Trash slogans for New Year
The New Year is almost here. It will probably bring a collective sigh of relief to many. Finally — 2014 is over.
I think most of us are tired. Tired of the constant political hyperbole that preoccupied 2014 as well as the tiring metaphors that were endlessly used or misused.
I suggest that the way to start the New Year is to resolve to stop using these dubious slogans. Those that I would like to see added to all the campaign trash are;
1. "Think outside the box." Since when do creative ideas come in a box? It seems to me that if an idea is in a box, someone else has not only thought it up already, but packaged it. We need a better expression for new ideas — like maybe "just think." That in itself would be creative for some.
2. "Kick the can down the road." Has anyone actually done this? If it is not a common practice, why use the term? It seems to me that the best thing to do is quit littering, pick up the can and recycle it. Those who use this term are avoiding saying why the issue under discussion is being delayed. We need to insist on better explanations.
3. "Get thrown under the bus." Has this ever happened? If the term is fictitious, what does that imply about those who use it? Maybe there are better terms; like the pirate metaphor of walking the gangplank. According to the movies, that really happened and was clearly sinister.
I think a good omen for 2015 is Alaska's gubernatorial choice. "Unity is the winning ticket" should be our slogan for the next year. This is not only true, but has clear meaning, wide applicability, and is a fresh start.
— George Matz
Fritz Creek
Roundabout-phobia sufferer
Regarding the discussion on roundabouts. I have had more close calls with accidents in roundabouts than I ever had with traffic lights or stop signs. I now avoid the areas with roundabouts and drive miles out of my way to avoid using a roundabout.
— Steven Flodin
Chugiak
Ignore pot like capital move
Looking at Alaska's present economic status and the history about the vote to move the capital, it is well within the rights of the state Legislature to ignore the vote to legalize pot.
Anyone who saw the state ignore the vote to move the capital should have no trouble agreeing that legalization of pot is now an unaffordable vote that will only increase the deficits for the foreseeable future. There are way too many other priorities in Alaska needing attention.
So all you pot smokers should simply carry on illegally as it apparently never stopped you in the past, and the rest of us can focus on making clearheaded decisions about what this state needs.
— Don Ingraham
Chugiak
As citizens, we should care about issues afflicting union
I was incredibly disheartened to read the letter from Chase Spears (ADN, Sunday). He contends the Alaska Dispatch News "lately is full of … topics that aren't major issues (in Alaska)," referring to New York City and Ferguson, Missouri.
This viewpoint is the exact reason we have a mess of similar, recent issues (not to mention many past instances, which didn't garner national attention). You shouldn't be proud to be Alaskan, or a citizen of the USA, if you don't pay attention to the problems that don't seem to affect you. That is not how democracy works. I am proud to be a part of a country, a state, and a community where we are concerned with the difficulties all individuals face in their daily lives.
To Mr. Spears, and any other like-minded folks: please pay attention. Please be interested in the whole country, rather than blindly focusing only on your own state and your own problems. A problem in the USA is a problem for all citizens.
Lastly, please read the well-known quote from Rev. Martin Niemoller regarding the Holocaust. If we don't help others, whom do we expect to help us?
— Justin T. Wetherell
Anchorage
Message from Alaska should be as climate change leader
The commentary by Carl Portman and David Holt (ADN, Saturday) suggested that Gov. Walker and Sen.-elect Sullivan should take Alaska's energy message to Washington, D.C., and discuss the need for all types of energy development including oil. I'd like to suggest another message they should take south: Alaska's permafrost is melting and eroding into the sea at an alarming rate, glaciers are for the most part receding, and the ice cap seems to be shrinking. All of this is happening whilst an overwhelming majority of scientists insist that a warming trend is happening and it is at least in part caused by humans burning fossil fuels. The message Alaska should bring down is that the time for renewable energy is now, and that Alaska has potential for all types of renewable energy projects.
Much like Iceland, Alaska has a lot of volcanoes and geothermal activity. Here's a quote from the National Energy Authority of Iceland: "In 2011, roughly 84 percent of primary energy use in Iceland came from indigenous renewable resources. Thereof 66 percent was from geothermal." Why not turn to geothermal to heat and power our homes?
Alaska is also famous for its long summer days. Why not make solar energy a main part of energy production for those days? Germany has had a lot of success with incorporating solar power into their energy grid. Also, as many farmers can attest, the long summer days are ideal for growing record-breaking sized plants. Why not use that to our advantage to cultivate hemp? In addition to its many other industrial uses, hemp can create biofuel to power our cars.
Finally, Alaska is a great location for wind energy. We've already installed the turbines on Fire Island, why not expand? There are even wind turbines these days that can float out on the sea. I don't know what risk of accidents there are from such floating turbines, but I can't imagine them being worse than an oil rig fire or spill.
Let California be remembered as the state that passed Alaska in oil production; Alaska could be remembered as one of states that led the way towards eliminating human contributions to climate change.
— Carl Bartenstein
Anchorage
Medicaid boosts businesses
Many fiscal conservatives claim we "can't afford" Medicaid expansion in Alaska, despite the fact that we will get more than a 10-fold return on this investment. These conservatives are really saying that the beneficiaries of this investment are the wrong people (the poor). I'm certain that if the money went to corporations (as tax breaks) or for infrastructure, these conservatives would correctly say this is responsible fiscal policy since it will create jobs and improve our road system.
However, when the poor receive this Medicaid money, you can be sure that nearly all of it is spent right here in Alaska, which results in a boost to our overall economy. It is probably the most efficient money that Alaska can spend to help our own economy. Plus, it has the added benefit of helping Alaskans who need it the most. Hopefully, most people will think that is reason enough.
— David Strait
Anchorage
Murkowski saves fishermen from targeted permitting
Many congressional leaders deserve credit for extending the moratorium on incidental discharge to commercial fishing vessels, but our own Sen. Murkowski was a key broker in the deal.
As a commercial fisherman, co-owner of Bulletproof Nets Inc., officer of the North Pacific Fisheries Association, and an associate member of the Seafood Harvesters of America, I appreciate Murkowski's leadership in negotiating the three-year exemption for commercial fishing vessels for incidental discharge within the U.S. Coast Guard reauthorization bill. If she hadn't worked so hard, fishermen like myself and those my business depends on would need to apply for ridiculous permits just to hose off our decks.
Since 2008, commercial fishing vessels have been exempt, through temporary moratorium extensions, from needing to receive special incidental discharge permits. On the other hand, all recreational fishing vessels are exempt. Whether it is a 20-foot charter boat, or a 300-foot mega-yacht, these vessels do not need to apply for incidental discharge permits. Commercial fishermen are seeking a level playing field so we can focus on fishing and providing seafood to the millions of Americans who enjoy our sustainable resource.
With a new Congress, Sen.-elect Dan Sullivan should work with Murkowski on important fisheries issues. The three-year extension is an excellent start; now we need our senators to secure a permanent exemption so we don't approach another fish cliff.
— Matthew Alward
Homer
Balance needed in practice of academia and politics
"Although it is not true that all conservatives are stupid people, it is true that most stupid people are conservatives," John Stuart Mill, British philosopher, once said.
Jay Ambrose posits that having more "conservative voices" in academia would benefit the educational experience and, presumably, society in general. As a "liberal/Libertarian" I disagree that what is needed is more "conservative voices."
Having attended both the University of Colorado and the University of Kansas during the 1970s, I agree that both institutions and the communities they inhabit are more "liberal" than the general population of either state. Whether this is a good or bad thing is open to debate.
I believe the reason that both Boulder, Colorado, and Lawrence, Kansas, are more "liberal" than the surrounding populations has something to do with the validity of Mill's hypothesis stated above. While I see little benefit in having more "conservative voices" or more "liberal voices" in academia, I would agree with Ambrose that complacency with one's own assumptions breeds contempt for the assumptions of others. I believe that what is needed is more people with the ability to critically examine their own assumptions rather than the ability to critically examine the assumptions of others. In my experience, "conservatives" feel threatened when someone critically examines their assumptions. They tend to lash out and want to behead someone or burn them at the stake. "Liberals," and particularly academics, seem to relish examining the assumptions of others but have little inclination toward critical self-examination. (Is this even legal in Kansas?) I assume that is why I want to save the world by encouraging others to change their behavior rather than by trying to figure out how I can have a positive impact by changing my own behavior.
— Cam Rader
Anchorage
Begich could retire Young
Young or Begich?
Seems like we now have an excellent replacement for Don Young. Mark Begich for Congress in 2016.
— Clayton Awe
Anchorage
Real cost of Knik Arm bridge is being hidden
Gov. Walker promised transparency; it is time to reveal complete data from studies, which cost the state more than $1 million. The need for transparency becomes more clear when you consider efforts DOT&PF has made to keep KABATA's socioeconomic information secret. If it is "just some traffic numbers," why are they hiding the complete story?
In the Dec. 8, ADN story about KABATA's "new" study, DOT&PF Regional Director Rob Campbell was quoted as follows: "There's no reason to get emotional or wound up," he said. "It's just some traffic numbers." If that is true, why have Campbell, DOT&PF Commissioner Pat Kemp, and Knik Arm Crossing Director Judy Dougherty refuse to comply with two public records act requests over the past six months asking for the data backing up those "traffic numbers"? If (when) toll revenues fall short, the state will face paying off $340 million in federal loans plus $250 million in state bonds. I guess that is what KABATA/DOT is covering up.
— Bob French
Anchorage
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