Letters for Feb. 17, 2023

GOP priorities

If you’re like me, you’re getting ready to file your income taxes. Republicans want to make sure you continue to pay your taxes while they take action to shelter the ultra rich.

Their first legislative act in the House of Representatives didn’t address inflation, gas prices or immigration, but instead went after the Internal Revenue Service. The $80 billion in extra funding, set aside for the agency by the 2022’s Inflation Reduction Act, would help the IRS chase down high-income tax cheats and update IRS technology. The GOP spread myriad falsehoods about how the funds would be used. It shows the GOP priority in protecting their corporate and wealthy individual donor base.

The Republicans next legislative action was to approve a new rules package that will gut the Office of Congressional Ethics. The proposed rule changes come as OCE considers whether or not to start an investigation into Republican representatives and open them up for disciplinary action for their roles in the attack on the Capitol, and their behavior during subsequent inquiries. Run Sen. Hawley, run!

Speaker McCarthy’s ethics bar is so low you could step over it. Case in point, his continued support of Rep. Santos who is a complete fraud in the U.S. and was purportedly a drag queen while he lived in Brazil. McCarthy won’t call for his resignation because it would diminish the Republican count in the House.

Mike McCarty

Spokane

Salary caps

The “very doable idea” that major oil companies donate 50% of their profits (“Good idea for oil companies,” Feb. 9) to accommodate social services programs here and in the Ukraine, requires voting consent of their stockholders. Not likely!

Perhaps a more appropriate funding solution could include a personal salary cap of $400,000 (salary of U.S. president) for any employees, board members or consultants to nonprofit corporations and charitable foundations together with a 21% (U.S. corporate tax rate) penalty on the operations portion (including administrative expenses, salaries, lobbying, promotion costs and other indirect expenses) of said nonprofits and foundations not achieving at least 50% distribution to their charitable mission.

Charitable donations could then flow to those entities providing the best efficient and most needed services.

John Konen

Spokane

Valentine’s Day and socialism

With the arrival of February comes Valentine’s Day. Kay Jewelers is trying to equate love with costly stones. Flower delivery companies do the same with floral arrangements.

Tim Rolfe (“Check out ‘socialism’ in the Bible,” Feb. 9) has made the common mistake of confusing early Christianity with socialism. As Christians, we are exhorted to love our neighbors. This means voluntarily giving our surplus to help the less fortunate. Socialism is the mandatory taking of ones goods for the “good of the state.” In most cases, the state pockets the lion’s share for themselves.

Compassion begins when the individual places the needs of others above that of their own. The early Church had limited resources. They were hunted down by both the Romans and the Jewish Sanhedrin. It was only natural to band together and pool resources.

The Bible doesn’t command us to sell our property. If such actions are not a result of compassion, then don’t bother. God will find someone else. The story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts is an excellent warning to us.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Douglas Benn

Spokane

Blue privilege

Had enough yet? Are we finally ready to fix why law enforcement reacts so poorly so often where they police? (Suddenly it isn’t only about race.) Finally admit why we don’t share the same world, neighborhood or street?

How many of us can retire at 50 with 90% of our pay like they do in California? Or spike their pension with a sudden promotion weeks before retirement? Or get a pension tax-free by a sudden disability at retirement time? For us, it’s “what retirement pension?!”

The left has endorsed blue privilege for decades with secret collective bargaining agreements and feverishly overturned voter initiatives for more transparency. And then we wonder why the boys in blue live elsewhere and don’t know us at all? And then clamor for community policing. What a crock.

So require police to actually live in the ZIP code they police. And all the other local government admins, too, while we’re at it. No more SPD cars going home after work out of town … or maybe out of state? No more Mississippi escapes for Memphis or North Idaho escapes to privilege here. Be here.

Short of that, nothing will ever change. So what’s it going to be SPD? More elsewheres policing us? Thought so.

Mike Reno

Spokane

Failed leadership

Could someone please teach Nadine Woodward the meaning of the word “collaboration?” Fortunately for Spokane, there is a breadth of knowledgeable and insightful leaders who not only offer solutions but are willing to put forth the work while addressing two serious issues, Camp Hope and policing reform. Instead of working with these people, our mayor employs an obstructionist approach that has been an abysmal failure. She thumbs her nose at those who have the skills and knowledge to move people out of Camp Hope and who are working toward long-term solutions. Instead, she sends the police to harass the residents and threatens the agencies doing the hard work at both the local and state level.

Today, as a result of the work of these good people, Camp Hope’s population continues to shrink. None of this is the result of anything she has done, but I’m confident she will be there to take credit. In the meantime, she continues “to study” the issue. Currently under her leadership, police reform talks between community leaders and the police have fallen apart. She stood next to our police chief and said she was sorry that efforts had failed. What did she do to encourage people to stay at the table? Where was her advocacy for the citizens who were asking to be heard? Instead, she rushed to cancel the latest meeting with no effort to clarify the wishes of the disillusioned groups. Where is her leadership? So far, I haven’t seen any.

Joan Jamison

Spokane

A rebuttal

How appropriate that Mr. Blewett should write his opinion of Al French (and actually all Republicans) accusing him of self-aggrandizement (“About Al French,” Jan. 17). No one knows better about self-aggrandizement than Mr. Blewett. He claims to be a good Catholic, yet his statement of being a “lifelong” Democrat begs the question of how he can support his party’s stand on abortion, same sex marriage, etc. and still believe the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Democrats always refuse to work with Republicans on the national level. Rather than being a critic (Mr. Blewett never writes a letter of approval), why doesn’t he step up to the plate and throw his “hat” (referring to his mouth) into the ring. Why doesn’t he become a solution to the “shameful demagogic posturing” problem he sees and run for public office himself?

Elaine Bartlett

Spokane