Letters to the Editor — J.J. Koch, carbon price, Texas electric grid, Gov. Abbott, Texas Rangers

Mask refusal irresponsible

As far as I’m concerned, JJ Koch is not representing Richardson in his refusal to wear a mask in Commissioners Court. When a significant proportion of the new infections come from two states – Texas and Florida – it is irresponsible to refuse to wear a mask.

Darryl Stephens, Richardson

Set a carbon price

Re: “Behind the epic state failure of Texas – electricity is treated like a commodity, but it is a critical service. And as the February blackouts prove, people can die without them, ”by Robert Bryce, Sunday Opinion.

I would like to address a few omissions in Bryce’s careful analysis. Climate change increases the risk of extreme events. As Katharine Hayhoe and others wrote in the newspaper Feb. 24, (Texas Scientists: Power Outages Show Why Texas Must Prepare For Climate Change), scientists are studying the “proposed association between cold air bursts like the one that hit Texas and increased warming in the Year”. the Arctic. “

We must not double the fossil fuels responsible for this warming in our quest for solutions. The abolition of wind and solar subsidies is okay if we also set a carbon price so that fuels can compete on a level playing field. The lack of a carbon price is in fact a subsidy for fossil fuels; We should not cut subsidies on low carbon fuels while leaving the subsidies on high carbon fuels intact.

Bryce does not mention the “negawatts” that come from efficient machines and buildings, nor the importance of urban design in stimulating walking and using public transport. I agree that we need better regulation, but we also need a constitutional amendment to limit political spending that prevents serious regulation of the Texas oil and gas industry.

Ann Drumm, Dallas / Uptown

Repair grids to keep business going

Re: “Texas Slips On The CNBC Metric – Economist: State’s Fall To # 4 Business Climate Is Self-inflicted,” July 29th Metro and Business Story.

Economist Ray Perryman described the decline in Texas government rankings for business friendliness as “terribly worrying.” While the article lists many reasons for this change, it omitted one, which happened last February when nearly 70% of Texans lost electricity for an average of 42 hours. Businesses across the state lost revenue on the days they were closed for lack of power, but for many, the outage also resulted in product spoilage, supply chain disruptions, and damage to infrastructure.

Worse still, the decline in sales was accompanied by an increase in energy prices. During the freeze, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and the Public Utility Council of Texas (PUC) put energy prices at their upper limit – $ 9,000 / mWh – to encourage producers to get online while in some cases Pay producers to stay offline. That price stayed artificially high for 32 hours, according to the state’s Independent Market Monitor, resulting in an additional $ 3.6 billion in energy bills that was passed on to consumers.

If Texas is to regain its status as a top business place, it must begin reforming the network and protecting consumers and business owners from outrageous energy bills.

Brandon Young, Fort Worth

Masks for the common good

Re: “No More Roadhouse,” by Jimmie George, Tuesday Letters.

Dear Mr. George. I’ve read your posts on The Dallas Morning News for years. I am very sorry to hear about the loss of your wife to COVID-19. However, I have to criticize a few points in your letter.

1. You believe that entertainers should stay out of politics. In a broader sense, it must be disturbing that Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan, Clint Eastwood, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and many others were elected to office. Are there other professions that we should also exclude?

2. You state that you are not so sure how effective the masks are. The proof is in the pudding. The science experts tell us that we had virtually no flu season this past winter and that we may have eliminated a few strains of the flu. Why? Because most of us wore masks.

My wife and I have never given up indoor masks. With the delta variant in full spread, we have returned to double masking. Let’s all contact our governor to restore the mask mandates. For the love of our children. For the common good, the common good, the common good of all of us.

Michael Louis Anthony, Carrollton

In honor of Abbott

Seldom goes a day without seeing at least one letter to the editor criticizing Governor Greg Abbott for something. If Texas is suffering from such poor leadership under Abbott, why are so many people, including corporations, moving to Texas in record numbers?

While other states imposed extensive draconian bans on schools and businesses, Texas operated long before any other state. Our schools were open for face-to-face learning as soon as the data showed it was safe, while many states closed schools for a full year.

For those seeking a nationwide mask mandate, is it really okay for big brother to knock on your neighbor’s door begging them to get the vaccine? What happened to freedom of choice? Or is it just freedom if you allow the government to violate individuals’ personal choices?

Katherine Wrobel, Plano

Franklin had a warning

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Greg Abbott and Republicans his ilk have focused on “me” rather than “us”. You should remember the warning from the great American patriot Benjamin Franklin: “We must all hang together, or most certainly, we will all hang separately.”

Thomas W. Newsome, Dallas

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