Letters to the editor for Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2015

Buckle up or we’re calling your mom

Thanksgiving is on its way, and soon many of you will take to the roads to share this day with family. Memories are shared and made during this special time, and it gives us a chance to connect with loved ones that we may not see too often throughout the year.

We sit down to dinner and reflect upon the past. We laugh, share stories and talk about how our mothers would remind us to cross the streets safely, not to talk to strangers, don’t drink and drive, and always wear our seat belts.

These are the same safety messages that we tell our children. Of course many things have been added since then, but the basic messages are still there. Now that many of you have your own children, you want them to be safe when traveling, so we buckle them up and put them in their child safety seats.

Even with everything that our parents have taught us, some do not listen, and this leads to injuries and deaths during a festive time of year. This Thanksgiving, let your parents know how much you appreciate the advice that they have given to keep you safe, from the time you were small to adulthood.

Law enforcement officers everywhere want you to be safe too, so in case you forget ... “Buckle up, or we’re calling your mom!”

Sgt. Scott McDaniel

Carson City Sheriff’s Office

Why do we keep forgetting history?

We are not a very bright people. We forget our history. Do you remember the Cuban Marielitos boatlift from April 15 to Oct. 31, 1980? Cuba agreed to let anyone go who wanted to go. The boats started flooding in to Key West and other sites in Florida. Castro emptied his prisons and mental facilities and of the 125,000 Cubans who entered the U.S., a high percentage were criminals and insane people. Florida experienced an unprecedented crime wave for years after the Marielitos boatlift.

Fast forward to 2015. Syrian refugees flood Europe. President Obama says he wants to take in at least 200,000 of them. But Arab states like Saudi Arabia aren’t doing anything with or for the refugees. Why not? If you look at the videos, you will see a lot more healthy looking single men than you see men with wives and children. Why? Because events like the mass migration of Syrians (and others) to Europe make for an ideal opportunity to get terrorists where you want them. My guess is 20 percent of the “refugees” fall into the category of terrorists. Again, President Obama wants to bring a minimum of 200,000 of them into the United States.

Paris was attacked by French-speaking terrorists, one of which was carrying a Syrian passport. It was announced that President Obama wants to expedite the movement of the Syrian refugees to the United States. ISIS and Al-Qaida made the Marielitos look like wimps. Are we stupid, or am I missing something?

Ron Landmann

Minden