Letters To The Editor

SPOKANE MATTERS

Good sense in short supply all around

Perhaps John Webster of the editorial board has a grandmother who “means well - in a scattered, grandmotherly sort of way” (Opinion, May 18). At any rate, he finds it hard to censure Assessor Sadie Charlene Cooney. The poor dear just doesn’t have it together any more, it seems.

I believe the picture of dotty grandmothers who bake nice cookies went by the wayside long ago. The prevailing thoughts are that ineptitude, inefficiency, incompetence and lack of managerial skills are pre-existing conditions and not conferred in tandem with grandmotherhood.

I don’t know Mrs. Cooney. Perhaps the shortfall in taxes is the result of bungling, perhaps not. Criticism may be deserved or not. That isn’t the point of this letter.

Still, tax cuts are such a rarity they are almost refreshing to hear about. Especially in the wake of the amazing remarks recently attributed by your paper to our County Commissioner Steve Hasson. Asked how he accounted for the huge percentage difference between the county population and the number of county employees - the latter having increased at a far speedier rate over the years - he was quoted as saying something to the effect that he didn’t know the cause of the employee explosion. Generally, though, whenever money is available the county simply offers additional services.

That doesn’t sound like someone who has any commitment to finding ways to spend taxpayers’ money thoughtfully, and only as needed.

It is attitudes like these that may compel many responsible citizens to support Initiative 650. Ursula Solom Spokane

Cooney-bashing raises questions

County Commissioner Steve Hasson is using half truths, lies and innuendo to crucify County Assessor Charlene Cooney.

Cooney has a long history of compliance and hard work. Her reputation is being destroyed because an employee made an error. When was the last time any county commissioner took responsibility for any one of their errors?

What is the reason this is being done to Mrs. Cooney? Could it be that the big-money property owners want control of the assessor’s office?

Obviously, there is a problem. But we have not heard the truth yet. Let Charlene Cooney have equal time to respond. Michele Zywiak Spokane

Show parade marchers some respect

This is the first year I was able to attend the Lilac Parade and I was very impressed. The persons responsible for setup deserve a big pat on the back for all the time they spent. We tend to overlook the importance of those people as we never see or get to meet them.

The only thing I was disappointed with was the trash that was left after the parade. If people are old enough to sit down there and enjoy the parade, they should also know they need to pick up after themselves. Also, quite a few people were just rude enough to walk in between the rows of people in the bands. They obviously do not know how much time and hard work goes into all of the practicing the bands do.

This parade is an exciting event for the Spokane area and we need to treat it as such. M.D. Jones Cheney

ABORTION

Christian duty drops in

Flip Benham of Operation Rescue (OR) held an anti-choice protest at Planned Parenthood this spring. He was brought here by a local fringe element.

They regularly harass the clinic, considering it their Christian duty to do so. But I must respect their right to freedom of speech.

Benham said the protesters were “the most dangerous people in Spokane,” judging by the number of police. He did not say that members of Operation Rescue are in jail for murder and conspiracy, and that he too has been jailed. How sad that time, money and effort are wasted. The tax dollars spent could have been better used.

He stated that all of today’s problems started with Roe vs. Wade, that if we deny women freedom of choice all our problems will be solved.

I remind everyone that the coathanger solution to unwanted pregnancy has existed for centuries and women the world over have died as a result.

No, Mr. Benham, it just isn’t that simple. Get a life.

Operation Rescue came to town again last weekend. Police were called, words of hatred were spoken, lives were disrupted and our tax dollars wasted in the name of Christianity. Pray that this is all, that there won’t be a fanatic who finds an excuse for another Oklahoma bombing or some other killing event.

Operation Rescue, stay home. You are evil and not welcome in this community.

As for the local sponsors, they should be ashamed. They should also pay for the public services they have so inappropriately used. Carlos F. Landa Spokane

Abortion crime blithely overlooked

I am so fed up with lawmakers who link anti-abortion people to terrorists and militias.

Some of us little old grandmas are the most violently opposed to abortion. We, however, are not going to bomb buildings and kill people over it.

The reason we feel so strongly is because we have looked into the eyes of our children as babies and again into the eyes of our grandchildren.

I have been so nauseated at the politicians - everyone from the president on down - who have been pretending their grief over the Oklahoma City bombing and their phony exclamations about “the poor children.” With a stroke of his pen, Clinton has killed more unborn, with the same effect as a bomb. The Congress members who vote pro-choice have done the same.

They would do better to save their breath and save the innocent unborn.

As long as they legislate their violence our nation will continue to reap its destruction. Just who are the terrorists? Margaret Schuster Spokane

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Keep straight about who’s bad

I am rapidly getting tired of letters that question “where was all the show of support and sympathy for the victims of Waco?”

The innocent children at Waco were killed by the same kind of militant, lunatic butchers who killed the children in Oklahoma City. And worse, those Waco killers were the children’s own parents - those who set fires inside the compound.

Yes, I sympathize somewhat with the current growing distrust of government. Reverse discrimination, affirmative action or whatever else it is called is still discrimination. And big government is almost as undesirable and self-serving as big corporations.

But please, refrain from dreaming up lies about what happened in Waco to support your anti-government bias if you want the average American to give your views any credence.

In the past month in Oklahoma City we have seen heroes. Those poor, deluded, lost denizens inside the compound at Waco were not heroes. William L. Betz Newport, Wash.

NRA pushed into fighting back

When I joined the National Rifle Association in 1975, it was still a patriotic thing to do. I strongly supported the NRA’s main principles of shooter education, formation of youth-oriented shooting clubs and unwavering commitment to the fundamental beliefs of personal liberties espoused by the founding fathers of our country. I still believe these principles are central to the NRA’s philosophy.

However, during the past 20 years it has gradually become politically incorrect to participate in shooting sports. If a law-abiding citizen is seen carrying a firearm today, he is suspected of engaging in a criminal endeavor.

I believe that this shift in public opinion concerning gun owners and the NRA results from the general media’s biased slant in reporting crimes involving firearms. These reports continually shift the blame from the person committing the crime to the tool he uses.

In the face of this constant barrage from the media, the NRA has had to take a defensive stance. Funds that could otherwise be used to teach safe, responsible handling of firearms now must be used to fight certain political agendas that threaten our withering rights. This fight has always taken the form of letter campaigns or of casting ballots.

I’ve never known of an NRA endorsement of armed confrontation or of terroristic activities.

In the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing, media attacks have intensified. The tidal wave of articles that associate the NRA with the bombing is representative of tabloid journalism. Jerry Humphreys Spokane

Dogma, power play collide with facts

D.F. Oliveria ought to recall:

Christ was the first liberal to police public professions of faith. His commentary is found in his famous Sermon on the Mount.

As for tax credits to raise children on and vouchers for private schooling, what’s that but a demand for taxpayer largess?

The debtor nation came about because of Republican presidential policies. But there is a Christian majority in this nation; most people believe in God. That we can have a high crime rate, voluntary abortions and illegal drug use simply proves that Christian organizations misdirect their efforts. They want political power, not a cure.

Values neutrality isn’t the demon Christians make it out to be. They want to push their own values. Religion isn’t being mocked if school boards are trying to compromise between conflicting interests. Christians want exclusive interest.

Chastity is undercut the moment the boy pressures the girl to have sex. Birth control devices can help control pregnancies. Illiterate students are the fault of don’t-care parents and conflicting political interests.

Student-led prayer isn’t freedom of speech or freedom of religion. The goal is to push Christianity down people’s throats.

Seventeen-thousand third-trimester abortions becomes a horror story when someone fails to mention that the majority of them involved medical situations.

Throwing money at the American family won’t solve its problems. Government intrusion into all aspects of our lives is guaranteed with this contract.

Debt isn’t curtailed by school choices, defense spending and tax credits that go mainly to larger and wealthier families. Joan E. Harman Coeur d’Alene