 248th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. That was the day representatives from thirteen colonies spoke as one. It was the day they stood together and signed a document that declared the sovereignty of the United States of America to the world. We would no longer be ruled by Great Britain, we would collectively rule ourselves.
That was the first step in a long, dangerous and difficult journey towards personal, political, religious and economic freedom. It was a journey that would cost them and our country dearly, but they were all willing to take that first step.
Since none of us personally knew the “Signers,” we only know who they were and what they did based on the limited historical records available to us. We can speculate, interpret and have an opinion, but we should do so in the context of their time, not ours.
Some will argue that these men were not perfect, that they were flawed. Yes, save one man, we are all flawed. What can’t be argued is that these men were brave, steadfast and patriotic as they laid the foundation upon which our country was built.
Since their time, the United States of America has grown into the great Nation we all call home. Millions of immigrants legally emigrated from countries all around the world and chose to come to America. They came to help build this country. They wanted to experience the freedom, promise and opportunity that this country offered. They wanted to work, and to make a better life for themselves and their families.
My grandfather was one of those immigrants. He came from Italy to become an American, not an Italian living in America. He didn’t come here to be accommodated by America, he came here to assimilate into the “melting pot” that was America. He loved this country and was proud to be an American.
Countless immigrant family members served in World War II, fighting as Americans. They learned the language of their newly adopted country, and insisted that their children did as well. They fully immersed themselves into the culture and traditions of their new homeland.
Americans still absolutely welcome and support legal immigration. Americans are generous to a fault, and we are always willing to welcome into our country those who love our country, our traditions, our way of life, and who respect our laws.
[About 300 slanderous and misleading words deleted. – The Ed.]
So today as we celebrate our Independence Day, by gathering with family and friends, let us not forget how blessed we are to live in this beautiful and bountiful country.
Let us pledge to never give up the personal, political, religious and economic freedoms the Signers fought so hard for.
Let us remember those brave and selfless Signers whose actions on July 4, 1776, literally changed the world.
Let us put aside our personal differences, and remember the common thread that unites us, we are all Americans, and it’s our birthday.
Happy Birthday America, and may God continue to bless us!
Michael Petruzziello
Major, USMC (Ret.)
Wolfeboro, N.H.
Major Mike:
Thanks for writing.
We are quite confident that you, as a proud former member of a rigidly heirarchical organization, will raise no objections as we exercise our authority by making a few amendations to your letter.
First we’d like to dispel the nostalgic haze with which you’ve attempted to obscure our true national origins. The Signers “stood together” and “spoke as one”?
As Boston Globe correspondent Michael Washburn wrote in 2011, “Such tidy narratives are the domain of lazy fiction or efficient propaganda.” Washburn was reviewing William Hogeland’s Declaration: the nine tumultuous weeks when America became independent, May 1-July 4, 1776, [Simon & Schuster, 2010]. Washburn wrote, “throughout the first year of the conflict, much of the Colonial population hoped for reconciliation with Britain. As late as May 1776 it appeared they would prevail. Fierce anti-Royalists Samuel and John Adams, and later Ben Franklin, among other notable Founding Fathers, took the lead in the struggle for independence, and when they were defeated electorally they took to secret scheming.”
Declaration is one of the most eye-opening books we’ve ever read. We cannot praise it highly enough. Spoiler: Our independence came about as the result of a conspiracy.
Does it matter today? Damn right it does. A little more Washburn will make it clear why:
“To forge an independent nation, Hogeland summarizes, ‘The forces of liberty and the forces of equality combined that spring and summer to achieve their separate ends, but they were always fundamentally and even violently at odds.’ This tension between liberty and equality persists.”
OK, having dealt with our objections to your first paragraph, let’s move on.
After about a yard of boilerplate patriotism, you begin to spew falsehoods about “foreign interlopers.” You can believe whatever you like, but we’re not providing space for that.
The Editor
–=≈=–
The Uneducable American
Dear Editor,
Americans have become uneducable. We pay little attention in school, don’t want to go to college, and aren’t very ambitious at work. We are so opposed to instruction and counsel we no longer are even capable of learning. The fact that our news media has become a full-time entertainment industry doesn’t help.
We have come to believe that ethics, truth, and reality will destroy us. We must live in a fictional world of advertising, comedy, movies, video games, and withdrawal from civic life. Science is a threat because it is real.
Make-believe is the only world we are happy in and functional in, the only world that feels natural, the only world we can manipulate in our favor. The real world is not kind to us.
We have no access to the wisdom of history because our notion of history is what happened before the pandemic, or before Donald Trump, or before 9/11. The 5,500 years of recorded history before then is useless to us, because we know nothing of it.
The souls of the American people are for sale because we have no way to maintain our own integrity. If you want our votes, just buy them with ads, or political promises, or threats. If our citizens want to become producers rather than consumers, we just take off our clothes and make a few bucks. Beats having to work for it.
Kimball Shinkoskey
Woods Cross, Utah
Kimball:
Nothing against Woods Cross, but maybe you should get out more.
The Editor
–=≈=–
Portsmouth Needs Solar Energy and Climate Action
To the Editor:
Recently, St. John’s Episcopal Church received pushback from the HDC (Historic District Commission) for their plan to install solar panels on their church Parish House (not a historic building), and an opinion piece by Gerry Duffy pointed out that even Benjamin Franklin could have had problems installing lightning rods on the homes in the historic district. These stories underscore the need for the HDC to significantly revise their current rules regarding energy efficiency measures and solar panel installations in our historic district. Many church communities in Portsmouth are looking for ways to address climate change issues and be responsible stewards of our planet as part of their religious mission. Perhaps, the interfaith organizations on the Seacoast could agree on a joint approach to this issue.
The HDC is not staffed with energy efficiency or renewable energy experts. Most members however are well-versed in issues regarding historic preservation and historic aesthetics.
That is why they should disengage from the energy issues debate and focus on their primary mission. Issues regarding renewable energy and solar collectors should be reassigned to other groups, e.g. the Portsmouth Energy Advisory Committee, the Sustainability Committee, or to outside experts who could to provide the city with recommendations on these issues. The City Council is likewise limited in their expertise in these areas, and is not a good choice to be a gatekeeper. However, they too should listen to the advice given them by more knowledgeable individuals.
Most residents recognize the fact that our historic downtown is a treasure and tourist magnet that needs protection. That is and should be the mission of the HDC.
There are however numerous issues in our historic district that seem to have been ignored in the past by the HDC. We no longer have thatched roofs, outdoor privies, separate sources of drinking water, nor do we do much open-hearth cooking. We now have city water and sewer service, electricity, as well as phone and cable service. All these historically inaccurate amenities have been sanctioned by the HDC. Also, some HDC members seem to claim that if one looks up and discovers a solar panel on the roof in the historic district, we should be offended. However, when I look up in a historic district neighborhood, I see ugly utility poles, wires, and multiple cable connections cross-crossing either side of the street, all of which offends my aesthetics. These utilities should have been buried in a historic district. Why has this not been a target for the HDC?
Not only are there historic buildings in the historic district, there are also people. We now live in the 21st century and all Portsmouth residents who wish to install efficient windows and doors, better insulation for older homes and install solar collectors in a tasteful way on their roof to contribute to the mitigation of climate change should be allowed to do so within reasonable guidelines. These residents would be reducing the effects of climate change, by using renewable energy sources, and reducing their energy costs, while reducing the burden on our energy grid.
The HDC should be a partner in these efforts and not a barrier. Much older cities in Europe have already adapted to this new reality and are encouraging this movement. Portsmouth should find a way to join them.
Peter Somssich
Portsmouth, N.H.
Member of PEAC (Portsmouth Energy Advisory Committee)
–=≈=–
So-Called Facts From Planet Ewing
Note: For years now, we have been receiving similar dispatches from Don Ewing. He purports to live in Meredith, N.H., a town which is indisputably located on Planet Earth. Yet Don’s letters invariably refer to a world that bears little resemblance to our own. The same names and public offices appear, yet the characters are unrecognizable. It’s as if Don listens all day to talk radio, and believes every word he hears. We could simply send his missives, in their entireity, down the old oubliette. But we can’t resist a challenge. So, we’ve selected the first part of his latest letter—it would be idiotic to take this sort of thing too far—and subjected it to inquiry. Once again, we find no relation to reality. – The Ed.
To the Editor:
Since Trump’s character has been slandered for years, the Bidens think character is a winning issue. Let’s consider Biden’s character.
The debate exposed the lie that Biden is competent to be President. Who’s running our Country and inciting threats of nuclear war?
Biden blatantly lied about Hunter’s laptop being Russian misinformation and his involvement in Hunter’s scheme selling government actions for cash. For more Biden lies: (https://tinyurl.com/yw6ztd5e).
[This link leads to a three-year old video, made by Dinesh D’Souza, which re-hashes the Biden plagiarism charges in 1988. It concludes with arch-propagandist John McLaughlin declaring Biden politically dead. McLaughlin died in 2016, five years before Biden became President. As for the source of the video, there is no more unreliable narrator than Dinesh D’Souza. After years of being coddled by the usual right wing think tanks, D’Souza was made president of a small Christian school called The King’s College. Resigning after an adultery scandal, he began producing propaganda videos like 2000 Mules. After a successful libel lawsuit, Salem Media Group, the video’s executive producer, paid “significant” damages, made a public apology, and withdrew the video. – The Ed.]
[Another 200 words worth of further hogwash deleted here. – The Ed.]
Trump isn’t perfect, but he cares; Joe Biden is simply evil.
Don Ewing
Meredith, N.H.
Don:
Maybe you can’t handle the truth.
Biden’s character is about on par with the class of politicians who get near the Oval Office.
Trump seems to be determined to go down in history as the most reprehensible human ever to have lived. Thank god he’s too lazy to achieve that goal through hard work. Of course, he could kill us all through ineptitude.
Yes, Trump cares. But the evidence shows he only cares about Trump.
The Editor
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Saving Her Sanity
“Hi. How are you guys doing? I’m just calling you to thank you. I have a subscription to your newspaper. I live in Ohio. You’re saving my sanity, so, thank you so much. Have a great Fourth. My name’s Eileen, phone number’s [330 XXX-XXXX]. You don’t have to call me back. I just wanted to call and say ‘Thank You’ to all of you guys. Bye-bye.”
Eileen—Thank you—you made our day—especially with the “all of you guys.” It takes quite a team to do this. – The Ed.
–=≈=–
Hot Dogs and Democrats
This just in from Portsmouth Democrats:
July 15, 2024, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m, in Beautiful Downtown Portsmouth, N.H.
Join us for hot dogs, spirited discussions, camaraderie, salads, snacks, and scenic views of Portsmouth. Worried about the upcoming elections, and want to get involved locally? We have plans—let’s talk!
The Dems are recognizing the awesome efforts of the Portsmouth Public Library staff during the COVID lock down. The librarians stood outside in freezing weather, dressed in coats, mittens, and masks, handing out books for the kids—and grownups, too. What would we have done without them? Come join us to show your support for PPL as we present them with the 2024 Jim Horrigan Community Service award.
The Portsmouth Democrats present the Jim Horrigan Award annually to an organization or an individual for outstanding service to our community. Jim Horrigan was a State Representative, a member of the Conservation Commission and the Board of Adjustment. Jim was a lifelong advocate for environmental causes both local and national; he was also a community volunteer for many organizations.
Food, Folks, and Politics. What could be better?
This is a FREE event, but please RSVP by calling Brian Wazlaw at (603) 988-9998 or email sylv2982@gmail.com to confirm your attendance and get location and parking information.