Letters to the Editor

A better approach

Editor, the Journal,

As letter writer Ardean Anvik mentioned in the Nov. 21 Journal, the 6th Congressional District is once again represented by a Democrat. Just as Democrats feel they lack representation in the 35th Legislative District, Republicans in the 6th Congressional District face the same issue.

The partisan split in the 6th Congressional District is 57% Democrat and 43% Republican, mirroring the statewide partisan split. Once again, a slight majority of voters receive 100% of the representation, while the rest receive none.

Of the 10 members of Congress representing Washington, eight are Democrats and two are Republicans. This does not reflect the 57/43 split among voters. Many may attribute this imbalance to gerrymandering, but the real cause is the use of single-member districts with winner-take-all elections.

When only one representative is elected per district, the results are inevitably distorted. There is no way to draw district maps that will satisfy all voters when only one candidate wins.

An alternative solution is a proportional representation system, where multiple representatives are elected for each district.

This approach would allow the election results to more closely reflect the makeup of the electorate, ensuring that more voters feel represented. Under a proportional representation system, Washington would no longer be divided into districts that appear entirely red or blue. Instead, voters all over the state would have representatives in Congress who reflect their views.

A federal bill, H.R. 7740 — the Fair Representation Act — aims to make this change a reality.

Chris Mason, Matlock

Loved the chorale

Editor, the Journal,

How happy I am that I attended the “Messiah” on Sunday afternoon (Nov. 24) at the Methodist church.

Congratulations to Great Bend Chorale and their founder, Matthew Melendez. Local singers sang with joy that was contagious. The orchestra was exceptional.

I reread your fine article in the Journal and learned so many details of the work. So, thanks to you also. Looking forward to their concert on Friday, Dec. 13.

Dodie Vonhof, Shelton

Perilous headlights

Editor, the Journal,

Years ago, our Legislature outlawed blue headlights for being too bright. They blinded on-coming drivers. Now we have these too-powerful white headlights. Why do cars and pickups have them? Drivers will tell you it’s for safe driving. They’re wrong. Your lights don’t make you safe because white lights on other cars blinds you also.Large three-quarter-ton pickups are the worst. They’re high enough that when approaching a compact car from the rear, their white lights hit your rear-view mirror reflecting this light directly into your eyes. You can’t see anything except this blinding light. Imagine a driver being blinded from the rear by a pickup and from the front by an oncoming car. All three of us are blind. How safe are we? Are your white lights now increasing your safety? Drivers say these bright lights help them drive Mason County’s rural roads safely at night with animals on the road. You want safety? Slow down after dark! Standard headlights work fine when driving rural roads at a safe speed. Use your high beams.

Sheriff Spurling and Police Chief Kostad, can you do anything about these blinding headlights in town and in rural areas? State Route 3 to Belfair is unsafe as is; add these blinding white lights at 50 mph on wet and winding roads and you have a disaster waiting to happen.

Sen. MacEwen, legislators Griffey and Couture, please ask the Legislature to permanently outlaw these powerful white lights on all vehicles. Local auto-parts retailers, please eliminate these lights from your inventory. Finally, I ask owners to voluntarily remove these white lights from all your vehicles. Let’s make our nighttime roads safe again. Thank you.

Ardean Anvik, Shelton