Letters to the editor, Aug. 26, 2009

This war engages we the people to fight for democracy an against emerging dictatorship; health care is just one of the battlefields.

The power-crazed executive branch and Congress formation of a czar government structure necessitates that we must reclaim democracy based on constitutional principles or succumb to a socialistic dictatorship that brought tyranny to Germany.

Government takeovers of our free enterprise system includes auto, banking, news media, insurance and now the health care system is smothering America's future and our liberties and freedom.

Congress no longer represents the people when passing legislation without comprehension or knowledge of the content or implications.

Washington's prevailing methodology is to use radical persuasion, monetary influence or Chicago tactics, as example "Obamacare" is unjustifiable based on merits or cost, so the president is demonizing insurance companies and we the people are just thugs or AstroTurf.

The 2009 legislative programs and spending appropriations enslave the people economically and regulate all aspects of our lives. It's ironic that a black president's agenda brings slavery to the people while pretending to be like Abraham Lincoln. America was founded because we were political slaves of King George, now again America must be reborn by removing the political shackles of this administration.

Americans, speaking of we the people, must keep the faith, organize, assemble and reclaim America; it's our duty and responsibility. Returning to the faith and practices the framers established for this great nation will restore this nation and our blessings.

Don Albright

Sequim

Questions of ethics and judgment

In the Aug. 12, 2009, edition on page A-3 ("E-mails show meddling in manager search: East") it is pointed out that Councilman Ken Hays and Mayor (Laura) Dubois were trying to defend their actions in going around Waldron & Company. 

After they paid thousands of our tax dollars, (I believe it was in the $15,000 to $20,000 range) to contract with Waldron & Company in Seattle to find our new city manager, why wouldn't they have submitted the name of Alan Lanning to Waldron & Company for further examination? No, Mr. Hays took it upon himself to contact this ex-candidate personally and Mayor Dubois backs him up.  

In fact, in the Aug. 12 article, Mayor Dubois said "he (Ken Hays) had hoped to bring him (Lanning) to the entire council and save the city some of the recruitment fees."

In my opinion, this may be a breach of contract with Waldron & Company; it prevents the rest of the candidates already chosen by Waldron & Company from being vetted by the whole council and pretty much seems like Hays and Dubois are trying to run their own agenda ... this appears to be very close to a breach of ethical conduct.

There are many questions to be asked about this whole contact situation. If this candidate (Lanning) was already vetted by the council and not chosen or refused the job offer, why waste more time on him? In Hays' phone contacts, were there some additional incentives offered to sweeten the pot if he would reconsider coming here? If such offer was made, was it approved by the entire council? 

Candidate East is absolutely right to raise the question of why Hays and Dubois are involved in this way; we need to be able to trust our elected officials to do the city's business with ethics and good judgment.

Alice Coleman

Sequim

Old word has new meaning

T he word AstroTurf has long described fake grass.

Today AstroTurf describes the from-the-top-down direction behind what appears to be grassroots opposition to changes in national health care.

The late George Carlin, comedian and wordsmith, would have loved that adaptation.

Doug McInnes

Sequim

Loved the lavender

I would like to thank all responsible for putting on the Lavender Festival in Sequim. Also, thanks to all the volunteers who were there to help.

The farms on the tour were delightful. People seemed to be experiencing such a feeling of well-being - the Sequim air, the breezes that helped to move the fragrance of the lavender and fill the air.

While sitting in the shade, listening to the music of the Northwest Country Boys, feeling the gentle breezes and hearing the bees working the lavender blossoms as the fragrance of the lavender moved through the air, the smiles of all who passed, so many, commenting to me, "Isn't this (lovely, wonderful, magic, etc.)"

So, in closing, the best words I can find to describe my feeling on those days are as follows: (author unknown)

     There is something so divine,

     What I know and can't define,

     'Tis what I feel and can't express,

     And words can only make it less.

What a wonderful Lavender Festival experience. Thank you, Sequim.

Beverly Tait

Sequim

Who pays for

 'free' goodies?

I read in the Sequim Gazette that the city is about to renegotiate its contract with Wave Broadband, looking forward to all the free goodies it can get the company to pay for (like cabling all the offices in city hall and more unused public access channels). 

I have a pretty good idea those goodies are not free at all but paid for by me and all the other hapless subscribers.

Between Wave and ATT, I am paying more for telecommunications than I am for food - and we don't even have a land line. And I have barely more than basic cable and Internet with Wave. Meanwhile, content providers like newspapers and public broadcasters are going broke all over the country while rate payers like us continue to fatten wire-stringers like Wave - with the complicity of local governments like Sequim's as they negotiate goody filled contracts.

Ted Riese

Sequim

Yellow lab is safe after rescue

Kudos to the many local dog lovers who stopped to help or called 9-1-1 in an effort to aid an old yellow lab stuck on the roof of a two-story house on Old Olympic Highway this past weekend.

He was visiting relatives who were gone for the day and was likely trying to escape the heat in an upstairs room when his best option became an open window. Once out, he was unable to return to the inside of the house as the pitch was too steep. He was on top of the roof for many hours and when I called 9-1-1, they were well aware of the situation. A few minutes later, I called back to see if they were sending someone to help and was told this was not an emergency and not to tie up the 9-1-1 line.

I raced down to the fire station on Fifth Avenue in Sequim to see if anyone could lend a hand. Although it is not a situation they usually respond to, a crew brought a ladder truck to the house and three firemen scaled the roof to rescue the distressed animal. He was shaking, disoriented and thirsty as he had been howling for help for a very long time.

In this day and age of liability issues, it was a welcome relief to find leadership at the fire station who still has a heart. Those firemen were likely his only hope, even if his owners had been home. I know it's not one of the most important rescues these brave men will make this year, but it sure seemed like an emergency to a lot of people.

And to all who stopped by but didn't know what happened to our four-legged friend, he's safe and sound. Thanks for caring.

Jean Rickerson

Port Angeles

Public health care insurance option

We already have a public health care option - Medicare. In fact we have at least two others, VA and Medicaid. These three cater to those most likely to get sick: the elderly, the poor and veterans. By widening the pool to include younger healthier participants, overall costs to the government would go down. Private insurance companies get a big boost from Medicare gap insurance and would continue with many private plans. Having a public health insurance option for currently uninsured folks just makes taxpayer sense.

Of course Medicare needs some fixes - it should cover preventive care, for example. But it works well for me and many of you. Why keep others out? Let our Congressional delegation know if you support the public option - they need to hear it. The three toll-free numbers are: Dicks: 800-947-6676; Murray: 866-481-9186; Cantwell: 888-648-7328.

Lyn Muench

Port Angeles