Letters To The Editor

From Letters to the Editor, November 22 and November 23, 1999: Correction Due to a downloading error, 1/2 was dropped from the text of Tom Agnew’s Nov. 19 letter. Agnew wrote about the precedent for development space that would be set, in his view, if county commissioners approve The Orchards at Liberty Lake. References to “mile” should’ve read half mile.

REMEMBRANCE

We will remember, pray for Valiree

I never knew Valiree Jackson, only her picture. It is a picture of an innocent 9-year-old girl. A face beautiful with sparkling eyes and a smile that could have only given joy to everyone. A face of kindness, goodness and love.

My heart is heavy with sadness, a sadness shared by our entire community. This Thanksgiving Day, as my family and friends gather around my dinner table, Valiree will be remembered in our prayers. We take comfort in knowing that she is in God’s care now.

Time will heal this profound loss. But no one in this community will ever forget. Arlene H. Giles Spokane

WASHINGTON STATE

Just cut everything 2 percent

Every time I watch a newscast, I sit and simmer. I see high-income supervisors, paid by our overtaxed dollars, throw up their hands and threaten the very people who pay them to solve problems. The fire chief just today threatened delayed dangerous response times for fire and medical emergencies unless they could either charge a fee or start their own ambulance service.

The police threaten to lay off many officers statewide and shut down the cop shops. The health department will become destitute. Transportation announced frightening predictions concerning highway construction and maintenance, and forecasts drastic traffic problems, including the crippling of bus and ferry services.

The supposedly brilliant people we elected to manage our overall Spokane city problems also seem stumped when it comes to finding a sensible solution for the Initiative 695 fund reduction.

Here is a suggestion. We citizen are the employers who hired these employees to solve problems rationally and carry out our directives. Try this approach. Convene with all the mayors, councilmen, commissioners, police and fire chiefs, transportation department executives and the health department officers on the steps of the state Capitol Building. Ask the Legislature and the governor to please mandate a 2 percent across-the-board-budget cut, statewide, to cover the I-695 revenue loss. If you succeed, and can manage this 2 percent cut yourselves, we (your employer) may take you back next time you show up for re-hiring.

Following the plans you now intend to put in place constitutes a do-not-rehire, in my book. Ben A. Overland Spokane

We’re top-heavy with geniuses

Initiative 695 had a surprising and a positive effect. In its wake, many letters to the editor demonstrate that we have a wide pool of exceptional skills in this area. People who do not stop at the surface but base their statement on deep knowledge. This way they came to the conclusion that government is all about bureaucrats and waste, and consequently, every cut is beneficial.

They don’t stop at theoretical levels, they go down to practical advice and again, we can only admire their spirit of innovation: Cut 2 percent of expenditure across all departments. Cut 4.5 percent from all departments. Cut the fat - don’t you dare to cut substantial services.

And, of course, some volunteer even the method of how to cut: Who needs public transportation? Well, if somebody does, let them pay for it. Let people pay only for services they use.

If I-695 is just a little fat cutting, that cannot hurt. It was just a question of time before somebody came to a logical conclusion: Eliminate all taxes.

A Nov. 17 letter suggests eliminating property taxes. Well, what about the sales tax? The authors are by no means boring bookworms. Some use phrases such as “the peasants have spoken,” sounding almost like the great presidential hopeful, Pat Buchanan. Way to go!

It is fortunate that we live close to people who not only had the courage to vote for I-695 but who had it all analyzed well in advance. Maybe some day they will show the whole world how to get something for nothing - and, yes, win the Nobel Prize for it. Peter C. Dolina Ph.D. Veradale

Politicians had plenty of time

Re: Sharon K. Leon’s letter of Nov. 12.

Gov. Gary Locke, as well as those who have held the office before him, have had more then ample time to fix the problems with regard to the license tab tax. The same can be said about other politicians and those high up in the political bureaucracy.

I don’t know why, after all their efforts to avoid fixing this problem, people think that they should be given still more time. I would sooner expect a 6-year-old to behave without adult supervision then to expect fiscal responsibility from most politicians and bureaucrats.

What had our state government most worried was the idea that people would find out just how much money they were wasting, plus how much was being diverted to projects that had nothing to do with transportation.

This, more then anything, convinced me to vote yes for Initiative 695. That and the television ads that talked about cutting back essential services, especially for children and senior citizens, if I-695 passed. These ads were nothing more then veiled threats and attempts to scare the public into voting no on I-695. Ernest J. Chamberlain Spokane

SPOKANE MATTERS

Sheriff’s team did terrific job

The horrendous murder of little Valiree Jackson touches the heart of everyone in the Spokane community. But in addition to the grief and sadness we all feel over this terrible crime, we should take great pride in the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department for what was, by all indications, a superb piece of police work.

In sharp contrast to so many bungled investigations elsewhere, the sheriff’s department stands out as a world-class police agency. Compare the way this case was handled to the way the O.J. Simpson, JonBenet Ramsey, Waco, and other infamous investigations were botched by what were supposed to be some of the best investigative agencies in the country.

The patience, judgment and professionalism of the sheriff’s department will ensure that this horrible crime does not go unpunished.

Kudos to Sheriff Mark Sterk and his officers for a job well done! Gene Greeson Nine Mile Falls

Momentous decision in the offing

Imagine Spokane County commissioners deciding to surround every lake and river in the county with a mile-wide strip of urban scale development, regardless of zoning or comprehensive plan designation. Of course you think this isn’t possible. You’re certain you would have heard or read about a precedent-setting decision of this magnitude if it were in the making. And yet, this is exactly the precedent the county commissioners are currently deciding.

This devastating precedent is buried in the details of a proposed rezone from rural to urban of 100 acres at Liberty Lake called The Orchards. The Liberty Lake Property Owners Association has appealed a hearing examiner decision. It’s now up to the county commissioners.

Due to a mind-numbing public process and volumes of obtuse attorney and hearing examiner rationale, very few understand the portent of this urgent dilemma.

Picture yourself on the shoreline, relaxing at your favorite waterfront setting. Turn and look away from the water to the fields and hills, and imagine them covered for a distance of miles with rooftops, roads, yards and strip malls. This would ruin the Inland Northwest waterfront setting most of us treasure, not to mention threatening the very life of the bodies of water themselves.

If the county commissioners were to approve The Orchards at Liberty Lake, they would set the precedent allowing urban development of all shoreline areas in the county.

It’s now in the hands of the county commissioners. Tom Agnew Liberty Lake

Charitable giving on a positive track

I was disappointed in interactive editor Doug Floyd’s assessment of philanthropy in our community and dismayed that a journalist clearly in support of charitable giving would focus on the negative.

The individual level of giving is increasing and becoming more broad based. We have seen this in the seven years since the founding of the Women Helping Women Fund. Each year, our numbers have increased, as has the level of giving. In May, 2,150 women and men gave over $288,000 to help others. At WHWF, we see that the “communal complex” emphasizes the adage that “we can do it.” When given the opportunity and the appropriate avenue, people in Spokane do rise to the challenge.

If we want Spokane to move forward, I urge us to focus on the many things that are going right and resist the temptation to frame the topic in a negative context.

If it is true that you “move toward what you think about,” let us think about how we can laud and support all who raise their levels of giving to create a positive legacy in our community. I assure you. the list grows longer and is very diverse. Mari Clack, co-founder Women Helping Women Fund, Spokane

OVER THE LINE

Opposition dealing in propaganda

After listening to the save-the-aquifer arguments against locating Burlington Northern Santa Fe’s fueling facility in “their backyard,” it is pretty clear they are using the water quality issue as a scare scenario to drum up support. Their real motive has to be a ridiculous belief that if they stop BNSF, the trains will go away and they will restore some kind of pristine quality to their community.

We know they are just using this issue for other motives since there are really no water quality issues left with the ultraconservative engineering and planning accomplished to stop any exposure of the water resource to contamination.

The opponents’ tactics are obvious. They put a big spin on trying to make an interpretation of law, planning guidelines and even the science of probability to argue some sort of improbable catastrophic impact on our water source. It is all a bunch of easily recognized spin that gets wildly used by the ultraconservative and minority anti-growth population element.

There are huge and vital reasons for supporting responsible improvement of business and community infrastructure to handle the continued population influx to our area.

There are no gates at the state line and we should prepare to handle in a responsible manner this continuing growth in people and commerce that flows through our area. It benefits everyone to recognize an outstanding job that BNSF has proposed for responsible growth and industrial improvement of their business. George L. Wilhelm Coeur d’Alene

Where drinking is a matter of course

Have you heard that Washington State University is going to have a new elective course? It’s called Drinking 101. The students not taking responsibility for their actions when they drink take Drinking 101-b. Norman Schroder Moscow

EVENTS

Bible Week is for reading

National Bible Week begins on Sunday, so it’s time to dust off the national best seller and actually read it. Begin with these basic facts:

The Bible does not claim to be “the word of God.”

Nobody, whether Jewish, Catholic, Orthodox or Protestant, can agree on how many books constitute the Bible.

The Bible is not entirely reliable as a history book. It’s worse than useless as a science text.

There are hundreds of errors and contradictions throughout the Bible.

Many books in the Bible were written by unknown authors. For example, the first five books in the Bible were not written by Moses. Similarly, the Gospels were also written by anonymous authors.

In the Hebrew Bible, Satan is not God’s enemy, but a member of the heavenly household who acts as God’s prosecutor or obstructing angel.

The walking and talking snake who advised Eve to eat the forbidden fruit (not an apple) was not Satan but a very crafty animal that God had just made.

Nowhere in the Bible is there an itemized, numbered list of the so-called Ten Commandments.

In the entire Hebrew Bible no one died and went to heaven to be with God.

The term Old Testament (O.T.) is a propaganda name applied by Christians to the Hebrew Bible. The Greek books in Christian Bibles are then called the New Testament (N.T.).

There isn’t a single reference to or prophecy of Jesus in the Hebrew Bible (O.T.).

If you didn’t know these truths about the Bible, please read it again. Ralph Nielsen Moscow

PEOPLE IN SOCIETY

Show runners, walkers consideration

I am constantly appalled at the disrespect shown those who exercise outside. This includes bicyclists, runners, joggers and, my personal favorite, walkers.

I walk down many North Side blocks not benefited at all with sidewalks. Walking on the roadway is my only recourse.

I exercise to lose weight. It is ecologically sound and I cannot afford the luxury of a car. Ultimately, a bus or walking to my destination is my fate. While many walkers, runners, joggers and bicyclists do so for the exercise, it would still be nice to know that by exercising our right and need to exercise, regardless of when or why, we are not dominated by drivers with a lead foot and/or no consideration for others.

Please share the road and the city with those who choose an alternative, more physically active mode of transportation. Theresa Osterhaus Spokane

Pain doesn’t matter, learning does

It is Saturday morning and I sit down to read the paper. I am stunned by the front page article concerning the right-to-die issue.

Life is full of ups and downs. We have had our share in my family. The ups and downs are difficult. That is how we learn in this life. And we don’t learn much from the ups. It is usually the downs that teach us the lessons we are meant to learn. Pain is not fun and continuous pain even worse. But each of us has power in ourselves to rise above the pain. In serious times and bad times, isn’t the result usually good if you look for it? I tell my children, always look for the good. That is what will get you through anything.

This issue of killing each other to keep us from feeling pain in our lives is a huge one. Many people have many viewpoints and not many people agree on any two points. Where will this whole idea take us? “Bad day at work, hon? Here’s the poison for just that purpose.”

“Didn’t get the A you wanted? Here’s the one for that.”

Extreme, maybe, but to what end are we heading?

I urge everyone to think about the selfishness of these ideas and where it will lead us. No one wants to suffer or watch someone suffer but we were given life and it is not ours to take. We were given life to learn and that is what we must do. Lynn W. Leonard Spokane

OTHER TOPICS

Urge defeat of right-to-suffer bill

Congress is soon to vote on legislation that will nullify Oregon’s twice-passed law allowing doctors to facilitate death under certain stringent conditions. Passage of the new law will ensure that terminally ill people in great pain will suffer greater pain and greater loss of dignity for a longer period than they would if given the choice.

Congress has decided that your desire to alleviate this hopeless situation is immoral. I know wherefore I speak, having been a hospice worker for two years. The drug cocktails used to alleviate serious pain usually render the sufferer senseless. I watched patient after patient wait to die, wait to be set free from their particular agonies.

Be aware that no one in Congress would allow his favorite pet to suffer thusly, but they would ask you to permit such treatment of yourself or your loved one.

The number of Oregonians who have chosen assisted suicide is very small, which shows how baseless fears are that Americans will kill off benefactors for their money or to harvest their organs. These hysterical fears once again show how frightened and how small-thinking our Congress is.

The immorality lies with those contemplating this new legislation attempting to thwart the will of the people, not with those who support the right to die. Contact your senators. Ilene Bell Sandpoint