LETTERS to the Editor

True present

To the editor:

As I read of the stress some people have regarding Christmas shopping for their children, I think back to my childhood Christmas morning. We were not allowed to go downstairs until 6 a.m., unless you were already out doing chores, to see what Santa brought. We would each get a little pile of clothes and one toy for all of us to share.

Mom and Dad made Christmas morning the happiest morning of the year, not with their money, or lack of, but with the love of thoughtful, caring and wonderful parents. Their presence was the most valuable present any child could ever have or want. The older I get the more valuable that present is.

Tony R. Huppert Spring Valley

Fair Courts = Fair Maps = Fair Elections

To the editor,

The recent news that the Wisconsin Supreme Court determined “least change” will be a primary consideration when choosing new voting district maps is a major blow to fair elections.

Redistricting is the process of redrawing the state’s political maps based on the latest census showing how populations have changed in neighborhoods, cities and counties since 2010.

Map makers can create an advantage for their political party in future elections by packing opponents’ voters into a few districts or spreading them thin among multiple districts – a process known as gerrymandering.

Polls show Wisconsinites overwhelmingly support a nonpartisan, impartial process for determining our political districts. We want to be fairly represented and gerrymandering prevents our voices from being heard in a fair and equitable manner.

Unfortunately, in the 4-3 majority decision our State Supreme Court sided with the Republican-backed Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL). This means that the Court will choose a map that favors the “least change” from the prior gerrymandered districts, thus benefiting Republicans the most.

Well-established criteria for drawing voting districts do exist. The Court ignored these in favor of the “least change” approach which sets a terrible precedent.

We need our courts to hear redistricting cases with all of Wisconsin voters in mind and to put aside partisan politics.

Leota Alexander Prescott