GOP and its doomsday policy decisions

One can be a cold hardhearted ultraconservative motivated solely by self interest, and recognize their self-interest is at risk by the policy direction of the Republican party.

The environment? Our land, water, and air that we need to breathe in order to survive? You can't carve out your own individual slice of the environment for personal consumption.

Health care? Do you really want someone who is physically ill preparing your food, caring for your children and elderly parents, and coming into your home to repair your refrigerator?

Economic opportunity? The despair and hopelessness generated by unemployment, underemployment, and lack of opportunity is a breeding ground for crime and violence.

Mental health? As more and more community mental health clinics shutter their doors for lack of funding, many struggling with a mental illness spend their days wandering aimlessly through our streets and neighborhoods.

I find it to be ironic that Richard Nixon recognized the need for environmental protections and established the Environmental Protection Agency. He also acknowledged the terrible social cost of poverty and unsuccessfully advocated for a guaranteed national annual income. Can you imagine any Republican today promoting either of these policies?

I suspect it was not a sense of compassion that motivated Nixon, but a pragmatic analysis that concluded that failing to address an ailing environment and social inequity would lead us to our doom.

So, unless today's Republicans have a master plan to leave the earth and inhabit another planet, they may want to rethink their doomsday policy decisions.

Greg Newlin

Naperville