No book bans

I am writing to express my firm opposition to the recent attempts to ban books from our Tyler Public Library.

The library’s mission is clear: to provide a diverse and comprehensive collection of materials that cater to the needs and interests of our community at different stages in their personal development. It is a space where the voices of all are welcomed.

There will always be disagreements over specific content, but the decision about what is appropriate for individuals and families should not rest in the hands of a select few. Instead, it should be a personal choice guided by individual values and beliefs.

Limiting young people’s access to books does not protect them from life’s complex and challenging issues; it merely shields them from the valuable insights and perspectives that can help them navigate these complexities.

Removing and banning books from public libraries sets a dangerous precedent, leading down a slippery slope toward government censorship and eroding our country’s fundamental commitment to freedom of expression.

I implore our community and City Manager Edward Broussard to unite in support of the Tyler Public Library and to reject any efforts to ban books. Let individuals and parents retain the power to make decisions about what they can read and believe. It is through this freedom of choice that we can continue to grow as a community that values diversity and education.

Frans Dotten

Tyler

De-escalation needed

The U.S. media and Biden administration have given the Israeli government the green light to commit a genocide on the people of Gaza, which is home to 1 million children.

Over 1,000 children have been killed by the Israeli bombings, which have targeted residential buildings, hospitals, schools, ambulances, leveling whole neighborhoods. The bombings have targeted people fleeing to the areas Israel instructed them to go. Other actions aim at the complete destruction of the small area of Gaza.

In addition, the Israeli government has cut off all food, water, electricity, medicine, and Wi-Fi. Also they are dropping white phosphorus on civilians, which is a war crime.

We should be urging a ceasefire and negotiations rather than escalating a conflict which can easily become a wider regional war with other Middle Eastern countries involved. Then who knows what would happen.

This is a dangerous situation with idiots such as Lindsey Graham or Nikki Haley urging us onto WW3 with no one trying to rein in this dangerous rhetoric. Hopefully, saner people can intervene before this escalates to something no one wants.

Jerry King

Kilgore

Syllogism

Ever since the election of Donald Trump in 2016, and especially following his 2020 defeat, some have argued that what is transpiring in the United States is analogous to the rise of fascism in Italy and Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Others have refuted this claim, suggesting that at best it is an overstatement, at worst a fallacy. For the latter group, those who doubt and don’t take seriously the prospect of a fascist autocracy in our country, I offer the following syllogism:

(1) Violent rhetoric is on the rise in the United States and continues to be loudly amplified by Donald Trump, especially following his legal indictments. He went so far as to suggest the execution of General Mark Milley, Trump’s well-respected Chair of the Joint Chiefs—something now being repeated by a few of the former President’s ardent advocates.

(2) As Rick Stengel, former Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, astutely observed, history documents that violent rhetoric and violence are endemic to fascism just as free speech is inherent to democracy.

(3) Ergo, fascism is a distinct possibility in the United States.

Admittedly, this logic may never persuade Trump acolytes who seem immune to rationality. However, I believe most Americans are good and decent; I hope they therefore will take the conclusion of my syllogism seriously, doing everything they can to prevent what now appears to be a real possibility.

Richard Cherwitz

Austin