Laurie Roberts wrote a piece about U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego’s evolving stance on transgender athletes that I found a bit confounding. Maybe that’s because Gallego’s position on the issue is muddled to the point of being almost incoherent.
Gallego seemed to support the exclusion of trans girls and women from sports, suggesting they could find other activities. But then he also suggested we could leave it to local institutions to decide who participates. Huh?
The senator went on to say that trans people should be welcomed into our community, just not apparently the sports community. It’s never good when a politician takes a stand, and yet can’t comprehend it.
I will grant you that the issue is a complex one, but the solutions also seem rather simple given the relatively low number of transgender athletes we are talking about.
The NCAA and each state’s athletic governing body should make decisions about participation. Kids in grade school, in my opinion, should be able to participate freely.
This idea of a level playing field is a joke. Inequities in sports are common.Does the high school girl who is 6’2” have an advantage in volleyball or basketball? What about Brittney Griner? A blanket policy on this issue is unfair.Dan Peel, ScottsdaleMayor Kate Gallego gets it right on data centers![]()
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego gave her State of the City address and covered a lot of successes and challenges for our growing city: transportation, water, public safety, housing and economic development.
I think she and the City Council are making good progress on many issues, and are thoughtfully anticipating future developments within the constraints of money and public opinion.
You can’t have everything, and definitely can’t subsidize everything.
Columnist Phil Boas makes his case for the coming wonders of data centers and artificial intelligence. (“Arizona leaders disagree on data centers. Are they worth the trouble?” May 29.)
He may be right, but that doesn’t mean the Phoenix taxpayer should give giant tax breaks to this multitrillion-dollar industry of the future that, despite its potential benefits, is unlikely to produce many local jobs or revenue.
She is rightfully more focused on tangible, affordable benefits for Phoenicians, rather than picking winners in the economy. She wants to help them get around town more easily, enjoy a reliable supply of water, endure the brutal summer sun and secure many high-paying jobs in the biotech and microchip sectors.
Our mayor has also warned us that squandering up to $1 billion to placate the billionaire owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks to upgrade Chase Field and undefined surrounding property is not the best use of our tax receipts.
Just ask the City of Glendale.
It’s reassuring to have a mayor and City Council with good judgment and good results. They’ve performed no miracles and have work left to do, but they’re moving in the right direction.
Good luck to the data center folks. I hope the Trump administration’s expulsion of foreign students, especially graduate students, doesn’t put too much of a crimp in successfully competing with China.
Andrew March, Phoenix
It’s a stretch to link D.C. murders to college classes
The Phil Boas column linking tragedies related to the Middle East to liberal teaching in American universities seems one sided (“Two young people are murdered in D.C. We must now ask hard questions of universities,” May 27).
To blame an extremist’s heart-rending murder of two young people to American universities and how they teach about the Middle East seems tenuous at best. It ignores the horrors of deliberate starvation and the use of sophisticated modern weaponry against the defenseless civilian populations in Gaza.
Justification for Israel to destroy Hamas is framed as a fight against antisemitism.
But this is about Israel’s long-term plan to establish power over the territory. No effort is made to look at the history or motives of the right-wing Likud party, which uses the cloak of antisemitism to cover its cruelty toward Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank and to continue their land grab.
Likud never had any intention of allowing a two-state solution, which might have provided a framework for peace if guaranteed by third parties. Rabin’s assassination says it all. Hamas’ actions are as indefensible as are Israel’s. The bloodshed will only continue until there is justice and security for both peoples.
Alan Austin, Phoenix
Tax the rich and cut the fat from the armed forces
Out-of-control deficit spending has become a big topic in today’s news.
The answer seems apparent to me.
Raise taxes on the super rich.
Then get serious about scrutinizing all the waste in the U.S. Department of Defense.
That seems like a logical start.
Unfortunately, the GOP has never considered this. Instead, the Republicans’ latest idea is to take away health care for millions of people.
Fred Batko, Phoenix
Where was the reporting on Biden’s health?
Columnist Bill Goodykoontz says the book “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again” by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson of Axios, is required reading for the left.
He adds, “in retrospect it’s easy to say journalism failed,” then asks, “Where was all this reporting when it really mattered?”
Let me answer.
![]()
The “journalism” could have been found if people chose to tune in to Fox, Newsmax or talk radio. They early on were showing the videos and airing the sound bytes, making a case for Biden’s condition, just as they made cases for all the issues that the left wanted to ignore and to ridicule us for bringing up. Charles Lopresto, PhoenixWhat’s on your mind? Send us a letter to the editor online or via email at opinions@arizonarepublic.com.
0
The “journalism” could have been found if people chose to tune in to Fox, Newsmax or talk radio. They early on were showing the videos and airing the sound bytes, making a case for Biden’s condition, just as they made cases for all the issues that the left wanted to ignore and to ridicule us for bringing up. Charles Lopresto, PhoenixWhat’s on your mind? Send us a letter to the editor online or via email at 
