Letters To The Editor

IDAHO VIEWPOINTS

Keep prisoners, money in Idaho

It was shocking to read on June 13 that the state of Idaho intends to spend nearly $1 million per month to house prisoners in other states.

I worked in the corrections field in Alaska and Washington for nearly 30 years. Alaska’s practice was to send prisoners “outside” for incarceration. Not only was that expensive, it denied the prisoner’s family an opportunity to visit. It was found that without family contact, it was difficult to foster rehabilitation through family counseling. It also made pre-release job opportunities impossible and release planning more difficult.

This practice was found to be ineffective and cost-prohibitive. Instead, we began to design rehabilitative programs in the local communities using the same dollars that would have been spent to send the prisoner away.

Since moving to Idaho, I’ve found that many of the prisoners are incarcerated for property crimes, misdemeanors or driving offenses. It seems to me that the $1 million per month could be spent more productively by developing local programming for these offenders and locking up only the violent and repeat offenders. This should reduce the prison population considerably. It should also allow prisoners to maintain family contact, participate in work-release programs, do community service and prepare for release in a more productive manner, thus reducing repeat offenses.

Over $11 million per year contracted to private agencies for specialized programming can go a long way toward providing better services to our prisoners and jobs for local residents. Legislators, let’s keep our prisoners and our money in the state. Carla A. Strane Spirit Lake

Trust NIC board leadership

Recent front page news about North Idaho College difficulties because of President Robert Bennett’s departure and student body and staff concerns prompt this letter.

I have served the community on several levels as an unpaid volunteer. I therefore understand the angst on both sides of this issue. Unfortunately, the public has no way of knowing the ins and outs of policies, procedures, legal and ethical, unless they were there.

I’d assure those concerned that Jeanne Givens, chairwoman of the trustees, is a prudent, caring and capable leader who has given to this community and the state over 15 years in service. She and the board must comply with strict legal constraints. The misunderstanding of this format has caused undue heartache for all. Please try to understand those constraints.

Try volunteering for the two trustee vacancies (not caused by the board) or for any other public office. Maybe we should all have to serve, as in jury duty. Then there would be more compassion for those who care enough to make this world a better place. A thank you to those who have. Lee M. Ray Coeur d’Alene

WASHINGTON STATE

West Side chauvinism insulting

The majority of us Spokane residents are urbanites-suburbanites who live an urban-suburban lifestyle similar to the Seattle-Bellevue resident, without the hautiness Seattle Times columnist Erik Lacitis displayed recently (“After all, Puget crowd shares wealth,” Opinion, June 22).

To label us “country kin” or “country hicks” who need to push aside our pigs and chickens to make a path for ourselves is an insult and based upon an erroneous impression of our contemporary environment.

Contrary to Lacitis’ implication that we have only one or two functional brain cells, we have enough brain cells. They are apparently greater in number than Lacitis’, as we can perceive that Paul Allen’s henchmen are depriving us of data, as Opinion editor John Webster pointed out in his rebuttal. Lacitis and most Western Washingtonians have been duped into a partial scenario - the rosiest part, of course.

Most of us who voted against Referendum 48 prioritize basic needs such as education, street repair, law enforcement, health care, etc., much higher than building a redundant playground for the affluent.

In addition to Webster’s points, no one has addressed the possibility the project might fail, leaving the bonds worthless. Remember the Washington Public Power Supply System’s multi-billion dollar failure? The bond owner paid most of the loss for that one. Neither Allen nor the state Legislature has made any guarantee that taxpayers will escape liability in the event of failure.

Lacitis owes us Eastern Washingtonians an apology. John D. Brown Spokane

Where will ‘Seaturkeys’ play?

The mayor of Seattle just announced that his city will make adjustments so the motoring public and truckers can make their way around construction for the new (unwanted in Eastern Washington) stadium. Sounds like it will take five years to build.

My question is, where will the Seaturkeys play in the meantime? Won’t have to worry about the hotel tax overflowing the coffers from the spectators. I have already gotten used to seeing them on the TV. (I watch them with one eye, when theirs is the only game on the tube.) Sometimes, I find watching paint dry to be more exciting.

I guess we have seen the meaning of the Golden Rule: He who has the gold rules. Charles E. McCollim

PEOPLE IN SOCIETY

Sports domain of ‘unsatisfiable egos’

Seattle Times columnist Eric Lacitis’ analysis (Opinion, June 22) of the no vote in Eastern Washington on the Seahawks stadium was not only a poor attempt at humor, but also lacked journalistic depth.

I’m sure many voted no for the same reasons I did. My no vote wasn’t just a vote against the stadium, but against professional sports in general. Why should anyone want to support a profession that has run amok? Athletes and owners demand and receive millions in salaries, endorsements and profits. For what? They contribute little to society or humanity, other than their own .

Whether sports are played in an enormous monument to Paul Allen or on a high school playing field, you should keep in mind the reasons they are played at all. They are normally played to instill beneficial character traits in individuals: fair play, teamwork, loyalty, humility - the list goes on. Spectator entertainment is only secondary. Sadly, I see most of these attributes lacking in the sports programs of today.

As long as we condone attitudes that border on blackmail, this profession will not change.

Jay Buhner was once quoted as saying, “I’m just like the guy who packs a lunch pail and goes to work.” How many people do you know who have the same benefit package as Buhner? Professional sports people justify their position by exclaiming: “We’re in the expensive entertainment business. Therefore, we’re entitled to all we receive.”

Surely, this isn’t the reason most athletes begin to compete on the playing field or in the game of life. James A. Nelson Spokane

Performance was ‘equity in motion’

I had the pleasure last Friday evening of attending a performance of the Columbia Ballet Theatre. Under the expert direction of teacher Katherine Crow, the students performed a varied dance program with the poise and grace of seasoned professionals. The skill of these young performers was only the beginning.

The recent abundance of articles examining the equity issue crossed my mind as I sat in the dark. It occurred to me that Crow is an example of equity in motion. She supports the talent of young people who, as staff writer Julie Sullivan stated in her June 19 article, may “lack genetically perfect ballet bodies.”

Crow reminded us, with the assistance of her students, that equity is more than rhetoric. She assisted in creating an outstanding performance while honoring the talents of a diverse group of young people. Bravo! Alice A. Keating Spokane