Editor's note: We asked readers, considering Texas’ new statewide abortion ban, is it the role of city government to try to blunt state law and what, if anything, else should local governments do in response to the state's abortion ban and the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade? Here are some of those responses:

If it is the role of the city government to protect its' citizens' health and safety, then any city must protect its citizens' right to free and safe abortion care.

Abortion is a healthcare service that many women owe their lives to, and as such, it requires the expertise of knowledgeable and well-trained healthcare providers who can offer this service legally and with the full protection of the law.

If states can choose their own legal stance toward abortion, then cities should be able to as well.

Miscarriage care is not abortion. The so-called "heartbeat bill" and ridiculous vigilante bounty system have made miscarriage care infinitely risky for doctors to treat, if not intentionally illegal, resulting in torture of the mother and risk of death by septic shock and blood loss.

Gov. Greg Abbott, or Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, or Attorney General Ken Paxton, at minimum, you can write an executive order, or legal opinion, to clarify that miscarriage care is not abortion. Best if you move quickly on that, before the headlines are about dead mothers instead of grieving mothers who had to travel to other states for competent healthcare.

How many women who want children have to die here before you will acknowledge that rhythmic electrical signals are not a heartbeat, no matter how the machine that detects them and renders them for our understanding? You caused this. Fix it now. 

Texas has made abortion illegal, even though the Texas law enforcement and judicial systems are already overwhelmed pursuing crimes already on the books.  

According to “Crime in Texas 2020,” a report by the Texas Department of Public Safety, only 53% of the murders and 20% of rapes were solved in Texas in 2020, the latest year for which I could find data. The police and judicial system are obviously already overwhelmed with arresting and prosecuting criminals. Why add abortion as another crime for the police to pursue when only half of the murders and a fifth of the rapes in Texas are solved? Prosecuting abortion will just stretch the resources of an already overworked police force and judicial system.  Personally, I would prefer to see murderers and rapists put behind bars instead of some poor girls and women who had abortions.

Editor’s note: Some readers weighed in on other topics. Here are some of their letters.

I find the legal battle that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is now waging with the State Bar of Texas interesting. Interesting, based on the fact that while Paxton was indicted for securities fraud over 6 years ago, he has been using the power of his office to avoid having to go through a court case with a possible conviction like all other citizens face.  

Paxton's office recently announced that they will not pay for any of their attorneys to attend state bar-sponsored events effectively immediately. His office’s lawyers have also been banned from speaking at any events organized by the bar.

The bottom line question: Are all the taxpayers of Texas being penalized by having their tax dollars withheld from a group that provides legal education and services to all citizens of state of both political parties?

U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney had a strong message for those who support Trump: "He is preying on their patriotism.” Cheney called it “the worst part” of Trump’s plot to overthrow the 2020 presidential election.

Trump’s actions on Jan. 6 present a darker warning. Do any of his followers think that they can be more loyal to the former president than was his faithful vice president? Yet, after hearing that the mob was chanting, “Hang Mike Pence,” Trump further inflamed the crowd with a tweet questioning Pence’s courage. Once Pence refused to overturn the election results, he became expendable.Cheney presented a crucial question to Trump’s people. Are they still willing to die for a man who has no allegiance to anything, or anyone, but himself?

This letter comes from frustration at seeing the absolute lack of accountability brought to bear on every level of officialdom involved in the recent school massacre.

Let me school our inept “leaders” on the basics.

First, fire every one of the officers who were at the school for dereliction of duty, plus their supervisors, trainers, and department heads. Not a one of them has done their job. Not another penny of taxes should go to any of them.

Next, bring a civil lawsuit against them all, and their departments. Then explore bringing up criminal charges, such as accessory to murder.

And for the rest of us, take a hard look at a legislature and political party that prides itself in mandating a lack of control over the privilege of gun ownership, which allows this kind of tragedy to happen. Again. And again.

Too many of us still harbor assumptions and preferences about what constitutes a “good-looking lawn." It's time to replace these with different styles and techniques that actually work in our area, and don't overburden our decreasing water resources.

Xeriscaping isn't just gravel and cactus. There are countless ways to design and maintain attractive, durable gardens that don't depend upon thirsty plant species. You can even keep a small lawn, but let that Bermuda grass take over the sunny part where it always wants to grow anyway. If you don’t have kids at home who need a field, or dogs who like a nice patch of grass whereupon to poop, it's high time to think about cutting down on grass rather than cutting it.

This summer is the perfect time to reconsider the Big Green Lawn look and allow some new notions to creep into your consciousness.

As a home health professional, I have seen firsthand how the clinically advanced, cost-effective care we provide helps the homebound members of our community.

That's why I was so disappointed to see that Medicare has proposed cuts to home health once again. The proposal includes a $1.33 billion cut in 2023 alone, and additional cuts of more than $2 billion in 2024 and the years beyond. The Partnership for Quality Home Health and National Association of Home Care and Hospice estimate up to $18 billion would be cut over the next decade.

Fortunately, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are taking action to prevent these devastating cuts from hurting home health patients and their providers.

I hope our state's lawmakers will join in support of the Preserving Access to Home Health Act of 2022 to stop these proposed cuts and protect access to care for our most vulnerable neighbors.

I want to highlight the exceptional work of Austin Police Department Officer Haworth who responded to a 911 call the evening of July 26.

A tow truck lost a considerable amount of debris it was carrying and a metal flange flew under the Suburban that was being driven by my relatives from England. It blew out their back left tire. After pulling over they called 911, and Officers Boatner and Haworth arrived within five minutes. Officer Boatner secured the lane from oncoming traffic while Officer Haworth accessed the spare tire and jack and actually replaced the tire for my relatives. All the while, he maintained a selfless composure and positive attitude.

Officer Haworth brought great credit to himself and to the department and I think this city should know it.

Re: July 27 article, "Alex Jones has choice words for Sandy Hook defamation case against him as trial gets underway."

I loved seeing Alex Jones with tape over his mouth in the picture on the front page of Wednesday’s paper. I only wish he and other bombastic buffoons like him, Trump, Cruz, Paxton, Giuliani, Hawley, DeSantis, etc., would have their mouths taped shut so that sensible, true information could be heard over the lies and grandstanding hoo-hah, which is what we get today from politicians and attention-seeking individuals. Did anyone see Ted Cruz on stage at the Turning Point USA for students in Tampa? What an embarrassment – almost as dishonorable as being caught escaping Texas to bask in the warmth of Cancun during the freeze of 2021. (Have people forgotten he did this?) It was shameful posturing and a nauseating spectacle. I say, woman up, Texas and America, speak out and demand civility and accountability from any of our talking heads.

Every time on the news when I hear talk about the mass shooting in Uvalde, it upsets me because I went to the third grade there in Uvalde.

I spent six years as a Military Police commander in the Texas State Guard. And I believe every one of those law enforcement officers who were at Uvalde on that day should have their badges removed because there was absolutely no justification for their hesitation and to not intervene in the onslaught that was occurring in that classroom.

In essence, I have one word for all of them: Cowards.

Editor's note: This week we're asking readers: Citing poor management and missed grant deadlines, the City of Austin last week fired the non-profit group that managed the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless – a downtown homeless shelter commonly referred to as the ARCH – and hired another non-profit group from California to run the facility. What else should the city do to help alleviate homelessness in Austin?

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