Why did Mitch Albom blame only Democrats for COVID-19 pandemic failures?
Mitch Albom's take on the fifth year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic seems to miss the point of the chaos caused by the pandemic. ("5 years later, COVID-19 reminds us that fear makes us small," Detroit Free Press, March 16.)
He glosses over then-President Donald Trump's response, and looks at it through the lens of false equivalency. It's disappointing that he mentions the shortcomings of Andrew Cuomo and former President Joe Biden, but left out the more serious ones of Trump and his right-wing allies who amplified unhinged conspiracy theories.
Trump's name is not even mentioned in Albom's column even though he was president at the onset of the pandemic. There is no mention of how Trump injected politics and made it more about him. Why no mention of Trump contradicting Dr. Anthony Fauci at every opportunity? Why no mention that instead of deferring to science, Trump floated the idea that injecting disinfectants or a powerful light might cure the virus? No mention of people who died who thought the virus could be cured by the use of hydroxychloroquine or horse pills.
When describing the legitimate fear of those who wore masks during a pandemic, Albom does not mention the illegitimate fear of those who claimed the vaccine would alter your DNA, or that 5G mobile towers were spreading the virus.
What about the absurd claims that the virus was created by Bill Gates as a means of implanting chips through vaccines? Or that the vaccine would make you magnetic, or that masks actually activated the coronavirus?
Let's be clear, many people died who didn't have to because of the politicizing of the pandemic. It should have been something that brought us together as Americans, instead it tore us apart and made the rift between us even greater.
Eddie Dee
Novi
More from Freep Opinion: Hamtramck mayor gets Trump appointment he's been angling for. Good riddance.
I may be tugging on Superman's cape, but I think that John Gallagher's advocacy for demolishing part of the Renaissance Center is totally misplaced. ("I'm a historic preservationist, but these RenCen towers have to go," March 12.)
Yes, I agree that the RenCen should never have been built where it was, and is. Although downtown, it's not really part of downtown. The solution, however, isn't to demolish it. Make it part of downtown by redoing Jefferson Ave, and eliminate the moat ― which also serves as an anti-pedestrian expressway entrance that isolates the RenCen from the rest of our city.
Yes, access to our international riverfront should be a priority. After all, it's undoubtedly the premier asset of our city, and why our city is located where it is. But the RenCen doesn't block access to the riverfront. Immediately to its west is Hart Plaza, with the iconic Noguchi fountain, statuary commemorating the Underground Railroad, the landing of Cadillac, and more. And to its east is Cullen Plaza, the carousel and more.
Finally, the Renaissance Center is an iconic feature of our skyline, one that appears in nearly every media report from the area. Do we really want to see the media highlight the demolition of it? I suspect the demo will be characterized as the fall of General Motors. Recent business reports have suggested that international automakers, including those from China, are likely to establish larger footprints in the U.S. The owners of the Ren Cen (absent GM, of course) should be actively soliciting them! Imagine the initialism of (Chinese automaker) "BYD" replacing "GM" on the central tower.
Thomas E. Page
Detroit
Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters and we may publish it online and in print. If you have a differing view from a letter writer, please feel free to submit a letter of your own in response. Become a Free Press subscriber.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Albom blamed only Democrats; GM, lease the RenCen to China | Letters
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Marines Arrive in Los Angeles as City Braces for ‘No Kings' Protests
As cities across the nation brace for 'No Kings' protests on June 14, Donald Trump deployed 700 Marines to Los Angeles, with 200 troops arriving Friday to guard the Wilshire Federal Building — the latest provocation in the president's militarized answer to immigration enforcement and protest policing. Marines have already carried out the first known detainment in the city. Reuters obtained photographs of armed Marines temporarily detaining a civilian. The U.S. military confirmed the incident, which took place at the Wilshire Federal Building, to the outlet. The New York Times reported that the individual said he was an Army veteran and tried to reach the Veteran's Affairs office located past caution tape. The man said he was undisturbed by his brief detention. Earlier this week, the commander overseeing military operations in the city said that military personnel can only temporarily detain people but cannot make arrests. The move to have Marines involved in local police work tests the boundaries of the Posse Comitatus Act, which broadly prohibits the military from engaging in domestic law enforcement. The pictures have surfaced a day after a federal judge attempted to place a restraining order on Trump's move to federalize 4,000 California National Guard Troops. (That injunction has since been stayed by an appeals court.) The judge did not address the role of Marines under Trump's command, writing that he would await a court date to weigh evidence as to whether these federal forces were engaging in police-like behavior including 'interrogating, detaining, or searching civilians.' Trump has long dreamed of using military force to counter his domestic opposition. On June 6, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids targeted warehouses, clothing manufacturers, and Home Depot parking lots across Los Angeles, prompting a wave of local protests. Trump seized the opportunity to exert control over the state, deploying 2,000 National Guard troops into the city despite protests from both California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass. The president has since mobilized as many as 4,000 members of the California National Guard along with the 700 Marines to deploy in Los Angeles. On Thursday, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was dragged out of a Department of Homeland Security press conference, forced to the ground, and handcuffed by members of the FBI after attempting to ask DHS Secretary Kristi Noem a question. Padilla later said in a press conference that he was 'there peacefully' and was hoping to get answers from the administration about their immigration policies. 'I began to ask a question,' the senator recalled. 'I was forced to the ground, and I was handcuffed,' he said, clarifying: 'I was not arrested. I was not detained.' Padilla then addressed reporters: 'If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question you can only imagine what they're doing do farmers … and day laborers.' Millions are expected to protest President Trump's military parade on his birthday (which is also Flag Day and the 250th anniversary of the Army). The president has planned for a procession of tanks, Howitzers, mobile rocket launchers, and other war machines to roll through the streets of Washington, D.C., as military aircraft, including Apache helicopters, fly overhead. Protest organizers have called June 14 a 'nationwide day of defiance.' The protest website reads: 'They've defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared people off the streets, attacked our civil rights, and slashed our services. The corruption has gone too. far. No thrones. No crowns. No kings.' Trump has threatened demonstrators planning to show up at his military spectacle, declaring, 'If any protester wants to come out, they will be met with very big force.'More from Rolling Stone Trump's Military Crackdown Is Starting To Dent His Poll Numbers Kim Gordon Has Words for Donald Trump on Re-Recorded 'Bye Bye 25!' Trump Calls on Iran to Agree to Nuclear Deal 'Before There Is Nothing Left' Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
New York Times
13 minutes ago
- New York Times
Even Before His Return to the White House, Trump Was Becoming a Crypto Czar
Donald J. Trump got a small taste last year of life as a cryptocurrency mogul. His stake in World Liberty Financial, the cryptocurrency firm that he unveiled during the presidential campaign, earned about $57 million, making it one of the Trump family's most lucrative investments in 2024. And a licensing deal involving a related industry, NFT collectibles, produced another $1.2 million. Mr. Trump's wife, Melania, contributed to the family income, receiving $217,000 in licensing fees related to a digital token. The results, detailed in Mr. Trump's mandatory financial disclosure report for 2024 and released on Friday, previewed the crypto riches he is now poised to reap as president. Since Mr. Trump took office a second time this year, his crypto fortunes have skyrocketed through a series of business ventures that pose unprecedented conflicts of interest. Not only is Mr. Trump a major operator in the crypto industry, he is also its top policymaker — and a symbol of its rising stature in Washington. Even as the president seeks to deregulate and promote the industry, Mr. Trump's personal net worth has soared through crypto. Though the information in the financial disclosure ends as of Dec. 31, 2024, World Liberty announced this year that it had sold more than a half-billion dollars' worth of its coin, a significant portion of which the Trump family was entitled to. Separately, Mr. Trump developed a personal cryptocurrency known as $TRUMP, a memecoin launched days before his inauguration, that on paper could be worth billions of dollars. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CNN
15 minutes ago
- CNN
With bibles, tokens and watches, Trump made millions, new disclosures show
President Donald Trump has made millions from his family's cryptocurrency venture, private golf clubs and hawking everything from bibles to watches – as he's capitalized on his political prominence to expand his business empire, according to financial documents released Friday afternoon. One of the biggest sources of income Trump disclosed was a $57 million token sale through WLF Holdco LLC, which owns World Liberty Financial Inc. WLF is a Trump family crypto company and boasts that it is actively run in part by the president's sons. Meanwhile, Trump owns roughly between $1 million and $5 million worth of the cryptocurrency ethereum. He campaigned on being the most crypto-friendly president, advertising a more hands-off approach to regulating digital assets compared to prior administrations. Friday's filings, running more than 230 pages, mark the first disclosures of the billionaire's assets and liabilities since Trump returned to the White House in January. And they give the public the first snapshot of some of his recent earnings from deals inked while the Republican campaigned for office last year. Asked about the president's myriad business ventures, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump has been transparent. 'President Trump, Vice President Vance, and senior White House staff have completed required ethics briefings and financial reporting obligations. The Trump Administration is committed to transparency and accessibility for the American people,' she said in a statement to CNN. Federal law does not require presidents to divest their holdings, although previous officeholders have taken steps to do so or wall them off in a blind trust. Trump's assets are in a trust managed by his children, and the Trump Organization earlier this year announced that the president would not have any involvement in the day-to-day running of the company. But he still owns and benefits from his sprawling real estate and branding empire. Friday's filings show that a variety of licensing deals the president has with companies selling products using his name, image and likeness – ranging from sneakers to watches – yielded millions in royalties for Trump. That includes the more than $1.3 million Trump made from Lee Greenwood's 'God Bless the USA' Bible. On the 2024 campaign trail, Trump released a video urging supporters to purchase the Bible to 'make America pray again.' Trump also earned $2.5 million from Trump sneakers and fragrances and $2.8 million selling 'Trump Watches.' (CNN went on a hunt for the makers of the 'Swiss-made' watches in October 2024 and ended up in a small city in Wyoming.) Additionally, Trump made more than $1 million on a '45' guitar, denoting his place in the line of US presidents during his first term. The filings also reflect the large civil judgments that still loom over the president. He reported liabilities in excess of $50 million owed both to the New York attorney general and E. Jean Carroll, a former magazine columnist who alleged Trump raped her in a New York department store in the 1990s and then defamed her when he denied her claim and suggested she made up the story to boost sales of her book. On Friday, an appeals court rejected an attempt from Trump to review a $5 million judgment against him in a case brought by Carroll. The jury in that case found that Trump sexually abused Carroll, sufficient to hold him liable for battery, but did not find that Carroll proved he raped her. Trump has denied all the claims. Trump also is separately asking the appeals court to throw out an $83 million jury verdict in a second judgment Carroll won against him. The other civil judgment of more than $50 million the president disclosed stems from the $454 million that a New York judge ordered Trump to pay last year in a civil fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James. Trump has appealed that case. Trump's private clubs also generate substantial income – led by the president's flagship property, Mar-a-Lago, which brought in a little more than $50.1 million in revenue – down from about $57 million in a previous filing last year. The filings also reveal more about the speaking fees first lady Melania Trump earned during last year's campaign. She was paid $475,000 for a speaking engagement with the Log Cabin Republicans, which represents LGBTQ conservatives, in New York in July. Her paid speeches have drawn scrutiny in the past. A previous disclosure showed Melania Trump received $237,500 for an April 2024 engagement in Palm Beach, Florida. She also made nearly $217,000 related to the sale of NFTs, non-fungible tokens. Disclosures for Vice President JD Vance also were released Friday and show that the former Ohio senator and second lady Usha Vance have millions of dollars in assets, but their wealth does not come close to Trump's. Vance received between $50,001 and $100,000 in royalties for 'Hillbilly Elegy,' his 2016 memoir that catapulted him to fame and later was adapted into a movie.
