Letters To The Editor

SPOKANE MATTERS

Urge county to reject zoo

Please, neighbors, take time to phone your county commissioners. Tell them not to accept the Walk in the Wild Zoo site. We can’t afford the liability or the expense.

If the county owns the zoo land, some staff member somewhere will have to take time to oversee it. With the county budget stretched to the limit, where will that salary come from?

If the county owns the zoo land, accidents and injury claims will be laid at our doorstep. Remember, the county is self-insured.

The zoo has had many years to win support. It seems to me that the people of Spokane County have already said no by their lack of attendance. It’s time for the commissioners to echo that no. Lois Schulte Spokane

Valley city would be costly

I do not often find myself in agreement with (Managing Editor) Chris Peck, but his Sunday column two weeks ago and his editorial of Feb. 18 regarding incorporation of a town in the Valley were both right on.

A question to be answered is: Would you be better off with a small, separate community in the Valley or as part of a larger and more influential community such as that envisioned by the freeholders?

The urge to be self-governing may be strong but a separate town in the Valley would bring all kinds of increased costs.

Chris Peck’s advice to use caution when you vote is valuable counsel for all those involved in this effort. Maury Hickey Spokane

Proposal misrepresented

Your Feb. 17 article on the freeholders minority report completely misrepresented my charter proposal.

In my proposal for a unified city-county charter, I am proposing a city-county executive board made up of four county commissioners, four City Council members and a representative of the 10 town mayors to run all aspects of city-county government. Ex-officio members of this board would be the city mayor and the executive county commissioner.

Also contrary to what your article reports, the freeholders intend to review my proposal. Eric W. Anderson, freeholder Spokane

Why not spotlight local teacher?

In reference to the article about the covered overlays that help kids conquer reading problems, which was based out of Neah Bay, Wash.

We have a teacher here in Spokane, Tricia Ohashi at Finch Elementary, who has been doing this for quite some time. I think it would be nice if we could honor our own teachers instead of looking to other teachers from out of the area. We have fantastic school teachers here; it would be nice to honor our own. Cathy Ruvo Spokane

Do accentuate the positive

(Managing editor) Chris Peck’s column of Feb. 12, “Kids are better than you think,” is right on.

While few people would believe the media should not report the aberrations of society, your readers need regular and timely assurances that almost all of our young people do well. As Spokane schools Superintendent Gary Livingston has said, “Kids may be only 35 percent of our population, but they’re 100 percent of our future.”

I urge parents to join with the schools to make life better for their kids. Support community ideas that will help kids go to school, stay in school and succeed in school.

I also ask all our local media to take the time to learn more about Spokane Public Schools’ strategic plan. If we can achieve most of what’s in that plan, the need to write columns about youth violence and parental apathy will be greatly diminished.

Kids are better than you think. Teachers are better than you think. Thanks for pointing that out. Murray K. Huppin, member Community Leadership Team, Spokane District No. 81

Helper’s family now in need

On Feb. 6, the East Central neighborhood suffered the loss of Roy T. Payne. Roy was a longtime resident and neighborhood activist. He was active in Community-Oriented Policing, Block Watch, East Central Community Center and the Neighborhood Steering Committee. Roy gave his life to helping others, going the extra mile for his neighbors.

I believe one of the best tributes to Roy’s life is to carry on helping one another to improve the quality of life in our neighborhood, to make this a better, safer place to live.

The Roy T. Payne Memorial Fund is set up at the East Side branch of U.S. Bank to help the Payne Family in their time of need. I hope we as a community can come through for the Payne family as Roy came through for us for the last 16 years. Carol Weltz, vice president C.O.P.S. Haven, Spokane

CHILDREN AND THEIR CARE

Changes would endanger children

Have our policy makers become so focused on a balanced budget that they have totally lost sight of our children? Decisions being made today not only place children at the bottom of the agenda, but even at risk.

One bill, SB5132, recommends we change enforcement to technical assistance in child care licensing. In other words, no inspections, no way to ensure the health and safety of our children.

Just as absurd is HB1613. This bill recommends that recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) become child care providers. It does not recommend education or training in the field but instead waives licensing and pays them $25 per week to do this. Who’s watching our children?

Findings from a study of children in family child care and relative care found that the predictors of quality care are: commitment to child care as important work, and work they want to be doing; seeking opportunities to learn about child development; seeking higher levels of education and training; planning experiences for children; meeting with other providers; being regulated; and following standard business and safety practices.

These characteristics paint a picture of intentionality of providing care. It’s not surprising that the very first of the study’s recommendations was: no public policies, federal or state, should push or require people to be providers.

Bills that weaken child care licensing and encourage reluctant AFDC recipients to become providers, place our children at risk. Our first concern must be our children.

I read a motto recently on a button that said, “Who cares for kids, and who’s just kidding?” Policy makers, wake up. Mavis Hogan and Nancy Gerber Spokane

Don’t remove child care controls

I am concerned about our elected officials. It seems the only time they care about infants and children is at the embryo stage, making sure they are given life. But officials show they’ve ceased to care about those lives when they remove support and controls on our child care system.

Please, keep our good child care system. It’s the very best in the country, one our state cam take pride in. A.B. Westerman Cheney

Cartoon’s gist erroneous

Like many other child care professionals, my staff and I were offended by the Feb. 14 Roundtable political cartoon which inferred that child care facilities “warehouse” children.

Our center, like others in the Spokane area, is staffed with well-trained people who have degrees in early childhood education and they work very had to provide guidance and learning experiences that are developmentally appropriate for each age group. The curriculum meets or exceeds standards set by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. To infer in any way that this is warehousing does a great injustice to these loving and caring child care providers.

Emotional support for our children comes generously from the heart of each staff member who has chosen to work with young children in spite of low wages and minimal benefits. What is needed is support for the efforts of child care providers, not criticism in cartoon form.

We feel The Spokesman-Review has done a disservice to our community by publishing a political cartoon drawn to reinforce an erroneous stereotype - most certainly not indicative of the level of care that our clients expect and receive on a daily basis.

Please spare us any further iterations of such a twisted view of child care in the ‘90s. It shows lack of “guidance, teaching and emotional support.” Virginia Burns, owner/director The Little Red Schoolhouse Children’s Center, Spokane

Spanking can prevent grief

Randy Thies of Colbert does not believe in spanking (Letters, Feb. 14). I wonder if he raised seven children as I did, as a widower? Spanking should be a form of love and protection. Do you want your 2-year-old to walk into the street, touch a light socket or get into chemicals under the sink? Of course not. A swat or two indicates danger to a 2- or 3-year-old. A mother bear or lion will certainly swat a cub as it approaches danger. Danger is danger to man or beast.

Virtually all of my seven grown children received swats at age 2 or 3. Five of the seven were not spanked after the age of 3. My children were well protected and educated. Today, all except one hold master’s or doctor’s degrees.

Pertaining to a dad pulling down a 13-year-old daughter’s pants - that’s borderline incest, not spanking. John McGowan Spokane

Let’s get back to orderliness

Juveniles and violence seem to have become quite an issue lately. Almost every day there is something in the newspaper or on the news about yet another act of violence committed by one of our juveniles. Whatever happened to morals or, Jiminy Cricket’s favorite, the conscience?

Things like this used to happen only in places like New York or Los Angeles. Now they seem to be creeping into the once peaceful cities, like Spokane.

Isn’t it time to get back to the way we were? Back when parenting was an art, not a burden, and morals counted for something? Jessica A. Julian Springdale, Wash.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

How about a voter warning?

In reference to the “Marriage hazard” article in the Feb. 16 Spokesman-Review, what we need is a voter registration card stating:

“Warning: Choose your senators carefully. They may attempt to alter your time, money, energy and/or life in such a way as to be hazardous to your health. Don’t vote into office anyone who will attempt to legislate your values; it just can’t be done.” Lois Watts Spokane

Senators need to change focus

So glad to read your headline article Feb. 16 and realize our female senators are right there for us, handling the important issues of the day.

I’ll bet today’s generation of younger marrieds already knows about the hazards of marriage. After all, they were brought up on “Dallas,” soap operas, “Melrose Place,” - not “Ozzie and Harriet.” And today’s media, unlike the old guard that kept silent while presidents played around, report every nasty happening or rumor about any famous or notorious person they hear about, complete with endless TV movie trash.

Senators, find something more meaningful to do with your time. Take up the issue of drug and alcohol abuse, which is involved in the majority of abuse cases. Nancy Parker Walla Walla

`Meddling’ editorial said it well

Thank you, John Webster, for your Jan. 23 editorial, “Gov’t meddling reaching excess.”

As a manufacturer who has survived in Washington state for the past 30 years, I am aware of the federal mandates placed on businesses that have forced so many businesses to either move out or close their doors.

As chairman of the Citizen Industrial Insurance Committee, I am constantly educating the Legislature as to the needs of businesses in Washington state. It is my desire to make sure that the law is fair to all businesses, large and small. Thank you again for speaking for all of us. Michel H. Saad, chairman DANA-SAAD Co.

THE ENVIRONMENT

Designation change unwarranted

Recently, The Spokesman-Review carried an article about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to designate 8.2 million acres of farm land in Eastern Washington a “sole source aquifer” (SSA). The designation would give EPA authority to review and deny all federally funded projects.

SSA designation would also trigger numerous state environmental regulations. According to the Washington State Department of Ecology (DOE), the designation would result in “more regulations, more red tape and more bureaucracy.”

The story’s headline, “Nethercutt fighting federal ground water protection” is misleading. Nethercutt and others in Congress oppose EPA’s designation because they are against duplicative environmental regulations based on highly questionable scientific claims.

Licensed, qualified geologists and scientists have testified the aquifers are not interconnected to the degree that if contamination were to occur in one area, contamination would result in the entire aquifer system, which is a primary requirement for seeking SSA status.

The director of the Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute (PCEI), who filed the SSA designation, chastised the delegation letter to Clinton with the comment, “If you don’t have a clue about what you’re writing about, you shouldn’t write to him.”

PCEI should heed its own advice before writing petitions based on unfounded claims that result in more government regulations and bureaucracy. PCEI’s comment reflects its belief that more regulations are always the answer.

Everyone supports protecting ground water. Our state DOE has successfully managed these aquifers as separate for 40 years. Like the old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” William Riley, executive director Big Bend Economic Development Council, Moses Lake

Don’t like dams? Boycott electricity

To those who subscribe to the theory that if all hydroelectric dams were removed from the Columbia Basin the salmon would flourish as they did before white man came to the Northwest: Why not organize a twoweek boycott of hydroelectricity? Turn off your electricity and show the world how you really stand. Myron Pierce Sagle, Idaho

IN IDAHO

Contractor bill no remedy

Groups like the North Idaho Building Contractors Association and the State Contractor Association would like you to believe HB182, a statewide contractor registration, will ensure you a competent contractor and eliminate the bad elements.

It is not that simple!

This is a false sense of security for the homeowner. The unethical contractor will be able to get this registration.

Bill HB182 is being presented as an affordable cost to the contractor hoping to lure them in. We all know this will grow into a far-reaching and expensive government machine, with numerous costs, fees, bonding, insurance, taxes, etc. This still does not address the problem. This is a criminal issue, not a registration issue.

If our legislators spent their time changing contractor fraud to a criminal offense, this problem would be solved. Registration will not solve anything. All the other states that require such licensing are proof that the problem never went away. It’s just a license to steal.

The only way to serve the public is to educate the consumer with empowering information and enforce a criminal law when anyone takes advantage of a consumer. Let’s make Idaho the first state to put these people away.

Let your legislators know you oppose this bill and that it doesn’t address the problem. It’s time to concentrate on the real issue. Kathleen P. Ryan Coeur d’Alene

No Micron what a relief

After five years of this growth-at-all-cost attitude in Kootenai County, losing Micron is like a breath of fresh air. Maybe now we can enjoy what’s left of our quality of life here for a couple more years.

Are you listening, Bob Potter? Bill Cleveland Rathdrum

Developers, help upgrade highway

The Feb. 15 paper announced the building of two new industrial-commercial projects on Highway 95 in or near Hayden. Nowhere in these articles was there any mention of the impact of increased traffic on Highway 95.

Anyone who travels Highway 95 regularly knows traffic is increasing daily. No developer should be allowed to build in its proximity without contributing to the improvement and widening of this historically neglected north-south local, state and international arterial. Judith A. Farrey Athol