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We Must Make The Wise Choice For Our Grandchildren

 We in Staunton have a choice to make.  It is up to us.  Shall we choose solar energy ? Twenty one years ago, I was adopted into the Shenandoah family, Wolf Clan, Oneida Nation of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (People of the Long House).   White people call them Iroquois. We are taught to listen to our elders, learn to respect and act responsibly. Oren Lyons, 93, Wolf Clan, is an Onondaga Chief, and world leader of peace who teaches —  The Earth is our Mother.  She gives everything we need for life.  Imagine a living pine tree clinging to a cliff; getting all it needs for life from the earth.  We are like that pine tree.  Our Mother Earth provides, but time is running out.  We have little time to make changes in order to survive.  The economy of nations will be broken by natural disasters.  We see more disasters every year:  hurricanes, snow melt, coastlines washing into the seas, wild fires, drought, flooding, on and on.  The haze today brings this reality to Staunton, VA. We must fol
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Misinformation Madness

There has been a lot of misinformation recently in the press about the Inflation Reduction Act as well as the current state of the economy. It is important that voters know the truth.

Following are some facts about this act and how it will benefit Americans:
  • Americans pay much more for their medicines than people in most other countries. The Act includes several measures to control and even reduce these prices, such as authorizing Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies and requiring drug companies to pay rebates if price increases exceed the rate of inflation. Unfortunately, Republicans blocked a proposed measure to limit the cost of insulin copays to $35 per month.
  • The IRS is significantly understaffed due to Covid, retirements, and funding cuts over the past few years. As a result, it has taken the IRS almost a year to process many 2020 tax returns and refunds. Taxpayers have had to spend hours on help lines to reach an agent. The Act will provide funding to correct this staffing shortage which should eliminate these bottlenecks.  Taxes will not increase for medium-income families and small businesses.
  • During the past few years, historic heat waves, droughts, and massive flooding have hit many parts of the US and the world. This Act includes various energy-saving tax credits for homeowners and businesses. There are also incentives for energy-efficient, affordable housing for lower-income families.
With regard to the oft-heard claims that the Biden administration is responsible for the current high rate of inflation, the truth is that many contributing inflationary factors, such as Covid, worldwide supply chain shortages, and the spike in energy prices, are beyond the control of this administration or of any other. A recession would have arrived sooner and have been much more severe if it had not been for the relief packages. The Federal Reserve Board is now taking steps to lower inflation without causing the current “technical” recession to worsen. It is a delicate balancing act under any circumstances. The good news is that the unemployment rate is only 3.5 percent, down from a high of 14.7 percent in April 2020 and tied for the lowest rate in the past 20 years.

Deborah Sullivan
Fishersville

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