Thank you, Happy Valley ‘Quilts of Valor’
Many times a veteran has returned home to be forgotten. Some were combat veterans who lived through the real horrors of war, received medals for their deeds and news articles in their hometown newspapers. That was a “Thank you“ they earned in the face of battle.
Many others who didn’t get the pomp and ceremony were serving duty in remote locations in non-combat, but just as important to the military in support roles, working countless hours and missing their families and loved ones, some getting letters from home and some not. They missed birthdays, holidays and some were in for just a couple of years and some made it a career of 20 years or more. They returned home, got jobs and life moved on.
Years went by. Wars have come and gone and these people were, for the most part, forgotten. That is ‘til now. I want to personally say “Thank you “ to The Happy Valley Chapter of Quilts Of Valor for giving their time to make quilts for veterans from the area.
These quilts are a tribute to their service to their country. Without them , many would possibly never get any “Thank you” from anyone. The greatest thing any American can do is to honor your veterans for their service correctly and with dignity. Thank you! - Jim Hironimus, White Hall, MD
The climate debate continues
As a scientist intimately familiar with global climate, I would like to refute some of a previous writer’s demonstrably incorrect scientific statements made in his letter to CDT on August 31, 2018. First, it’s true that climate has been warming since the 19th century, but the rise in temperature has been very steeply upward since the middle of the 20th century and continues that upward trajectory today.
Second, it is simply untrue that water vapor caused the current climate warming. For CO2 to be unimportant, the physics of radiative transfer, well known for over a century, would be wrong. While methane increases have had a secondary, but important, effect on the observed temperature increases, increases in water vapor have been very small.
Third, I don’t recall what the models were predicting during the 1980s, but they have, if anything, subsequently under-predicted, the current global rate of rise in temperature, which has increased over the past decade or two. I can’t recall what the statistics of tornadoes and hurricanes were before 1988, but certainly the intensity of Atlantic hurricanes has increased due to the rise in sea temperatures. The same appears to be true for the severity of droughts. - Toby Carlson, State College, PA
Is ‘virtually everyone’ doing better?
A CDT lead editorial by Marc Thiessen had the headline “Trump’s failure to condemn bigots stains his presidency.” I was expecting that Mr. Thiessen would express outrage, or at least unhappiness at this staining of the presidency. But the editorial suggests that the moral impact of this stain pales in comparison to its political one.
According to Mr. Thiessen, “Virtually everyone is doing better thanks to the Trump economic boom.”
Mr Thiessen’s “virtually everyone” doesn’t include farmers, especially soybean farmers who are having bad financial problems because of the Trump tariffs.... Mr Thiessen’s “virtually everyone” doesn’t include the thousands who will have serious health problems such as asthma because of the roll-back of clean air standards.
Mr Thiessen’s “virtually everyone” doesn’t include the middle classes who will be paying higher taxes to support corporations and the wealthy.... Mr Thiessen’s “virtually everyone” doesn’t include the vast majority of us who will suffer from the climate change, which Trump and the GOP continue to deny.
Mr. Thiessen suggests that President Trump abandon his racism because, as he says, “He [Trump] would gain far more supporters by rejecting bigots than he would lose.” I am wondering whether if Mr. Thiessen’s evaluation of the situation had been the opposite -- if he believed Trump would lose far more supporters by rejecting bigots than he would gain -- would he then suggest that the president continue his bigotry? - Christine Ayoub, State College, PA
This story was originally published September 14, 2018 1:14 PM.