Your Letters for May 5 issue.
Published on Tue, May 11, 2010Read More Letters to the Editor
Memorial tree will not be replaced at NLMS
Dear Editor,
I would like to thank Sunnyside Nursery for giving North Lake Middle School a big discount on a flowering pear tree last October to plant on the school property as a living memorial to our former teacher Connie Koch, who passed away last April.
The tree was planted in October to replace the one planted in May 2010 which died over our dry summer.
The second tree had beautiful fall color and was just about to burst into bloom when it was dug up and stolen from the school in mid-March.
When Sunnyside Nursery heard that the memorial tree had been stolen, they replaced it with the same type of tree at no charge.
The third tree was planted sometime over the weekend of May 1-2 it was vandalized and broken off so that the seven foot tree is now a two to three foot part of a tree. The tree probably will not survive such terrible abuse.
The tree will not be replaced with another one—three attempts are heartbreaking enough. It is very disappointing that at a school that emphasizes respect for property as one of the three “R’s of learning” that some individual or individuals have such careless disregard for property.
They did not just steal from the school—they stole from the community.
If you have information about the theft or vandalism, please contact the Lake Stevens Police Department.
Debby Ames
Lake Stevens
Obama has given tax breaks, reduced taxes
Dear Editor,
Did you earn less than $250,000 last year? Then your taxes were reduced. Did you purchase a home for the first time? You received a tax break. Do you take any classes? Tax break. Did you purchase energy efficient roofing, or windows, appliances or car? Tax breaks. Did a loved one die and leave you less than $2,000,000? Then you didn’t pay a huge tax on your inheritance. Did you hire new employees at your small business? Then you received another tax break.
If you are a multimillionaire, your Bush-era tax cut will expire soon. Shouldn’t the wealthy pay their fair share? Shouldn’t the middle class, small business owners, and students pay lower taxes? Sure, property taxes continue to rise, as do the costs for the infrastructure, education, and social services, etc. Shouldn’t the quality and accessibility of those services also increase?
It’s difficult for our legislators to balance a budget during this time of recovery, and the mistakes made during the past decade left this country on the edge of ruin.
President Obama should be commended for successfully diverting disaster. He said recovery would take time—and he didn’t lie. But some will never accept that he been successful thus far, or that an African-American is the democratically elected President. They will never cooperate with this president. They will continue to lie and obstruct, and profit from their strategy.
Drive down the roads in this community and you see the stimulus funds working. The renovation of schools, health insurance reform, lower taxes, alternative energy production—these are not loss of our freedom or personal responsibilities. Political opponents can agree to disagree on policy, but facts are facts. Stop complaining about tax increases that don’t exist. Use common sense and learn the truth.
Carolyn Fox-Allen
Lake Stevens
Tea Party movement is not racist or violent
Dear Editor,
I am writing in response to Carolyn Fox-Allen’s letter in the Journal.
I am relieved you’ve chosen to disassociate today’s tea party activists from the leftist activists of the 60’s and 70’s. You remember the ones I’m talking about; the Weathermen, the Black Liberation Army; the SLA, the SDS…should I go on? No I digress.
Let’s look at the Bush years when those of the political left expressed open hatred toward their president, or speculated about the assassination of their president, or compared their president to a fascist.
Write a book about killing George Bush and it’s considered merely sophisticated literary speculation. Do a docudrama about his assassination and win a Toronto Film prize for “artistic” value.
When Michael Moore suggested Bin Laden had wrongly targeted a blue state, I don’t think that repulsive remark prevented leftists from attending his anti-Bush film premiere. I could go on and on, but why bother ideologues with facts. After all, who were these people? Not some obscure far left-wing “nuts.”
They were tenured faculty members at some of this nation’s most prestigious institutions; journalists and commentators for popular left-wing publications; Democratic Senators and Congressmen and television and film personalities.
“Dissent is the highest form of Patriotism.” Isn’t that what Mrs. Clinton said? Or is dissent only for the left?
The American Left has always imagined itself to be the true voice of the people. Of course, when it thinks of “the people”, it generally imagines the people of Berkley and San Francisco.
The rise of the Tea Party movement is thus existentially unnerving to the Left, so it responds as people tend to do when confronted with unpleasant realities. It tries to convince everyone that the Tea Party people aren’t real. They are created by Fox News. They are racists and violent.
In fact, a few crazies on the right do not discredit the Tea Party people, let alone the Republican Party or conservatives in general, any more than Earth First eco-terrorists discredit the environmental movement the Democratic Party or Progressives.
Please Ms. Fox-Allen don’t spout your self righteous nonsense at the tea party activists if the best you can do is “taking back our country” is “obviously racist.” Oh please!
I challenge you to list any of the “spawned” violence you claim has been done by the Tea Party movement. You can’t because there isn’t any. That’s why you have to revert to the name calling and race baiting.
Take a cue from Jesus. Before you remove the speck from your neighbor’s eye remove the log from your own.
Bill DiMonda
Lake Stevens
Dear Editor,
I would like to thank Sunnyside Nursery for giving North Lake Middle School a big discount on a flowering pear tree last October to plant on the school property as a living memorial to our former teacher Connie Koch, who passed away last April.
The tree was planted in October to replace the one planted in May 2010 which died over our dry summer.
The second tree had beautiful fall color and was just about to burst into bloom when it was dug up and stolen from the school in mid-March.
When Sunnyside Nursery heard that the memorial tree had been stolen, they replaced it with the same type of tree at no charge.
The third tree was planted sometime over the weekend of May 1-2 it was vandalized and broken off so that the seven foot tree is now a two to three foot part of a tree. The tree probably will not survive such terrible abuse.
The tree will not be replaced with another one—three attempts are heartbreaking enough. It is very disappointing that at a school that emphasizes respect for property as one of the three “R’s of learning” that some individual or individuals have such careless disregard for property.
They did not just steal from the school—they stole from the community.
If you have information about the theft or vandalism, please contact the Lake Stevens Police Department.
Debby Ames
Lake Stevens
Obama has given tax breaks, reduced taxes
Dear Editor,
Did you earn less than $250,000 last year? Then your taxes were reduced. Did you purchase a home for the first time? You received a tax break. Do you take any classes? Tax break. Did you purchase energy efficient roofing, or windows, appliances or car? Tax breaks. Did a loved one die and leave you less than $2,000,000? Then you didn’t pay a huge tax on your inheritance. Did you hire new employees at your small business? Then you received another tax break.
If you are a multimillionaire, your Bush-era tax cut will expire soon. Shouldn’t the wealthy pay their fair share? Shouldn’t the middle class, small business owners, and students pay lower taxes? Sure, property taxes continue to rise, as do the costs for the infrastructure, education, and social services, etc. Shouldn’t the quality and accessibility of those services also increase?
It’s difficult for our legislators to balance a budget during this time of recovery, and the mistakes made during the past decade left this country on the edge of ruin.
President Obama should be commended for successfully diverting disaster. He said recovery would take time—and he didn’t lie. But some will never accept that he been successful thus far, or that an African-American is the democratically elected President. They will never cooperate with this president. They will continue to lie and obstruct, and profit from their strategy.
Drive down the roads in this community and you see the stimulus funds working. The renovation of schools, health insurance reform, lower taxes, alternative energy production—these are not loss of our freedom or personal responsibilities. Political opponents can agree to disagree on policy, but facts are facts. Stop complaining about tax increases that don’t exist. Use common sense and learn the truth.
Carolyn Fox-Allen
Lake Stevens
Tea Party movement is not racist or violent
Dear Editor,
I am writing in response to Carolyn Fox-Allen’s letter in the Journal.
I am relieved you’ve chosen to disassociate today’s tea party activists from the leftist activists of the 60’s and 70’s. You remember the ones I’m talking about; the Weathermen, the Black Liberation Army; the SLA, the SDS…should I go on? No I digress.
Let’s look at the Bush years when those of the political left expressed open hatred toward their president, or speculated about the assassination of their president, or compared their president to a fascist.
Write a book about killing George Bush and it’s considered merely sophisticated literary speculation. Do a docudrama about his assassination and win a Toronto Film prize for “artistic” value.
When Michael Moore suggested Bin Laden had wrongly targeted a blue state, I don’t think that repulsive remark prevented leftists from attending his anti-Bush film premiere. I could go on and on, but why bother ideologues with facts. After all, who were these people? Not some obscure far left-wing “nuts.”
They were tenured faculty members at some of this nation’s most prestigious institutions; journalists and commentators for popular left-wing publications; Democratic Senators and Congressmen and television and film personalities.
“Dissent is the highest form of Patriotism.” Isn’t that what Mrs. Clinton said? Or is dissent only for the left?
The American Left has always imagined itself to be the true voice of the people. Of course, when it thinks of “the people”, it generally imagines the people of Berkley and San Francisco.
The rise of the Tea Party movement is thus existentially unnerving to the Left, so it responds as people tend to do when confronted with unpleasant realities. It tries to convince everyone that the Tea Party people aren’t real. They are created by Fox News. They are racists and violent.
In fact, a few crazies on the right do not discredit the Tea Party people, let alone the Republican Party or conservatives in general, any more than Earth First eco-terrorists discredit the environmental movement the Democratic Party or Progressives.
Please Ms. Fox-Allen don’t spout your self righteous nonsense at the tea party activists if the best you can do is “taking back our country” is “obviously racist.” Oh please!
I challenge you to list any of the “spawned” violence you claim has been done by the Tea Party movement. You can’t because there isn’t any. That’s why you have to revert to the name calling and race baiting.
Take a cue from Jesus. Before you remove the speck from your neighbor’s eye remove the log from your own.
Bill DiMonda
Lake Stevens
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