Letters To The Editor

IN THE PAPER

Story put holiday in perspective

Thanks for the correspondent Peter Harriman’s wonderful story about Santa in Bovill, Idaho. It was just the restorative needed for the morning of Christmas Eve and an effective reminder of the true meaning of this holiday.

Many, if not most of us, have endured recent weeks in a shopping frenzy. We spend and spend until our checkbooks have run dry and credit cards are melting. Our children will greedily tear apart the wrapping on numerous gifts, perhaps disappointed if they did not get everything on their lengthy wish lists.

When I read about a child who delights in the receipt of a small sack of candy and fruit it certainly gave me pause. How humbling to think of the caring and selfless people of Bovill. It brought me back to the time when the smallest of gifts truly meant something special.

If only we could all take a lesson from these folks who, with a simple act of love, a little good humor and a large measure of honest caring, brought the joy of this season to their fellow man.

Yes, there really is a Santa Claus. Hugh Imhoff Spokane

‘Another non-year for women’

To the Dec. 27 headline, “Year of the woman” (Sports), I say, baloney.

I judge people on what they do, not what they write. The Sports section features women on its front page maybe 15 times a year. Subject content is less than 20 percent on any given day of the year. It was another non-year for women.

The editorial board may fill up with women, liberal women. They may hire women writers - liberal women writers. They may call that diversity. I call it hiring liberals. I would like to see equality in this paper on reporting of women in sports, of women sports writers, of women editors and women writers. I’d give a hundred bucks to see Camille Paglia have a column in this newspaper, instead of a confused Jennifer James. Paglia is no conservative but she makes sense.

Being a male conservative doesn’t make you smart or right, as D.F. Oliveria proves in the argument on prosports with Anne Windishar in “From both sides.” We have real sports right here in Spokane with plenty of seating and no reporting from the media. Why send money to Seattle? I haven’t ever had reason to congratulate Windishar, but I have to say, way to go, Anne.

With common sense women will reach equality in our society - not through a liberal political agenda that splits and corrupts their power, but through collectiveness that puts them in the news as well as on the front page. James C. Allen Spokane

THE ENVIRONMENT

Dams are essential; Keep them

Lynda Mapes’ articles of Dec. 22 and Dec. 23 are only the tip of the iceberg on how a channel would affect all aspects of economy in the Pacific Northwest. The Washington Association of Wheat Growers recently pased the following resolution.

Columbia and Snake river dams provide many functions such as flood control, hydropower, transportation, irrigation, recreation and fish passage. The Columbia is the nation’s second-largest navigational transportation system. Tens of thousands of jobs depend on river-related commerce. Nearly 75 percent of the region’s electric supply comes from Columbia and Snake river hydropower. More than $5 billion worth of crops are produced annually on 8 million irrigated acres in the Northwest.

In attempting to comply with the Endangered Species Act, some studies suggest removal of lower Snake River dams to increase fish populations. Significant damages occurred during trial drawdowns.

These studies don’t completely account for industrial, commercial, community and individual use of the river. No studies can assure that removal of dams will increase fish populations, although other benefits of the dams would be greatly reduced or eliminated.

Washington Association of Wheat Growers supports maintaining the existing dam system on the Columbia and Snake rivers. We oppose removal or breaching of any dams. Further, we oppose lowering any pools below a navigable level.

Alternatives that improve fish populations should be explored, while maintaining a strong multi-use river system. Efforts to preserve naturally spawning salmon must be comprehensive and based on good science, least cost and economic reality. Gretchen Borck, Washington Association of Wheat Growers Ritzville, Wash.

Bypass the dams? Be real

Regarding the Dec. 22 article on digging a ditch to divert waters around four dams on the lower Snake River (“Plan leaves 4 dams high and dry,” News), I hope everyone realizes that this option is offered by the more lunatic fringe of our society.

Who in their right mind would spend half a billion dollars to divert waters around these dams that provide cheap hydroelectric power, cheap transportation for grains, free recreation for countless thousands of Inland Empire residents and effective flood control? Of course, environmentalists and the back-to-nature crowd probably think this is a real nifty idea, but that speaks for itself.

All of this just to promote an experiment to see if we will again have a river full of salmon. People need to get their heads on straight. If this type of thinking results from the Endangered Species Act, maybe we need to take another look at this act. Maybe we need to dig a few ditches around it, or through it. Maybe we need to throw it out altogether. E.A. Johnson Mead

We came by wrong number honestly

In his rush to paint us with a black brush as “tree huggers,” D.F. Oliveria only told part of the story (“Flier sends callers barking up wrong tree,” Dec. 23).

Oliveria said that us “greenies” are responsible for mistakenly giving the phone number of some “poor sap” in our news release regarding the Forest Service’s proposed management of the Mosquito Fly roadless area in the St. Joe River drainage.

Yes, we did provide the wrong phone number in the news release, but it was copied from a Forest Service letter requesting comments on the Mosquito Fly Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Oct. 17, 1996).

Besides, I don’t know how the public would have gotten the wrong number from our news release since that number was not, to my knowledge, published or broadcast. It’s more likely the Forest Service letter generated the rash of calls to the “poor sap.” Our alert, sent to members of the sporting and conservation community, contained the right Forest Service phone number.

Oh well, none of us is perfect. But, since it’s the holiday season, us greenie tree huggers will forgive you.

A suggestion for your New Year’s resolution: less name calling and more work at accuracy and truth telling. Barry Rosenberg, director Forest Watch Program, Inland Empire Public Lands Council, Spokane

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Government’s reaping what it sows

I do not support anti-government groups and realize that there is a need for government. But I was surprised to hear public officials complain about “paper terrorism.” After all, the government invented paper terrorism and practices it every day by making just about everyone fill out tons of paperwork. Greg Jones Colfax, Wash.