Racism should never be a part of our community

Dear Editor,

 Recently I’ve been both shocked and accosted by Lynden La Rouche supporters in downtown Lake Stevens. I’ve been accosted by them as they try to convince me not to support President Obama and healthcare reform. I’ve been shocked by the racism and mean-spiritedness of their attacks on Obama.

When I’ve stopped to engage them and learn why they oppose Obama and healthcare reform, they are unable to back up their nasty rhetoric with actual facts-and in fact have told me things I know to be lies based on personal experience.

They also make comments and reference to their racist posters that personally attack Obama using words and images that are normally used in a racist context. I watched my fellow Lake Stevens citizens walking by these people without responding or making eye-contact which was heartening- I thought that these people need to be educated about what sort of community this is and what we are not.

I want to challenge us all, whether conservative, liberal, Democrat or Republican, to refuse to give racism a place in our community.

If you oppose healthcare reform and Obama and want to demonstrate go ahead, but please convince with facts rather than racist words and images. I am willing to listen to facts and reason, but overt and rude racism and personal attacks are not convincing.

I really do not want to have to explain again to my three-year-old African-American niece why it isn’t funny and why it is racist to show a black and white picture of President Obama with bright red and exaggerated big lips.

I challenge my fellow Lake Stevens citizens to speak out, politely, against this sort of demonstration of racism.

Write in and support me on this, or tell these people to their faces: disagree on facts and discuss them, but keep racism out of our community. Let’s keep political discourse based on facts rather than insults.

Amy Verner

Lake Stevens

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Washington State Education Board to apply for federal grant

Dear Editor,

A recent editorial by The Everett Herald as well as a report by the League of Education Voters might have created some confusion that I want to clear up.

Washington will be applying for Race to the Top money.

The exact requirements needed to receive the money have yet to be announced. But, as I’ve said many times before, we are confident about our chances based on what we’ve heard from the U.S. Department of Education.

While Washington voters have said no to charter schools, this state features many schools that are similar to the charter school philosophy, such as Aviation High School in Des Moines and the Tacoma School of The Arts. We have a system in National Board Certification that is more popular every year and rewards teachers for additional work. Our new data system tracks students by year and by class, our standards are top-notch and our assessment system is one just a dozen fully approved by the federal government.

Second, there is no penalty for applying. We’ve been told that all applications will be reviewed carefully, and applicants will be informed of where they fell short if they don’t receive money in the first round.

Randy I. Dorn

State Superintendent of Public Instruction

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Health care reform is a must for all Americans

Dear Editor,

This is in reference to a letter printed in your July 29 issue as well as a Journal Editorial on Aug. 5 concerning the current health care debate.

Between the bold-face lies and efforts to shut down debate perpetrated by Republicans, the uneducated masses acting against their best interests, or the “blue-dog” democrats working against their party and constituents, I am not sure which group frustrates me more. Allow me to dispel some of the misinformation.

First, in spite of having the best trained and equipped doctors, we are ranked 37th out of the world’s industrialized nations in terms of overall health care including 34th in infant mortality and 50th in life expectancy. For this we pay twice as much per capita than any other modern country. By any measure we do not have the world’s best health care.

To those who believe reform will put politicians and bureaucrats, between patients and doctors, we currently have insurance company bureaucrats and bean counters deciding (motivated by profit) who and what gets covered.

Compare the government run Medicare with three percent overhead with private

insurances’ 30 percent overhead.

With Medicare you can go to virtually any doctor or hospital, and rarely do they deny coverage for procedures.

Finally, the assertion that reform will force people out of their existing plans is incorrect.

The intent is to provide coverage to the 47 million uninsured Americans, and competition to drive down costs for those who have insurance.

We need honest and open debate on health care reform to ensure the best possible outcome for the American people. If you are worried about how we’re going to pay for reform, we are currently paying to provide emergency room coverage to the uninsured via higher medical costs.

Reform cannot wait. We need to ask ourselves how many more families have to lose their life savings due to unexpected illness, or how many more people have to die because they can’t afford preventive care? I say none.

Please call your representatives and let them know enough is a enough.

 

Stephen P. Allen

Lake Stevens

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Trickler family thanks those who have helped

Dear Editor,

I want to thank everyone who helped to make our fundraiser possible and a success and most importantly, who helped us continue to get the word out. 

The family is now able to match the crime stoppers reward up to one thousand dollars for the lead that results in the charging of the person who killed Heather Trickler. 

The funds raised above that goal are going to be applied toward one of the highway departments permanent memorial signs placed at the location of Heather’s death to further keep the crime on the minds of those people who might have the tip and answer we’re looking for.

Remember also that we need to find the African-American male friend of Heather’s, about 20-years-old, clean shaven with short to medium hair that was walking Heather home. 

He might be afraid to come forward and help but he could not ask for a better brownie point than to help solve a homicide, no matter what might have him not wanting to come forward.

Everything left over from the items donated to the garage sale was donated to The Everett Gospel Mission so that it can continue to help people in need.

I could not find an online version of the story that aired on KIRO 7 but it was a good story.   Thanks to all the media that continue to help us get the word out and keep the search alive.

I will continue to update on the three bills that we are writing with the help of Representative Mike Hope and Mr. John Gower. 

I have tremendous hope that we can give parents, schools and courts a stronger hand in preventing the type of situation that contributed to this tragedy.

Anyone willing to help me pass out the crime stopper reward flyers please contact me at my law office.

Rob Trickler

Lake Stevens

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Tax on toilet paper and more, only good for companies

Dear Editor,

Democrats are hitting us again. Taxing toilet paper, cooking oil, toothpaste, cosmetics and other products we dispose in our wastewater, was proposed by Oregon’s Democrat Representative Earl Blumenauer.

His tax will be aimed at the manufacturing level. HR 3203 is called the Water Protection and Reinvestment Act of 2009 but will further burden our economy.

Taxes at any level become a part of corporate expenses increasing corporate profit. His “financed broadly by small fees” will multiply before it reaches you, the consumer. 

Toilet tax will increase the profits for the companies by increasing prices far beyond that of the original tax. The three percent excise tax will ultimately take much more out of our pocketbooks than just three percent.

As prices rise, the value of our money declines. Democrats contribute to inflation with every tax implemented. Bigger government, more taxes and regulations become oppression to the worker and the poor.

The adage is that “Democrats are for the poor.” It sounds more like the Democrats are for corporations, increasing their profits.  Taxes and regulation increase inflation and unemployment rates.

Democrats prove they are not for the working family and the poor.

 

Roger W. Hancock

Auburn

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New truck route will not affect Menzel Lake gravel trucks

Dear Editor,

The residents of Granite Falls who thought the new alternate route now under construction would finally alleviate truck traffic impacts are about to get an unpleasant surprise. 

The Menzel Lake Gravel Pit has applied for a massive expansion of their current operations, increasing the area they are mining from 29 acres to 300 acres.  The proposal is for a 100-year duration. 

Their expansion plan calls for up to 200 truck trips a day to go through the town streets. This is exactly what they have proposed. 

If they have modified their proposal, we who are parties of record, have not been informed of any changes to their original proposal. 

Their only way to get to the alternative route is to follow Alder St. from where it intersects with Pioneer, and to continue past the current middle school and the old high school. 

The other gravel pits are on the other side of the schools and will access the alternative route prior to passing the schools.  

When I asked Matt Hartman, city councilman, if he was opposed to this he was non-committal.  He did say that the town was not the decision maker. 

Technically, this is true; but the town and the school district can exert tremendous influence with the County Hearing Examiner if they take the position that this additional traffic is unwelcome. 

Any positive benefit to the town from road use fees (tonnage) paid by the pit is a pittance compared to the negatives of the noise, dirt, and safety issues. 

Voters, do you really want a gravel truck going by the schools on Alder Street every five minutes for the next 100 years?

Tell your current mayor and council members to oppose this expansion in writing and find out where each candidate stands on this issue before voting.

Ronald W. Crawford

Granite Falls

 

 

 

 

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