Fort Worth, you look like a garbage dump — and it’s going to drive me and others away

Fort Worth, you’re so trashy

This city needs to do something to clean up all the trash. Few public patches of grass in Fort Worth are not covered in garbage. People litter with impunity. It makes me never want to call this a permanent home.

I hope the city can address this. Cleaning up our public spaces would make our city such a better place to live.

- Nate Fox, Fort Worth

An attack on Texas higher education

So, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants to end tenure at Texas public universities. (Feb. 19, 1A, “Patrick wants to end tenure for new hires”) If this didn’t sound so much like the usual election year crock, I’d say Patrick seems intent on turning schools such as the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M and Texas Tech into the nation’s largest community colleges.

Goodbye to cutting-edge scholarship — just so long as Texas young people get their vocational training and nobody has to think or feel awkward.

- Dennis Novak, Fort Worth

Rogers supports public education

I am a third-generation educator, retired high school principal and a school trustee. I am a strong advocate for public schools, as is my friend, state Rep. Glenn Rogers of House District 60. Rogers understands that in today’s world, teachers are not respected as professionals and are blamed for societal issues beyond their control.

Rogers speaks firmly about his dismay that public schools are under attack by political activists who relish belittling teachers and who plot the demise of public school districts in order to divert public tax dollars to private schools.

Support Glenn Rogers in the March 1 Republican primary because he will stand in the gap for our public schools.

- Laura Jones, Gordon

The Texas GOP seems beyond saving

As lifelong independent voters, my wife and I thought we might vote in the Republican primary to show our displeasure with the leadership in Texas who used the GOP Big Lie to suppress voters and limit women’s rights and tried to make us believe that immigrants are responsible for all of our crime.

We decided that their opponents were as bad or worse than the incumbents. It’s certainly a race to the bottom for Republicans who bow to the former president. He apparently has, despite his deplorable views on almost every subject, captured a cult-like following in the Republican Party.

- Don Kinard, Arlington

Mistruth, thy name is Bush

Mendacity is a concept that George P. Bush knows pretty well. In a new campaign ad, he slams fellow attorney general candidate Eva Guzman by asserting that she would not support completion of the border wall. Well before this untruth was advertised, Guzman stated her position on Twitter that she supports completion of the wall.

Be careful, voters. Mendacity is growing in this election season, and Bush is in the lead.

- Larry P. French, Acton

Support sexual self-discipline

It’s commendable that the Texas “heartbeat” law also provided funds toward strengthening pregnancy centers that provide alternatives to abortion. (Feb. 20, 5C, “Texas ‘heartbeat’ law has led to dramatic drop in abortions. Here’s why that’s good for women”).

Also heartening was the warning that willful termination of pregnancy could “likely trigger depression, anxiety or worse” — the real and tragic experience of many that has been well-documented. Emphasis should be placed on self-control and other virtues. Sexual self-discipline is good for people.

- Sandra Goertz Higgins, Fort Worth

This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 5:00 AM.