Letters To The Editor

CRIME AND NO PUNISHMENT

A different Adrian Washington

To set the record straight (referring to the story, “Three teenagers beat up man, 81” on Sept, 14.), we want to assure our neighbors and friends that the Adrian Washington mentioned is NOT our son.

Our Adrian Washington was raised to respect his elders and live by the “Golden Rule.”

Our son is the recipient of a Group Chase Award, A Holy Cross Scholarship, a MESA Boeing SENSE Scholarship, and presently a freshman at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

My heart is full of empathy for the victim, Mr. LeBeck, and we continue to pray for youth everywhere. We hope this clears up the confusion and misconceptions experienced this past week. Wayne and Faith Washington Spokane

Teenager should have been in jail

I’m outraged, saddened and sickened at the details recently revealed about the assault on 81-year old, Peter LaBeck (Page One, Sept. 16).

The fact that the beating was racially motivated seems incidental.

It frustrates me to learn that the suspect, Adrian Washington, had 13 prior arrests, including ones for assault, yet freely roamed the streets of Spokane.

Sadly, violence has proven to be an inevitable, ever-present component of today’s society. Kelsey Loughlin Spokane

What’s wrong with the system?

Well now, we have three teenagers beating up an 81-year old man, presumably just for the fun of it. Does that prove their bravado and make them something big? Here’s the picture: The elderly man was punched in the face and head, his dentures broken. He’s bruised and battered.

The suspects? The 16-year-old has been arrested 13 times previously. Thirteen times? The other two, alleged cheerleaders in this assault, were released after one was cited for carrying a dangerous weapon and the other without any charges. Anything wrong with this sick, typical picture of juvenile crime and punishment? J. Lee Spokane

Why wasn’t suspect behind bars?

This is regarding Peter LeBeck and his beating which happened in downtown Spokane. My question is: How is it possible for suspect Adrian Washington to be in a position to victimize people after 13 prior arrests for assault, drug theft and disorderly conduct?

I know I’m not the only person outraged by this injustice. Someone must be held accountable. The buck must stop somewhere. Please tell us who we can call or write to make our voices heard. Dena Strasser Spokane

GREYHOUND PARK

Greyhounds need protection

I was repulsed by the Sept. 17 article on the cruelty to greyhounds at the Coeur d’Alene Greyhound Park. Any human being who chooses to take part in cruelty of any type toward defenseless animals is the real born loser. These animals deserve to be protected from people like this. Jennifer Hanson Spokane

Idaho should ban dog racing

Congratulations Spokane. We finally have an investigative reporter (J. Todd Foster, Greyhounds, Sept. 17). Excuse me for being a bit cynical, but for years animal welfare groups have been telling the public about the atrocities of greyhound racing.

I have a picture from several years ago of a pile of dead greyhounds found behind the Coeur d’Alene Greyhound Park. These horrors aren’t new, they go on every day. When a show animal can’t perform, it has to go. It doesn’t matter if it’s dog racing, circuses or zoos. You know, anal electrocution is popular in the fur industry. I saw pet-food workers buy a horse that could no longer race. I’ve got lots of stories.

Wake up people, your rose-colored glasses just won’t cut it anymore. I’d be pleased if I never again heard the phrase “but it looks like the animals are treated well.” I’ll really celebrate when I hear the the Coeur d’Alene Greyhound Park is closed.

Did you know that Maine, Vermont and Virginia passed legislation prohibiting dog racing? I’d love it if Idaho was that progressive. Tamra Hively Spokane

Take a stand for animals

If you have never taken a stand on an issue but always wanted to, now is the time to do it.

There is a heart- and stomach-wrenching problem of abuse at the Coeur d’Alene Greyhound Park (J. Todd Foster, Sept. 17). And if you live in North Idaho, this is your problem. These poor, defenseless dogs only do what their owners want them to do. Then, when they feel their pets are of no more use to them, they are savagely slaughtered in the unspeakable manners mentioned in that article.

Legislators are in Boise from the second week in January to approximately April 1. To reach them any other time of the year simply look up their home number in the phone book. They are there to serve you.

Please do something now. These animals do not have a voice, but you do. Anyone who patronizes the dog track after reading that article is merely turning a deaf ear to their suffering so they can continue to try to profit from their suffering. Katherine von Hagen Coeur d’Alene

Dog track an embarassment

With the predictability of Halley’s comet, one more time Coeur d’Alene Greyhound Park has brought disgust and embarrassment to the citizens of North Idaho.

Those who take part in these horrible acts of abuse on a defenseless animal deserve castration with a rusty, dog food can lid. But such an act would be too good for dog track management. It claims ignorance and says it can’t be held responsible for the deeds of dog owners leasing kennels from the dog track. Wrong! The captain of a ship is responsible for what occurs on his ship and he also is responsible for setting the course his ship sails. The dog track management is just as responsible.

Having observed all this before, I know full well dog track management will throw some cosmetic sop to the public waiting for the issue to die down. Well, not this time. We’ve listened to all this without result since October 1989, when numerous dead dogs were found in plastic bags at the landfill. Maybe we need to boycott a certain product. One like the Idaho Legislature with eyes but cannot see. Florence Blackbird Post Falls

WEAVER CASE

Police are not judges

I’m appalled at Tina Johnson of Coeur d’Alene to think that Randy Weaver deserved to have his family killed for breaking the law. I’ll bet she believes Rodney King deserved his beating for breaking the law as well.

According to Ms. Johnson, we should throw out due process and let the police, not the courts, dispense punishments. Cameron Hattan Spokane

Weaver testimony a bunch of lies

In a state of astonishment and disbelief, I watched the testimony of Randy Weaver before the Senate subcommittee. I wasn’t so much astonished by Randy Weaver’s lies, as I was by the senators’ unwillingness to challenge those lies. At one point, Weaver said the FBI, ATF, his neighbors and other residents of North Idaho all were liars. Not one senator asked Weaver, “Is everyone in the world a liar except you?”

These hearing were a result of efforts by the Weaver fan club: Idaho’s congressional delegation. Rep. Helen Chenoweth didn’t even know enough about the history of Aryan Nations activity in her own district to answer simple questions from reporter Bill Morlin.

Sen. Larry Craig is using these hearings for his own political purposes. If this case were about illegal drugs, stolen cars or any issue other than guns, we never would have heard from Sen. Craig or his colleagues. Unfortunately, though, Sen. Craig and Rep. Chenoweth are simply tools of the NRA, and know they can make political hay by siding with Weaver. I hope they also know the blood of law enforcement officers is on their hands. Instead of supporting criminal, liar, racist and terrorist Weaver, why don’t they try to change a system that allows a murderer like him to retain a slick lawyer and get off? Michael Johnson Spokane

OTHER TOPICS

Free school lunches taxpayer rip-off

This is in response to the letter from Kathryn Kafentzis (Sept. 1) urging continuation of the free and reduced school lunch and breakfast program.

She is correct when she says that well-fed kids learn better, and that they have a right to eat. But it should be the parents’ responsibility to get out of bed, feed their own children and pack them a lunch for school. If poverty is the problem, then the family is either already on food stamps or qualifies to be on food stamps. If a family is receiving food stamps and free school meals, it is double-dipping in the taxpayer’s pocket.

Ms. Kafentzis also states that the only meals some of these kids get are at school. Who feeds them on the weekends and summer vacations?

The free school lunch program is just another government social program that has taken away one more family function, the responsibility of caring for your child. It has very little to do with poverty and a lot to do requiring someone else to feed your kids. Kelly Hubbard Bonners Ferry

Blame golfers for bad air

Spokane residents suffering respiratory distress in the wake of grass and field burning will be delighted to hear that golfers in Asia are enjoying lush green golf courses thanks to grass seed from our area.

Foreign sales account for a “whopping” 40 percent of Jacklin Seed’s overall sales. Much of this seed is bought by luxury golf courses and sod farms in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and elsewhere (Journal of Business, Feb. 2, 1995).

Even better news for those with breathing difficulties, is that Jackson Seed plans to expand overseas exports. According to the Journal of Business, the company is currently supplying grass seed to two new golf courses in Cambodia and hopes to soon break into the markets in South Vietnam and the former Soviet Union.

Hooray! More overseas golf courses means more grass seed fields for the Inland Northwest and that, of course, means more grass-burning smoke.

When will this madness end? With recent scientific evidence showing the harmful effects of all types of smoke, you would think Jacklin Seed would be searching for some suitable alternative to burning. Instead, they are gearing up for increased production and have no intention of changing their noxious field-burning practices.

It’s truly frightening. The demand for new golf courses worldwide must be enormous! Must we, the people of Spokane, pay for the luxury of these golf courses with our own respiratory health? Jan Tenold Spokane

We have much to learn about fish

Despite early predictions of a dismal run, counts of steelhead over Bonneville dam are the highest in years. This good news deserves publication. Sadly, it has not gotten the publicity that less optimistic predictions received.

As late as early August, some Northwesterners were declaring the Columbia-Snake River steelhead runs all but extinct.

It’s easy to understand where such pessimism arises. For several years, dwindling returns of steelhead and salmon have alarmed and dismayed Northwest residents of all political persuasions.

This year’s healthier steelhead returns likely do not mean the end of the problem, but they do emphasize that we don’t know as much as we need to if we’re to save Idaho’s anadromous fisheries.

Some insist that the eight dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers are to blame. They argue that studies are a waste of time: breach some or all of those dams, they maintain, and all will be well. Yet salmon and steelhead runs on many undammed western rivers are in similar trouble.

We, too, are fish advocates. Idaho’s anadromous fisheries are real assets to the state, and we are working hard to find effective ways to save them. It will not help, however, to destroy dams that form the base for much of the economy of the Northwest in favor of an unproven theory. We need facts on which we can plan reasoned actions. Mike Field and Todd Maddock, members, Northwest Power Planning Council - Idaho

Different stacks, different stories

The stacks in the Kellogg-Smelterville area have different stories to tell. I agree that the two tall concrete ones tell us of the period of Gulf Resource’s ownership, one of deceit, avarice and disregard for the public’s health.

The brick stack tells a different story. It represents more than 80 years during which Bunker Hill was Shoshone County’s good neighbor. Bunker diminished airborne and waterborne pollutants whenever state-ofthe-art means became available. The company impounded its mill tailings long before it was mandated.

Pre-Gulf Bunker Hill was a good and caring citizen. It built the Lincoln School and the YMCA in Kellogg and was always a leader in charitable work.

Certainly we suffered at times from the choking and eye-watering smelter smoke during inversions, but generations of children have grown up in Kellogg, Wardner and Smelterville, eating fresh vegetables grown in backyard gardens, and have set athletic and scholastic records and lived long and successful lives.

In conclusion I would plead for the destruction of the “Gulf” stacks to erase all reminders of the villain, but to retain the landmark brick stack in remembrance of Bunker Hill, which built Kellogg, Wardner and Smelterville and always remained a responsible citizen of those communities. Bob Meyer Coeur d’Alene

Downtown problems need resolution

Aaron Weir (Ticket last straw, Sept. 6) seemed irate about receiving a parking ticket while utilizing the city library downtown.

We all pay our dues in exchange for convenience, as we can never be certain how long chores will take. If you can determine a way to provide curbside parking for patrons, without employees and business owners abusing the system, then you are a genius.

Downtown can’t compete with malls. Downtown is our community center. Isn’t it nice that you, a Veradale resident, can utilize a great research center that city taxpayers paid for. If we don’t find ways to revitalize downtown, parking won’t be an issue. You won’t want to go downtown.

Let’s all understand these problems and resolve to help find solutions. The downtown merchants will be doing their share soon, by providing free parking for your patronage.

The downtown problems aren’t City Hall’s problem. Only community pride and support will assure the social center we hope to enjoy in the future. Bonnie Barbour Spokane

Treppiedi failed to communicate

In a recent interview about his candidacy for the school board, Mr. Rocco Treppiedi stated that his desire to run sprang from the unhappiness with the Salk staff, particularly concerning the gifted-student program.

Last year, I was one of the Extended Learning Program teachers for one of his sons and taught his other son in a regular classroom. For both boys, and for all students I teach, I set high expectations and I’m willing to modify curriculum either up or down academically to meet the needs of each student.

Mr. Treppiedi’s sons were wonderful additions to my classroom. What I don’t understand is, if Mr. Treppiedi was unhappy with something I did, why didn’t he come to me and discuss the problem. In truth, the only time I saw Mr. Treppiedi was on open house night last year.

If Mr. Treppiedi wasn’t dissatisfied with how and what I taught his sons, he shouldn’t have implied that his frustration was with the entire Salk staff.

I don’t believe this is an example of constructive communication or criticism. Jan Kingsley Spokane