We can decrease killing capacity and slow gun massacres. Lives depend on it.

Act on gun massacres as if

children's lives depend on it

We could liken our schools to airports, with metal detectors and screening pat-downs before children pass through the doors each morning. We could fashion our schools like prisons with armed guards and train our teachers as weaponized wardens in their classrooms.

We could return to virtual learning to keep children safe from battleground education. Or we could guard our children’s lives with protective measures that preclude teenagers, the mentally ill and those with violent histories from purchasing weapons designed to kill fellow human beings.

How can the USA be the land of the free and the home of the brave when our children cannot walk freely in their own schools and must cower under their desks from armed predators? We cannot eliminate mass shootings. But we certainly can take measures to decrease the killing capacity and the frequency of these massacres. Our children’s lives and welfare depend on it.

Lori Kline, Austin

The perpetrators on September 11

underestimated Americans' resolve

Twenty-three years ago, this nation was brought to tears. The horrific attacks on September 11, 2001 demonstrated that the oceans can no longer shield us. Those attacks were intended to demoralize us, suppress us, humiliate us, and to spread fear and hysteria among us.

Instead, those attacks rekindled our spirits. We became more united as a nation, and we emerged stronger as self-determined Americans.

The perpetuators of those nefarious acts on "9-11" underestimated the resilience and resolve of the American people.

John Digenio, Cibolo

Contrary to the rhetoric, drug prices

for some Medicare patients are down

I continue to see ads from Chip Roy and John Cornyn regarding the present administration not affecting drug pricing for Medicare patients. As an oncology pharmacist, I would question some of the statements.

Have drug prices for seniors gone down? Not at this time, but wait until 2025. Have premiums gone up? Haven’t they for everyone, not just Medicare patients. I would recommend they look at the co-pay out- of-pocket expense which Medicare patients are now spending, thanks to the administration and Congress passing legislation. We have several patients whose co-pays have gone down from over $1,000 per month to zero for the remainder of the year. Yes, oral cancer medications are that expensive.

I let people know that this is the result of the Inflation Reduction Act and next year may be better. They need to look into this expense reduction many Medicare oncology patients have realized.

Bob Stuifbergen, Austin

It's not 'hysteria' when wildfires are

destroying homes and businesses

This year’s Smokehouse Creek wildfire destroyed hundreds of farms and ranches and killed thousands of livestock in North Texas. Many farmers will never recover. Meanwhile, Texas A&M’s 2024 climate report says that “climate change is increasing the number of days susceptible to wildfire” in West Texas, where rainfall is unable to make up for moisture lost to extreme heat.

But not long after the fire, my Representative Chip Roy touted his efforts to hamper U.S. defense spending on climate change. In June he said that an investment initiative, focused on off-setting climate change, was “a purposeful effort to put climate hysteria in front of Americans' well-being."

Losing homes and businesses to wildfires is what is hurting our well-being. Preparation, investments and specific actions are sound steps, not hysteria. I’d like to be represented by someone who understands that, and that is definitely not Chip.

Fazia Rizvi, San Marcos

What about the Jewish students who

deal with hate and discrimination

Tuesday's article about UT students upset about returning to campus was little more than anti-Israel rhetoric. The students profiled made the choice to protest in violation of UT rules.

What about a story about Jewish and Zionist students returning to campus, with no choice but to deal with the hate and discrimination they have faced since Oct. 7? They must go about campus in fear of their Jewish identities. Shame on the Statesman for its biased coverage of the conflict.

Phillip Ramati, Austin

The GOP's unsubstantiated cries

of voter fraud tell us one thing

Under the guise of "potential" voter fraud, Attorney General Ken Paxton threatens to sue over Bexar County's efforts to register voters. We assume Bexar County will vet every voter registration submitted just as they always do. Bexar County's voter registration efforts represent how the government is supposed to work.

Given the lack of any history of substantial voter fraud in Texas - or any other state - Paxton's threats amount to little more than another opportunity to get his name in the media. Governor Abbott announced recently that Texas had "purged" over 1 million voters from the voter rolls. Turns out zero of those dropped from voter rolls represented voter fraud. A small percentage were suspended pending investigation, the remainder were voters who had died or left the state.

All this publicity suggesting voter fraud from our statewide elected officials tells me Republicans are afraid enough new voters might vote them out of office.

Vote by mail (if you're qualified), vote early, vote on Election Day. But vote!

Warren Hackler, Austin

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: We can decrease killing capacity and slow gun massacres. Lives depend on it.