Letters to the Editor: On Joe Tarica’s Column

Vote for Joe

If Joe Tarica would run for Congress, I’d vote for him. After reading his column (Sept. 25), I realize there is hope. While the current witches’ brew of fatally partisan, fiscally incompetent and morally corrupt Republican talking heads babble lies about how taxing the rich will harm the economy, our country suffers. Not re-electing the representatives who are using “young guns” to force us off a cliff is the key.

The possibility of bringing our voices and votes to a place where the truth can overcome corporate bribes needs to be a concerted effort. The Republicans have done nothing to benefit our nation. They have said “no” to every proposal to create jobs and have created diversions to deceive the misinformed. They want to blame taxes and environmental regulations, not foreign competition, for our problems.

Congressman McCarthy has introduced a bill to irreparably damage 72 million acres of wilderness. This bill won’t help average Americans or our infrastructure, only the corporations that want to exploit the land. Is this what we have to tolerate? Vote for Joe, or someone like him, and get this country moving upward again.

Darrel Boles

Paso Robles

Future threatened

Joe Tarica’s column (Sept. 25) blaming Republicans for the current state of the economy overlooks the fact that for the first two years of Obama’s administration, he and his fellow left-wingers had complete control of the White House and Congress. The Republicans were powerless. Obama pushed through anything he wanted. You can see where that’s got us.

Now he proposes to throw $400 billion more that he doesn’t have after the first $800 billion that did next to nothing. Even one of Obama’s own agencies has said it won’t work. As far as addressing the debt, if not now, when?

We’ve put it off for decades, until it has grown into a monster that threatens our future.

Republicans didn’t cause Obama’s plunging poll ratings. Disapproval exists all across the political spectrum. I can’t think of a more critical cause for America than getting that man out of the White House in 2012. If the Republicans are dedicated to that, it’s a noble effort.

Bill J. Scott

Nipomo

Negative criticism

“Republicans fiddle while nation burns” (Tribune, Sept. 25): Is that inspirational or finger-pointing as usual?

The piece is part of the reason why newspapers are failing. Not to pick on Joe Tarica in particular, but his pieces tend to read the same. The only thing he has to contribute is negative criticism. People are inspired and motivated by how to improve and leverage the things we have going for us. That’s real genius and creativity. Not windbagging his view of what isn’t working. Joe’s attitude is typical of this state in general. This all needs to change.

Ramon Elias

Arroyo Grande

What we all know

Tribune columnist Joe Tarica voiced what we all know, whether or not we choose to admit it. The visceral disdain of the right to Barack Obama’s presidency has manifest itself as a congressional majority that thinks nothing of irreparably damaging the middle class and the American manufacturing base.

They believe that a high unemployment rate and a double-dip recession are going to ensure a GOP win in 2012, and they will do anything to make it so. They could not care less that some Republican constituents will also lose jobs and, consequently, their homes, as long as they can continue to convince them that voting against their own interest is good for them.

Telling them that the left will tax them, take their guns, and make them sign up for health care is all they need to hear. The GOP’s corporate handlers have moved their money and jobs offshore, so why should they care if our economy grinds to a halt, as long as the corporate campaign contributions continue to pour in.

That is real class warfare. Not just “bleating” about it. They hope to scare away Obama’s base and the independents. I hope we are smarter than that, but I have my doubts.

Ken Cirisan

San Luis Obispo

Self-expression

Joe Tarica’s gutsy and hard-hitting column (Sept. 25) was the sign of a public pushback against “tea party radicalism” that I’ve been waiting for. I hope he’ll be writing more soon.

I especially want to hear his opinions about the real causes they follow: Do the tea partiers, and all the outside voters they’ve managed to inflame, hate President Obama just because of his flawed economic policies? Or, as some liberal leaders are now saying, do they want his destruction because of their entrenched racism — because he’s an unafraid black man made good?

Also, Mr. Tarica’s allusion to a backroom conspiracy by the Republicans reminded me of what my first business partner used to say about seemingly random events that ended up damaging our national interests: “Acts of God, my ---! Look at who benefits, and then tell me they didn’t have a hand in this!”

It’s hard not to wonder if America’s sworn enemies aren’t somehow behind the severe damage that congressional politics are doing to our economy right now.

Thanks to The Tribune for letting me express myself one more time.

Brad Frederic

Paso Robles

Divisive article

Shortly after the Jan. 8 tragic shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, President Obama gave a most eloquent, moving and healing speech in which he asked for restraint and civility in the public discourse as a result of some errors from media persons in assigning motives to the shooter before the facts were known. This speech has to be one of the finest moments of his presidency.

Unfortunately, the president’s plea has not been heeded by our politicians or the media and in fact has gotten more vicious as noted by the partisan, political screed of Joe Tarica (Sept. 25).

I am surprised and profoundly disappointed that The Tribune chooses to publish this type of divisive, unsubstantial material. I could understand if a letter of this quality were received, its publication might be appropriate because the writer has implicitly agreed to publicly embarrass himself while The Tribune has no ownership. But to pay for, edit and publish this quality of journalism implies that The Tribune approves of and endorses not only its content, but its quality and substance.

I believe you have a public responsibility and certainly an internal profit motive to publish higher quality material that has a positive public impact toward resolving our nation’s political differences than the divisiveness of this article.

David B. Bruns

San Luis Obispo