Letters to the Editor

Dear editor, Once again, the blood donors of the River Valley area generously answered the call to help others in need.  On June 4th we collected 65 units of blood products at the Red Cross Blood Drive held in Spring Green. These donations can potentially save the lives of 195 people. This is truly amazing since the Red Cross historically sees a drop in donations at the start of summer.   A special thank you to Christ Lutheran Church for generously providing us the use of their facility.  All of our donors received a coupon for a free pint of frozen custard donated by Culver’s of Spring Green and a t-shirt from the Red Cross.  The Red Cross continues to test all blood units for Covid-19 antibodies.  Donors have the ability to find out if they have previously had the virus. If you were unable to give last Friday, there are many upcoming drives in the River Valley area.  It is recommended that you make an appointment.    June 16: Cornerstone Church June 18: Arena June 28: Plain August 6: Spring Green Community at Christ Lutheran Church     If you have any questions concerning the donation of blood, we encourage you to contact the American Red Cross at 1-800-Red Cross (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org. Sincerely, Sincerely, Barb Louis, 588-7253, and Barb Baxter, 588-7038 Spring Green Community Blood Drive Coordinators   Dear editor, Go back to your tree stand. I received Senator Howard Marklein’s E-Update where he brags about all the money the legislature is putting into education.  I responded with some facts for him to explain and my recurring request that he resign and go back to his tree stand.    The facts are that his funding bill would provide less than 10 percent of what Governor Tony Evers has proposed.  In addition, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau has informed the legislature that their current proposal for education funding would result in the loss of $1.5 billion in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan.   I asked him what he had to say about that.  His email response back to me was, “A pretty good day!  Have a wonderful weekend!  Howard”  For context, my tree stand comment heralds back to his E-Update of last fall where he was celebrating having time off to be with family and spend time in his tree stand.  I was appalled at his thoughtless, self-centered comment.  At the time his constituents were suffering:  people were getting horribly sick and dying, hospitals and healthcare workers were overwhelmed,  businesses were shutting down, and workers were either being laid off or forced to work in COVID infected environments. But Howard was enjoying his tree stand.    How does this guy keep getting reelected when he has no regard for his constituents?  How much does it take for his voters to realize that he doesn’t care about them or their kids, or their schools, or their roads, or their lack of broadband, much less their lack of healthcare, or a job paying a living wage?  In every case, the Republican legislature has turned down worker benefits,  stripped funding proposed by the governor, and turned down the funding offered by the federal government that would bring our federal tax dollars back to the state to help hard working Wisconsinites.  Can gerrymandering protect his job even as his past voters suffer at his hands?  For all of our sakes, I hope not.  Beverly Pestel  Richland Center   Dear editor, We All Lose We are currently witnessing a set of parallel circumstances in both our state government and at the national level, because our Republican representatives and senators seem determined that nothing be achieved either by Governor Tony Evers or President Joe Biden.  At the state level, those in control of the Joint Finance Committee refuse to fund schools adequately, or to expand BadgerCare so that Wisconsin can claim the $1.6 billion in available federal funds. They also resist funding the replacement of deadly lead pipes servicing schools and homes statewide, or updating the out-of-date unemployment compensation system so we all have a fair chance at a healthy, fulfilling life. Republicans in Congress refuse to act on President Biden’s initiatives to improve living standards of lower income citizens, like making childcare affordable, increasing the minimum wage to a livable level and pinning it to the rate of inflation. It would also be nice to have paid parental leave like Europeans enjoy, but don’t hold your breath on that one. Additionally, without fair electoral maps, we will always lack proper representation by leaders who only want to keep their political power while refusing to represent all their constituents. Kay Ziegahn Richland Center