OPINION: Talk of the Town

Trial lawyers in the Senate choose purses over people

Happily House Bill 99 (changing medical malpractice laws) overwhelmingly passed the House 66-3 and the Senate 40-2. The sad part is the obstruction of a few senators who have a personal financial interest who did everything they could with their proposed amendments to water down the bill and keep it from passing. In particular, the trial lawyers on the Senate Judiciary Committee, led by the Chair Sen. Joseph Cervantes and Sens. Katy Duhigg and Peter Wirth, were willing to fill their wallets and purses at the expense of compromising the lives and health of New Mexicans. They didn’t have the decency to recuse themselves from voting for the amendments, declaring that they would not personally financially benefit. Right, I have some good farm land in the New Mexico desert to sell.

It is bad enough that interest groups give politicians money for their campaigns in return for favors; it is egregious they would oppose something that will save lives because it directly jeopardizes their personal financial interest. How disgusting is that?

Trial lawyers finally suffered a well-deserved defeat to the benefit of New Mexicans. But the trial lawyers on the Senate Judiciary Committee should have shame: They were willing to let people die so that they can live better financially. Politics doesn’t get much worse than that.

Kenneth Costello 

Santa Fe

Nondairy milk deserves a seat in the school cafeteria 

A recent move to expand access to nondairy milk in school lunch programs is a long-overdue step toward healthier, more inclusive nutrition. Millions of students are lactose intolerant, allergic to dairy, or come from families that avoid animal products for ethical or cultural reasons.

Offering plant-based milk isn’t radical — it’s practical. These options provide essential nutrients without the saturated fat and cholesterol found in dairy, and they come with a much smaller environmental footprint.

School meals shape lifelong habits. When we normalize plant-based choices early, we teach children that compassion, health and sustainability can coexist on the same tray.

In a time when childhood health concerns and climate anxiety are rising, modernizing school nutrition just makes sense. Giving students plant-based options empowers families, respects differences and quietly models a kinder way forward — one lunch at a time.

Michael Gray 

Albuquerque 

Photo captured the heartbreak of climate inaction 

Thanks for Eddie Moore's photo accompanying the article about the defeat of the Clear Horizons Act on the front page of the Feb. 12 Journal. The photograph shows the raw anguish of those who worked on this bill — those who know that we have no time to lose in addressing the unfolding catastrophe of climate disruption. We know that any purported benefit to industry or consumers from relaxed pollution standards is dwarfed by the damage that will befall us. According to Climate Central, since 1980 the U.S. has experienced over $400 billion from weather and climate-related disasters, with a total cost exceeding $3.1 trillion. Shame on those legislators who voted against this bill.

Heidi Brooks 

Albuquerque

Trapp was correct: Time to stop co-opting our flag

Kudos to Bob Trapp for expressing his critical comments about something that has irritated me for decades: the co-opting of the American flag by the far right, and, since 2016, by the MAGA types. (And Kudos to the Journal for inviting him to be on its advisory Community Council.) Trapp correctly points out that associating our flag with Trump politics implies that it represents many un-American things like anti-immigrant policies and intolerance. Another dyspeptic phenomenon for me is right-wingers stealing the “Don’t Tread On Me” flag. That flag is a symbol of the American Revolution, which is a symbol of our fight against a monarchy 250 years ago. Today it is waved to support a despot who is doing his best to turn our country into a monarchy. And finally, doesn't anyone notice that people who wave those two flags are often joined by others who wave the Confederate flag? We all know what that flag represents, and it isn’t love for America.

Jeffrey Mitchell

Albuquerque

The flag belongs to the people, not a political movement

In his Feb. 15 column, "Don't mistake my flag for your politics," Bob Trapp, a member of the Journal's Community Council, laments that the American flag has been "co-opted" by the MAGA movement. He argues that the flag represents a specific set of institutional checks and balances and that those who fly it in support of the current administration are somehow denigrating its history. This perspective is a fundamental misreading of what the Stars and Stripes actually signify.

The flag is a living symbol that represents the sovereignty of the American people. When citizens display the flag at a rally, they aren't "co-opting" it. They are affirming it as a symbol of a government that is supposed to be by and for the people. Trapp’s comparison to the gay community and their use of the rainbow flag is one of many false equivalencies; instead of blaming the right for co-opting it, perhaps he should reflect on why his own side has seemingly come to scorn what it stands for.

The author labels those in the cabinet as "untrained" and the Supreme Court as "biased," but these are the very "checks and balances" he also claims to revere. Simply because he disagrees with a political appointment or judicial ruling does not mean, as he says, those involved lack character or scruples. In a republic, doing what is right often means honoring the mandate given by the voters, even when that mandate disrupts an agenda. Calling millions of fellow citizens "cowards" and "Trump ... minions" is precisely the kind of rhetoric that drives division. Trapp says the flag represents the "little people" getting a voice; I would agree, but add even when that voice says something Trapp doesn't want to hear.

Mark Raney 

Albuquerque

Women's basketball team needs a fundamentals reset

As a longtime season ticket holder for the University of New Mexico women's basketball ball team, I have concluded that the head coach and assistant coaches need to find new homes. The women on the team have no concept of basic basketball skills — missed layups, poor passing, creative under the basket shots rather than the use of the backboard, no boxing out during rebounds, too much dribbling at the front of the key instead of running plays that maximize their strengths. I believe it's time for a new coaching staff.

Julian Gonzales 

Rio Rancho

Can the El Camino Real Heritage Center be salvaged?

KRQE reported that the Museum of New Mexico Board of Regents voted to demolish the controversial El Camino Real Heritage Center south of Socorro. The two options entertained were saving and destruction, and they voted in favor of the latter less-expensive option.

However, was there a third option? Could the facility be salvaged?

The El Camino Heritage Center was constructed adjacent to the Valverde Civil War battlefield and the ruins of Fort Craig. On Feb. 16, 1862, the Texans approached the southern defenses of Fort Craig. Was this probe near the museum property?

If the location of the El Camino Real Museum was a bad location, then the only logical purpose would be to turn it into a museum honoring those that fought to preserve the Union: the New Mexico Volunteers.

Most of the New Mexico Volunteers were residents of New Mexico. They supplied the soldiers who were used to reconnoiter the Confederates. They assisted in strengthening the defenses prior to the largest battle recorded in New Mexico. Shouting, "Matalos Tejanos" (Kill The Texans), they were briefly recognized for their bravery under Kit Carson's leadership.

However, after a hard-fought battle, the Texans, using shotguns in a desperate charge against a battery of Union artillery, triumphed. The Union commander blamed the New Mexicans. He used the Spanish-speaking volunteers as scapegoats. His prevarications damaged the reputations of these soldiers, and his defamations lasted for generations after the battle.

If the foundation, walls and roof can be salvaged, could these structural parts be used to correct the injustice generated by the Union commander? If so, then the creation of a museum dedicated to interpreting the history of Valverde, Fort Craig and the Spanish-speaking New Mexico Volunteers would be appropriate.

Is salvage a possibility?

Joe Hubbard 

Aztec

Link legislative pay to rural education

I believe that we can address two New Mexico issues at the same time. Giving salaries to legislators is a great move. But why not index their salaries to the lowest annual teacher salaries in rural areas of the state? Legislators would naturally vote to give themselves higher salaries, at the same time making teaching positions in rural areas more attractive to both local and out-of-state teachers.

Teresa Palomar

Socorro 

The high toll in Minneapolis from a 'successful' invasion 

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement invasion of Minneapolis is over. According to the Department of Homeland Security, it was a huge success. White House Boarder Czar Tom Homan stated that 4,000 illegal immigrants were arrested.

Unfortunately, Homan didn’t discuss the full cost of those arrests.

ICE paid 3,000 agents for three months. These agents were housed in hotel rooms at government expense. The financial cost to our taxpayers was millions of dollars.

Then there were the tangential costs. Numerous ICE agents were injured. More important, hundreds of innocent Minneapolis residents were injured by tear gas, pellets, pepper spray and night sticks. In addition to the two citizens who were shot and killed by federal agents, there was another who was shot and wounded.

There was also the expenses to the city of Minneapolis and its residents. The city paid more than $6 million in police overtime. There were lost wages as people were unable to go to work. Food assistance increased. There was damage to property and streets. In all, city officials estimate a cost of $200 million.

More important was the damage to American law. (I believe) ICE agents openly and blatantly violated U.S. laws regarding racial profiling, due process and warrantless searches. ICE violated over 90 judicial orders. ICE refused to obey hundreds of writs of habeas corpus. And ICE agents are being investigated for allegedly committing perjury.

Finally, ICE has not disclosed how many of the 4,000 arrested were ultimately freed by federal courts.

Millions of dollars spent. The Constitution, federal laws and judges ignored. Innocent citizens injured. All in pursuit of 4,000 immigrants, most of whom, according to DHS records, were not felons or even criminals.

Doesn’t sound like an efficient use of our tax dollars to me.

Arthur Flicker 

Albuquerque