Bus and truck drivers, nurses and health-care workers, teachers and day-care workers. Our economy is hurting badly from thousands of unfilled jobs. There are also thousands, if not millions, of people desperately seeking asylum here to escape wars in Africa and the Middle-East or gangs and cartels in Latin America. If employers will sponsor them, and maybe assure housing, why can’t we provide temporary work visas to asylum seekers?

The Ukrainians are desperately seeking protection from Russian missiles and artillery. The Israelis have anti-missile systems that seem to be highly successful in protecting them from rockets launched from Gaza. Why can’t we provide the Ukrainians with such, purely defensive, systems?

Childcare facility space seems to be one of Summit County’s most critical needs. A public art gallery sounds nice, but why wouldn’t a childcare facility take priority to fill the old fire-district office in Silverthorne?

The Forest Service is seeking our volunteer labor to plant trees. Let’s make sure that the trees planted are fir or aspen — not lodgepole that they’ll want to cut down again where none are growing back in their clear-cuts areas. Why can’t we keep them from cutting down our forests in the first place?