Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies busted three U.S. Army soldiers with almost 700 pounds of marijuana and $10,000 in cash during a two-day sweep for human smugglers.

“Social Security and Medicare are NOT entitlements. I involuntarily paid via taxation into these programs for almost 50 years so that I may receive the benefits I do now. Entitlements are handouts such as food stamps, WIC, rent subsidies, and free medical care given to people simply because the have the good fortune of living in this country.”

For a society accustomed to the likes of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, the images of the women from the polygamist compound in Texas are almost shocking in their understatement: Ankle-length dresses, makeup-less faces, hauntingly uniform hair.

Scottsdale-based auto auction mogul Craig Jackson is taking a judge to court. Of course, it’s all about a car.

Dear Sirs, Please be advised that President Obama has said in an interview with Barbara Walters the following when it comes to legalized marijuana. “We’ve got bigger fish to fry... It would not make sense for us to see a top priority as going after recreational uses in states that have determined that it’s legal.”

Bravo President Obama, Bravo

Mr. Ceniceros must (I'll assume) be a Republican't to be complaining about President Obama taking a vacation. FYI Mr. Ceniceros, George W. Bush, the Supreme Court's elected leader, was on vacation for a total of 967 days, or about 32 percent, while he was in office. He spent 490 days at his ranch alone, or about 16 months.

In the past few months, Abby Barker has had both life-saving and life-changing experiences. This weekend, she’ll have a few more.

The morons on the Right think the answer to violence in America is to arm more people with guns. The shooting in Aurora, Colorado at the Batman movie premiere is a glaring example of why severe gun control is needed. Everyone beLIEves they can carry a gun. What if someone else had a gun and started shooting in the chaos of that smoke-filled theater. Do we need 40 dead and 100-plus wounded? Twelve or more dead and 50 wounded is too many. The punk had four weapons, one being an assault rifle, tear gas, and a bullet-proof vest. The 2nd Amendment does not apply to every American citizen, unless you are in a militia. Those who love their guns and that 2nd Amendment overlook the militia part. Our founding fathers are most likely turning over in their graves with the direction the Republicans are taking this nation. Our nation is destroying itself through laws that are supposed to protect us. We as a nation — well our politicians on the Right care more about war and the world, than our own people at home. We need to fix our problems before we solve the world’s. Our first fix should be gun control. I’m sure the hate mail will come rolling in if this gets published. So be it. It’s still America, and free speech reigns supreme. Read the 2nd Amendment. Rather, I’ll include it for you all to read. “A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

Scottsdale-based Barrett-Jackson settled a suit with a Michigan judge who chained up his just-sold car and bad-mouthed the car auction giant causing collectors to back out of later auctions.

Ms. Turley, it is your very own GOP party who has an outright war on the women of this nation. There is only one party out there that seeks to control what a woman does with her own body at every turn. That party, Ms. Turley, is your party.

I must educate Mr. Reilly about the birth certificate of President Barack Obama, born in Hawaii. First off, the tea party group as a whole, has done nothing to make America a better nation. Instead they have spent their every waking hour trying to prove something even the Supreme Court doesn’t believe and that’s the lies spread by the so-called “birthers,” about President Obama and his birth location. The SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) has on at least four separate occasions declined to hear any of the non-sense about President Barack Obama. Now that to me is very telling. If the SCOTUS, which we all know is VERY conservative refuses to hear this challenge even with a member of the teaparty sitting on the bench (Clarence Thomas’ wife is a tea party member, so he must be,) then its time to stopping wasting the courts time and focus on the real challenges facing America.

Editor's Note: These letters to the editor have been sorted by topic by the Tribune editorial staff in an effort to allow readers to read varied opinions on the issues, candidates, and other circumstances surrounding the 2012 general election. These submissions are the opinions of the author, not the Tribune, and have not been edited for grammar or content.

A couple of months ago, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., agreed to go on the air with radio personality Dave Pratt, who regularly chats up country music stars and other celebrities during his morning show on Phoenix radio station KMLE-FM 108.

A couple of months ago, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., agreed to go on the air with radio personality Dave Pratt, who regularly chats up country music stars and other celebrities during his morning show on Phoenix radio station KMLE-FM 108.

The upcoming election is about Ann Romney, the First Lady Michelle Obama, you, my wife, and every woman in the United States who might lose their rights of choice if the GOP have their way in 2012. This fight isn’t about contraception, Ms. Turley-Hansen, it’s about a woman’s, and eventually everyone’s, right to make any decision for herself/themselves going forward in the future.

Althea Gibson, a sports pioneer who broke the color barrier in tennis in the 1950s as the first black to win Wimbledon and the U.S. national title, died Sunday. She was 76.