Letters to the editor

Congratulations students

Editor:

We would like to thank the following for donating to the Jay Torrez Memorial Scholarship: Elias and Lauren Barela, MaryAnn Chavez, Glenda Baca, Brenda Sanchez, Marti Perry, Mike Melendez, Pam Cordova, Kandy Cordova, Sharon Cordova, Rudy Ramirez of Rudy’s Recycling, Mike and Tanya Doyle, Roberta Cordova, Crystal Cordova, Diana Y De Baca Mireles, DYD Enterprises LLC DBA Es Unico, Frank Gurule, Cindy Otero, Voil and Shirley Lattin, Ret. Capt. Helen Smith, Francisco and Inez Sisneros, Gilbert Aragon and Santos and Camille Griego.

Additionally, we would like to thank the Valencia County News-Bulletin and the editor Clara Garcia for announcing scholarship information.

This year’s recipients are Andrea Lopez, Valencia High School; Kyle Lucero, Belen High School; Andre Jaramillo, Belen High School; and Analicia Sena, School of Dreams Academy. Congratulations, students!

Regina Chavez and Mary Torrez, MD

Los Lunas

Why so nasty?

Editor:

Must we tolerate intolerance?

Well, so very ironic to see so many nasty comments (on Facebook) towards the News Bulletin from angry people who didn’t like someone’s opinion. I suppose it was better than personally attacking the person who was challenging a previous, opposite opinion that the paper printed, but the petty and mean came out like angry hornets.

What a missed opportunity to consider another person’s experience. Was it lost on them that an opinion is many times not shared by others, but is still worth knowing?

Are we in danger of losing our First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and freedom from religion because intolerant people continue to squawk and crush dissenting voices? Do we only want to hear material we have been conditioned to believe, only hear pronouncements by people from the same part of town, church or background?

I think that would be as exciting and educational as being held back in sixth grade year after year. No, I’d rather think for myself, using my own brain, grow, draw from my own experiences, discover my own purpose in life, mind my own home/business, and continue to learn throughout my life. Call me loca, but that’s just my humble opinion.

Where is this intolerance coming from anyway? Is it easy to lash out on social media now that we’ve been stuck a homes for a few months? Has this downtime made us forget our values?

Rude words and threats only harm people, have we turned into brutes and bullies? And what is it we are teaching our children nowadays? Are we afraid of “those” people, is it an “us” versus “them” match again?

How did we become so stubbornly opinionated about things we don’t really know much about? Not one of us is a world-class expert on a deadly virus, or the U.S. Constitution, or the underbelly of American history. Looking it up on Wikipedia does not made anyone an expert, lo sabemos, ¿verdad?

Yes, we’ve been stuck in our cocoons and only know what serves our personal interests, which makes us all mediocre debaters and bottom of the barrel diplomats. We need to look to experts to help us, but we aren’t celebrating science or pushing for diplomacy, we seem to just be winging it. Lashing out. Not tolerating much. Pushing through it, whining for “normal” again.

So many questions, so many viewpoints, so much intolerance and oppression … maybe we should stop making so much noise and start learning about the full, uncut history of our country just for starters.

This downtime might also be a good time to revisit our values, hopes and dreams. It sure wouldn’t hurt to listen more and speak less. It’s a good time to make some adjustments and learn something useful.

Listening to people speak without shouting them down would also be muy bueno. We’re all coming out of the cocoon soon, may most of us become beautiful, graceful, purposeful butterflies and not pesky hornets looking for a fight. It’s always my hope that we all get along, and I’m sure others naturally share my opinion too.

Michelle Ethridge

Los Lunas

Unfortunate history

Editor:

We are at a time when, finally, the sins of law enforcement have brought their chickens home to roost.

I say this because, we know that during the earlier 19th century, there were law enforcement who outright refused to pursue justice for progressive laws limiting slavery by not honoring those laws. During reconstruction, we had the same problem.

In the Jim Crow area, Black people were almost never given the benefit of doubt and, in the same time period, white men were allowed to escape justice, as did the monsters who murdered Emmit Till, based on a white woman’s lie.

Onward, protests and other forms of social justice, were met with the violations of civil rights from law enforcement and outright violence during peaceful protests of segregation, a misguided war in Vietnam, etc.

Police were allowed to water hose, beat, arrest and outright persecute those who only wished to stand up for their rights. Even most recently, law enforcement was used as a tool to combat the people’s right to assemble in church or religious services due to a government imposed quarantine that not everyone agreed with.

Over the years, as the SCOTUS attempted to restrict police in their actions with holdings in Miranda v. Arizona, Gideon v. Wainright, Mapp v. Ohio, etc., only to have those holdings circumvented by allowing police to outright lie to defendants during questioning and interrogation and use such atrocious acts as “no knock warrants” in order to “get their man.”

The answer? Civilian police commissioners and civilian police review boards. Not the failed attempt at this of getting the retired police to become this entity so they can double dip into the government coffers and still “back the blue,” but people who understand the law, civil rights, brutality and the unfortunate history that has been displayed to people, especially people of color.

Kimothy Sparks, RN, JD

Los Lunas

Interested in submitting a letter to the editor?

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