Editor,
In those moments that are impossible to prepare for, every little bit of help matters.
I’m an end-of-life doula, and have worked in health care over 20 years. My job is to help people through the most difficult moments of their lives — moments nearly all of us must work through at some point.
When Washington established our state’s long-term care program, I breathed a sigh of relief. This program will help the people I work with immensely by offering a flexible fund that they can dip into to cover costs associated with long-term care. These included costs like buying a walker and installing ramps in your home so you can get around, or paying for transportation to and from doctor’s appointments when driving yourself isn’t an option.
But Initiative 2124 on this year’s ballot would bankrupt this program, making things harder on people who are already struggling.
Those of us who have helped people through times when they need long-term care can attest to how important every bit of help is. This is why the AARP, the MS Society, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and dozens of other groups are calling for a no vote on Initiative 2124 — and why I’m joining them.
Let’s help older Washingtonians age with dignity and vote no on I-2124.
Diane Kitchen
Bellingham
Editor,
This past week, the Democrats held their national convention. I came away with a new feeling of optimism I haven’t had for some time. Democrats are now smiling and shedding joyful tears, taking back the word “freedom.” Convention-goers hold signs of support and love at the Chicago Convention, thanking President Joe Biden for the remarkable job he’s done, and for his statesmanship.
Thousands of Republicans, even those who worked in Trump’s White House are taking a refreshed look and supporting Democratic candidates, wanting to add their names to those who can happily look forward to our American future. Their Republican Party has changed and abandoned them. And it has abandoned you.
The energy at the Democratic National Convention was palpable, electric and a form of renewable energy. Renewable on Nov. 5! So, join me in voting to bring in a positive future for America, and shedding some tears of joy! Thanks for voting … we have a republic to save.
Gary Meader
Nooksack
Editor,
I am writing on behalf of the animals and the ecosystem we share. The recent article in Cascadia Daily News (Aug. 23, 2024) about deer in Bellingham appears to focus largely on the challenges they pose to human residents. However, it is crucial to recognize that these deer are not merely nuisances — they are victims of human encroachment on their natural habitats.
Deer have a natural range and, like many other species, will attempt to return to their scorched homes after wildfires, often caused by human activity, to forage for food. The idea of using culling methods reflects a lack of understanding of the broader impact our activities have on wildlife and the environment.
As Susana Muhamad, the incoming president of the UN biodiversity Cop16 summit, recently stated, focusing solely on cutting carbon emissions without restoring and protecting natural ecosystems is dangerous for humanity and risks societal collapse. The health of our natural habitats is deeply interconnected with our own well-being.
The article from The Guardian (Aug. 22, 2024) highlights the critical need for habitat restoration and the preservation of biodiversity. If we continue to ignore the symptoms of a larger ecological crisis, we will find ourselves repeating mistakes that could lead to irreversible damage.
I urge our community and leaders to take a more compassionate and informed approach to managing wildlife. Instead of viewing these animals as problems to be controlled, we should focus on restoring their natural habitats and living in harmony with the ecosystems that sustain us all.
Susan Diblasio
Fairhaven
Editor,
So the Port of Bellingham wants to spend fresh money on a public relations campaign to improve its public image (CDN, Aug. 15, 2024). Having spent a lifetime in the public and private sectors, I have heard public officials, candidates, corporate CEOs and others repeat a familiar refrain: We are doing a great job. Why don’t we get credit? We need a PR campaign to change that.
If the campaign consists of a regular newsletter, and announcements of decisions and actions — including, for instance, the ongoing dispute with its Irish contractors — that is OK. But if port officials think there is some kind of feel-good campaign that can make them popular, they are mistaken. Citizens, to begin with, will ask where the money is coming from for such a campaign. Doing a good job, in the public interest, is the best route to public recognition.
Ted Van Dyk
Bellingham
Editor,
You’re right, Ron: It seems unreal that after the stunning debacles of the last few years, the Port of Bellingham has the nerve to use $100,000 of our tax dollars to hire a PR firm to try and improve its image (CDN, Aug. 15, 2024). Putting lipstick on a pig is always a waste of money. And it’s an insult to all the hard-working taxpayers who will be footing the bill.
Based on the PR firm’s sales pitch — “It pains me to see Port of Bellingham take such a reputational beating …” and “What does seem clear to people is a belief the Port is not performing well” — this campaign may cater to bruised egos at the port, but it solves nothing.
The port’s record of incompetence is NOT our imagination; we drive by it every day. And no rebranding effort will fix that. Only a change in port management and oversight will.
Karen Wilson
Bellingham
Editor,
I speak to the experience of listening to the speeches at the Democratic [National] Convention on the radio sitting on Lopez Island across from a beautiful beach, without the distraction of the visual compliment of signs or scanning of faces or the explosion of balloons, but with the stillness of the waters and mountains in the background. It allowed me to give my full and undivided attention to the message of the speakers. The experience of listening to the voices and the messages of candidate Tim Walz and Vice President Harris extending a sense of optimism in putting forth programs to include more government protection and services and to reach more people matched the privileged feeling of security and peace of my location. A feeling of security and peace that can only be secured by our vote.
Helen Moran
Bellingham
Editor,
Thanks CDN science writer Ben Long, for diving into one of the most contentious issues in Bellingham neighborhoods — urban deer (Aug. 23, 2024). In 2017, it was a growing problem, and we realized that many folks throughout Bellingham were intentionally feeding the deer. We worked to facilitate a public forum at Bellingham City Hall to propose “Prohibiting the Feeding of Deer and Raccoons within the city of Bellingham,” an action that several cities throughout the country had implemented.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Biologist Cole Caldwell, WDFW Enforcement Officer Ryan Valentine, Whatcom Humane Society Director Laura Clark, Washington Fish and Wildlife Commissioner Brad Smith, and City of Bellingham [Senior Legislative Analyst] Mark Gardener participated in the discussion. The result of the forum was city council’s adoption of Ordinance N. 2017-10-024 — an ordinance prohibiting the feeding of deer and raccoons within the City of Bellingham.
Despite the fact that some local feed stores still sell commercially produced “deer chow,” it is actually now illegal in Bellingham to feed deer and raccoons. Breaking the law could result in a citation and a $250 fine.
Wendy Scherrer
Bellingham
Editor,
Over the weekend I visited family in Bellingham and had the delight of reading a print copy of CDN. I was thrilled to find a range of coverage, local stories, thoughtful reflections that truly sat between national in-depth reporting and local weekly paper content. In a moment of chaos in journalism, I hope your entire team is incredibly proud of the standout example of what a [weekly] periodical can be, driven by readers more than advertising, with content that matters. Kudos.
Travis Nichols
Spokane
Editor,
The article on Dave Reichert in CDN’s Friday, Aug. 23 edition is missing some critical information that voters deserve to know: Does Reichert think that the 2020 election was stolen? What was his reaction to the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol? What was his position on impeaching Trump, and his opinion on impeaching Biden? (Reichert was in the Houses from 2005 to January 2019, leaving before either effort to impeach Trump, but the question is still relevant.) It appears that CDN may be showing favor to Republicans in an effort to appear impartial.
John Holstein
Bellingham
Editor,
Original idea for a political cartoon:
Main panel: Trump, scowling, is driving, (a convertible) but looking intently at the side mirror, instead of at the road ahead where the “Policy Positions” bridge is out. The speedometer reads “90 mph,” the fuel gauge is on empty, and the tach, coolant temp, and oil pressure are all in the red.
Inset panel is an enlargement of the mirror: Reflected in the glass is a section of stadium seating, sparsely occupied by people wearing MAGA hats. The lettering at the bottom reads:
“WARNING — Crowd sizes in mirror are smaller than they appear”
(Now who on your staff can draw it?)
Omar Firestone
Bellingham
Editor,
In your Friday last (Aug. 23, 2024) edition, you reported the “rescue” of a stranded harbor seal pup at Point Roberts and its presumably expensive airplane trip to a nonprofit agency in Seattle for rehabilitation.
While this is a feel-good story for a lot of local folks, as a commercial salmon fisherman and citizen concerned about our ecosystem, I have a different opinion.
The current harbor seal population in the Salish Sea and beyond is at historically high levels. Indeed, in a concurrent article in the Bellingham Herald last week, a staffer at the Rehab Agency admitted that seal populations are high and that’s why you see so many pups on the beaches.
Harbor seals eat salmon as they travel to our local streams and rivers. Many of these stocks are endangered. Indeed, seals eat the precious king salmon that our southern pod of orcas depend on. Just this week, gillnet fishermen fishing in Bellingham Bay for Samish hatchery kings (a carefully managed fishery by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife) told me that by the time they get their net to their boat, most fish have been bitten by seals and are thus useless to sell. The seals just prefer the rich belly portion of the salmon.
So, when someone thinks they are doing the ecosystem a favor by saving a juvenile seal, think again what that seal will be doing when they grow up — eating our precious and dwindling stocks of salmon!
Pete Granger
Bellingham
Letters to the Editor are published online Wednesdays; a selection is published in print Fridays. Send to letters@cascadiadaily.com by 10 a.m. Tuesdays. Rules: Maximum 250 words, be civil, have a point and make it clearly. Preference is given to letters about local subjects. CDN reserves the right to reject letters or edit for length, clarity, grammar and style, or removal of personal attacks or offensive content. Letters must include an address/phone number to verify the writer's identity (not for publication).
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