Letter writer Michael Rathsack (“Offensive cartoon,” Aug. 31) needs to lighten up a little. The Scott Adams “Dilbert” cartoon, which he calls out for “mocking masks,” is just that — a cartoon. Rathsack is neither obligated to read it nor to take it as medical advice. It doesn’t have the force of a mayoral edict or a governor’s order.
It’s simply Adams, a well-known iconoclast with a strong libertarian streak, pointing out that a mask, as Dr. Anthony Fauci has said, is not the “perfect protection.”
That Rathsack then argues that we should not find the “Dilbert” cartoon “screaming at us from this paper” because the cartoon “would no longer be allowed on diligent social media sites” is alarming. In a free society, neither the Tribune nor social media sites should be the arbiters of what can and cannot be said publicly about the pandemic or public policy responses to it.
Although we have strayed far from our roots, the U.S. is still supposed to be a self-governing republic. Once discussion of differing points of view is prohibited, the prospects for its success disappear.
If Rathsack finds “Dilbert” offensive, then the Tribune offers plenty of other choices, from Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott’s “Baby Blues” and Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman’s “Zits” — both of which are brilliant — to Jim Toomey’s “Sherman’s Lagoon” and Tim Rickard’s “Brewster Rockit.”
And, if all else fails, there’s always Garry Trudeau’s reliably left-wing but typically well-written “Doonesbury” on Sundays.
— David L. Applegate, Huntley
Rights and harm
I don’t understand why so many people are opposed to wearing masks. I guess some people think it restricts their constitutional rights.
To get my high school diploma in 1969, I had to pass American history and government. I was taught that individual rights stop when they cause harm to others. Free speech does not permit yelling “fire” in a crowded theater. I hear some people say that masks do not stop infection, a lie that is common on social media. The Bible says that in the end times, people will reject the truth and believe lies. It also states that even the religious elect can be fooled.
I wonder if the people objecting to masks would want their doctor and nurses to not wear masks if they were having open heart surgery done.
— Rob Gorski, Chesterton
Protect kids’ future
After a natural disaster like Hurricane Ida, we all expect the federal government to provide billions of dollars to remediate the damage, including rebuilding roads, repairing water systems, fixing electrical and other systems, and repairing school buildings and people’s homes.
As these federal dollars roll in, no one screams about socialism or overreach. Yet if that same government were to spend that same money to make sure those same facilities were prepared for the next natural disaster, especially a climate-driven flood or wildfire or sea level rise, the anti-science “socialist” fearmongering begins.
Can we please stop with the lies and the delusion and do what we need to do now to guarantee that the country is as least as livable for our children and grandchildren as it has been for us?
— Jeanne Follman, Wilmette
2 undeniable facts
California Board of Parole Hearings Commissioner Robert Barton said Sirhan Sirhan has shown he is a different man than he was in 1968. I suppose that’s true. I know I’m certainly different from I was in 1968.
U.S. Sen. Robert Kennedy is still dead, though. No matter how much Sirhan changes, Kennedy will still be dead because of him.
— Ron Flowers, Elk Grove Village
Recalling a tragic 1968
I generally support the release of prisoners who have shown that they are rehabilitated. But for those of us who are old enough to remember that tragic and very painful year of 1968, it is inconceivable that Robert Kennedy’s assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, could be released from prison.
This possibility vividly brings back every terrible moment of 1968. He should stay locked up.
— Judy Weik, Oak Park
Stores, please use wipes
Now that we have a statewide mandate for masks again, I would like to please ask our retail stores, especially groceries, to make sure that they are equipped with sanitizing wipes for carts.
I will wear my mask, but please keep the sanitizing supplies stocked.
— Judith Bridges, Grayslake
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