You need a license to cut hair in Texas, but not to build a house. Protect home buyers | Opinion

Texas lets bad builders slide

Reading about customers being ripped off while trying to build a barndominium brought back anxiety and anger remembering when we built our home in the mid-1990s. (July 30, 1A, “Paradise lost; For these barndominium buyers, the dream of country living at a good price has turned into a nightmare”)

I was part of a group called Sick of Bad Builders that tried to get the state to license homebuilders. After all, you need a license to cut hair in Texas, but to build a house, all you need is a pickup. We picketed the courthouse during our contractor’s bankruptcy hearing and were covered on TV, but nothing changed. It wasn’t even the builder’s first bankruptcy.

There must be consequences for these contractors. Building a home should not ruin you financially because of fraud and misrepresentation.

- Alison Dolezal, Mansfield

Cyclists, joggers are no problem

Wildflowers in the spring, speckled fawns in late summer, the occasional majesty of wild turkeys or flash of a roadrunner: The joys of experiencing a bit of nature within reach of the city will disappear if the Army Corps of Engineers closes Benbrook Lake’s South Holiday Park to cyclists, joggers and walkers. (July 24, 1A, “Road at Benbrook Lake to close to cyclists, joggers”)

The corps contends that there were 388 “incidents” in May and June, but when pressed for details — what kind of incidents, when and the outcomes — nothing is forthcoming. Without information, it’s hard to offer reasonable alternatives, such as educational campaigns, signage, bike lanes or limited closures on busy weekends.

Overnight camping numbers don’t match the regulars who visit the park time and again. In terms of impact, cyclists and joggers leave little behind. Day users from Tarrant, Parker, Hood and Dallas counties deserve better from the Corps of Engineers.

- Janelle Montgomery and Hollace Ava Weiner, Fort Worth

Keep blocking Rio Grande crossing

The buoy barrier and razor wire along the Rio Grande should remain. (July 25, 1A, “Biden administration sues Texas gov. over buoy barrier”) They hurt no one who is smart enough not to try to cross the river.

Throughout history, children have been used as pawns, and we have to stay the course and protect our borders, as unpleasant as this is. We can’t protect our citizens if we cater to the needs of those arriving illegally.

- Charles Lamb, Grand Prairie

The perils of letting computers do it

Artificial intelligence has the potential to dumb down society to the point where humans won’t have to do their own thinking. Take autocorrect on your smartphone. I saw a birthday card that wished the recipient a “Hairy Butt Day” followed by the caption, “I hate autocorrect.”

It won’t be funny if AI makes it easier to scam us.

- William Beck, Springtown

Gun charges just don’t make sense

Decarlos Jordan was recently arrested for hiding a gun used in the accidental shooting of Trey’Shawn Eunes. (July 28, 1A, “Man accused of hiding gun in accidental shooting case”) Tampering with evidence is a third-degree felony and can result in two to 10 years in jail and up to a $10,000 fine.

But what’s so bizarre is that if he’d just handed over the gun, he’d have been charged only with a Class C misdemeanor for child endangerment and fined up to $500.

Maybe if the penalties were reversed and any Texan leaving a loaded gun or assault rifle within reach of a curious child, a suicidal adolescent or an angry teen were sent to prison instead of just paying a measly fine, we would finally reduce gun violence.

- Sharon Austry, Fort Worth