Judge's ruling misses mark

It sure seems like Chancery Court Judge J. Travis Laster needs an old-fashioned civics lesson after his absurd ruling on the Red Clay property tax referendum. Judge Laster ruled that the school board held an illegal, one-sided election that undermined the electoral process, but approved the results anyway because, well, the schools need the money.

It is painfully obvious that a democracy cannot function if elected officials are allowed to break the law so long as "the ends justify the means" – and an unelected judge gets to decide whether those ends were noble.

Judge Laster is correct that the system that Delaware uses to run its school districts is dysfunctional. But the dysfunction runs both ways. For instance, the state just held school board elections where about one percent of eligible voters participated. Sure, you can blame the public, but when you hold under-publicized elections on an obscure day in May, what would you expect?

Red Clay taxpayers had legitimate reasons to reject the referendum, as it raised the average homeowner's annual taxes by about $300.

If the system is broken, and it seems to be, we need the elected officials in our state legislature to reform it, and then allow our citizens to vote in free and fair school board elections.

Wayne Rutman


Don't poke seniors

I have been reading about the Joint Finance Committee wanting to rescind the tax break for seniors. Really? You are going to take money away from the elderly who are on a fixed income?

Maybe, you should look at this again. I am sure there are other avenues to explore. Do you think seniors won't complain, and they are "easier targets?"

Well, you are wrong. Here is one senior that will complain. What's next – taking milk away from babies?

Pat Stryzs


Freedom of expression

To the letter writer who criticized those students who walked out on Vice President Pence.

As governor of Indiana, Pence had a horrendous record of trampling women’s rights. He has not been a friend to the LGBTQ community, not a friend to people of color.

So in America – at least so far – people who value human rights have the freedom to leave when a person who doesn’t is exercising his freedom to speak. That’s America, sir, at least so far.

I’d like to commend the parents and faculty of those Notre Dame students for teaching our youth what it means to live in a free nation.

This weekend, we honor those who have fought to protect these freedoms. We must continue to resist those who try to dictate to the rest of us how to live our lives.

Mike Maxwell

Delaware City

Just the facts

While I recognize that your policy is to publish letters expressing the opinion of your readers, I also believe that you have an obligation to seek the truth and where and individual’s opinion is factually incorrect you have an obligation to not perpetuate that untrue information.

On May 23, you published a letter which seems to say that actual temperature data shows that the earth is not warming.

Would you publish a letter that states that the actual data does not show that cigarette smoking causes lung cancer? The data is clear, cigarettes cause cancer and the earth is warming.

If Mr. Dougherty wants to obtain funding to show that there is some other reason than man’s pollution of the atmosphere, he should make an application with a plausible theory to investigate. Who is the data denier here? Newspapers should investigate and report facts.

Bob Howard


Not government's purview 

Harry Themal contends that the Delaware Chancery Court is acting appropriately to order the sale of TransPerfect. I disagree.

Even if TransPerfect is a failing business, which is debatable, what is the compelling government interest in preventing it from failing? In our system of free enterprise, the owners of any business are solely responsible for its success or failure, without government interference.

For government to usurp this responsibility, one way or another, is for government to either assist with or detract from the ability of a business's competitors to succeed. If it is appropriate for the Chancery Court to order TransPerfect sold, why does it not order Sears Holdings (a Delaware corporation), which is in dire condition, sold? Or any other Delaware corporation is which "failing"?

The instances in which the state might have a compelling interest in preventing the failure of a business are extremely limited. An example might be if Delmarva Power, which is the primary provider of electric power for the state, was in danger of failure. TransPerfect is not one of these rare instances.

Robert Hurwitt


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