Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 126 - 150 of 150
Climate progress Editor, the Journal, We celebrate Earth Day as a reminder that we must protect this planet not just for us now but for future generations. Fifty-two years ago on April 22, we recognized the importance of caring for the environment and accepting stewardship of this magnificent planet. But what does a young person of 14 who is a climate activist think about how far we've come in protecting her home? How do we respond to the heightened awareness that time is running out? The...
Combine the tracks Editor, the Journal, Concerning the proposed removal of the train tracks through 1.5 miles of Shelton and conversion to a trail: This seems very short-sighted and costly. In my opinion, the better option would be to combine the tracks and a trail alongside as a benefit to the community and in conjunction with the Simpson Peninsular Railway make it a part of a wonderful tourist attraction that would bring in dollars to the area. I ask what would be wrong with that? Greg Linder, Union Eye on local news Editor, the Journal,...
The humanist Editor, the Journal, In response to James Poirson, thank you for reading my letter of March 3 and finding it to be useful. I appreciate that you did not see it as a personal attack but rather a way to continue a discussion. It seems to me that too much anger is expressed on these pages and not enough thoughtfulness. As regarding any future debate: as a young man I was a liberal firebrand, in middle age a staunch conservative. Now, in my later years, I think of myself as a humanist. I hope for peace in the world and I look for good...
Editor’s Note: The Journal will begin running letters to the editor endorsing or opposing local political candidates in the June 9 edition (eight weeks prior to the Aug. 2 primary election). Youth and COVID-19 Editor, the Journal, There are many reasons people (young and old) haven’t gotten vaccinated. Distrust of the government. Instead of trying to educate and encourage people to get the shot, bullying tactics are used (No shot? No job, no restaurant, no gym, etc.). Heck, the sitting president and vice president were against the shot whe...
The nature of racism Editor, the Journal, I was raised in the South by a single working mom, and much like Mr. Poirson’s story in his letter of March 3, was influenced at an early age by the admirable personal characteristics of our caregiver/maid. It is always rewarding to read letters to the Journal that express opinions and personal views that are free from the sneers and name-calling that fuel running feuds. Poirson may want to have some longer conversations with his experts on racial conflict because it is doubtful they accuse him that ...
Czar Vladimir Editor, The Journal I am naturally standing in support of Ukraine. Part of this is that I am a rare bird, second-generation American and 100% Ukrainian. And a Uniate to boot. So, I have some perspective in this. The war criminal, Vladimir Putin, claims that Ukraine belongs to Russia. This is laughable given that it is an indisputable sovereign nation, recognized as such by Russia itself. Now, if the war criminal wanted to induce Ukraine into a closer relationship, he could have done so easily. He could have run Russia in a way...
Mouth did the deed Editor, the Journal, It was the mouth of ex-President Donald Trump that caused the consternation and inadequate responses to our pandemic, his mouth that set-in motion the riotous insurrection against our house of government, his mouth that has put party politics as a power struggle rather than a negotiated means of governmental administration, his mouth that has made the art of lying, backbiting, character assassination and unsophisticated leadership talk the stuff of today’s unhinged politicians. Federal judge Amit Mehta l...
Sewer thoughts Editor, the Journal, Dear Randy Neatherlin, I read your comments about the sewers in Belfair. Yes, the contractor has a responsibility to do all the work toward his project. My daddy said years ago, “If you can’t pay for it, you don’t need it.” I know that’s unrealistic on a project of this size, but to borrow on the last project to pay off the next? That’s not good math. I’m not very smart, just an ordinary homemaker, but please use some common sense, people. Thank you for coming to St. Nichols to speak on our flooding problems....
Who’s entitled? Editor, the Journal, A Jan. 20 letter in the Journal titled “entitlements” made me think of other “entitlements.” I would rather my tax money (federal and state) go to help families with child care, college, medical bills and family leave, Social Security and Medicare. I’d rather help small businesses with my tax dollars than have my money going for “entitlements” (subsidies, tax breaks) for oil, gas and coal companies, and for Amazon, Tesla, Boeing, Walmart, Nissan, Archer-Daniels-Midland and the list goes onc as well as payi...
Christmas kudos Editor, the Journal, I’m a first-time writer to you. I’ve been living here off and on since 1992. I go away for a while, but always come back. Folks vacation in this area and I have the privilege of living in this beautiful place. I live in the woods on 5 acres and am within a few minutes of the hospital and downtown. It’s a short, but beautiful drive to Olympia (the big city), and 90 minutes to many beautiful ocean beaches to explore and rest up. We have the Olympics and Mount Rainier a few miles away and many lakes and hikin...
Support our children Editor, the Journal, I would like to urge you to vote “yes” on the upcoming Hood Canal School District Renewal Levy and capital bond on Feb. 8. Please note that the new rate will be lower than the current rate. The current rate is $2.47 per $1,000 of assessed home value; the new rate is estimated at $2.18 per $1,000 of assessed home value. The purpose of levy dollars is to help fully fund education since the Legislature does not. These additional funds are used to supplement school operations, which includes special edu...
Support our kids Editor, the Journal, Ballots will soon arrive by mail for the renewal of the Hood Canal School District’s educational programs and operations levy and approving a capital bond. I know it sounds bureaucratic, but it’s important that we support the education of our next leaders. The EP&O levy is replacing a levy that is expiring in 2022. It is a three-year levy that will pay for counselors, a nurse, special education professionals, field trips, after-school sports and robotic teams, an activity bus, and nonhigh fees. Nonhigh fee...
Thank your school board Editor, the Journal, January is School Board Recognition Month. It is a great time to recognize our elected community members who selflessly give their time and energy in support of high-quality public schooling for our youths. School board members in the Grapeview School District are entrusted by this community with responsibility for an annual budget of over $3 million, two hundred-plus students, 37 employees and three main buildings. School boards are charged with making decisions that can sometimes be quite difficult...
All joking aside on sewers Editor, the Journal, This is the third letter I’ve written about the sewer situation. I’ve had a good time with the double entendres, but here I will be a bit more serious. There is a lot of money on the line for our county, so we need to ensure that we are not blundering into a situation where we enrich someone and have the bill sent to you and I. This hypothetical illustrates the potential danger. Let us suppose we have a landowner that has acquired a parcel with the intent to improve and sell it for profit. We wil...
Troubled times Editor, the Journal We have had many, many, many bad times in the past. The Great Depression, two world wars, the (so-called) Cold War, to name a few, and we are now in the middle of two very bad situations that hang over us like a double whammy of a hurricane and tornado not in just one place, but everywhere. The virus spreads like a wildfire, completely out of control. As we fight it in one area, trying to mitigate it, it starts up somewhere else. The economy, if not completely failing, is in great jeopardy as people cannot...
The unspeakable Editor, the Journal, This is a difficult subject and one I expect many will find objectionable in today’s divisive climate. I’m a white man who has had many and various relationships with people of color during my life. None of which support the idea of my personal “racism.”. I was raised in a color-blind home. For example, as a child, I recall a local Black pig farmer who came to our home to ask his friend, my father, to help him sort out some zoning ordinances that seemed biased and were affecting his ability to success...
Missing the point Editor, the Journal, I'd like to thank Mr. Anvik for his attempt to answer a previously posted question in the Journal and appreciate his truthful feelings expressed about ex-President Donald Trump’s personality. However, he fell short and missed the point of the question, which was about Mr. Trump’s part in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. That part of the question still goes unanswered and was originally asked by John Vernon. Ardean could have left it there but used the opportunity to chastise me and another writer, Bil...
A winning Saturday Editor, the Journal, My family and I attended the downtown Shelton Christmas happenings on Saturday evening. After the year we have had, I can honestly say I wasn’t looking forward to it. I was dreading it but, sometimes, we have to do it for the kids. So we bundled up and headed into town. It was so great to see how many people were out and about. So many wore their smiling faces and you could feel the lightness in the atmosphere. Right when I stepped onto Railroad Avenue, my spirits lifted. It felt like Christmas! We w...
The road to Staircase Editor, the Journal, I recounted the recent experience Mark Woytowich had travelling to Staircase. Having made that trip for over 20 years, I can relate. I was disappointed that he implied that Olympic Park managers were neglecting the Staircase Road as a preface to closing this popular destination. During my years as the Staircase District ranger, I observed several projects to improve the road’s quality. Journal readers may appreciate clarification that the Staircase Road (FS-24) is under the supervision, maintenance a...
‘Thank you’ Editor, the Journal, We should all be thankful to the Shelton-Mason County Journal for publishing, and to Mr. Ardean Anvik of Shelton for writing, his inspirational guest column in the Nov. 11 edition. In his piece, Anvik paid tribute to American veterans, in particular three uncles who served in World War II. Two were aircrew in the European and Pacific theaters and one was a paratrooper in the legendary 82 Airborne Division on D-Day. Each survived that awful conflict. I find it especially poignant that Mr. Anvik urged us to rem...
A question Editor, the Journal, Newly retired after 41 years of teaching, I have a lot more free time and enjoy reading the various letters to the editor, well, except for the occasional name-calling. It appears that some people have running conversations with others. So, I have a question I will ask at the end. First a side story. In 2016, there was a lull during the fall parent-teacher conferences and I had a memorable discussion with a fellow teacher about the presidential election. I listened as she logically explained her reasoning in voti...
A slippery slope Editor, the Journal, I for one support Sandy Tarzwell and am thankful for her warnings and that she spoke out. I sense that the outrage expressed is really an attempt to change the subject or get someone different for the school board. I thought this was the age of tolerance and being non-judgmental. Causing shame is to be avoided, is it not? The Holocaust did not happen in a vacuum. There were many things leading up to it including a new law (the Malicious Practices Act) passed in 1933 that made it a crime to speak out...
Ivermectin thoughts Editor, the Journal After reading some letters to the editor criticizing the unvaccinated for not getting the experimental jab that apparently doesn’t work anyway, I wonder why ivermectin works so well in India? Their cases dropped like a rock when they started using it. Japan is now, why not use it here? Is there another agenda afoot? It will not kill you. It’s been on the market for years and besides that my wife and I would be dead now. Ralph E. Aldrich Shelton Blame it on Biden Editor, the Journal, We’re nine month...
The real reason Editor, the Journal, A recent letter writer cited 24 “reasons” they believed people remained unvaccinated. I submit that there is really only one reason: selfishness. At some point those who choose to be unvaccinated decided that an inconvenience to themselves was more important than a moral commitment to their community. I think ignorance is also a factor. And I do not mean that as an insult. I have had a long career as a scientist, and I know from decades of experience that scientists often fail at effectively com...
Some guidance for letter-writers Editor, the Journal, I feel that prolific, long-winded, angry complainers have achieved a near monopoly in the Journal's letters to the editor. Newspapers rarely publish letters longer than 300 words and most stay away from publishing rants. Therefore, I request that the Journal implement a policy similar to many other newspapers by limiting letters to 150 to 200 words. One letter per person per month is another worthwhile policy. Your recent full-page...
