Opinion | Putting Politics Ahead of Saving Lives

To the Editor:

I’m sick. Not from coronavirus. I’m sick of the lies. I’m sick of the lack of empathy. I’m sick of putting freak show politics ahead of saving lives. I’m sick of the lack of national testing as the death toll mounts.

I’m sick of watching members of the pandemic task force being forced to act like hostages with Stockholm syndrome every time the president speaks. I’m sick of watching the health of the nation decline, physically and ideologically.

A treatment for the viral infection so far has eluded us. But a cure for the political plague will be available in November. You are the cure. Vote.

Ron Rinehart
Mesa, Ariz.

To the Editor:

Re “If West Wing Still Isn’t Safe, Is Any Office?” (White House Memo, front page, May 9):

Administration officials and White House staffers shown on camera are not usually covering their faces or social distancing — something that should change under new rules reported on Monday. But these folks are tested very regularly for Covid-19.

It seems unfair that people who defy protocols put in place to keep us all safer from this insidious disease should have access to routine testing.

Testing for this virus has been very inadequate in this country for weeks. This situation has been a hardship for many Americans. Yet there are ample tests for a negligent White House staff.

Sally Courtright
Albany, N.Y.

To the Editor:

Re “Disputing the Death Toll to Score Political Points” (front page, May 10):

In a few weeks or months when the death toll hits around 100,000 and there are two million cases of Covid-19, disputes over official statistics won’t matter. By then almost everyone in the country will be one to three degrees of separation from knowing a person who is one of those statistics. That’s when reality will sink in.

Linda Fishman
Atlanta
The writer is a retired medical social worker and health researcher.

To the Editor:

“How to Feed Americans Quickly,” by Matt Russell, Robert Leonard and Beto O’Rourke (Op-Ed, May 5), was spot on.

There is much about our government’s response to Covid-19 that I find disturbing. On top of this list is our government’s uncoordinated and uncompassionate response to hunger. Farmers and ranchers are forced to let crops and animals go to waste. Professional food service workers are out of work. Restaurant kitchens lie empty. And millions are hungry.

Wouldn’t it be something if our government looked at these devastating truths and arrived at a seemingly obvious solution. Open the kitchens, hire the food service professionals, bring in the harvest and feed those in need.

Food heroes have shown us that this is totally doable. Notable examples are the truly amazing efforts led by José Andrés at World Central Kitchen, delivering millions of meals to families nationwide, to the thoughtful work of the Herbfarm restaurant in Washington, providing meals to hospital personnel. Please, President Trump: Make American Farm to Table Great Again.