Cats
Local animal rescue groups are upset that Hampton traps feral and stray cats even though Hampton has appropriately done cat-trapping for years when citizens are dealing with problem cats. These groups say trap, neuter and return is the only way to deal with the hundreds or thousands of feral and stray cats in Hampton. But who is going to assume care for these cats?
It is our opinion that almost all the citizens who request help with cat-trapping do not want the cat returned to the property, and they have a right to feel this way.
Gene and Rita Summers, Hampton
Deployment
Re “USS Dwight D. Eisenhower returns home after months at sea in combat zone” (July 14): What was the deployment for? Some of the sailors, and their families, of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and support ships recently returned to Norfolk are asking this question. But most already know the answer: for nothing.
Red Sea shipping lanes are still dysfunctional due to the Iranian-backed terrorists in Yemen, as they were before. If anything, the Biden administration’s feckless response to Houthi aggression has embolden them to the point that they are now launching drone attacks against Tel Aviv, Israel.
Due to incompetent U.S. military leadership, the Houthis, over the past nine months with their drones and pickup trucks, have engineered an embarrassing standoff against U.S. multibillion-dollar ships, multimillion-dollar planes and multimillion-dollar missiles.
All in, we’ve expended billions and disrupted the lives of thousands, and nine months later, the world is a more dangerous place.
Michael B. Hudson, Cape Charles
Harris
Re “Virginia Democrats rallying around Vice President Kamala Harris” (July 22): President Joe Biden earned the thanks of a grateful nation by stepping aside and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris. As a Virginia delegate to the Democratic National Convention, I hope Harris will break the glass ceiling as our next president. Even my 3-year-old daughter is excited.
Biden’s decision to serve as a bridge to the future offers Democrats a much-needed opportunity to unite Americans. Harris is a next-generation leader who will defeat former President Donald Trump. Harris will champion reproductive freedom, gun safety and the future of our democracy.
Harris is also an experienced prosecutor, quite the contrast with Trump’s 34 felony convictions.
Political violence has no place in our democracy, and I was horrified by the assassination attempt on Trump. Yet we will not forget how Trump incited political violence Jan. 6, 2021, desperate to reverse his loss to Biden. Nothing less than the future of our democracy is at stake Nov. 5.
We will not forget how Trump’s appointees to the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade, forcing my daughters to grow up with fewer abortion rights than their mother and grandmothers had. But we will not go back. We will fight for civil rights, worker rights and progress on climate change.
The Democratic Party offers a clear choice to voters: a nominee who will fight for our freedoms and who is already making Americans hopeful for the future again — Kamala Harris for president.
Alan Kennedy, a Virginia delegate to the Democratic National Convention, Williamsburg
Biden
In my heart of hearts, after the TV debate, I felt confident that President Joe Biden would “stand down” in his presidential pursuit. Why? Because he always puts country first.
Yes, he loves his family members and supports them through their trials and tribulations. For example, he accepted the court decision regarding his son when he could have easily pardoned or commuted his sentence. Yes, he is a God-fearing man who goes to church. His church is anti-abortion, but he knows the country overwhelmingly supports Roe v. Wade, so that’s what he supports. And yes, his “superpower” is his unending empathy for ordinary folks who have suffered some form of loss, whether it be loss of a loved one or loss of a home to a natural disaster. The only president who came close to that personal trait was Barack Obama.
Biden has done what is best for our country. In the annals of history, Biden will be considered one of the most consequential presidents our nation has had in the past century — the legislation he was able to get enacted is on a par with Lyndon B. Johnson and is only second to Franklin D. Roosevelt.
It would be fitting when Vice President Kamala Harris is inaugurated as president, her first act should be to award Biden the Medal of Freedom because Biden put country first.
Maury Neville, Chesapeake
Election
In a perfect world, all political campaigns from local offices to the president shouldn’t be allowed to start until 30 days prior to the election. As far as our next presidential election, I have already heard enough rhetoric to fertilize all the farmland on the East Coast.
Robert B. Gregory; Knotts Island, North Carolina
God
Re “God intervenes” (Your Views, July 17): The writer stated that God had “intervened” in the former President Donald Trump assassination attempt because of “the purpose and plans he has for him.” Odd that he didn’t intervene for Abraham Lincoln. Evidently, God has mixed feelings toward Republicans. Understandable.
John Creekmore, Suffolk
