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Published on Mon, May 24, 2010Read More Letters to the Editor
Accuracy questioned on former Letter to Editor
Dear Editor,
Caroline Fox-Allen was at it again, making claims that are totally unsubstantiated (“Obama has given tax breaks, reduced taxes,” Lake Stevens Journal, May 12, 2010).
Quote: “Did you earn less than $250,000 last year? Then your taxes were reduced.”
Did all Journal readers earning less than $250,000 in 2009 have their taxes reduced? The first time homebuyers, students and purchasers of energy efficient products that Allen cites as validation of her claim, represent only a small percentage of those earning less than $250,000 in 2009.
The only tax credit my husband and I received based on our less than $250,000 income in 2009 was the increase in deductibles from gross income for those over age 65. This tax break, I believe, was enacted under Bush.
Quote: “Did a loved one die and leave you less than $2 million? Then you didn’t pay a huge tax on your inheritance.” Washington’s $2 million tax exemption, was, according to my research enacted in January 2005 for the 2006, 2007 and 2008 fiscal years (RCW 83.100.040 Estate Transfer Tax). Not an Obama achievement.
Quote: “Did you hire new employees at your small business? Then you received another tax break.” The only new small business tax “breaks” I could find passed in 2009 were lowered fees on small business loans, and increased insurance limits that protect lenders against small business defaults. (Source: Yahoo/Associated Press/Bloomberg Press).
Quote: “Drive down the roads in this community; see the stimulus funds working.”
Does stimulus money fund Lake Stevens school renovations? Where is “alternative energy production” happening locally?
Allen’s article reads suspiciously like a canned speech suitable for posting in any number of small towns.
There is irony in the statement that “facts are facts,” when this article is shamelessly short on them.
Nancy Merz
Lake Stevens
Finding new sources of energy could be years into the future
Dear Editor,
I am responding to the letter, “Depending on nuclear energy puts our children at risk” from the May 19 issue. We have to be honest and realize that there are no alternative energy sources ready for primetime right now.
Face it, we are years...I would guess fifteen to twenty years from possibly finding another source of sustained energy of the scale to power our lives.
The letter writer brings up Chernobyl, which occurred many years ago in a country with little to no safety or construction regulations. Our nation has proper regulations and standards to prevent such tragedies.
I know critics will point to the recent oil rig explosion, but that was not due to no regulation. We don’t actually know what happened with the rig, as of yet, but the U.S. needs to actually do it’s job. We have government agencies that just aren’t doing their jobs and need to be held accountable.
Currently there are 436 commercially operated nuclear power plants in thirty countries that provide 372,000 MWe of capacity which is 15 percent of the world’s electricity.
There are also 250 research reactors and 220 nuclear powered ships and submarines operated by 52 nations. Energy independence is a financial and national security issue for the United States.
I appreciate research into alternative forms of renewable energy sources, but we cannot allow extremism to push our nation into damaging it’s financial status. We are the greatest and most innovative nation on earth, we will solve the energy issue but it will take time.
Todd Welch
Everett
Letter carriers gathers thousands of pounds of food
Dear Editor,
Once again the citizens of Lake Stevens were very generous in giving to the annual letter carriers food drive on May 8. The residents donated 12,635 pounds of food.
All the food donated goes to the local community food bank who in turn, provide the food to area organizations and programs serving hungry children, the elderly, families and the disadvantaged throughout the year.
I would like to say, “thank you to everyone in the community and the postal customers for their giving. Also our letter carriers and the volunteers who worked so hard to make this food drive a huge success, without you we would not be able to help so many in this tough economy and to ensure they do not go hungry.”
This was the 18th year of the one-day National Association of Letter Carriers “Stamp Out Hunger” Food Drive across America.
With this year’s total nationwide still being counted, more than one billion pounds of food have been given to feed America’s hungry since the postal food drive first started in 1993.
Lake Stevens was one of more than 10,000 communities and Post Offices nationwide participating this year. It’s estimated that the letter carriers’ food drive again collected over 70 million pounds nationwide to support America’s hungry this year. Last year’s U.S. total was a record 73.4 million pounds.
Michelle Quinn, Postmaster
Lake Stevens
Entitlement and making tough choices
Dear Editor,
We are inundated with stories about the failures of financial systems all around the world. Nobody has reported on the common thread among all these stories.
Normally I would start talking about media complicity, but that’s another story altogether.
Entitlement, defined by a dictionary as a guarantee of access to benefits because of rights or by agreement through law. What people fail to recognize is that it’s easy to create or continue an entitlement, in many cases it gets you re-elected. However, few will seriously discuss the cost of the entitlement.
We are quickly realizing that this is ultimately what is bringing down the great economic structures of the world. Greece, England and others are primary examples.
Entitlements by itself is not the only cause, but combined with greed, selfishness and unwillingness to sacrifice political capital, these entitlements will bring the United States to the brink of economic collapse.
We don’t have leaders who are willing to make these hard decisions, they have grown up expecting more from others and continue to impress that on their constituents, the “Other People’s Money” syndrome.
This means the very people who have the fiduciary obligation to correct such deficiencies don’t have the ability or will to do so.
As election time approaches, don’t ask who will be the one to hand out more goodies, ask who can make the hard choices that may actually reduce the entitlement mentality.
It is only this approach that will correct the course we are on. Do you have the will to do that or will you be beholden to political double-speak?
DR Thompson
Lake Stevens
Dear Editor,
Caroline Fox-Allen was at it again, making claims that are totally unsubstantiated (“Obama has given tax breaks, reduced taxes,” Lake Stevens Journal, May 12, 2010).
Quote: “Did you earn less than $250,000 last year? Then your taxes were reduced.”
Did all Journal readers earning less than $250,000 in 2009 have their taxes reduced? The first time homebuyers, students and purchasers of energy efficient products that Allen cites as validation of her claim, represent only a small percentage of those earning less than $250,000 in 2009.
The only tax credit my husband and I received based on our less than $250,000 income in 2009 was the increase in deductibles from gross income for those over age 65. This tax break, I believe, was enacted under Bush.
Quote: “Did a loved one die and leave you less than $2 million? Then you didn’t pay a huge tax on your inheritance.” Washington’s $2 million tax exemption, was, according to my research enacted in January 2005 for the 2006, 2007 and 2008 fiscal years (RCW 83.100.040 Estate Transfer Tax). Not an Obama achievement.
Quote: “Did you hire new employees at your small business? Then you received another tax break.” The only new small business tax “breaks” I could find passed in 2009 were lowered fees on small business loans, and increased insurance limits that protect lenders against small business defaults. (Source: Yahoo/Associated Press/Bloomberg Press).
Quote: “Drive down the roads in this community; see the stimulus funds working.”
Does stimulus money fund Lake Stevens school renovations? Where is “alternative energy production” happening locally?
Allen’s article reads suspiciously like a canned speech suitable for posting in any number of small towns.
There is irony in the statement that “facts are facts,” when this article is shamelessly short on them.
Nancy Merz
Lake Stevens
Finding new sources of energy could be years into the future
Dear Editor,
I am responding to the letter, “Depending on nuclear energy puts our children at risk” from the May 19 issue. We have to be honest and realize that there are no alternative energy sources ready for primetime right now.
Face it, we are years...I would guess fifteen to twenty years from possibly finding another source of sustained energy of the scale to power our lives.
The letter writer brings up Chernobyl, which occurred many years ago in a country with little to no safety or construction regulations. Our nation has proper regulations and standards to prevent such tragedies.
I know critics will point to the recent oil rig explosion, but that was not due to no regulation. We don’t actually know what happened with the rig, as of yet, but the U.S. needs to actually do it’s job. We have government agencies that just aren’t doing their jobs and need to be held accountable.
Currently there are 436 commercially operated nuclear power plants in thirty countries that provide 372,000 MWe of capacity which is 15 percent of the world’s electricity.
There are also 250 research reactors and 220 nuclear powered ships and submarines operated by 52 nations. Energy independence is a financial and national security issue for the United States.
I appreciate research into alternative forms of renewable energy sources, but we cannot allow extremism to push our nation into damaging it’s financial status. We are the greatest and most innovative nation on earth, we will solve the energy issue but it will take time.
Todd Welch
Everett
Letter carriers gathers thousands of pounds of food
Dear Editor,
Once again the citizens of Lake Stevens were very generous in giving to the annual letter carriers food drive on May 8. The residents donated 12,635 pounds of food.
All the food donated goes to the local community food bank who in turn, provide the food to area organizations and programs serving hungry children, the elderly, families and the disadvantaged throughout the year.
I would like to say, “thank you to everyone in the community and the postal customers for their giving. Also our letter carriers and the volunteers who worked so hard to make this food drive a huge success, without you we would not be able to help so many in this tough economy and to ensure they do not go hungry.”
This was the 18th year of the one-day National Association of Letter Carriers “Stamp Out Hunger” Food Drive across America.
With this year’s total nationwide still being counted, more than one billion pounds of food have been given to feed America’s hungry since the postal food drive first started in 1993.
Lake Stevens was one of more than 10,000 communities and Post Offices nationwide participating this year. It’s estimated that the letter carriers’ food drive again collected over 70 million pounds nationwide to support America’s hungry this year. Last year’s U.S. total was a record 73.4 million pounds.
Michelle Quinn, Postmaster
Lake Stevens
Entitlement and making tough choices
Dear Editor,
We are inundated with stories about the failures of financial systems all around the world. Nobody has reported on the common thread among all these stories.
Normally I would start talking about media complicity, but that’s another story altogether.
Entitlement, defined by a dictionary as a guarantee of access to benefits because of rights or by agreement through law. What people fail to recognize is that it’s easy to create or continue an entitlement, in many cases it gets you re-elected. However, few will seriously discuss the cost of the entitlement.
We are quickly realizing that this is ultimately what is bringing down the great economic structures of the world. Greece, England and others are primary examples.
Entitlements by itself is not the only cause, but combined with greed, selfishness and unwillingness to sacrifice political capital, these entitlements will bring the United States to the brink of economic collapse.
We don’t have leaders who are willing to make these hard decisions, they have grown up expecting more from others and continue to impress that on their constituents, the “Other People’s Money” syndrome.
This means the very people who have the fiduciary obligation to correct such deficiencies don’t have the ability or will to do so.
As election time approaches, don’t ask who will be the one to hand out more goodies, ask who can make the hard choices that may actually reduce the entitlement mentality.
It is only this approach that will correct the course we are on. Do you have the will to do that or will you be beholden to political double-speak?
DR Thompson
Lake Stevens
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