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The Northern Light • August 27 - September 2, 2020
Letters
The Northern L ght The Northern Light is published weekly by Point Roberts Press Inc. Locally owned and managed, the company also publishes the All Point Bulletin, covering Point Roberts, Mount Baker Experience, covering the Mt. Baker foothills area, Pacific Coast Weddings annual guide, and the summer recreation guide Waterside as well as maps and other publications. Point Roberts Press Inc. is a member of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, Chambers of Commerce of Bellingham/ Whatcom County, Birch Bay, Blaine and Point Roberts and the Bellingham/ Whatcom County Convention and Visitors Bureau. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors. Letters Policy The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor. Please include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters are limited to 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank-you letters are limited to five individuals or groups. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Consumer complaints should be submitted directly to the business in question or the local chamber of commerce. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published. Email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com. Publisher & Managing Editor Patrick Grubb publisher@pointrobertspress.com Co-publisher & Advertising Director Louise Mugar lmugar@pointrobertspress.com Editor Oliver Lazenby oliver@pointrobertspress.com Reporter & Copy Editor Grace McCarthy grace@pointrobertspress.com Reporting Interns Kyra Planetz, Ian Haupt prpintern@pointrobertspress.com Creative Services Ruth Lauman, Doug De Visser, production@pointrobertspress.com Office Manager Jeanie Luna info@pointrobertspress.com Advertising Sales Molly Ernst sales@pointrobertspress.com General Editorial Inquiries editor@pointrobertspress.com Contributors In This Issue Doug Dahl
The Northern Light 225 Marine Drive, Suite 200, Blaine, WA 98230 Tel: 360/332-1777 Vol XXVI, No 11 Circulation: 10,500 copies
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The Editor and Mr. Werner: While it is your right to vote for President Donald Trump, please don’t ask for understanding. Yes, he is the first non-politician president. However, his previous experience of running businesses into bankruptcy (six times), squandering a $400 million inheritance, filing thousands of lawsuits to avoid paying legitimate business expenses, cheating on his taxes (and his wives’ taxes) and lying about his “success” did not bode well for his presidency. His primary concerns are Donald Trump, not the country. He is trying to destroy the U.S. Postal Service to cripple vote-by-mail and win an election. His postmaster general was a huge campaign contributor with no prior experience who owns millions of dollars of stock in competing businesses. Trump’s incompetence has led to countless unnecessary deaths. Actions such as gutting the pandemic response team, saying the virus was a hoax, holding rallies and failure to lay out a national strategy have caused massive disruptions in our lives and economy. Trump has managed not to drain the swamp but fill it with corrupt cronies. At Goldman Sachs, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin peddled dangerous mortgage-backed securities, like those that blew up the economy. He was responsible for foreclosing on thousands at OneWest Bank. U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, without any educational experience, loves school vouchers, meaning we taxpayers would pay students’ tuition at private schools. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross failed to divest assets when he said he would, lying to ethics officials, leading to a rare rebuke from the executive branch’s watchdog who refused to certify Ross’ financial disclosure. But I do agree that they are “well-founded in their respective disciplines” – those of abject loyalty to a thoroughly corrupt chief executive. So rather than love, I would ask as one citizen to another that you research Trump’s background. Two journalists who have spent years investigating Trump, Wayne Barrett and Pulitzer Prize-winner David Cay Johnston, are great sources. The future of the country is at stake. Carol Kemp Birch Bay The Editor: In regard to an article in the July 7 issue about Mike Hill – I drive by the roundabouts near D Street and Peace Portal Drive in Blaine all the time, noticing how great that area looks but didn’t know Mike Hill was the one making it all happen with mowing machines. On August 19 at 9:30 a.m., I saw Mike on a riding mower and a second mower working by remote near the roundabouts. I wanted to let him know all his hard work in downtown Blaine over the years has been greatly appreciated. For the last five years, every month-anda-half or so, I sweep up the debris by the curb, also making sure the drain cover is not clogged in front of my residence. The street cleaner can’t always get to some spots because of the parked cars. If all the abled residents in Blaine would chip in 20 minutes every couple months, if needed, the streets in Blaine would look even better, especially in the fall by keeping the leaves away from the curb. And most importantly, making sure the drains are not clogged and any snow over an inch or so in the winter is cleaned off the sidewalk or salted, if needed. A little work goes a long way in Blaine. Thanks again Mr. Hill for the outstanding work. Mark Knott Blaine
The Editor: Most of us would agree that being a parent is the most important (and difficult and rewarding) job we ever take on. Regardless of our religion, politics, age, race, gender, and sexual orientation, most of us would also agree on many of the qualities that we want to instill in our kids: Honesty, loyalty, kindness, compassion, and courage. Can they think of others’ needs as well as their own? Do they show respect to others, even if they disagree with them? If they are faced with a challenge, do they give it their best? When they make a mistake, or learn that they have hurt others, do they take responsibility and try to make amends? If you agree that these are values that we share as human beings, try to instill in our children and try to exemplify in our own lives, please ask yourself: Shouldn’t the leader of our nation be among the best of us? Throughout my life, I may not have agreed with a president’s policies or beliefs, but I have generally felt confident that they were acting in the best interests of our country and were people of integrity, worthy of respect. Our country is suffering. We face an ongoing pandemic, the severity of which is far worse in the U.S. than in many countries throughout the world. We face economic challenges of catastrophic proportions. We are deeply divided. We need a president who is a calm and experienced leader; competent; able to build consensus and get things done. We need a president who can bring us together; one we can feel proud of; that we can hold up as an example of the best of us to our children, our grandchildren and the world. Please vote for Joe Biden. Please. Erika Werdal Blaine The Editor: I am offended by bumper stickers that call groups of people names or invoke hatred (“Liberals suck,” “I hate liberals” etc.). Last week I saw a car with the following bumper and window stickers: “Trump/2020,” “I have no problem with the Russians,” and “Ashkenazi/swine.” The latter made the hair on my arms stand up with fear. I went home to research the word Ashkenazi and it refers to Jewish people who originated in Eastern Europe. So, basically it brought to mind the Nazi mindset that led to the Holocaust. There is no place in America for that kind of thought. When our political leaders don’t unequivocally condemn protesters who march, as they did in Charlottesville, Virginia, yelling: “The Jews will not replace us,” it encourages these individuals to vocalize their hate and, heaven forbid, act on these thoughts. I know that there has been a backlash in our society against politically-correct speech. But allowing any hate speech not only divides our communities, but reflects poorly on the U.S. This is the United States of America and if we want it to be great again, we must not allow any group – religious, racial or political – to live in fear from these people. And we must not endorse politicians who feel the need to “include” these crazies because they represent another vote. We, collectively, need to do better and not normalize all this hatred. Susan O’Malley Blaine The Editor and dog owners: Hello, all dog owners, a simple request: Leash your dogs. It is a law that must be abided to. No, a property that has no fence does not mean that the dog gets to run freely around it, it must be on a leash at all times if it’s out. A great tragedy happened on Sunday
night that won’t be forgotten all too soon. While out walking our dog in the early evening down the alley that backs Harrison and Blaine avenues, my wife was toppled to the ground by two unleashed dogs. The result was a shoulder break so severe it required surgery that involved a metal plate, screws and pins. The people who are responsible for this will never know how kind we can be as neighbors is just as much of an understatement as, “Well, it’s my yard so we don’t leash them.” The pain that this was causing while waiting for the surgeon is indescribable and I would wish that on no person. The idea that the alley will be a good place for a night walk is no longer to be. The fact that a person can be so irresponsible to not follow a simple guideline is beyond me. A good dog can also be a bad one given the right set of circumstances reminds me, as a dog owner, to comply with the law. Please, please leash you dog, even when you think your dog is not going to cause a problem, you just never know. Thanks to this one disregarded law, the end of this summer will be a pretty lousy one for my wife. Brian Major Blaine The Editor: I recently saw a young boy, Brayden Harrington, give a speech to the nation during the Democratic National Convention. His courage in showing his disability, stuttering, to the nation was inspiring to the 3 million others who stutter, and he’s only 13. He was inspired by Joe Biden. Like Brayden, I stutter. However, you learn to hide it. For example, while speaking, you think ahead at what words you know you’ll “block” on, and before getting to the word, you pause, cough or exhale to allow the word to come out. Perhaps you quickly think of another word to say that you won’t stutter on. Quite often, you end up breathless, or you joke about not getting the word out. Maybe you decide to just plow through and openly display how bad your stutter is without hiding it. When Brayden spoke, he did not try to hide it or compensate for it. That’s courage. One of the many reasons I am voting for Joe Biden is not that he stutters, but his stuttering contributes to his empathy. His “gaffes” might result in using the wrong words to avoid stuttering, but his history in dealing with his stutter is part of the reason he shows so much empathy. He has a heart. He cares for people. I think our country needs that now. Again, this is only one of many reasons I’m voting for Joe Biden. Bob Blankinship Blaine The Editor: In response to Neal Engledow’s letter, I, too, rarely engage in political debate. The left is only too quick to label Republicans/conservatives as “racists” or “haters,” which intends to discourage effective debate. Liberals tend to be influenced by their emotions, their “inner child,” liberal media, celebrity endorsements, race, sexual orientation and gender, rather than independent thought and studying the facts. They’ve forgotten that Joe Biden fought school integration and busing, was surprised that Obama was a bright and clean African American, that Black felons are too sociopathic to rehabilitate, and was also friends with some white supremacists? President Trump is not destroying institutions. He stands up for America and the Constitution. He speaks freely and honestly, though often roughly, through tweets as he has to defend against “fake news”. We Republicans like his candor, and his unrehearsed, humorous rallies. He’s also not
