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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Letters To The Editor

SPOKANE MATTERS

Elect Hormann; he knows and cares

Why vote for Ron Hormann? Because there is a clear, critical choice between the candidates.

While Hormann’s opponent has name recognition inherited from her ex-husband, Hormann distinguished himself as an experienced county engineer who took his work to heart and got the job done. Over the years, Hormann has won several outstanding performance awards. His opponent, lacking his experience and ability to take the community’s pulse, moved full steam ahead promoting a science center doomed to failure because of a bad process and poor choice of location.

Where Hormann, a longtime resident, is concerned about our quality of life and the condition of our environment, his opponent has clearly come out in favor of unhealthy practices like grass burning and wants to roll back the clock on the growth management process - a process that has returned to the people real opportunities for local control.

Other races may be more high profile, but when it comes to decisions affecting life as we know it here in Spokane, none are more important than for county commissioner.

I urge you to vote for Ron Hormann, the candidate with the skills, experience and integrity we need to get the job done right. Bonnie Mager Spokane

Howe a well-qualified candidate

Lila Howe is well-qualified for the position of Spokane County commissioner.

Howe authored and produced the Spokane County Atlas used by the sheriff’s office for dispatching. Working with the fire districts, sheriff and police departments, she researched and provided initial emergency response information for all city and county 911 calls. Howe also provided maps showing legal school district boundaries for all of Spokane County.

She spent 4-1/2 years on the Stevens County Planning Commission and was involved in subarea planning, zoning ordinances and growth management issues. She was liaison among all parties in adding sewers for Deer Lake and saving the water quality.

Her concerns are controlling government costs, providing for reasonable growth, fair taxes and leadership with integrity. Robert L. Taigen Spokane

McCaslin best choice

Growth management dictated by Olympia?

Government bureaucrats think that’s a great idea.

I’ve lived in Spokane for a long time and I cherish the qualify of life that we have here, but I know that to effectively balance growth management with the need to have a strong economy and affordable housing, we need local leadership from someone like Kate McCaslin.

McCaslin’s effectiveness has been proved in the private sector. McCaslin will listen to all sides of an issue. She is our best choice for professional, effective leadership in the Spokane County Commissioners’ office. Robert J. Jones Spokane

What about air quality?

After perusing The Spokesman-Review’s Oct. 18 article on the downtown parking garage, I am astonished no one is considering the air pollution factor.

As last noted, didn’t Spokane have the second-highest pollution level in the United States? What will all this traffic bring to downtown Spokane, where it is already difficult to breathe when we have an inversion?

I realize this may sound anti-progress. I could only encourage this scheme if a countereffort were suggested to control the diesel and auto exhaust in downtown Spokane. But no one seems concerned. Will we soon have the highest pollution level in the United States? Sandra Hatch Zikiye Spokane

Rest of apartments story worth telling

Shame on associate editor Frank Bartel, whose Oct. 20 retirement column sounds as if it were copied from the glossy brochures of the “new” Cooper George Retirement and Assisted Living Community.

As a home health nurse, I used to love visiting patients in the “historic, old” Cooper George. Granted, the elevators needed repair and the carpet was worn, but it was a true community, with a diverse mix of elderly and young residents, including many students completing residencies at our local hospitals. The building manager knew residents by name and was obviously concerned about the welfare of her elderly tenants.

During the months of renovation, I witnessed an exodus as Cooper George’s residents, unable to afford the imminent increase in rent, were forced to relocate amid a cloud of construction dust and debris. I observed firsthand the stress this caused several residents in their 70s and 80s and forced to relocate.

I question whether Spokane really benefits from another corporate-owned “retirement center” affordable only to the well-to-do, one where the word “community” just exists as a marketing tool. Spokane lost a treasure with the passing of the old Cooper George, and Bartel owed Spokane a more balanced account of its transition. Jan Frazier Spokane

WASHINGTON STATE

Craswell in sync with fringe types

The price tag for economic development in Stevens County has also been an invitation to ultraconservative/ wise use /fringe groups that have no use for laws or regulations that would become an obstacle to their vision of our area.

Other areas like ours have become meccas for people who study and selectively interpret the U.S. Constitution to meet their own financial needs. They try to mask their greed with popular anti-government sentiment.

In keeping with this spirit, Ellen Craswell will be standing by a fireplace soon, talking about what she and her founding fathers have in mind for the future of our state.

In 1983, then-Sen. Craswell was interested in abolishing federally recognized tribes as domestic, sovereign nations. This would be a blatant violation of the U.S. Constitution and an attempt to feed the greed of the wise use movement.

Once again, a continued and strong attack upon people who do not fit one’s interpretation of the U.S. Constitution and very possibly their Bible, due to heritage, custom and culture.

Don’t gamble. Be careful whom you vote for - especially those who might be morally bankrupt but greedy and quite happy to rake in the dough from shady special interests. James Gordon Perkins Colville, Wash.

Moyer for our children? Hardly

It seems somewhat disingenuous for state Sen. John Moyer to claim in his campaign that he is “for our children.” As a doctor, he has been involved in the birth of many babies. But there is scant evidence in his record as a state legislator that he has done anything for children after they are born.

In fact, he has opposed many legislative proposals designed to help young children in this state, especially those in poor families. Moyer’s courtly and genteel manner actually masks a voting record that should be the envy of right-wingers in his own party, such as Pat Buchanan and Ellen Craswell.

People of the 3rd District would be much better served by having Lisa Brown represent them in the state Senate. Bill First Spokane

Keep Moyer in Olympia

State Sen. John Moyer is one of the most outstanding individuals I have ever been privileged to know. He unselfishly gives of himself in all aspects, as evidenced by his continuous caring, compassion and efforts in behalf of residents of the 3rd District, Spokane County, the Washington state and the nation.

As a physician, Moyer has provided hope to his patients during their time of need. As a Christian, he has lived his life focused on love and service. As a senator, he has advocated tirelessly in behalf of all people, making sure their issues and concerns are heard in Olympia. As a friend, he always has time to listen.

Spokane, you have a treasure. Keep Moyer in Olympia. Leah Layne Othello, Wash.

Brown in no way conservative

Having served with state Rep. Lisa Brown, I can tell you that Jonathan Feste’s letter (Oct. 14) in support of her quest for the Senate is a real stretch. To suggest that somehow Brown will be a conservative force fighting the Seattle lawmakers is unbelievable.

His evidence for this - that her vote to raise tuition was a conservative, responsible act because it saved higher education, is absurd and disproves his point.

The Gary Locke (i.e., Seattle liberal) budget she voted for was designed to raise tuition $90 million and at the same time reduce the higher education budget by $90 million. A net gain of zero, while shifting costs from the state to the students. That 1993 Locke budget actually reduced higher education appropriations per FTE student from 105 percent of the national average to 89 percent, taking us from a rank of 23rd in the nation to 42nd, according to Research Associates of Washington.

Brown has never hidden her liberalism and in fact has been proud to vote with the Seattle liberals. For her to now want to be called a conservative is the ultimate in two-faced politics.

Perhaps she woke up to the fact that while the 3rd District is the most Democrat district in the state, the voters are conservative Democrats and not mindless drones who will vote for anyone with a “D” behind their name. They are not helpless dependents of the state who look forward to a life on welfare, so they don’t need her view of the world and brand of government. Sen. James E. West R-Spokane

Matter best District 7 candidate

The 7th Legislative District has a chance to elect an outstanding individual to the House of Representatives.

I got to know Kurt Matter because of his service as a school board member at Kettle Falls. He’s an energetic, hands-on, consensus builder. In his leadership role on that board, Matter made sure he was aware of where every precious dollar went. Because, constitutionally, public education is the state’s foremost obligation, this fiscal conservatism coupled with his deep understanding of the educational system, its needs and complexities, make him the better candidate.

As a former orchardist, he is also sensitive to the problems faced by our agricultural community.

Matter is courageous and will not be swayed by anything except the welfare of his constituents, within the confines of available resources. He will talk straight, even on difficult issues. He’s not a game player. Join me in supporting Matter for state representative, Position 1. Andy James Colville, Wash.

Senn doesn’t understand job

About state Insurance Commissioner Deborah Senn: Doesn’t anyone realize that the insurance industry is a for-profit, private organization, not subsidized by the state or owned by the state? If the companies don’t make a profit, they go out of business or quit doing business in the state.

The state insurance commissioner works for both for the insurance companies and citizens of the state. The commissioner is not an autocratic ruler. He or she is supposed to try to be fair to both.

It is time for Senn to find another line of work. We need an insurance commissioner who knows the meaning of compromise and private business for profit. W. Eugene Fields Electric City, Wash.

THE JUDICIARY

Johnson able, experienced justice

Justice Charles W. Johnson wants to be re-elected to the Washington state Supreme Court. He has served the last six years as a hard-working, fair-minded and compassionate judge. His opponent for Position 3 has no judicial experience.

Johnson has spent 14 years in private practice and has supported numerous civic organizations, including the YMCA, American Heart Association and Olympic Wildlife Rescue. His candidacy has been endorsed by the Washington State Labor Council, Washington State Council of Police Officers, Washington Education Association, Washington State Patrol Troopers’ Association, Building Industry Association of Washington, Washington State Council of Firefighters and many more.

His opponent has not been endorsed by any organization.

Johnson has a deserved reputation as an extremely well-qualified, impartial, serious-minded, no-nonsense judge whose opinions are well-reasoned and clearly written. For six more years of common sense justice, vote for Charles Johnson. Joseph P. Delay and J. Donald Curran Spokane

Moe concerned about women, youths

I support Royce Moe for Spokane County Superior Court judge. I have been deeply impressed with his concern for juvenile issues. He understands the value of work with juveniles. I know he has worked very hard in this area.

As a minister, I have particularly appreciated the way Moe has dealt with issues concerning women. He has kept a balance between concern for the plight of the people with whom he deals and the administration of justice.

I know Moe to be a person of integrity. We need such persons in our judicial system. Rev. David L. Decker Spokane

We need Cozza’s experience, integrity

The person we elect to the Spokane County Superior Court bench will make decisions affecting us all. I support District Court Judge Sam Cozza because he’s been making good decisions to help make Spokane a safer place.

Cozza has supported mandatory attendance by DWI offenders at sessions where they meet people who have suffered tragedies due to drinking drivers. He has helped institute local reforms to more effectively keep accused felons and domestic violence defendants away from victims.

Cozza is endorsed by nine other Superior and District Court judges. They know he decides cases on the basis of his strong commitment to integrity and fairness. His 15 years of public service have given him an excellent background. Sharon Reed Spokane

Moe well-qualified for Superior Court

Washington state voters are given the duty to elect judges, but this is hard to do as judges are non-partisan and can’t take positions on legal issues they might make decisions on later. I look for someone with experience.

Royce Moe has been a court commissioner for eight years. He’s co-founder of the Spokane County Domestic Violence Consortium and has thus been a leader in the fight against domestic violence and the abuse of children. I have checked his experience and feel he has the integrity and judicial temperament to be an excellent Spokane County Superior Court judge. Catherine Lauritsen Cheney

Cozza has more, better experience

We have studied the candidates for Spokane County Superior Court judge and support District Court Judge Sam Cozza because of his experience and reputation as one of the state’s brightest young judges.

At 41, Cozza has already succeeded in achieving a perfect record in three separate criminal cases before the state Supreme Court. His opponent has never handled a case of that magnitude and is not allowed to hear adult criminal matters.

Cozza is one of the few elected officials to have been re-elected without opposition in 1994. He can serve Spokane for many years with intelligence and fairness on the Superior Court. Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Cahill Spokane

5TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Nethercutt didn’t answer my letter

I support the recently signed immigration bill designed to combat illegal immigration and outrageous federal handouts to illegals and layabouts. However, in typical Republican bull-at-the-gate style, they did not bother to distinguish between legals and illegals.

For 17 years I have been a hard-working, taxpaying citizen employing legal immigrants in this country. On Oct. 2, I had to write to Rep. George Nethercutt to explain that before the ink was dry on the president’s signature, my daughter’s primary medical provider was asking how we proposed to pay for her daily dialysis treatment now that the government had stopped her medical assistance program.

I wanted to know for sure from Rep. Nethercutt if this was the case and, as withholding dialysis was not an option here, what his recommendations were. He is currently bombarding us with his boast that he has replied to 50,000 letters, but he has yet to answer my letter on this most urgent matter.

I did not creep into this county under cover of darkness. I entered up front on a 747 under the country’s very strict and demanding green card system that welcomes certain entrepreneurial overseas nationals who have special or unique skills and/or money. Roger Slater Mica

Nethercutt understands forest threat

In Opinion editor John Webster’s excellent editorial on Oct. 15, he rightly blamed the deadlock over managing our nation’s forests on the rabid opposition of environmentalists to any logging. Deadlock is OK with them, of course. As long as that continues, no logging takes place.

We’ve just had the worst fire season in four decades. Unless something is done, worse is yet to come. Our forests are choked with unprecedented volumes of fuel for the inevitable fires that threaten human life, property, and the land’s ability to recover. In the Boise National Forest and elsewhere, the unnatural heat of such fires fused clay in the soil into a ceramiclike material that won’t even absorb water, much less grow plants, for centuries - if ever.

As resigning head of the U.S. Forest Service, scientist Jack Ward Thomas said the solution must include salvage logging of dead and dying trees. But a modest attempt to salvage half as much timber as dies each year has been fought by such irresponsible environmental extremists as Rich Landers, outdoor editor of The Spokesman-Review.

In a column on Oct. 10, Landers called the salvage legislation “the now-infamous salvage logging rider based on a trumped-up ‘forest health emergency.”’ Landers is a special interest advocate masquerading as a journalist, and he doesn’t belong at a newspaper.

Rep. George Nethercutt believes in common-sense solutions to natural resource problems, and he voted for salvage logging. He deserves your vote in the coming election. Edwin G. Davis Spokane

Nethercutt’s case is lame

Rep. George Nethercutt now claims he almost singlehandedly halved the deficit, or at least voted for the reduction.

In truth, President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore, through their reinventing-government program, have materially reduced the size of government through offering early retirement to federal employees and eliminating some 16,000 pages of regulations to cut the deficit to less than half what it was in 1992.

Is Nethercutt also going to take credit for complaining to area broadcasters to get them to censor a union-bought ad in which the unions merely point out Nethercutt’s voting record? Why doesn’t he tell voters about his votes to take $270 billion out of Medicare and Medicaid in order to give tax relief to the richest 2 percent of taxpayers?

Poor George; you just can’t have it both ways. Isn’t it time we had a representative in Congress, one who doesn’t follow House Speaker Newt Gingrich like a puppy and vote whatever way the speaker tells him to? Louis Wright Republic, Wash.

PEOPLE IN SOCIETY

Parents, restore good sense to policies

A boy playing tag on school grounds trips over another boy and inadvertently pulls a girl’s skirt down. Sexual harassment is screamed across the country, when, in fact, it is just an embarrassing accident for both children.

Worse accidents happen daily. Sure, the girl was embarrassed. Who wouldn’t be? But what about the boy accused of sexual harassment? Does anyone consider what he’s going through and how he feels? Did the girl run to the playground attendant and say she was sexually harassed? Or was that elicited by an adult who hears about such absurd accusations against other children?

Parents ought to wake up and realize we are taking away our children’s innocence when we overreact to incidents like this. What’s happened to: “Hey I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that.” “That’s OK, it was an accident.” Isn’t this the response we should teach our children when something this innocent happens? Scott E. Reynolds Spokane

Mother’s foolishness hurts children

I’m appalled that Lori Mork, the mother of the 6-year-old whose skirt accidentally was pulled down, is claiming sexual harassment. The kindergartner agreed it was an accident, that during a game of tag a fifth-grader fell as he was reaching out to grab or tag her, accidentally pulling her skirt down. Accidents happen.The publicity, accusations and questions may have done emotional harm to two innocent children. Cathy Williams Spokane

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Heed what office seekers don’t say

Why is it that the only politicians willing to give us bad news are those who aren’t running for office?

Expenditures for our three largest entitlement programs, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, are rising by about 10 percent, per year. Meanwhile, the annual increase in Gross Domestic Product is less than 3 percent.

If this does not change dramatically, we will quickly reach the point where the entire budget will go to these three programs. It’s abundantly clear that if our government is to avoid bankruptcy, we must either raise taxes significantly or accept major cuts in the entitlements and other business and personal subsidies we’ve come to love and expect.

Colin Powell spoke about this at the Republican National Convention, but he’s not running for anything. Several retired politicians warn about the problem daily. Why do those holding and running for office seem determined to avoid the issue?

I suspect it’s because they realize that if they tell us the truth, we’ll vote them out of office! Jim Shamp Spokane

One bad move leads to another?

I was amazed that your editorial board would back Bob Dole, with his rather sad attempt to buy the presidency with a tax cut (campaign slogan, “It’s my turn”). But when I later read a letter to the editor saying that because you backed Dole you should now back Rep. Helen Chenoweth and Ellen Craswell, I had to laugh. You left yourselves wide open for that one. Corinne Hunter Moscow, Idaho

Plenty of reason to un-elect Clinton

Do the American people really not care that the president has been called the most accomplished liar ever by Democratic U.S. Sen. John Kerry?

Do we not care that his 1996 campaign promises are 1992 promises he failed to keep, like a middle class tax cut, and that he shortly engineered a big tax increase? Do we really not care that he’s taking credit for legislation promised in the Republican “Contract with America.” Promises kept by the Republican Congress; legislation his Democratic Congress in 1993-94 wouldn’t allow a vote on?

Do we want a president who has delayed his sexual harassment trial by claiming, as commander in chief of the military that he has military privileges against lawsuits? A president whose Medicare proposal cut Medicare, but when the proposal was his, it was not a cut but a reduction in growth?

I read a list of 70 reasons not to re-elect Bill Clinton the other day, but the paper’s word limit prevents discussing them all. It also included his approval of sucking the brains of babies out up to a day before natural birth would occur, his refusal to allow drug testing of his staff. A president who has covered up ethical and probably criminal activities that weren’t even dreamt of when Nixon resigned?

I am one American who doesn’t want to be embarrassed for another four years by the likes of President Clinton. Jean Bell Springdale, Wash.

See through Democrats’ hype

Perhaps the best phrase to characterize the Democratic tactic for achieving power in 1996 is diabolically clever.

The cleverness can’t be denied. Acknowledged to be on the ropes in 1994, Democrats have campaigned ruthlessly for two years and have emerged, say the polls, confident of victory in 1996. Has their tactic been diabolical? Absolutely.

Principally, by means of relentless repetition of the big lie, they’ve succeeded to a frightening degree. They’ve terrorized a significant percentage of the American people and, in the process, have also demonized the Republican leadership.

The job done on Speaker Newt Gingrich is a masterpiece of character assassination by means of distortion. (Remember staff cartoonist Milt Priggee’s swastika on Newt?) The truth has been cavalierly disdained in their frantic pursuit of power.

Now we’re assaulted with carping accusations against Republicans for going negative. Clinton has risen above the fray, deploring any campaign of insults. Yet, for months, the people have been flooded with vitriolic, distorted propaganda, much of it untrue, by Clinton’s surrogates - big labor and hatchet men like Leon Panetta, Rep. Dick Gephardt, Sen. Tom Daschle and George Stephanopoulos.

It’s tragic so many Americans have apparently been taken in. Our only hope is that enough Americans will wake up and refuse this charlatan and his unprincipled crew another term. Bernard E. Bobb Pullman

We need truth-in-promises law

Liberal Democrats keep asking how Bob Dole expects to pay for his proposed 15 percent tax cut. The plan calls for eliminating or reducing funding for unnecessary programs. When you cut taxes, you stimulate the economy. The private sector has more money to invest in business and industry, which provides more jobs for people who will pay more taxes.

The “how are you going to pay for it?” question isn’t asked of President Clinton every time he makes another giveaway promise. The answer: 1, the promise was just for the sake of getting votes from irresponsible, gullible people, knowing Congress will not approve spending for the program promised; or 2, you and I will pay through higher taxes. We will thus have less money to save, spend or invest. The president in his debate said the government will pay for programs promised. Who is the government and who really pays?

There should be a law barring candidates from making promises about spending our money without telling us how much it will cost us. Ron Vieselmeyer Coeur d’Alene

Clinton has several bad tax habits

As President Clinton spells out tax cuts he will propose next year, remember that the tax cuts he promised during the 1992 campaign were abandoned after he was elected and replaced with huge tax increases. Clinton termed all the new taxes “contributions” so that we, like Clinton, would feel good about our new tax burden.

Since Clinton was elected, queries into his personal tax records were grudgingly provided by the president and found to contain many errors. Curiously, virtually all of the errors were underpayments, especially the three underpayments he freely admitted to. The latest one involved the assumption of debt on Clinton’s behalf by convicted felon Jim McDougal.

Clearly, such a steady stream of tax-underpayments by any of us average citizens would subject us to being flagged as a probable tax evader by the IRS. We’d be subjected to never-ending tax audits.

So, when I think about Clinton nailing us with huge tax increases that he himself has shown an unwillingness to pay, I see a hypocritical, dishonest and self-centered man. How any upstanding, patriotic American could vote for this person is beyond me. James Howell Spokane

Veterans should lead way sacrificing

What good are our so-called entitlements if there is nothing there to ensure them? Are they assured by a failed economic, political or social system?

Look what happened in the collapse of the Soviet Union. They did it to themselves. It could happen to us if we keep going in that direction with no sense of family values and morality and the wrong leadership.

From my experience, no organized group has a more proven record and willingness to save our country than our veterans. I think we should start with veterans in limiting entitlement, with the hope that we can set an example for others to follow. This would not only save Social Security, Medicare and welfare but also save our country from itself. Floyd Damman Colbert

Singles deserve a break, too

Suzanne O’Sullivan Embury made an excellent point. Single people are the overlooked minority. We don’t get tax breaks, aren’t elligible for many of the services our tax dollars help pay for, and if we lose a job (singles who live alone with no income from a second person), it’s just us, alone. I’m tired of families getting all the breaks. Hey, Bob Dole and President Clinton, what about the rest of us? Other minorities are accorded privileges. How about singles getting a few? Linda Wilcox Spokane

Complaint comes off sounding lame

Re: the Oct. 16 Social Security letter (“$120 will lose you $580”) by Ruth J. McEneany.

You should be happy you are in the 40 percent income bracket that makes over $25,000 a year. In your case, the estimate is considerably more. A $10 increase for most retired families will buy a couple gallons of milk and a couple of loaves of bread. They would trade places with you any time. Beverly Dahmen Spokane

Credit guns, not the president

President Clinton may wish to claim credit for the reduction in violent crime, but statistics show a greater correlation with the spread of right-to-carry (handguns) laws than with midnight basketball or his other “solutions.” Curtis L. Messex Cheney

Dole efforts an embarrassment

How disappointing to discover The Spokesman-Review endorsed Bob Dole for president. I thought the mission of a good newspaper is to help educate the electorate so we can make wiser decisions about our future., Although President Clinton has made his share of mistakes (the salvage timber rider comes to mind), his actions clearly reflect a deep commitment to the democratic principles upon which this country was founded.

Unlike his opponent, who has stained his otherwise dignified career as a soldier and public servant by launching a desperate campaign of gloom and negativism, President Clinton has been busy fighting for more jobs, less crime, affordable health care, affordable college education, human welfare reform, and cleaner air and water. And he has done this while creating over 10 million new jobs and cutting the federal deficit by 60 percent.

Dole’s recent attacks on the president’s ethics are beyond hypocritical - they are pathetic. He speaks of trust, yet as the centerpiece of his campaign he offers us a 15 percent election year tax cut that he disavowed as reckless only one year ago. He attacks the president’s drug policies, then publicly questions whether nicotine is addictive, all the while accepting money from big tobacco companies.

Dole preaches family values, then says if he’s elected he would move to repeal the Family Leave Act.

With all due respect, it’s sad to see an elder statesman of Dole’s stature stoop so low just to get to the top. Scott Bosse Moscow, Idaho

Dole’s age not a worthy issue

The logic in Joyce Hoffman’s letter, “Endorsement blah and Dole’s too old” (Oct. 17) leaves something to be desired.

In her opinion, we should not vote for a man who has integrity, experience, a sincere concern for his country and who is a World War II veteran because he is too old. We should, however, vote for a liar, fraud, draft dodger, file loser and emotionally dysfunctional man because he speaks well and is younger.

Has Dole displayed any symptoms that he is too feeble to be president? I was taught to respect my elders for their wisdom and experience. At what age would you like to be told you are no longer worthwhile?

I applaud The Spokesman-Review and its courage in making the right choice. I am tired of being embarrassed for my country every time I watch the evening news. Nancy J. Keller Spokane

Clinton poll results don’t figure

Where President Clinton is concerned, we often hear that “character doesn’t matter.” Who’s kidding whom?

Character certainly does matter - to everyone. Few, if any of us, would hire, work for, buy from, associate with or otherwise trust anyone with such defects as we see in this president. Yet, we are told people will vote for and entrust their entire future to a Bill Clinton. It is truly incredible. J.C. Schindler Spokane

OTHER TOPICS

Amway not quite as depicted

Your series of articles on the Amway business was accurate for the most part, but there were some errors and omissions.

First, a headline, “Amway dealers buy into promise of riches.” No promise of riches is made, only the promise of opportunity.

Second, the statement, “the neighborhood soap salesmen doesn’t go door to door anymore.” With few exceptions, nobody has gone door to door since the 1960s.

It’s implied that Jews, atheists, and liberals aren’t welcome in this business. We don’t ask a person what their religion or politics are. There are many successful people of Jewish, Hindu and other religions in the business. It’s true that most distributors have a strong belief in God, because the people who stay and build the business are dedicated to helping others. We believe in a hand up, not a handout.

If someone with a liberal outlook wants to go into this business, that’s fine. But they’re more oriented to a government solution. Amway gives people a chance to solve their own economic problems.

You talk about people who blame Amway for their marriage problems, but fail to mention that the divorce rate is less than 2 percent for distributors. We aren’t a cult, we all think for ourselves, and have our own personalities and interests. Dan Broe Spokane

Taste for fur coats regrettable

Re: “The house that Amway built.” Congratulations to Ron and Georgia Lee Puryear for their success. Don’t they know that warm feelings come from love, not wearing fur coats? Fur coats do not signify wealth. They mean death to innocent animals. The Puryears, being Christians, should extend their wealth to living animals. Carola Lyons Spokane

Grass burning, burners intolerable

Grass farmers can’t come up with a really good reason to burn without disregarding the health of thousands of area people.

There are only 150 grass farmers in Washington state. Three-hundred twenty doctors have asked for relief for their patients through a petition. Yet the farmers are telling the masses to leave, either while grass burning is going on or permanently.

I’m tired of their bellyaching and making it sound as though the masses are tying to throw them out of their jobs. They already rotate crops, therefore, don’t grow grass every year. All we’re asking them to do is find another method. They just want to have their cake and eat it too.

The almighty dollar is the bottom line.

My business has gone downhill because of my being too ill since last year’s burning. I can’t be as active as I should be in creating new business. I went away this year, at great expense, to get relief. The newspaper reported it was safe to return. That wasn’t true. There are far too many people in the same situation. LaNice H. Korus Spokane