Want to join the middle class, Fort Worth? More income shouldn’t be your first goal | Opinion
Spending focus
The Jan. 15 story by Lane Gillespie of Bankrate.com goes on at great length about how to increase income to be a part of the “middle class.” (Jan. 15, Edition, “‘Middle class’ feels more confusing than ever. Here’s how you can avoid being caught in the middle”) There was only one sentence in the piece about spending.
I have counseled lower income people on how to manage their money. My experience is that they need to control their spending. Some simple steps are to list every dollar they spend, then look for ways to minimize expenses, such as taking lunch instead of going to a restaurant every day. Buy a used car instead of a new one.
There are many such ways to minimize spending without much effect on lifestyle. This is the real answer to living within one’s income.
- Dan Moore, Fort Worth
Rules for some?
Your editorial on Mercy Culture Church was spot on. (Jan. 5, 4C, “Mayor, City Council gave church a bullying blueprint”) Does Fort Worth have zoning ordinances or does it not? We are all subject to land-use regulations, and Mercy Culture’s proposal does not follow our usage laws.
I suspect we will see more applications for uses that don’t follow our rules. Why have rules if they are only for some and not others?
- Wanda Conlin, Fort Worth
Defend expression
I am writing to express my deep disappointment with Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare. I am sickened by his attempt at censorship of art in our city by seeking removal of photographs of renowned artist Sally Mann. (Jan. 15, 13A, “Don’t let critics censor Fort Worth photo exhibit because they see iniquity, not art”)
This is narrow-minded and does not reflect the views of many residents of Fort Worth. I hope others will voice their opinions and stand up for free expression and free speech by defending the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and its selection of exhibits.
- Lesley Pinckard, Fort Worth
About consent
Sally Mann is a long-controversial figure for producing nude images of her children. It is true that artistic expression might be viewed as pornographic by some, but the larger issue here concerns consent. Unlike the humanities, the social science and technology fields have clear regulations surrounding consent: how it must be obtained and who can provide it. If a parent is functioning in the capacity of researcher (or, in this case, photographer), the parent cannot also provide impartial consent on behalf of the children, who are members of a protected group.
Whether these photographs break the law is a separate issue altogether, but Mann’s continued dissemination of this work is antithetical to decades of ethical oversight, at least in the academic world.
- Troy E. Spier, Fort Worth
Party first
It is shameful that Rep. Kay Granger’s degraded mental health was hidden from the voters. It is not a matter of retiring — it is that some of these officials are in their posts longer than any dictator.
Something is wrong with partisanship in the U.S.
- Aram Azadpour, Grapevine
Not my home
Growing up in a small West Texas town, I loved visiting my family in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. So, after I finished college in 2020, relocating here seemed like an obvious choice.
However, whether due to the pandemic or my coming of age, my once-admired metropolis no longer holds the same allure. Now, I feel as if I’m wandering through a modern Southern Gothic. Large swaths of our municipalities are falling into disrepair, only to be put out of their misery by bulldozer. Buildings are replaced by towering apartment complexes that few can afford — that is, until they decay into eyesores (a process that once took decades but now needs only years).
It’s a cycle of excess and scarcity, leaving the area feeling less like a place to call home and more like a forgotten landscape mined for every resource.
- Nolan W. Reeves, Arlington