The News Courier encourages letters to the editor. Submissions should be no more than 400 words and include name, address and telephone number for verification. Submissions that do not meet requirements are subject to editing. Writers are limited to one published letter every 30 days. Send letters to P.O. Box 670, Athens AL 35613 or email to adam@athensnews-courier.com. The deadline for letters is Wednesday at noon.

No praise for White House

Dear Editor:

The tea party promised to fix the national debt, which is analogous to an obligation for every American to buy a new car and ship to Switzerland.

Conservatives, if they can’t help honest working people, promise at least a clean, transparent state free from corruption. When they can’t do that, they promise to maintain order, protecting the silent majority from mobs and rioters. Today, the brigands and thugs are conservatives.

Another argument is that Mussolini made the trains run on time. Fascists boost the stock market and rein in inflation. Lately, a healthy economy was sickened by an overdose of stimulants.

But the right wing is pro-life, right? Wrong. Five hundred thousand preschool kids in Yemen are in danger of immediate starvation. The White House is fumigating for humans.

We have trashed the legacy of Franklin and Jefferson, but it’s worse than that. Women’s safety is no longer sacrosanct. The White House is a bawdy burlesque show. Logic, mathematics, theology and absolute truth are dismissed as fake news.

We have mortgaged centuries of Judeo-Christian tradition for a rollercoaster ride.

Sincerely,

Ryan Amptmeyer

Elkmont

We can do better

The rate of cesarean birth in Alabama was over 35 percent in 2017, which is the fourth-highest rate in the nation. And before you rationalize this number as a necessary life saving intervention, keep in mind that Alabama has some pretty dismal birth outcomes.

According to the CDC, in 2016 we had the highest rate of infant mortality, and for maternal mortality, we were ranked 30 of the 47 states that reported numbers. In stark contrast, the World Health Organization recommends a cesarean birth rate between 10 percent and 15 percent for optimal birth outcomes. This is a big deal.

Cesarean birth increases the risk of infection, blood clots, and complications in subsequent pregnancies such as placenta previa, placenta accreta and uterine rupture. Not to mention the unsightly scarring and additional healing time that is necessary after abdominal surgery. There needs to be a concerted effort to lower these rates and improve birth outcomes.

Recently, Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia was able to lower their cesarean birth rate 5 percent by implementing something as simple as the use of peanut balls for moms who need to labor in bed. And one study conducted by Gaines et al in 2012 found that having a birth doula present for a laboring mom reduced their risk of a cesarean birth by 28 percent.

Through a combination of education, support and advocacy, we can lower this rate, and make birth safer in Alabama.

Sincerely,

Robin Serwatka

Decatur