Letters for Dec. 24, 2023

Don’t forget the fallen

Amid all the attention focused on the passing of Sandra Day O’Connor and Rosalynn Carter recently, does anyone remember the eight Airmen lost in an aircraft crash off the coast of Japan just three weeks ago? Some are being buried this very week. What about the five Special Ops soldiers killed in a helicopter crash in the Mediterranean Sea earlier the same month? Or the three Marines who died during a training exercise in Australia in August, the three Army pilots killed in Alaska in April, or the nine soldiers lost in a mid-air collision near Fort Campbell in March? Outside of these high-profile losses, what about the dozens of other individual servicemembers who died while serving in uniform this year, that you rarely hear about? Why is the nation not flying its flags at half-staff in their honor?

Undoubtedly the deaths of a former Supreme Court justice and a former first lady are noteworthy, but among their accomplishments neither of them ever put their lives directly on the line in the defense of this nation and its liberty. So, by all means render them appropriate recognition, but never forget those who have made the ultimate sacrifice while serving and defending our national security. There are dozens of empty places around their families’ tables this Christmas, and that’s a heartbreak that never goes away. We need to remember that freedom’s price is extremely high and honor the valor and commitment of those who have paid it.

John Lyons

Spokane

Sen. Risch in Dec. 17 paper

Great profile on Sen. Risch in the Dec. 17 paper (“How Idaho Sen. Risch became a leader on foreign policy”). It underscores again the value of having a Washington correspondent. Donovan-Smith has amazing access: multiple conversations with Risch himself, other area legislators (Sens. Crapo and Cantwell, Rep. Fulcher, and former Chief Justice of the Idaho Supreme Court Jim Jones are all quoted in this piece). Also, those from beyond (Sens. Barrasso, Romney, Rounds, Rubio, Vance among Republicans; Democrats Shaheen and Coons are also cited).

This is unique to The S-R. I don’t know of any other paper west of the Mississippi with a comparable circulation that has a Washington correspondent. Donovan-Smith does a superb job of making national and international stories relevant locally. Politicians from our area may not take calls from the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times, but they will take his because they know their constituents will be reading about it.

Ryan Crocker

Spokane

No quote from Jewish students

It’s great that the Spokesman is reporting on the climate of hate on college campuses since Hamas’ gruesome Oct. 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza (“Here’s how universities in the Inland Northwest are addressing antisemitism and islamophobia,” Dec. 15). This is a difficult, uncomfortable, but critical topic to cover. That said, I was dismayed to see not a single Jewish student or representative of the Jewish community quoted in your recent article.

Surely the newspaper could have reached a member of Gonzaga’s Jewish Student Union Club or the Jewish chaplain on campus for comment? If that didn’t work, did the reporter reach out to the synagogue or other Jewish organizations in Spokane for assistance finding a voice?

While I appreciate hearing that a member of Gonzaga’s Muslim Student Association “was unaware of any antisemitism expressed” at a recent anti-Israel protest on campus, as paraphrased by the Spokesman, wouldn’t it be as important to hear Jewish students’ assessments of that? New polling shows that a whopping 60% of 18- to 24-year-old Americans think Hamas’ atrocities “can be justified.” The impact of that on Jewish students deserves to be highlighted.

Sadly, this glaring omission is exactly the kind of bias – and, when intentional, gaslighting – that Jewish people have been experiencing nonstop these past two months. I trust that the Spokesman can do better.

Jordana Lewis

Spokane