Before I write my response to Ron Gasbarro's remarks on June 22, 2016 in the Susquehanna County Transcript allow me first to praise him for his outstanding articles in "How to Take Pills."   I am sure his writings save many from harm or even death.

However, I agree with the Editor's comments defending the cartoons. Most of us have heard the expression "A picture is worth a thousand words." The cartoons are in the "Letters to the Editor" section of the newspaper. Many times other news papers editors restrict the amount of words submitted to them saying, "It will bore the reader," keep it to 250 words.

Your comments pertaining to your confusion on the "pizza" and it is a 1940 slur on Italians is a mistake you take in making judgment that pizzas are made only by Italians. Flying J at Exit 219 does not exclusively hire Italians to make their pizza. Although in my case while making pizza for them they did have an Italian; my coworkers were not.  I take no offense to this cartoon.

I do take offense to the term "African American", which most Liberals along with many Republicans and Independents refer to "Black" persons or is Black politically incorrect. What is politically correct today might be incorrect in the future. They were once referred to as "Niggers." Then others call them "Colored," while others call them "Negros" or "Brown" people.

This Independent uses the words, AMERICAN AFRICAN descent. We are all AMERICANS first and using the term "African American" seems more of a divisive expression. I am an American Italian descent; my neighbors in East Los Angeles are American Hispanics. My present neighbors are: American Irishman, Pollack, Armenian, Scottish descent, etc.

Thus, I agree with the "Editor." I am sorry that this may be "A Tough Pill to Swallow" for you.

Sincerely,

Larry Gary

Gibson, PA

It was all set. Jeb Bush was to be given the GOP's mantle for the 2016 presidential run. Then Donald Trump swung in like a wrecking ball: build a 1,000-mile wall across the southern border, staunch the flow of illegal aliens, put an end to losing trade deals, renegotiate NAFTA, nix the Trans-Pacific Trade Agreement and put America first in all negotiations.

In short, everything the globalist wanted, Trump was against.

The neophyte politician should have gone down in flames. Chalk it up to inexperience and naiveté. But, no. Trump swept away the entire Republican assemblage of 17 of the most experienced and talented candidates ever fielded by the GOP.

Trump set a historical record for garnering the most votes in a Republican primary. The record was set in 2000 by G.W. Bush at 10.8 million votes. Trump smashed that with more than 13.3 million votes.

The people spoke. The GOP united behind the most popular and innovative candidate it ever had---right? Far from it. Let's take a look at six of the most prominent Republicans who are dead set against Trump.

• George, the perpetually offended, Will has been a persistent critic of Trump from the beginning. “Save the party,” he urged, “by not aiding its nominee.” Will is so offended by the “vulgar” upstart that he left the Republican Party.

Rather than vote for Trump, Will will cast his ballot for Hillary Clinton. He is a man so at odds with his conservative principles that he would rather have Clinton nominate the next two to four Supreme Court justices than Trump.

• Billy Kristol. He is the founder and editor of The Weekly Standard. The conservative organ is a zombie publication that has lost $20 million since it was founded in 1995. With a circulation of only 155,000, it is all bark and no bite.

Kristol, the neocon who supported the Iraq War, said he was looking for a new candidate, “an impressive one, with a strong team and a real chance [at beating Trump].” We waited expectantly. But try as he might, he found no such candidate. There was only Trump.

Will and Kristol would do better to follow the advice of arch-conservative and founder of the National Review, William Buckley. In 1967 he was asked for whom he would vote. “The wisest choice would be the one who would win,” he answered. It has become known as The Buckley Rule for conservatives.

• Mitch McConnell is a 30-year career politician. He is currently Senate Majority Leader. Sadly, McConnell has erectile dysfunction of the backbone making it extremely difficult for him to stand for anything, even for the most popular and successful nominee-in-waiting, Donald Trump.

When asked if he believes that Trump is qualified to be president of the United States, he sidestepped the question but finally answered: “Look, that will be up to the American people to decide.”

• Paul Ryan is the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Ryan prefers to play on both sides of the fence as opposed to McConnell's reticence. He has developed fence-sitting into an art. Every chance he gets Ryan publicly lectures Trump on what he should and should not say, yet he falls just shy of repudiating him.

Isn't it time for McConnell and Ryan to stop being nervous Nellies and focus on Trump's platform rather than on distractions from the media and the Democrats and back Trump unreservedly?

• Mitt Romney. The former governor of Massachusetts fought back tears saying “the effect [of Trump] on the party is breaking my heart.” He went on to accuse him of being a crude bigot, misogynist, guilty of trickle-down racism, and dangerous to America.

Odd. Romney gladly accepted Trump's financial and personal support when he was running for president in 2012. This was when he was supposedly guilty of all of the accusations Romney leveled against Trump in 2016.

• Jeb Bush. Undoubtedly Bush is still smarting after spending $130 million on the primaries, more than all the other candidates combined, for what would buy him no more than a cup of coffee. According to Trump, Bush is working behind the scenes on a Never Trump movement.

Man up Bush. You lost. He won. Now honor the pledge you made to support the party's nominee.

And for all the RATs---Republicans Against Trump---doesn't it make more sense to stop bashing Trump with you right hand while supporting Clinton with your left?

Sincerely,

Bob Scroggins

New Milford, PA

A few friends who are councilmen on the Starrucca Borough council are willing to settle a lawsuit that Darl Haynes has brought against the borough. In my opinion this case should go to court based on the fact that there is no merit for this case. Every Starrucca Borough taxpayer needs to know that when Darl Haynes accepted a seat on council the Boroughs' insurance company dropped the boroughs' coverage on this 2015 lawsuit. They want to settle this case at a cost of $100,000, with taxpayers paying the bill.

The Kellogg Road is the basis for the lawsuit. This road is in Starrucca Borough and Scott Township. The first 4 tenths of a mile is in Starrucca Borough based on Three separate maps. The next 2 tenths of a mile go to Darl Haynes' residence. This portion of the road is in Scott Township and the borough has fully maintained the full 6 tenths of Kellogg Road to Haynes driveway.  This section of the road has been maintained by the borough year round and the bills and videos prove it. The upper 4 tenths has never restricted Haynes use and has always been passable. This road leads to Scott Township’s impassable road.

Now Haynes wants a new road constructed on the upper 4 tenths that was clearly im Scott Township. In 2007 the borough council did surveys on five Borough roads which clearly showed the boundary line to be 4 tenths of a mile up the Kellogg Rd. In 2013 council did a survey of the Borough and the Kellogg RD and the maps were the same as the 2007 road survey.

In 2007 Darl Haynes and Kirk Rhone needed Darl Haynes to be a borough resident, due to their manipulation of the Shadigee Creek Wall project by pulling the GP-11 permit. Also FEMA road money was not used on borough roads but for their cover up. The 2007 council chose to do a resolution with Scott Township instead of going by the official surveys which changed the status of Kellogg Rd. They clearly were not working for the best interest of the Borough.

The Borough has an option through the court to put up a $25,000 Bond to determine the original boundaries of Starrucca Borough. The court appoints three separate viewers to determine the legal boundary lines. This proceeding would put an end to the boundary line controversy. Last week Kerri Wilder failed to report (in the County Transcript) on the question I asked to Kirk Rhone and Donald Haynes as to why they didn’t accept the 2007 survey map. They would not answer the question!

Sincerely,

Jack Downton

Starrucca, PA

June 21st, Donald Trump met with over 900 Evangelical leaders.  Are they that eager to fall for a hypocritical pretender? Donald Trump is not a Christian!

I am not being presumptuous in saying this. It doesn't take supernatural insight to know it. It's rather obvious from his behavior. The key question is, Does he manifest the fruits of the Spirit? Or does he rather evidence a reprobate mind?

According to Galatians 5:22-23, the fruits of the Spirit include longsuffering, gentleness, goodness and meekness. That's not Trump! [See also II Cor. (What Trump called "Two Corinthians") 6:46 and Ephesians 4:1-2, 29-32.]

Meanwhile, the attributes of a reprobate mind (Romans 1:28-32) are fornication, covetousness, maliciousness, debate, deceit, malignity, backbiters, despiteful, PROUD, BOASTERS, without understanding, implacable, unmerciful. These draw a very recognizable portrait of Trump.

Plus he seems to have a problem as described in James 5:4 -- "Behold, the hire of the laborers ... which is of you kept back by fraud."

I don't pretend to be a Christian, but those who do, I'm going to bust. And those who are, I'm going to hang it around their necks whether they like it or not. Christians who support this ungodly man do so because they're kind of phony themselves: they worship a false idol, Right-wing Ideology.

It's so obvious that Trump is not really a Christian that the campaign recently did something about it: They got the highly political James Dobson to conveniently disclose that Trump has recently become a born-again Christian! But wait--wasn't he claiming to be Christian much earlier? Waving his Bible before an adoring Alabama crowd? If he was a phony Christian then-- which his alleged conversion concedes-- he's still a phony now. That it's just political expedience is clear from the utter lack of change to his odious character. (See "Two Corinthians" 5:17.)

Evangelicals are amazingly trusting and uncritical these days. But I remember how, in 1992 there were voices from the Evangelical segment telling people not to vote for Bill Clinton, that he was not a Christian. This conclusion was based primarily on the rumor that he enjoyed sex. Well, in the case of Trump, he has actually pretended to be a publicist in order to boast to the media about his sexual exploits. (Really, we should be embarrassed for him, even if he is incapable of it.) Beyond any sexual considerations, we have the plain fact of Trump's character. That alone should be sufficient to declare him not merely a phony Christian (his real religion is Trump Worship) but a horrible excuse for a human being.

Trump recently made a false implication that President Obama is a secret Muslim. As a pretend Christian, Trump understands the concept of religious fraud only too well. Naturally he projects.

Sincerely,

Stephen Van Eck

Rushville, PA