Letters To The Editor

IDAHO VIEWPOINTS

Boat racing idea a proven loser

When, some 37 years ago, the city of Coeur d’Alene accepted the unlimited hydroplanes on Lake Coeur d’Alene, who could have foreseen the eventual turmoil, expense, confusion and trauma that would result?

Those 10 years of the races should have taught us a lesson.

The contention is now made that the rioters could not show their ugly heads again. Have rowdies honestly been reformed? Will it make any difference what beer they drink, “foreign” or domestic?

You know where many of the empties, aluminum or glass, will end up. Right on the bottom of Lake Coeur d’Alene.

Who owns and supports Tubbs Hill? Does Duane Hagadone or some special interest group? Some of us thought, maybe mistakenly, that it was the citizens and taxpayers of Coeur d’Alene.

Taxpayers were never told what the cost of extra policing, traffic control, cleanup and all the other services would be.

Do we need another 10 years of hard knocks to teach us that the sole benefactors of these races are the hydroplane association, a few self-important commodores and those who sow that which they do not reap. Ernie Wells Coeur d’Alene

Away all boats

It has been 10 years since the overwhelming vote by the people of Coeur d’Alene, in the largest voter turnout the city has ever seen, telling the mayor and City Council that the people did not want to see the return of unlimited hydroplane racing.

In this vote, 74.4 percent of the people of Coeur d’Alene voted to not fence off the city beach, part of the city park and all of Tubbs Hill in order to build grandstands for the races. Among other things, there was concern that Tubbs Hill could be devastated by the use and abuse of thousands of people.

The City Council again is faced with the desire of a few to bring the races to our city. The main concerns that I have are related to using Tubbs Hill as a grandstand and fencing off the city beach during the time of year when families come to our city to enjoy the beach and park.

I feel that if these races are to come to our city, they should be held where the impact could be controlled more closely. It seems to me that the Silver Beach area, Lake Coeur d’Alene Drive would be a far more appropriate place to put the grandstands, portable toilets and “controlled drinking areas” needed for the spectators. Anne E. Andreasen Coeur d’Alene

Internet doesn’t deserve bad press

This letter is in response to a statement made by John F. Sopko in Gilbert A. Lewthwaite’s Nov. 1 story (News), “Gas attack on U.S. just a matter of time.” Sopko remarked, “Terrorists can find instructions on making weapons of mass destruction on the Internet.” I would like to point out to Sopko and Lewthwaite that the same information can also be found in virtually all libraries, many bookstores and all public schools that teach chemistry.

The Internet is a wonderful tool for research and recreation. A few of my favorite sites on the Internet are: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, The CIA World Factbook, and The Internet Public Library.

It is a shame that the press and many members of Congress still cannot realize the enormous positive potential of the Internet. D.E. Gray Moscow

LABOR AND MANAGEMENT

Shun dairy’s goods during strike

As a concerned resident of Spokane who purchases Broadview Dairy products, I wonder if there is a licensed pasteurizer working to ensure state health standards are met?

Since the strike started Nov. 1, have the different products been tested? Has the state inspector been monitoring the products? Until trained, licensed union workers return to work, I believe we should refrain from purchasing Broadview Dairy products. J.F. Burton Spokane

Don’t be penny wise, pound foolish

I’m writing this letter in response to the recent outpouring of publicity on Broadview Dairy.

Yes, the dairy is a very important part of Spokane. Yes, the employees and their needs are important. Yes, the labor unions of our nation provide security and aid in collective bargaining and are trying to look out for the best interests of the employees. However, I think that the real issue here is being forgotten.

If you recall, Goodale & Barbieri purchased the dairy when it was in bankruptcy a couple of years ago, saving 47 people’s jobs. With the cost overruns and economic impacts, it’s realistic to foresee cutbacks at the dairy, especially with a $400,000 loss last year.

Although the labor union is trying to get a short-term fix, it is not considering the long-term ramifications of such a decision.

If union members were to accept cutbacks now, it would allow the dairy to get on its feet, continue to operate, be profitable and able to keep the doors open. The people working there currently would be able to keep their jobs. Hopefully, the dairy would be able to provide jobs to others as well as it continued to grow and develop as an organization.

If the strike continues, people will be replaced and all 47 employees could lose their jobs completely. What type of short-term fix is that? Jonathan Ferraiuolo Pacific Holding Corp. of Washington

Not talking milk of human kindness

Don Barbieri a dairyman? How many gallons of paint does it take to make up for 60 years of technology? How are people supposed to feel when they have to go to work and do the same job for 20 percent less? Turns out Barbieri is a dairyman after all, only he’s not milking cows but his employees. Duane Gauthier Spokane

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Malnourished look senseless

When I read “Serious training” in the IN Life section on Nov. 6, I thought it was really sad that Stacy Riggiola was influenced by our “ideal woman” standards and that she would treat her body this way to look like that.

She was eating less than 1,000 calories per day, where an athlete needs at least 2,000. She’s not eating very much so she can look good and win a contest.

Her fitness center is made to help “young mothers getting in shape after pregnancy and professional models struggling to match a designer’s waif-like image.” I think it’s sick that you have to look sick and malnourished to be a model. There must be better examples for girls than these models.

Young girls need to see that it’s okay to look and be healthy, and that not everyone looks like these people. You should focus on people who have done good things, not people who starve themselves. Kathryn Kafentzis Spokane

Let’s not overemphasize thinness

At a time when young girls are starving themselves and developing serious eating disorders in an effort to acquire model-thin figures, I was disturbed at the tone of your article on Stacy Riggiola, who’s competing in the National Fitness America Pageant.

Although I admire her desire to lose excess weight, I feel the paper was irresponsible in spotlighting the extreme measures she takes in order to achieve an unhealthy physical image. I was especially troubled by Riggiola’s comment regarding 12-year-olds who “suddenly have hips they need to get rid of.”

As a mother of a 9-year-old daughter, and having personal experience with a teenager who suffered with severe eating disorders, I’m constantly making an effort to promote good health and nutrition to my daughter and her friends. I don’t feel we should be promoting, especially in today’s environment, an unhealthy way of eating and exercising to our young women.

I hope the mother of the 9-year-old girl mentioned in your article who was “gazing solemnly” at Riggiola during her workout will turn her daughter’s eyes in a healthier direction. Renee Warner Spokane

Pharmaceutical practice taints all

The Oct. 12 article, “Ephedrine blamed for heart attack risk,” is misleading.

Ma huang is the synonym of Mormon Tea, ephedra and desert tea. If you isolate one of the dozens of chemical compounds found in any herb, concentrate it and use it as a drug, there should indeed be toxicity. It must be remembered that herbs weren’t meant to be used in this fashion. Only pharmaceutical manufacturers use herbs in this way and, as a result, get toxic effects. This is why, according to the Journal of the American Meducal Association, over 180,000 people die each year partly as a result of iatrogenic (treatment-caused) injury.

When one uses the whole herb, balanced by nature, or synergistically with other herbs, toxicity is extremely rare. Ma huang (ephedra) is a whole herb. Ephedrine is simply one of its many components and is sold as a drug. It’s the chemical responsible for the side effects frequently whined about by critics of herbal medicine. It doesn’t have the same properties as Ma huang and any claim to the contrary is false.

It’s time we demanded real proof of toxicity from highprofile doctors, dietitians and government bureaucrats before allowing them to force natural remedies like Ma huang off the market or under the medical prescription umbrella.

There’s no evidence whatsoever that vitamins, minerals and herbs kill anybody. Where are all the dead bodies, anyway? Nancy Hagen Spokane