Opinion editor's note: Star Tribune Opinion publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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An April 26 letter writer goes after President Joe Biden for the badly botched Afghanistan withdrawal. As bad as that withdrawal was, it doesn't let his predecessor off the hook — President Donald Trump was going to do the same thing but ran out of time. As a gesture of good faith, he arranged for the release of some 5,000 Taliban fighters from various area prisons. (Half their fighting strength!) He even wanted to invite their leaders to Camp David until his aides talked him out of it.

But the real culprit in this whole mess was the Pentagon, which out of delusion, or self-interest, or whatever, convinced four consecutive administrations that this 100,000-man army/security force that they had been training and equipping — over a 20-year period! — would be more than adequate to take over when the time came for American forces to leave. And with at least a 10 to 1 advantage, it certainly should've been. Yet by virtually all accounts, at the first sign of trouble, they basically dropped their weapons and ran — after 20 years of training. All this raises the question — what in God's name kind of training did we give them? The Pentagon has yet to explain this.

Lynn Scott, Soudan, Minn.

Graduation rates are up; great! (Front page, April 26.) How are test scores?

Gary Hays, Bloomington

The April 26 commentary on why electric vehicles are not really feasible ("EVs: An old technology that still doesn't work") was a missed opportunity for a full-scope comparison of EVs to internal combustion vehicles. Informed readers will recognize the shallow and therefore inaccurate description of the hurdles that EV technologies are, in fact, rapidly evolving to overcome.

After making several points, with very little data and from one side only, the author finally acknowledged the purpose of pushing EVs — climate change. Here he should have compared the very real cost in pollution and climate change of both choices, or at least just acknowledged it as a quantifiable cost.

EVs costs are coming down, but have a carbon footprint, too, originating from the manufacture of both the vehicle and the electricity used to fuel their power plant. These values are known, measured and evolving. This author and the Star Tribune would better serve their readers by comparing pollution and climate-warming values in any article purporting to educate the public on this subject.

David Paulson, Minnetonka

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It is genuinely astounding that the author of the EV article, Charles J. Murray, is ignorant of the extent to which government subsidies, rebates, tax breaks and outright gifts benefit the oil and gas industry. How can he not know about this? A short trip to Google, or if that is not considered trustworthy, any trust department of any Texas bank, will clear things up brilliantly.

Carla Blumberg, St. Paul

I did not see one picture in "On verge of legal pot, state told, 'Buckle up' " (front page, April 23) that was an appealing advertisement for recreational marijuana. The cover photo of someone with smoke falling from his mouth and fingertips is outdone only by the other showing a participant at Michigan's Hash Bash smoking a 2-foot-long joint. These photographs and the stupidity it represents is astounding. The article goes on to report lessons learned from Colorado's and Michigan's implementation, with elected officials mostly suggesting that with proper policy; there's much ado about nothing with the legalization of pot. Conversely, the Michigan State Police noted a 20% increase in drug-involved crashes and fatalities. I'm siding with the police figures.

There is already a serious drug dependency problem. Our representatives know this and are doubling down ensuring that these problems never get resolved. Recreational marijuana is not about right or personal choice — it's about money and politics, and the Democrats know that. Once the public is legally hooked on recreational use, there is no turning back. Once the DFL is hooked on another taxation vehicle, there is no turning back. The governor and DFL Legislature are on a mission to push this through this session, and they'll likely succeed.

I just want to be the first to say I told you so when the true impacts of this become clear. I also want them to step up and say they were wrong when the first Minnesota family is negatively impacted by this new law.

Hans Molenaar, Shoreview

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An April 25 letter writer was concerned that if marijuana was legalized in Minnesota children could be harmed. How ridiculous. As we are a society of ethical adults who highly prize the well-being of children, there is no precedent for such a thing. Oh, I forgot about guns.

Dr. David Walcher, Eagan

The writer is a physician.

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Any questions as to why there are so many mass killings in this country are answered by the half-page picture placed (stunningly) in the "Variety" section ("Having a blast," April 25). The statement that "we very deliberately avoid anything that looks like a real firearm" is either naive or disingenuous. No, an orange toy AR-15 looks like an AR-15. And the child pictured with a monster mask suggests the horror that attends each real event. Can we at least stop making a game out of mass murder?

Jack Van Cleve, Stillwater

On a cold and wet Saturday morning, we had Earth Day clean up at Loring Park in Minneapolis. Thanks to the Star Tribune notice of "Things to do today," an email blast by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, local newsletters from Citizens for a Loring Park Community, and Friends of Loring Park, more than 80 people came to help. They cleaned the park, came back to get more bags, then picked up the boulevards all around the park. The area looks terrific.

Hearing bad news about our neighborhood is too frequent. There are many people in town and in the suburbs who value spaces like Loring Park. Thanks to everyone who came, and especially to the kids. What a great example of civic engagement.

Pat Davies, Minneapolis

The writer is a board member of Friends of Loring Park.

Per the American Academy of Pediatrics, psychologic and social treatments (e.g., name and pronoun changes) are already the first line of treatment for gender-dysphoric youth (Readers Write, April 26). The AAP recommends waiting until adolescence for puberty blockers and/or hormone therapy, and waiting until adulthood for gender-affirming surgeries. The current standard of care already requires psychologic evaluation before starting physical treatments. There are already checklists of criteria to meet, waiting periods, and appointments to evaluate treatment progress. Patients already have to jump through hoop after hoop to prove they're truly serious about transitioning. Trans care bans do not "protect" children from "harmful" procedures — they prevent young people and adults from accessing age-appropriate care given by qualified providers.

These bans aren't about science, either; their authors clearly state their goal is to promote a fundamentalist Christian view of gender. I support trans rights both as a humanitarian, and because as a cis woman I like working outside the house and having my own bank account.

Helen Risser, Edina