To The Reader’s Forum:

Every other day, I hear politicians say, “America is the greatest nation on the planet.” But then, I can’t help thinking about reality.

This is the only industrialized nation the doesn’t have universal healthcare. I’m sure you know that medical expenses are the number one cause of bankruptcy in America, so why in the world are we waiting?! I have a relative who lives in Ontario, and she raves about the fact that almost every medical procedure is free there. UHC makes perfect sense, and any country that doesn’t adopt it is falling behind all then others.

Infrastructure in the U.S. is crumbling all around us. Roads, bridges, water supplies, sewers and power grids are shaky, unreliable and dangerous. And a growing population only exacerbates those problems. Congress finally passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, but that may turn out to be too little, too late. According to a report from The White House, “What is less obvious is how failing infrastructure compromises American competitiveness and economic growth. Without safe roads and bridges, drinkable water, climate-friendly transport, or state-of-the art broadband, businesses cannot flourish, and people cannot work productively.”

To make matters worse, public education has failed us miserably. Following World War II, the U.S. ranked number one in the world in primary education. But now, we’ve fallen to 13th overall. Jeb Bush and Margaret Spellings caused immense damage, and Republican-led state legislatures that are hell-bent on banning books have only added fuel to the fire. Trump wants to eliminate The Department of Education, and I can’t even imagine how badly that will detract from our children’s learning.

Our nation is in a state of rapid decline, and electing Democrats might be the only solution. According to The New York Times, “Over four years, the Trump administration dismantled major climate policies and rolled back many more rules governing clean air, water, wildlife and toxic chemicals.” In other words, The Orange Man made our environment much less safe all because he wants big business to sustain higher profits. If it were up to Trump, he’d bring back DDT just for laughs.

I saw the damage done at Love Canal and Three Mile Island, and I hope we never return to an unregulated and underserved nation that puts numerous lives and our environment in danger.

Craig Malmrose

North Carolina

Native of Bemus Point