Losses outweigh fun from fireworks
My thanks to Tom Koenninger for being so brave to write a long overdue opinion column July 7, “It’s time to silence personal fireworks.”
I have felt for many years that things were out of hand, not only the length of time people feel they have the right to shoot off fireworks but the sale of illegal loud, window-rattling, artillery shells that terrify our dogs, cats and larger animals.
It’s not necessary to create so much noise to celebrate our 4th of July, and it seems that many people don’t use good judgment in their celebration. The noise started well before the Fourth and went on days afterwards. One day of celebration is enough and the large fireworks should be under control of the professionals.
If the holiday was limited to the more colorful and less noisy fireworks of the past, it would be a much safer for all concerned.
Every year we hear of people being maimed by fireworks.
This year, our family lost a long-time pet, our 20-year-old horse who has lived on our property for 16 years. This year, I believe due to being jolted by the loud explosive blasts, she broke a hind leg and had to be put down.
Sue Lanz
Camas
Invest in local libraries
I’m writing in support of the upcoming Fort Vancouver Regional Library levy election on Aug. 17. The additional cost per household would only be about $20 a year, that’s less than I pay per month for Netflix.
I use the Vancouver Mall Library and consider it a treasure … one that I visit several times a week.
In addition to being a terrific resource, it’s a great convenience to be able to drop by the library to pick up books I’ve ordered online while shopping at the mall.
Let’s support our libraries. In today’s economic hard times, libraries are one of the best investments of all for kids and adults alike.
Carol Johnsen
Vancouver
Response times could only get worse
In reading the July 10 Columbian story “Bystanders try to avert drowning” at Dougan Falls, I was astounded at the lack of response from the EMS personnel, the ineptness of the initial response team, and the long response time for the rescue unit to arrive.
How could such a thing happen?
Well, with a department made up of many volunteers who lack training, it’s no wonder things unfolded as they did.
The closest tech rescue was Vancouver Fire Department, 20 minutes away. Not the same city, not even the same county. Skamania County doesn’t pay for highly qualified, trained EMS personnel, but residents there reserve the right to be outraged when they get exactly what they pay for.
Now Vancouver is going to close another station and lay off 18 firefighters. Vancouver Fire Department staffing ratios are “already well below the federal and state standards,” as reported in The Columbian.
What will happen after the December station closure and layoffs when Skamania, Washougal, Camas or Vancouver have another incident like the one at Dougan Falls?
Will we have to call Portland to come and help us because there’s no one else?
What will response times be then?
Rebecca Van Stralen
Vancouver
High schools present tough challenge
“Adults dump teenagers into the viper pit of high school, spouting a lot of sentimental drivel about what a wonderful stage of life it’s supposed to be. The rules are arbitrary, unfathomable, and subject to sudden change. A brutal social hierarchy prevails, with the rich, the good looking, and the athletic lording their advantage over everyone else. To survive you have to be totally false. Adults don’t seem to understand how high the stakes are; your whole life could be over, and they act like it’s just some ‘phase.’” (The New Yorker, June issue).
From this description, it appears that high schoolers put each other through a lot. Should they simply be thrown into the mix, as they are now, or should an attempt be made to impress upon them the fact that their actions impact the feelings of others?
Things to consider about this difficult period of life:
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Do students who are in a position of advantage in the social hierarchy learn appropriate lessons?
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Do students who find themselves at a disadvantage in the social hierarchy learn appropriate lessons?
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Sometimes verbal advice is not enough; things just have to be encountered.
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Does the present high school setting provide wholesome, healthful, personal experiences?
Gene Dombrowski
Vancouver
Let kids work again in the fields
For most students, there is no school in the summer. One reason has been that, in the summer, kids were needed on the farm to help bring in the crops, starting with the berries in early summer.
I can remember the joy of earning money by picking berries each year. There was a lot of work to be found helping with the various jobs on the farms.
Then “someone” decided that students working on farms was unfair to them. They were no longer going to be taken advantage of in this way. There is still summer “vacation,” but there are no longer jobs for the students who would love to be working.
The national unemployment rate for teens is 25.7 percent, according to Aaron Corvin’s July 16 Columbian story “It’s tough to find a job; teens have it harder.”
Let them pick fruit again and let them enjoy the responsibility of working and earning their own money. It was a good thing.
Pat Brandt
Ridgefield
Transparency clouded by new leaders
In response to Ted Hook’s July 15 letter, “Sowell reveals his own hypocrisy,” how soon we forget.
In April 2001, the Bush administration warned Congress of the problems with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, how they could cause huge repercussions in the financial market.
Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., threatened to filibuster if Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., then-chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, attempted to bring it to the floor. Dodd won and here we are, on the way to a depression. In January 2003, Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s Chief of Staff, then uncovered billions of dollars in earning manipulations.
All we hear and see in print is how George W. Bush is the fault of all problems. Has anyone thought to mention Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Dodd?
Give up on the Saul Alinsky playbook (Alinsky was a legendary organizer during the 1950s) and seek help. Where is the transparency?
Mignon and Dick Lutjens
Vancouver
