Mask ordinance unnecessary

Santa Fe’s Quality of Life Committee has moved along a proposed city ordinance mandating face coverings. It heads via finance to the full council for consideration June 10.

But the governor already has issued a statewide face-covering order. Mayor Alan Webber, quoted in

The New Mexican on May 24, endorsed the state’s health measures saying, “… as far as Santa Fe is concerned, they’re met with great compliance and very positive outcomes.” A local mask ordinance, differing from the state order and with local fines and enforcement, seems like an unneeded exercise in wheel-spinning. The task is already done; local compliance is good. And why June 10, long after the state order was implemented?

Residents can support masks and still oppose a city law. Let your city councilors know how you feel.

Berl Brechner Santa Fe

Mail-in delays

I’m a very senior citizen and I had planned on voting by mail for the upcoming primary election June 2. I submitted my request for an absentee ballot through the Santa Fe County Clerk’s website on April 2. My request was accepted, but as of Tuesday I had not yet received my absentee ballot in the mail. Since a completed mail-in ballot must arrive at the County Clerk’s Office by election day, I’m concerned about mailing it, even if I receive it in the next few days. Whatever happens, I will have to go out to assure my ballot is counted. That’s what I was trying to avoid by using a mail-in ballot.

Those responsible for creating and delivering absentee ballots, the Santa Fe County clerk and the U.S. Postal Service, must get their act together in time for the November election. One way to alleviate some of the rush would be for the Legislature and governor to agree to amend the New Mexico statute controlling absentee ballots , which limits the county clerk to mailing out absentee ballots to those requesting them no earlier than 28 days before the election date. We could still be a partial-lockdown society in November, so more time for receipt and return of the ballots would be helpful. The upcoming special session would be an ideal time to accomplish this.

Jerry Kerrisk Santa Fe

Unfair to pigs

Concerning David Cartwright’s online comments May 29 (“Illegal campfires, excess trash, human waste mar Santa Fe National Forest”): Cartwright states that he is “amazed on a regular basis what pigs people can be.”

My pigs were greatly offended by his characterization.

F. Richard Sanchez Santa Fe

Make America Live Again

It’s well-documented that President Donald Trump ignored warnings about the COVID-19 pandemic. The result is thousands of deaths for which he is he is directly responsible. And who are those dead? They are presented as numbers, but they are beloved humans with families, friends and co-workers. He deserves to be prosecuted for this failure and the lives lost.

In all of my years as a psychotherapist, I have never witnessed the magnitude of sociopathy that is displayed in this (so-called) president. That’s because I don’t work in prisons, where people like him are housed. I am in deep, deep grief for the suffering perpetrated by Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and in unspeakable disbelief regarding the lack of action by this administration. Maybe when the relatives and friends of his supporters die, the MAGA people will wake up and become the MALA people — Make America Live Again.

Ellen J. Shabshai Fox, LCSW Santa Fe

Diversity brings success

Tourism and the hospitality that accompanies it has been our “golden egg” — propping up our economy. What we need now is a “cushion” to offset any crisis such as the one we are experiencing and the potential of it recurring. We need an educated workforce. We need to offer tax advantages to incentivize businesses to establish here, businesses that comply with our water and air issues (technological, scientific, etc.). The time is now.

Loralee Freilich Santa Fe

Setting an example

I saw in the news where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was wearing a face mask. Too bad our own president doesn’t feel like he should set an example for the rest of us. It’s more like, “Do what I say, don’t do as I do.”

Darlene Muniz Santa Fe

Not an honor

In response to celebrating heroes with fireworks: Some people may think that by shooting fireworks on Memorial Day or July 4 they are honoring their war heroes. I wonder though if those individuals have ever given thought to how traumatic the sounds and lights are to those returning from combat service. Reentry is a difficult adjustment as it is. What is expected during deployment is very different than expected behavior in civilian life.

Please keep in mind that some return with post-traumatic stress disorder. PTSD happens when one is exposed to dangerous, often repetitive, life-threatening events. Sounds, lights and smells can cause panic response. It is a normal reaction to danger. For a combat veteran, that response is dramatically intensified. Perhaps a salute, verbal thank-you or a musical serenade would express gratitude without inflicting more trauma.

Andrea Campbell Santa Fe