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Letters
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.
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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.
Election Day at Blaine’s ballot box
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 Intern 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 21 Circulation: 10,500 copies
Circulation Independently verified by:
Next issue: Nov. 12 Ads due: Nov. 6
s Justin Brunsvik drops off ballots at the Blaine library ballot drop box on Election Day, November 3, 2020. Brunsvik said he drove from
Utah to return his ballot on time.
Photo by Ian Haupt
Letters
The Editor:
Currently 230,000 people have passed away from Covid-19. (Johns Hopkins)
It is shortsighted to think that if you have no underlying comorbidities and are young that it won’t affect you. You think I’ll be fine. Not a very socially responsible attitude. Almost inevitably you will infect another.
Deaths from Covid-19 tell us we need to do everything we can to lower that number. Disseminating information that tries to minimize the effects of this disease is very dangerous.
Herd immunity (current White House strategy) requires approximately 60 percent of the population to become infected.
Results of that strategy: 8,000,000 cases with 2.5 percent of population infected is 220,000 deaths. 198,000,000 with cases 60 percent of population infected is 5,445,000 deaths.Even a figure of 150,000 deaths (if deaths are over reported) results in 3,700,000 deaths. Shouldn’t we do all we can to prevent this?
Information is available to us because we have a free press yet Trump is unrelenting in his attempts to undermine the credibility of our free press. He has said he does it because he doesn’t want criticism of himself or any information that contradicts his policies to be reported.
Our founding fathers felt that a free press was so important they addressed this issue in the very First Amendment to our constitution:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Trump’s attempts to undermine the credibility of our free press are exactly what authoritarian rulers all over the world have done in order to control the flow of information to the public. The first step in that process is to undermine the free press’s credibility.
There are larger issues at stake here and Trump’s ignoring the severity of the situation speaks to further undermining the credibility of information vital to understanding the situation. People tend to become focused on one issue which can blind them to the dangers inherent in ignoring the larger issues.
Andrew Fisher
Blaine
The Editor:
Once again, our wonderful community has stepped up in support of the Blaine Food Bank. Thank you so much to the adorable little trick or treaters and their parents for making our Trick or Treat Spooktacular such a success.
We loved seeing all of the beautiful children in their amazing costumes. I’m not sure who had more fun, the children or us. It was a wonderful opportunity for us to be able to join the community in a fun-filled evening.
Our volunteers are absolutely incredible. In just hours, they transformed our facility into an unrecognizable magical space for children to safely experience trick or treating. They wore some wonderfully spooktacular costumes, and had so much fun interacting with the children. Special thanks to the high school students who donated many hours bagging candy, setting up displays, dressing in character and helping us break down our displays. They were amazing, and we are so grateful for all of their help. Thank you also to Girl Scout Troop 4038 and Boy Scout Troop 4038 who provided us with the most delicious popcorn balls. Everyone loved them. And of course, thank you to Oliver Lazenby at The Northern Light who offers us incredible support, and is always there to help us get the word out about our events.
And in closing, thank you to our community, to everyone who made the Blaine Food Bank Spooktacular such a success. It has lifted the spirits of our Covid-19 weary volunteers, and we appreciate and love you for it.
Sally Church, operations manager
Blaine Food Bank
The Editor and amazing crew at The Northern Light/Point Roberts Press:
Congratulations on your 31 awards for 2020 from your statewide newspaper peers. We regular readers appreciate the quality of your publications and we are proud of the annual recognition you get from your competitors across Washington. It is also important for all the individuals at Point Roberts Press who contribute to your success and receive their own awards. Bravo to all of you. I was particularly pleased to see the award for the articles on the Iranian-American detentions at the border, but I was really hoping you’d get the Pulitzer you deserved.
Georgia A. Gardner
Coupeville
(See Letters, next page )
Election ...
From page 1
By 8 p.m. on Election Day, about 95 percent of the 134,765 ballots the county received had been counted. The auditor’s office had an estimated 5,125 ballots left to count, but that did not include ballots that had not yet been received. “Ballot signature cures and overseas ballots are not included and can be received up until the day before certification,” a statement on the auditor’s office website reads. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Election Day, but can be received after.
Nearly 81 percent of the 158,733 registered voters in Whatcom County returned their ballots as of Election Day. With mail-in ballots trickling in and signatures being verified, the total is likely to match or surpass that of the last presidential election, when turnout reached 82.7 percent by the time the election was certified three weeks after Election Day.
Whatcom County voted roughly in-line with the statewide vote in most races and initiatives. Statewide, voters were rejecting Senate Joint Resolution 8212, which would allow public money held in a fund for long-term care services to be invested by governments in private stocks, by 53
Letters...
From previous
The Editor:
What a great article on the murder hornets. It was interesting, factual and scientific but also had lots of human interest. My husband and I really enjoyed reading it. We will be looking with interest for any follow ups.
Elie and Alan Friedlob
Blaine
percent to 47 percent. Whatcom County voters, however, voted in favor of that resolution 59 percent to 41 percent.
Other races where Whatcom County voters broke from the state, at least as of the initial returns, include: – U.S. Representative District 1. County voters voted for Jeffrey Beeler, Sr., over Suzan DelBene 54 percent to 46 percent. Statewide, Suzan DelBene was leading that race 60 percent to 39 percent. – Washington State Secretary of State, where Republican incumbent Kim Wyman led 52 percent to 48 percent over Democrat Gael Tarleton. In Whatcom County, those percentages were reversed.
Both local and state auditor’s offices will release updated preliminary results daily. The Election will be certified (officially verified by election offices) on November 24, 2020.
Statewide election results can be tracked at the secretary of state’s election results page: bit.ly/2GQlQp9. Local results can be tracked at the county auditor’s website, at co.whatcom.wa.us/199/auditor. Click on “Elections” and then “Current Election” in the bar on the left side of the page.
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CITY OF BLAINE
Due to COVID-19 and the Governor’s Proclamation, meetings are now only open to the public telephonically. Information on how to listen to the meeting live will be on the City Council agenda which is located on the City’s website homepage under Your Government, City Council, City Council Agenda. Please check the agenda prior to each meeting as the call in number or location may change.
Monday, November 9 4:00pm – Study Session – Blaine Tourism Advisory Committee (BTAC) 2021 Budget 5:00pm – Study Session – 2021 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) 6:00pm – City Council Meeting Public Hearing (continued) – Proposed Property Tax Levy Public Hearing – 2021 Budget
Tuesday, November 10 8am – Blaine Tourism Advisory Committee
Wednesday, November 11 City Offices are Closed – Veterans Day
All City offices are currently closed to the public. Contact information for staff and Councilmembers can be found on the City’s website.
Call (360) 332-8311 or visit our website. www.cityofblaine.com
Blaine United Church of Christ "Where friendly people gather and become family" Sunday Services 10:30 am
Jesus didn’t turn people away
Neither do we. (360) 332-6906 885 4th St. • Blaine, WA 98230 Pastor Sandy Wisecarver
CITY OF BLAINE NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING CITY COUNCIL
Notice is hereby given that the 2021 Preliminary Budget was filed with the Blaine City Clerk on November 2, 2020. Copies of the preliminary budget are available for review in the City Clerk’s office.
Public Hearings on the final 2021 budget are scheduled for Monday, November 9, 2020, and Monday, November 23, 2020, at 6:00 pm. The meetings will be held virtually. Information on how “attend” the City Council meeting will be included on the agenda. City Council meeting agendas are published the Friday before each City Council meeting. If you do not want to give testimony during the public hearing, please email your testimony to CityCouncil@cityofblaine.com. Please note that emails and letters sent to the entire Council are public record and they will be included on the City Council meeting agenda. All City Council meeting recordings are on the City’s website. Anyone wishing to attend and participate who may need special accommodation to do so should contact the City Clerk’s office no later than seventy-two hours (72) hours prior to the scheduled meeting. For further information on the 2021 budget, please contact the Finance Department, 360-332-8311.
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
THE CITY OF BLAINE IS CURRENTLY SEEKING MEMBERS FOR THE FOLLOWING BOARD, COMMITTEE, OR COMMISSION:
PLANNING COMMISSION
REGULARLY MEETS AT 6:00 PM ON THE SECOND AND FOURTH
THURSDAYS OF EVERY MONTH FOR ABOUT TWO HOURS ONE POSITION TO FILL A PARTIAL TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2022
THREE POSITIONS TO FILL A FULL TERM STARTING JANUARY 2021 AND ENDING DECEMBER 2024
PARK AND CEMETERY BOARD REGULARLY MEETS AT 9:00 AM ON THE SECOND THURSDAY OF EVERY MONTH FOR ABOUT AN HOUR AND A HALF ONE POSITION TO FILL A PARTIAL TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2022 PUBLIC WORKS ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULARLY MEETS AT 10:00 AM ON THE SECOND THURSDAY OF THE MONTH TWO POSITIONS TO FILL A FULL TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2022
BLAINE TOURISM ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULARLY MEETS ONE TUESDAY MORNING PER MONTH FOR ABOUT TWO HOURS ONE POSITION TO FILL A TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2024. This position must be filled by a member of the lodging industry.
Members of boards, committees and commissions receive no financial compensation, but the payoff is great. Members meet other residents with similar interests, they learn about the City, and they help shape the future of Blaine! Being on a board, committee or commission does require a significant personal commitment, so applicants should consider their ability to commit their time and personal energy before applying. If you are interested in serving on a board or commission, applications and descriptions of duties are available online at www.cityofblaine.com. Positions will remain open until filled. Per Blaine Municipal Code (BMC) 2.08.028, concurrent service on more than one board or commission is precluded.
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