Letters to the Editor

Thank you, Gary Burleson

Editor, the Journal,

I was pleased to see that the District Court building was going to be named in honor of Gary Burleson.

I knew Gary going back into the late '70s. During the '80s, we did battle many times and he and I developed a good working relationship. His was a thankless job. Even though it was in the days before social media, there were still many avenues for people to inappropriately react, jump to conclusions, or otherwise interject themselves into situations without the proper level of critical evaluation. It is easy to complain. It is not so easy to take a hard look at the facts, particularly when it is important at the same time to be empathetic to the people directly involved.

Gary and I had different political viewpoints. He was what I would call a Goldwater conservative. I was not, but there were values in that that I understood and appreciated. First and foremost, Gary had a strong sense of integrity. The truth, the real truth, mattered to him. He could have cared less about technical issues. What he cared about was doing the right thing. And perhaps most importantly, he was a man of his word.

I remember once having a reflective conversation with him and he made a comment that surprised me. He said that no one had ever thanked him for what he did. That has now been remedied.

Steve Whitehouse, Shelton

Inexcusable

Editor, the Journal,

I read with shock the recent news that four students suffered concussions in a PE class and two others are suing the school district for sexual misconduct by a school employee. I have no idea what is going over there but I will say this: I am not voting for another school levy until every one of the school's top leaders is replaced. This is inexcusable.

Bruce Finlay, Shelton