Letters To The Editor
SPOKANE MATTERS
Use revenues for roads, not fluff
Do we really need another layer of taxes on our fuel? In Spokane County we pay nearly $100 million a year in fuel tax. Since these taxes are classed as user fees, the first priority for spending should be maintenance and construction of the roads required by those users.
There seems to be plenty of money for gadgets and fluff. Instead of pavement, we get computers for the Department of Licensing, TV ads, photo red light, photo radar, video cameras over freeways, electronic billboards on the freeway and bloated funding for public transportation and the ferry system.
We don’t need a local gas tax, just a reasonable return on the state and federal taxes that we already pay. Put the money into roads instead of fluff and we might find out that fuel taxes are already too high. Mike P. McMullin Spokane
Gas tax? Conservation tax? No and no
The Spokesman-Review recently published a graph showing how high the sales tax revenues were for the Spokane area for the past couple of years. What an income surge to Spokane county and city.
Why would I want to vote for gas tax? Why would I want to take property off the tax roles for conservation that the county can’t even maintain? Nate R. Narrance Colbert
Watch out for tax double whammy
To date, not one county in Washington state has a county option gas tax. The addition of a new gas tax to the people of Spokane County by simply taxing the state gas tax is mind boggling.
In addition to the proposed county option gas tax, the state Legislature is expected to ask for a state gas tax increase of 5 to 9 cents. Adding the two proposed gas tax increases would mean gas taxes in Spokane County would be 7 to 11 cents more. Tom Hemingway Greenacres
Conservation futures a good deal
Several months ago, I had not even heard of conservation futures. Last Sunday, I had the pleasure of visiting one of the properties purchased by the program. I took a friend and six children along for a trek through the woods to the Long Lake shoreline.
Through this wonderful experience I have come to appreciate the goals of the program. It is an appealing idea to set aside a few unspoiled places, a few undeveloped wild park lands, to enjoy with my friends and family. The same beautiful places can be visited by my children and future grandchildren.
Even as a single mom with limited funds, the costs of this program is nominal. Vote yes on conservation futures. Elaine J. Rosato Spokane
Get land handout from the state
Why do we need to add to our property tax bill to buy land to set aside as natural area?
The state owns thousands of acres of land doing nothing. Why don’t the commissioners identify lands belonging to the state and tell the state they want it?
I’m sure the magnanimous state bureaucrats would love to give it to them for free. Ken D. Bryant Spokane
Don’t let Spokane die by default
Can a city commit suicide? I am beginning to wonder, as I look at our history of rejecting the north-south freeway, the science center and now the possibility of rejecting the Lincoln Street bridge (with $24.7 million of the $36 million needed already available in federal and state funds) which is necessary for future north-south traffic and the dynamic development of downtown. Where is the healthy optimism that brought us Expo ‘74?
It’s time to say no to the naysayers, before Spokane becomes too weak to recover. Fran J. Polek Spokane
Better leadership? From Talbott?
So what if John Talbott criticizes Spokane Horizons’ planning process, although members cannot recall seeing him at any meetings. Why don’t people believe Talbott was there? Just because no one saw him? Just because he never signed in? Just because he couldn’t remember where the meetings were held?
Isn’t this the same Talbott who endlessly whines about poor leadership, yet wholeheartedly supported Chris Anderson for City Council?
Isn’t this the same Talbott who’s been turned away by Spokane voters three times? Maybe Washington’s “three strikes, you’re out” legislation should be applied.
I’m voting for Mayor Jack Geraghty. Glenn R. Lipsker Spokane
It’s Talbott vs. ‘downtown interests’
The Spokane mayoral race is The Spokesman-Review, incumbent Jack Geraghty and their combined downtown interests vs. John Talbott and his proposed citywide improvements. You make the choice on Nov. 4. William C. Johnson Spokane
Keep Holmes on the City Council
The Spokane City Council needs members who are open, unbiased and responsive to all people they are elected to serve.
Phyllis Holmes is not tied to any special interest group. Her support is diverse and broadly based throughout our community. A Spokane native, I have known her for more than 45 years. She is fiscally responsible, an independent thinker and a person of high integrity. Please vote to retain Holmes on the Spokane City Council, position 3. Lionel C. Greenwood Spokane
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Police overreach with photo radar
Over a year ago, at the Spokane City Council meeting on the subject of photo radar, only three people spoke. Most people just don’t seem to care about their rights being taken away by a growing bureaucracy.
In that meeting, Councilwoman Roberta Greene had the backbone to ask Lt. Glenn Winkey, the program head, how he would respond to critics calling the system a Big Brother-like invasion of privacy. His frightening answer was that it just makes Big Brother more efficient.
Sad, but true. With the rapid advance of technology it will be even easier for the police to micromanage our lives. Police power is frightening when it’s out of control.
At that public meeting, they refused to even name the private company that, at no cost to the city, installs the radar units and then shares in the fines - forever. We’re now franchising law enforcement.
The city estimated only seven tickets per day. However, like cities average 70 tickets per day with photo radar. Even estimating seven tickets per day and using the lowest fine of $66, the city will collect $13,860 per month, less $35 per ticket for commission.
Spokane has succeeded in selling the notion that the rights of the city are more important than the rights of its citizens. Winkey states it’s not a revenue issue, and that studies prove it reduces accidents. However, other traffic problems cannot be seen by the camera and go unpunished.
If the city’s job is really to serve the people, a public vote should be required before implementation. George A. Maness Liberty Lake
INITIATIVE 678
I-678 gives people in need a break
Initiative 678 has evolved from a rational debate between dentists and hygienists to one that involves one side degrading the other.
Issues that have been highlighted - emergency situations, cutting of gum tissues by “someone,” diagnosing dental problems, needing to be supervised, etc. - suggest that the hygienist is not sufficiently educated to perform his or her job without supervision and guidance.
I have yet to experience any of these situations, which are just scare techniques put forth by opponents of this initiative. Neither have other professionals with whom I’ve discussed this matter. Hygienists don’t perform surgery or diagnose. They do discuss potential problems with me and the dentist, clean my teeth and perform other duties that they are educated in doing.
I don’t go to my dentist expecting him to be supervising another professional. He is quite busy performing his procedures. Both professional groups are interdependent and equally trained in their respective fields.
Dental hygienists currently are licensed to treat people, unsupervised: the aged, the hospitalized, people in groups homes, state institutions, etc. Common sense suggests these people are high-risk patients, however economically disadvantaged they may be.
Denying the public the chance to choose seeing a hygienist without a dentist present will result in many disadvantaged people being denied the dental care those of us who are insured receive.
I hope voters will take the time to research the facts. Roger O. Silfvast, Ph.D. Spokane
This hygienist says no to 678
As a dental hygienist with 26 years experience in private practice, I strongly oppose Initiative 678 and beg dental consumers to take a closer look at the issues involved.
A registered dental hygienist with only three years of education and five years experience should not be given the endorsement to practice unsupervised, administer and prescribe pain control drugs and diagnose the need for sealants or restorations.
Furthermore, the cost to dental consumers will escalate, not be lowered, when dental hygienists must pay the overhead of an independent practice.
Do you have time in your schedule to make two appointments, at different locations, to see your hygienist for cleaning, then your dentist for X-rays and diagnosis?
I’ve been fortunate to work in offices where the team approach works. Through the team efforts of assistant, hygienist and dentist, we offer the best possible care by working together. When I find a suspicious area while cleaning your teeth, I ask the dentist to check it and make the diagnosis. How many diseases will go undiagnosed if you see only your hygienist for routine cleanings without a licensed dentist to make the diagnosis?
Is this really an issue of quality care at a lower cost or is it an issue of power and the need for control by a select few? Please vote no on I-678. G. Peachey Turnbull, RDH Spokane
Anti-678 drive is profit driven
Currently, a dental hygienist may perform all the duties written in Initiative 678 without a dentist in the office. The only difference between the status quo and I-678’s changes is whose pocket gets filled with the money.
It’s unfortunate that the pockets of money are lobbying against I-678 and the dental hygienists do not have the money to keep up with the negative propaganda. S.M. Woolf Spokane
I-678 about choice, reaching out
I am a registered dental hygienist licensed in Washington and Texas. My experiences over the last 22 two years of practice include working in general practice, teaching in the department of dental hygiene at Eastern Washington University for eight years and concentrating in periodontics since 1979.
Initiative 678 is not an issue of dental hygienist against dentist, as the Washington state dental lobby makes it out to be. Rather, it concerns leaving freedom of dental choice up to the public. This choice, available in Colorado and California for many years, has provided good dental care to a wider segment of the population at a lower cost. This reduced cost has been made possible by decreasing office overhead by utilizing a smaller staff and having to purchase, operate and maintain less equipment.
I-678 is about reaching out to those people not in the traditional dental circuit, educating them about their dental needs, providing them with dental hygiene services and referring them to a dentist for restorative and more-involved dental procedures.
In my 22 years as a dental hygienist, I’ve found the hygienist-dentist realtionship to be a good one. I-678 would further enhance this partnership by enabling both professions to honor our pledge for dental health to the public. Cheryl M. Grabicki Spokane
I-678 advisability hinges on trust
The issue is public trust and accountability. Patients surveyed in most public opinion polls give dentistry high marks for trust.
In an independent dental hygiene practice, where there would be no team concept, a patient will not get the same level of overall care they now receive. Who, in this fragmented structure, would ultimately be accountable?
Hygienists are unable to diagnose; they clean teeth. To be able to provide this high degree of overall care, the hygienist needs further training and experience - namely, a dental degree.
The specialist of soft tissue, gum and bone support is called a periodontist - a dentist with two or more years of specialized education. Hygienists knew the laws and rules when they undertook their education. If they wanted higher responsibility, they should’ve sought higher education.
I don’t see this as a financial or ego issue, but mainly as a public trust issue. The trust has taken many years to build and maintain. I question if we as a profession are going to jeopardize this trust by radically changing the delivery of dental care in the state of Washington. Ray Waller, D.D.S. Clarkston, Wash.
INITIATIVE 673
Pass I-673 and keep right to choose
How many times have you called your doctor and it has taken a month to get in, when you needed to be seen now? Do you feel you are getting the same quality care as you did before managed care started? Do you feel you are being rushed because your doctor is so busy?
With Initiative 673, we will have a choice. Since managed care, the doctors have been too busy to see us. If the insurance companies open up the list for all doctors meeting their credentials, it will be more fair for the consumer and the doctors. It will not make premiums go any higher than they already have. The doctors all have to follow the same fee schedule the insurance company outlines.
Do you ever wonder where the insurance companies are getting the money to put their propaganda and scare tactics on TV and radio? Do you ever wonder if it is your insurance premiums that are being used to oppose I-673? Maybe the insurance companies should be called insurance “investors.”
Vote yes on I-673. Don’t lose your right to choose your doctor. Milaine Bester Spokane
REFERENDUM 47
Put brakes on property tax
In 1995, the Legislature had the foresight to pass a 4.7 percent reduction in the state property tax for 1996. The 1997 Legislature extended the reduction and attempted to make the cut permanent.
For some reason, Gov. Gary Locke saw fit to veto this permanent cut in taxes.
Passage of Referendum 47 will make this cut in the state portion of property taxes permanent and will limit future increases to the rate of inflation. I strongly urge everyone to vote yes on Referendum 47. Edward Gunning Colbert
R-47 halts sharp escalation of tax
Referendum 47 is good for all taxpayers. As a small business owner, I urge everyone to vote yes on R-47.
R-47 stops excessive increases in our property taxes by limiting increases to the rate of inflation or 6 percent, whichever is lower.
Currently, property taxes can increase 6 percent - and double in nine years - while the rate of inflation is only about 3 percent.
Also, R-47 makes the 1995 state property tax reduction permanent. Failure of R-47 will mean the 1995 state property tax reduction was only temporary and state property taxes will increase to the pre-reduction levels. Lewis E. Welter Pullman
INITIATIVE 677
Problems here, gotchas there; Vote no
Thank you for your relatively unbiased report on Initiative 677 (“I-677 focuses on bias,” Oct. 22).
Voters, if you haven’t read your voters pamphlet, you should. The measure is common sense until you reach Section 5. It (rightfully) exempts religious and nonprofit organizations as well as companies with not more than seven employees.
What about schools? Section 6 says that the state of Washington and other political or municipal subdivisions are not immune. Does this mean we will be adding another dimension of diversity training in public schools, beginning with kindergarten?
Section 6 also allows for damages, including costs of suits, attorney and expert fees. Who pays the costs to the employer should discrimination be found? Consumers?
Section 7 defines sexual orientation as “real or perceived.” Voters are being asked to equate a perception of sexual orientation with actual civil rights discrimination laws. How this will be arrived at is spelled out in Section 8, which states, “the provisions of this act are to be liberally construed …”
As Cheryl A. Hymes of Mount Vernon, Wash., was quoted in the Oct. 22 article, “It’s time somebody stands up and says not all differences of opinion are discrimination.”
This initiative is about more than just equal employment opportunities. Vote no. Jayne A. Edens Chattaroy
Help end one facet of injustice
In this election we will vote on a historical issue, Initiative 677, to bar employment discrimination against gays and lesbians.
I-677 has endorsements from more than 60 Washington community, labor and church organizations, more than 40 elected Washington officials and major newspapers throughout the state.
An I-677 endorser, Coretta Scott King, widow of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., recently stated, “Lesbians and gays are a permanent part of the work force who currently have no protections of the arbitrary abuse of their rights on the job.
“For too long our nation has tolerated this insidious form of discrimination of this group of people who have worked as hard as any group. They have paid their taxes like everybody else. And yet they have been denied equal protection under the law.”
Dr. King warned us that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” One of his closest advisers, Bayard Rustin, was gay.
As an I-677 endorser, the Washington Council of Churches issued a statement. It stated in part that I-677 is a “simple, straightforward effort to produce a more civil society. As Christians we affirm that all God’s children are entitled to human rights and civil liberties, and ask that all fair minded Christians and people of faith vote yes on I-677.”
Please hop on board the equality train! Vote yes on I-677. Gayle E. Sorlien Quincy, Wash.
Curtailing discrimination isn’t fair
There is nothing fair about Initiative 677, as Doug Floyd describes it in his endorsement editorial of Oct. 15 (“Value fair play, not foul; Pass 677,”).
It is not fair for one segment of society - people who identify themselves by their sexual behavior - to use the full force of government regulations and civil lawsuits (including damages for emotional distress) to force private business owners to give up their constitutionally guaranteed right of association and right of free speech.
If employers are going to be forced to hire or retain people who flaunt their “real or perceived” homosexuality, bisexuality (read promiscuity) or tendency to be a transvestite, then the employer’s freedom to choose whom they will associate with has been destroyed. Employers may want to hire people they admire for their character as well as their job skills.
What is fair about taking away an American citizen’s right to speak out against harmful, deviant sexual practices or immoral behavior?
Sexual preference should not guarantee anyone a job. If an employer doesn’t like me because, say, I’m a conservative, he can decide not to hire me. Why should homosexuals get special civil rights? If passed, radical, invasive government regulations would be required.
It is not fair to take away our free right of association, that right of personal conscience inherent in our Constitution.
Vote no on I-677. Penny A. Lancaster Spokane
Unnecessary windfall for lawyers
One scary thing about poorly written Initiative 677 is that it allows lawsuits to be filed against employers, unions and co-workers for discrimination based on real or “perceived” sexual orientation. This should give the lawyers and courts lots of added business.
Then the definition for sexual orientation is wide open under I-677. There are no exemptions. Having studied abnormal psychology, this could include sex with animals, infants, dead bodies …
Supporters of I-677 would have you believe there is widespread employment discrimination against homosexuals. According to Simmons Market Research and U.S. Census Bureau in the Wall Street Journal (July 18, 1991), homosexuals are better educated and earn higher incomes than most people. The average annual household income for homosexuals is $55,430. Homosexuals are three times more likely than average Americans to be college graduates and to hold professional or managerial positions.
Based on this, it makes one wonder if the heterosexuals are the ones being discriminated against. Vote no on I-677. B.M. Shannon Spokane
INITIATIVE 676
Opponents distort what measure says
Letters opposing Initiative 676 are rife with misinformation. For example, Lyle F. Beaudoin (Oct. 26) states that I-676 prohibits parents from teaching their children, even though the text of the initiative (Sec. 14) says, “A person handling or using a handgun under the immediate supervision of an individual with a valid Washington handgun safety license” is exempt. Walter A. Becker Pullman
Constitutionality argument specious
In a recent letter, Paul Murray wrote that Initiative 676 would “gut a vital part of our (state) Constitution.”
This is patently untrue.
I-676 recognizes the right of the individual to own a handgun but it requires the handgun owner to exercise responsibility and verify that she or he knows how to safely handle and store the handgun.
We are all probably aware of the language of the Washington state Constitution, in Article I, Sec. 24. I suspect that many are not as familiar with case law, beginning in 1939, State vs. Tully and continuing through to a 1994 decision, State vs. Spencer, that consistently supports the state’s right to regulate gun ownership for the safety and health of our citizens.
It is for this reason that the comparison between a poll tax, which prevented people from voting, and I-676, which requires a license to ensure proper handgun use for public safety, is deceptive. Pamela C. Behring Spokane
Bad law pushed with bogus arguments
Initiative 676 is the biggest con game ever perpetrated within Washington state. I know this because I’ve seen them all as chief of the Spokane Police Department.
The drafters of this intrusive initiative want you to believe that more individuals are killed in the state of Washington by guns than by cars. Comparing motor vehicle-related deaths, which are primarily accidental, to firearms-related deaths, which are primarily murders and suicides, is like comparing apples to oranges.
Those promoting I-676 as a lifesaving measure include in their statistics suicide, gang-related murder and homicides. I-676 supporters would like you to believe that this initiative will reduce the number of gang murders, homicides and suicides. I don’t believe that will happen.
Obviously, gang murder cannot be controlled through firearm regulation because the firearms used are acquired either by theft or on the black market. The only way to stop this violence is by locking up those who commit these crimes for a very long time.
Firearms are used in suicides because they are successful. If a gun is not available, a suicide-prone person will find another way.
In the last five years in Washington, less than one child a year was accidentally killed by firearms accidents, while firearms ownership has increased by more than 50 percent.
Look at the facts, not at those who tend to misquote, misrepresent and misinterpret the statistics in order to promote their own agendas.
I-676 is a bad law. Vote no. Terry Mangan, chief Spokane Police Deparment
Ignore paranoia and read what it says
If your opinion on Initiative 676 is based on “the NRA says no, I say no,” read no further. If you are a thoughtful person who makes independent decisions, you may wish to read the initiative yourself, rather than depend on the noisy, inaccurate, paranoid rhetoric which has been directed against the initiative.
You will see that it concerns firearms safety, not taking away freedom. It requires handguns to be sold with a trigger lock and people who own them to demonstrate that they have had safety training by obtaining a safety license. To obtain that license, individuals may only need to show they have had previous training, pass a test or take an eight-hour course.
What we’re doing now does not work. In the last 10 years, the firearm-related death rate has been increasing, particularly among young people. By the year 2000, it is predicted in Washington state that firearm-related deaths will exceed the death rate from motor vehicle accidents.
On any average day in the United States, one young child dies in an unintentional shooting. I-676 provides a reasonable and responsible way to end this tragic trend. W. Ross Coble Spokane
Think about curbs on self-protection
Recently, Bill Robertson of Stevens County used his handgun to defend his family from an armed intruder (“Stevens County man kills armed intruder,” Oct. 15).
We will never know what would have happened if Roberston had been disarmed by Initiative 676, but we know he and his children are alive and well today without the needless bureaucratic restrictions I-676 would impose.
So are Marty Killinger and the other “pistol-packing grandmas” of Moses Lake, and many other Washington citizens.
How many people must die to satisfy the backers of I-676? David H. Wordinger Medical Lake
Reasons to vote no plentiful
Here are six reasons why you should vote no on Initiative 676.
1. I-676 is not about safety, it is about gun registration and confiscation. Later, they will come after your rifles and shotguns.
2. Trigger locks are unsafe devices on loaded guns and are not needed on unloaded guns.
3. If passed, I-676 will be costly to every home that has a handgun and it will create an expensive licensing bureaucracy.
4. If passed, I-676 will be discriminatory to the poor, the elderly and the many women who pack guns for selfprotection.
5. I-676 will not change a criminal’s behavior, drive-by shootings or gang shootings.
6. But most of all, I-676 would not only be a slap in the face but a direct insult to the thousands of men and women who served in the armed forces and died for our country in past wars to protect our freedom and rights. Tony Delgado Loon Lake
Rights, yes - with responsibilities
The good citizens who oppose the trigger locks and operator’s license on guns have not given me one solid reason to support their fight against Initiative 676.
Their thousands of yard signs, billboards, radio ads and electronic reader boards have not answered this question: Is your “right to bear arms” without license and lock more important than the lives of children?
To a great number of us, the reasons to vote for I-676 are profoundly important. I do not understand the argument that this initiative interferes with the right of a citizen to own a gun.
In an interview on National Public Radio regarding I-676, a man said there should not be locks and licenses on weapons, that children should be educated on gun safety by parents. Has this person or the people he represents ever raised a child? Children are curious by nature and they make mistakes. They fall down stairs. They run indoors, sometimes with scissors and they break windows with baseballs. They do not always do what is right, no matter how well we teach them. They should not pay for mistakes with their lives or the lives of their friends of siblings.
I need more substantial reason than “it is my right to own and operate a gun” to oppose I-676. With rights come responsibilities. Brenda L. Anderson Spokane
INITIATIVE 685
Made to order for drug dealers
I am a physician who has experienced the discomfort of four major surgeries and the trials and side effects of prolonged intensive chemotherapy. Considering this experience, I can state that there is absolutely no need to pass Initiative 685.
All necessary medications involved in passage of I-685 are already available via prescriptions written by those same physicians who, under I-685, would “recommend” their use.
It might be cheaper to grow your own, and of course there is the added benefit of selling your surplus to the kids at the school playground. The active ingredient in marijuana is available in pill form, avoiding the need to smoke it.
Consider this: We have mounted a national campaign against smoking for health reasons, yet smoking marijuana probably has as much health and cancer risk as smoking cigarettes.
I suspect this initiative and its sister, 676, both have hidden agendas.
I-685 is made to order for drug dealers and potheads. I suggest we let those who want a cheap, legal, mindaltering drug sniff glue or gasoline. Both have about the same level of health risks as marijuana or homegrown heroin.
Let us not create more legalized drugs. With tobacco, alcohol and diet pills we have more than sufficient legal drugs to ruin our health. Vote no on I-685. Dan W. Habel, M.D. Spokane
OFFICE SEEKERS
Explain spending cuts before the vote
Many current political candidates claim funds are available in current budgets for anything we want to do, at all political levels. I challenge any candidate claiming this to tell voters before the election, just what present governmental programs and functions will be cut to provide these funds and how much each cut will provide. Any candidate who refuses, for whatever reason, is just breaking wind through his or her mouth. Eric C. Johnson Spokane
IN THE REGION
Boyle best choice for sewer commission
Here we go again! Can we ever have an election without the mud-slinging, exaggerations to the point of fabrication, quoting statements out of context to alter the intended meaning? Can we ever have an election where candidates are honestly interested in working for the good of the whole community? Can we ever have an election where the candidate is not fronting for some vested interest or with self-gain in mind? Can we ever have an election where the candidate’s goal is to represent the people and work to fulfill their desires?
In the Liberty Lake sewer commissioner’s election, my selection is Frank Boyle. I have attended more meetings of the sewer commissioners than any other citizen in the past few years. Here are my observations.
Boyle lives on Liberty Lake shoreline, has no invested property around the lake or watershed. He understands that local property values are directly related to the quality of the lake water. He has worked hard to protect the lake from pollution problems both existing and potential. He has always been a leader in maintaining the lowest possible rates.
His occupation is with the U.S. Post Office and it is not affected by decisions made by the sewer district commissioners. He studies arising problems from all angles, explores all possible solutions and seeks the feelings of the community.
Compare the candidates’ backgrounds and purpose for running. Base your decision on facts. Let’s get out of the old political election rut. Wilson K. Conaway, Ph.D. Liberty Lake
Chewelah needs knowledgeable mayor
The contest for mayor of Chewelah is not really between a good guy and a questionable character, as suggested in recent articles by Spokesman-Review staff writer John Craig.
The voters of Chewelah have a clear choice between a well-prepared and qualified candidate and a clearly unqualified candidate.
While Lew Arnold has made himself available to answer questions and discuss any issue, Ron McCoy did not respond to written questions and did not appear at the Oct. 22 candidates forum at the American Legion Hall. McCoy has been unwilling or unable to express any coherent views on the issues that concern Chewelah’s citizens.
His advisers, and many supporters, shrug this off and respond with more personal attacks on Arnold’s character.
McCoy seems like a nice guy but has only minimal education and no relevant experience. He’s repeatedly and publicly admitted that he knows nothing about city government or the job of mayor. The only thing he has going for him is an engaging personality and a bee in his bonnet to become a city official.
This was not enough to get him elected in Republic or to the Chewelah City Council. It is unlikely to be enough to get him elected mayor of Chewelah.
Arnold, like most of us, has had some problems in his past. On the other hand, he is well-educated, trained to be a leader and has a clear understanding of the needs of the city and job he is seeking.
If you think about it, it isn’t really a contest. Jim H. Titus Chewelah, Wash.
Harmon puts Airway Heights first
Re: Letter from Clarence T. Smith (Oct. 25) about Mayor Don Harmon and the City Council meetings in Airway Heights.
I think Smith must be attending the wrong meetings. I attend most of the City Council meetings in Airway Heights and have never seen Smith.
I have seen Mayor Harmon treat all people equally. Sometimes, public comment has gone on for 45 minutes so that everyone can have a chance to talk and address any issues they wish. I have seen Brian Grady get impatient and irritated and cut people off during public comment.
As far as the council meeting minutes, I have copies of the minutes, why doesn’t Smith? The minutes are available to everyone who wants them. They are in print or you can get a video of the council meetings themselves. Does Smith really think the mayor has time to edit the council meetings?
What special deals has Harmon made to bring business and housing to Airway Heights? He doesn’t own a business and has no special interest except Airway Heights. Grady owns a business in Airway Heights. Do you really think he is going to think of Airway Heights first over his own business?
Harmon has done a great job for Airway Heights. He has been a good mayor and we need him. He’s the only choice for mayor. Elizabeth Brush Medical Lake
PEOPLE IN SOCIETY
Homophobia is the real threat
Re: staff writer Virginia de Leon’s Oct. 18 article about John Deen’s “Coming Out,” The primary pathology here is not with the homosexuals but with the reactions of us who are heterosexual.
Example: During World War II, homosexuals were often associated with spying or being secret agents for the Axis. Sometimes they were, but not because they were primarily disloyal. The enemy was looking for misfits in the military with valuable information and us normals made the homosexuals misfits by our attitude. If their “misfit” details were revealed to the commanding officer, they were demoted in some way and our enemies took advantage of the situation.
With all the real problems we have, let’s not create ones where they don’t exist. Just let it be. George W. Bagby Spokane