Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas is warning property owners to check to make sure their properties are not on any delinquent tax list or sales list. I have a better idea. Our current tax statements should include status updates. Add a line that says “Amounts Owed from Previous Statements.” Then include amount, the date and so on.

If one pays online, the statement could include a line item for all previously owed taxes, too.

Muriel Balla, Hyde Park

SEND LETTERS TO: letters@suntimes.com. Please include your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes.

The surreal GOP tax bill

The Republican tax bill, now being reconciled between the House of Representatives and the Senate, will hurt middle class and working class Americans while greatly benefiting the rich. As a result of the tax cuts for the rich, there will be a $1.5 trillion increase in the national debt.

That said, House Speaker Paul Ryan now says that next on the agenda will be “entitlements.” What he means is that CHIP, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will be cut to help “pay for” the newly increased debt.

Think about that. Republicans designed a tax bill to take money away from the unrich among us in order to give huge tax benefits to those who already are rich, thus increasing the national debt. Then they insist that the very programs that the unrich have already paid for and depend on should be cut in order to reduce the debt created by the giveaways to the rich!

This boggles the mind unless you realize that most Republicans in Congress have no idea how the unrich live. They think that the rest of us could be rich too if we spent our money wisely and stayed healthy by clean living.

I hope our nation and our democracy survive this ill-gotten and ill conceived presidency, and that our economy survives the assault on it by individuals who can never have enough money and their greedy minions in Congress.

Karen Wagner, Rolling Meadows

Now that apologies are in fashion

Mayor Rahm Emanuel defended his friend, Forrest Claypool, who lied and obstructed the investigation of the inspector general for the Chicago Public Schools. “Claypool acknowledged his mistake,” the mayor said, calling that a sign of character.

Well, that means police officers can use the same excuse if they make a mistake. Right, Mr. Mayor?

Richard Barber, Mount Greenwood.