Don't let gambling be cloak-and-dagger operation in Illinois

I applaud a Robert Herguth and Mitchell Armentrout article from earlier this week — “Will transparency fold under Gov. Pritzker’s plan to revamp the Illinois Gambling Board?” It is a valuable and thorough piece of political journalism on an issue that matters to every Illinoisan. Gambling is poised to become the public health crisis of the next generation, and the details of state administration and policy will matter greatly to Illinois' fiscal and physical health for decades.

The elimination of appointed Gaming/Racing Board members and publicly accessible meetings would be a political disaster for Illinois. It would continue to normalize gambling as an acceptable source of tax revenue, remove valuable opportunities for civic influence on state policy and taint JB Pritzker's image as a defender of democracy.

The "happy warrior," i.e., Pritzker, should not be making it more difficult for others to fight.

Ben Huizenga, Old Irving Park

Misguided on Medicare

I was on private employer-provided insurance for 40 years before going on Medicare. Every paycheck I earned during that period had a bit sliced off to help pay for Medicare and other retirement benefits. Since I retired, I have relied on Medicare and couldn’t be happier.

Sun-Times reader Mike Cook from Bourbonnais, however, seems to want to drown it in a bathtub, as some Republican zealots recommend for all government programs. He complains that it would require “massive” public subsidies, “difficult legislation” and a “huge bureaucracy.” I’m guessing Mr. Cook knows nothing about Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his struggles. Few good things come easy.

John Hankes, Streeterville

Focus on Black success

Reading Alden Loury's latest column headlined “Segregation, racism stifle economic mobility for many in Black community” makes me glad I moved out of Chicago when I did. According to him, if I were still living in my old Englewood neighborhood, I would be trapped there and unable to engage in upward mobility.

This opinion piece reeked of hopelessness and self-pity. I think this sullen fatalism can be more dangerous than the racism he says is so omnipresent and omnipotent. It can make some believe their ZIP code determines their destiny.

Segregation and racism were alive and well when I was born, but those twin evils didn't stop me or most of my peers from doing well in life. Loury even says it's possible as he wrote, "There’s plenty of Black excellence around to prove that it can be done." So the emphasis needs to be on success, not failure. If failure is all you study, there's sure to be more of it.

Joseph H. Brown, Tampa, Florida

Iran war

Trying to forecast President Donald Trump's next move in the Iran war is a fool's errand. He never anticipated the economic blowback. Now he's like an infant playing whack-a-mole with a huge plastic hammer.

Jim Arneberg, Hoffman Estates