Culprit for pollution in the May River is well known | Letters

Everyone gets it about the uncontrollable over-development issues and related water quality problems of the May River in Bluffton.

As an environmental, soil and wetlands scientist with over 40 years in various states, including South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control, the recent article in your paper clearly and correctly targets fecal coliform as the primary pollutant negatively impacting the local shellfish population.

Unless I’m missing something, there are only two sources of fecal coliform: human (septics) and animal waste.

What I experienced working in the DHEC’s septic program was shocking. Countless septic systems were improperly installed several years ago in soils unsuitable to treat human waste.

Further, overflowing sewer systems undoubtedly also contribute to excessive fecal coliform counts.

So logically, there is no more need for spending any more money on stormwater management/water quality studies because evidently we now know the source of the problem: failed septics and sewer overflows. Otherwise, we are just simply treating the symptoms and not the cure.

Bluffton must address DUI issue

The Bluffton Police Department has some explaining to do in the wake of two recent DUI arrests. In both cases, neither defendant’s blood alcohol level came close to the .08 threshhold in South Carolina law.

In both situations, the police officer, a member of the one-man DUI Unit, filed no other criminal charges against the defendants, with the exception of a couple of traffic violations against one. It seems to me that without the .08 blood alcohol level reading, no arrests should have been made.

When these cases were presented in court, they were dismissed for lack of evidence of any crime being committed. As a result, the two people who were falsely arrested had their lives turned upside down and their reputations besmirched.

My main concern is that if this civil rights violation happened to these two motorists, it could just as easily happen to you or me. I hope the Bluffton town leaders address this matter immediately.

U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham not independent

Thanks Joe – I think.

Thanks to U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham for sending his recent email newsletter. I noted with interest that he supported and spoke in favor of banning the shark-fin trade. As a lifelong conservationist and fisherman, I too support this legislation. To my knowledge, there is no commercial shark-fin trade in America, but it’s always good to let the world know where America stands.

Now that he has protected the sharks and their fins, can we please focus on legislation that will benefit South Carolinians? Namely the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement.

The U.S. does more trade with both Canada and Mexico than with China.

This bipartisan legislation would benefit all three nations. With both minimum wage requirements for foreign workers and environmental safeguards, the USMCA will help with our immigration crisis and diminish global warming. The only thing stopping S.C. from enjoying the increased jobs and prosperity of the USMCA is Cunningham’s boss, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

When he ran for office he promised to be independent and work for us. Sadly, a recent survey shows Cunningham has voted with Pelosi and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 88% of the time. Denying S.C. and America the benefits of the USMCA strictly for partisan, political reasons is not acceptable.

Cunningham should show his independence by telling Pelosi to bring the USMCA to the floor for a vote now.

Letters to the editor make you wonder

When I read some of the letters submitted to this newspaper, I often wonder what alternate universe are these people living in?

A recent one brought it home to me. They live in the “I only listen to CNN, MSNBC, etc., to get my information” universe.

With all the insanity going on in Washington right now, how can anyone possibly say it is Republicans who need to change their thinking? Who decided that we have “incompetent, unqualified and corrupt leadership in the cabinet”? Anyone heard of U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff? Talk about incompetent and corrupt leadership.

President Donald Trump has the most corrupt administration in history? Tell me one “scandal” that has been proven against him. The Republican Senate not taking up all the House legislation is nothing new. Look it up. It’s been this way forever.

And why would the Republican House members take the impeachment proceedings seriously? They are a joke. Not one “witness” has claimed any wrongdoing on Trump’s part (unless you listen to CNN, Schiff, or House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who make it up as they go along).

A writer’s hope that Democrats control all three branches of government soon to “save” this country is scary. If that happens, say goodbye to freedom, our great economy, and the strides Trump has made to drain the swamp and restore America’s standing in the world. God save us.

Trump spurs nation’s economy

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden want credit for President Donald Trump’s historic economy and Wall Street growth.

I have previously listed here some of Trump’s 300 accomplishments in 26 months. Obama had 50 in eight years.

He passed Obamacare, improved food safety, dismantled the space shuttle program, rebuilt the Gulf Coast after Hurrcane Katrina, spurred economic growth, signed the $831 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, signed Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform, signed the Iran nuclear deal, signed the Paris climate change agreement, ended combat missions in Iraq, bailed out GM and Chrysler, repealed “don’t ask, don’t tell,” supported same-sex marriages, limited carbon emissions, normalized relations with Cuba, protected DACA, boosted fuel-efficiency standards, removed banks from the federal student loan program, appointed 300 judges, expanded wilderness and watershed protection, gave FDA power to regulated tobacco, trimmed missile defense, invested $90 billion in clean energy, passed credit-card reforms, cut veteran homelessness, cracked down on bad for-profit colleges, improved school nutrition, expanded the definition of hate crimes, recognized the dangers of carbon dioxide, strengthened women’s right to fair pay, protected LGBTQ from employment discrimination, reduced discrimination against former prisoners, won victory against housing and mortgage discrimination, and expanded health care coverage for children.

Can anyone point to one of his accomplishments that would generate economic growth, which we are experiencing? Additionally, Obama is the only president who did not experience GDP growth of 3% in any quarter.

Let voters decide on Trump

The House impeachment hearings served as a perfect Rorschach test for a polarized America: Never-Trumpers saw a nefarious president who deserved to be removed for bribery, and Trump supporters viewed it as another partisan smear campaign against a duly-elected president.

After all the grandstanding, smoke and mirrors, it is clear that the witness testimonies failed to produce direct evidence linking military aid to investigations of the Bidens. Furthermore, accusing the president of obstruction of justice without due process is analogous to arresting citizens for refusing police searches without a warrant.

At time of crisis, we need to draw courage from past leaders who put the country above party:

▪  The Framers overcame bitter divides between the Federalists and the anti-Federalists, Southern states and the North, big states and small, to forge the bedrock of American democracy, the Constitution, and saved the union from collapse.

▪  After the devastating Civil War, President Lincoln selected a Democrat as vice president to garner support from the South for postbellum Reconstruction.

▪  During the 1944 election, Republican candidate Thomas Dewey discovered that FDR might have had intelligence prior to the Pearl Harbor attack. He refused to divulge the secret as a campaign weapon because Japan was still using the same codes at the height of the Pacific war.

Impeaching a president to prevent him from winning a second term will erode America’s trust in democracy. Please let citizens exercise their constitutional rights to elect a president, and settle the political battle at the ballot box, not on Capitol Hill.

This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Culprit for pollution in the May River is well known | Letters."