Letters for May 29

Many other grants are also canceled

Recently in The Spokesman-Review were two articles about canceled grants for local projects. One was for Gonzaga’s Climate Grant and the other was the grant for the Tech Hub in Airways Heights. There were plenty of complaints and much arm raising over the loss of these grants by regional, federal and local politicians.

I am not here to say whether either one is good and needed and beneficial to the Spokane area. My point is there are, for sure, hundreds or thousands of other just as justifiable grant requests that are canceled or never granted in the first place. Why do we think “our” grants are more deserving than someone else’s?

It is so easy to say, “Don’t cut my project, cut that guy’s project over there,” while at the same time, he is saying the same thing.

The national debt is currently $36.21 trillion. That is a lot of money by anybody’s accounting, and it is growing daily! A raise of hands if you please: Who is in favor of accumulating even more debt?

I thought so. We will never see our country without a massive debt like this in our lifetime, of that of our kids and our grandkids, yet we keep wanting to add to it with more projects for the federal government (that is, taxpayers) to fund.

Lee Hirschel

Spokane

Investing in salmon would boost regional economy

Recently, Gov. Ferguson signed legislation raising fees for hunting and fishing licenses by nearly 40% and increasing the Discover Pass from $30 to $45. In a time of severe statewide budget deficits, revenue generation through Washington’s recreation economy is a reminder of the other recreation-based economic opportunities that we are missing out on throughout the state as a result of our nearly extinct salmon and steelhead populations and sick waterways, namely the lower Snake River.

In the U.S., the sports fishing industry generates $230.5 billion annually and supports 1.1 million jobs. In rural areas especially, spending on gear rentals, guide services and licenses can serve as a huge force of economic stimulus. Currently, however, many communities along the lower Snake are missing out. Many salmon and steelhead populations are too close to extinction to be fishable, and the river itself has been dammed into a series of too hot reservoirs – sometimes with toxic algal blooms – that most recreationists choose to avoid.

I urge our members of Congress to move us on a pathway toward healthy rivers, abundant salmon and thriving local economies through comprehensive solutions like the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative. Let’s duplicate the Klamath, where salmon are already rebounding less than two years later, numerous rapids have been uncovered and recreation is ballooning. If we instead continue to allow salmon to go extinct, it would be a failure by the government to uphold its treaty obligations and prevent us from realizing a massive economic opportunity.

Chris Pinney

Walla Walla

Republican logic falls way short

In a May 20 Spokesman-Review article, Rep. Baumgartner lamented perceived liberal bias at PBS and NPR. He stated he would vote to cut funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting if the opportunity arose.

Taxpayer dollars, he said, should benefit lower-income Americans while the audience for public broadcasting is relatively well off. In reality, PBS and NPR did not stray far from the middle of the road, but Baumgartner and his party veered radically to the right and now consider anyone more progressive than Attila the Hun to be left wing.

Two days later, Baumgartner voted for the “Big, Beautiful Bill” that provides tax cuts for the wealthy at the expense of Medicaid and SNAP programs that assist people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Welcome to Republican Logic 101.

Mike Perrin

Spokane Valley