Williams should seek truth, not ‘tilt’

In response to the recent column by Armstrong Williams, “America is tilting to the left” (Sept. 15), I am continually confused by the sentiment that people of certain religious beliefs, gender, sexuality, education and “virtue” are considered left-leaning or right-leaning. Is following the First Amendment leftist? If anything, the radicals are the people who are trying to make our nation a Christian nation.

The First Amendment is brief and clear: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press, or the right of people to peaceably assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Trying to set up a government based on a certain religion is forbidden by the Bill of Rights, which is part of our constitution. People with different ideas about religion, gender, and what makes a family and who can be married to whom are not “left.” They are not “right.” It is a matter of finally hearing and honoring all the voices of Americans who for so long were not seen, heard or allowed to be their true selves.

We should all be proud that America is a nation that allows, in fact encourages in their legal documents, citizens to express themselves, practice their preferred religion, lobby the government for their wants and needs and be represented in said government. Williams suggests “social issues such as family, faith and virtue” were tending right and now tilting left, but they are not left or right. They are values that we all share and that we revere in our unique ways.

Truth should be our goal — truth in the press, finding our true selves and we should be able to do this proudly in the United States of America without being labeled left or right, progressive or conservative. We need to quit dividing the country with labels and work toward unity, truth, freedom and opportunity for everyone.

— Kelly T. Boyle, Catonsville

Trump tacitly acknowledges his role in Jan. 6 attack

Former President Donald J. Trump’s statement to Fox News on Sept. 16 that the man arrested at his golf course for an apparent assassination attempt “believed the rhetoric of [President Joe] Biden and [Vice President Kamala] Harris and acted on it” is a tacit admission that his own inflammatory rhetoric on Jan. 6, 2021, contributed to the subsequent violent ransacking of the U.S. Capitol by his supporters and the fatalities, injuries and property destruction that ensued (“Apparent attempt on Trump’s life raises questions about how it could have happened again,” Sept. 16).

— John R. Leopold, Stoney Beach

Clearing the air about truck emissions

Readers of The Baltimore Sun deserve more insights and facts than those presented in the recent commentary, “Diesel trucks are disastrous for children’s health” (Sept 17), by Dr. S. Christy Sadreameli, a pediatric pulmonologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Maryland’s children and families are breathing healthier air than ever before, thanks, in part, to our state’s trucking industry’s investments in cleaner technology. According to the latest data, 62% of all commercial diesel trucks registered in Maryland are the newest generation models. That means they’re fully equipped with particulate filters and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) emissions scrubber systems, which virtually eliminate emissions of smog-forming compounds and particulate matter. About 75% of Maryland’s transit buses and 78% of school buses also use this latest generation diesel. This makes our state second in the nation for the percentage of new technology diesel transit buses on the road, eighth for the highest percentage of clean diesel school buses in operation and 13th in the percentage of advanced technology diesel trucks in operation.

As for asthma and air quality, despite the bleak picture painted by Dr. Sadreamali, according to the Maryland Department of Health, emergency room visits for asthma among children under 18 declined by 70% from 2015 to 2020. And the Maryland Department of the Environment touts “Maryland’s shrinking ozone problem.” The agency noted that in 2022 the ozone levels exceeded the national standard just three days of the year, compared to 79 days in 2002. Last year, only two out of 365 days were the emissions standards exceeded, and there were no “red days.” More unhealthy air conditions in 2023 were attributed to the numerous Canadian wildfires than local conditions.

The future of trucking will surely include zero-emission vehicles, but their timeline to implementation at scale has many challenges yet to overcome and is measured in decades. In the meantime, we can and must continue making progress toward even cleaner air and lower greenhouse gas emissions by turning over the fleet to advanced-technology internal combustion engines and increasing the use of more renewable, low-carbon fuels.

— Allen Schaeffer, Frederick

The writer is the executive director of Engine Technology Forum.