To the editor:
I submitted this letter in 2010, but now have changed some information as we have really serious issues that have come about and since the Republicans now have the majority in Pa., but Democratic values have not changed and have never been more important. Here they are again as a reminder. Democratic values touch everyone's lives.
The Democratic Party is responsible for the following:
1. Civil Rights Act
2. Voting rights
3. Fair Labor Standards
4. Social Security
5. Medicare
6. Medicaid
7. Head Start
8. SCHIP
9. Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA)
10. Family and Medical Leave Act
11. Age Discrimination in Employment Act
12. Americans with Disabilities Act
13. Clean Air Act
14. Safe Food and Drug Act
Most Republicans were against all of these important issues.
Republicans vowed to dismantle a lot of these programs if they got back in to office and the majority and they weren't joking.
Remember Gov. Corbett asking Congress just to take the handcuffs off him and he would get busy and really make cuts? Well, now you know he was serious and Congress hasn't even taken both handcuffs off yet. Look at the cuts for public schools and trying to privatize others so that schools will be run for profit, changing our voter ID laws when there wasn't any fraud to speak of in Pa., and women's rights to birth control as in cutting and or stopping funding for Planned Parenthood, and that's just to mention a few issues.
It's amazing that they don't want women to use birth control, but yet they are cutting the health care for these then pregnant young women and that includes breast exams and other necessary female checkups.
Gov. Corbett and his Republican cohorts have been quite busy. And if none of these issues currently affect you and yours, don't even think they won't go after your health care issues to dismantle programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and then give us vouchers to use which may or may not be enough to cover our health care costs.
But do not worry about health care for them as they have the best of health care paid for by "We the People" ... and don't forget our Social Security that Republicans want to turn over to Wall Street to be gambled with and if the market crashes like it has not that long ago, too bad!
Oh, and don't forget busting the unions. Our representatives want the best pay, benefits, and automatic raises, and their per diems (daily expenses) they get reimbursed for and from my understanding, some of them are even leasing expensive vehicles which are being paid for by, yep, you guessed it ... taxpayers. What a rough life they have. Something is a little wrong with this picture wouldn't you say?!
Wake up and remember these things when voting Nov. 2, and then vote straight Democrat.
Connie Drass
Lewistown
