Sensationalism is disgusting
I am fully disappointed in ADN's recent coverage of tragic events that have occurred in our state. There was a time when stories of suicide were not covered by the media out of respect; apparently we have passed this time. ADN has turned to sensationalism and your methods are disgusting and disrespectful. Our communities and our state are using these events as a catalyst to start conversations and develop solutions. I have yet to see any ADN pieces that really explore these issues our state faces, but rather you are trying to make profit by digging up public records and posting pictures of the body at the scene. Shame on you, ADN; as an Alaska Native and lifelong resident, I am appalled.
— Josephine Mattison
Eagle River
SoHi football team is the best
Yo, Anchorage! What is the acceptable method of deciding who has the best football team. The team's win/loss record, correct? Facts.
Soldotna High School "SoHi" Stars, Soldotna, Alaska: 39 wins and 0 losses; repeat, 39 wins and 0 losses. No other school in the entire state of Alaska can make that statement. Large school, medium school, small school, all schools. No other school in the entire state is undefeated.
Therefore the facts prove that the SoHi Stars are the best football team in the state of Alaska, 2015.
— Steve Wright
Soldotna
Missing college football scores
I'm hoping that the omission of the complete college football scores from last Saturday's games, in last Sunday's paper, was an anomaly. Sure, we can go online and find all the scores but that takes a considerable amount of time. The paper provides one nice, convenient place to check all the scores. Please, give us reasons to subscribe!
— Carey Cossaboom
Anchorage
Switch can't be immediate
Levi Younger's article "For brighter future, Alaska must pursue diverse sources of energy and economy" was very well balanced. So why can't the anti-oil and gas people see that we can't just flip a switch and do away with all fossil fuels until other sources are in place? Just what will these far north towns become once the gas companies pack up and leave? The anti-oil groups don't think about that, do they, or that so many items in ours lives involve some form of petroleum.
— Liz Forsman
Anchorage
Attu fight not one of bloodiest
In the Oct. 20 issue of the Alaska Dispatch I was disturbed to read that reporter Lauren Rosenthal claims that Attu was "one of the bloodiest battles of World War II." A quick check revealed that fighting on Attu, May 11-29, 1943, claimed 2,351 Japanese killed and 549 U.S. dead and 3,380 wounded. Grim statistics, but these figures are overwhelmed by the major battles of the Pacific (not to mention other theaters) in WWll. Okinawa, April 1 to June 22, 1945, counted 100,000 Japanese killed, U.S. dead 12,500 and 69,500 other casualties. The fighting on Guadalcanal, Aug. 6, 1942, to Feb. 9, 1943, claimed 30,000 Japanese killed, while Allies lost 7,500. Iwo Jima's battle ran from Feb. 19 to Mar. 26, 1945, with some 21,000 Japanese dead, and the U.S. counted 6,800 dead and 50,000 wounded.
Superficial reporting and careless editing lead to embarrassingly inaccurate claims like Ms. Rosenthal presented us. World War II ended over 70 years ago and has become overshadowed by the nearly continuous wars the U.S. has chosen to engage in, but we should respect the significance of this most dreadful event in our history with accurate records and remembrances.
— Major Gerald R. Taft, USAF (retired)
Anchorage
Couple's insurance payments have shot up — and will again
As if health care costs under the ACA are not high enough, and now they want to tax the higher premium plans? Let me share some Alaska math with you. While I am an individual purchaser (self-employed) and not receiving benefits from an employer, my costs for my wife and I (average age of 57 for both) have gone from $775 per month prior to ACA to a current level of $2,002 per month and slated to go up 37.5 percent at first of the year for a total of about $2,752 per month with a combined deductible of $12,700 for my wife and me. … (Thank you, state of Alaska, for allowing the insurance companies to stick it to the individual purchaser.)
And keep in mind this is the least expensive individual Bronze plan thru Premera given our ages.
We are in perfect health and non-smokers, yet it will cost us in excess of $45,000 per year including deductibles before we get much of anything except our annual physical, which is about all we ever see a doctor for, thankfully. These rates are not driven by income (other than household combined above $79,000), just age. Do that math at a combined income of $100,000 with $33,000 in premiums and $12,700 deductible. This is not a Cadillac Plan by any means but it would meet the threshold amounts as outlined in ACA.
Individual health care costs in Alaska are absurd at these levels. Anyone who is self-employed without other means for health insurance knows exactly what I am talking about.
Perhaps Mr. Walker or our senators can put this in their pipe and smoke it.
— Preston Rudderow
Anchorage
For Hooper Bay
Four lights extinguished
where every spark needed
soon will be winter.
— Aileen Holthaus
Anchorage
Valdez has veterinary clinic
In response to the quote by DeeDee Jonrowe in the article about village dogs on Oct. 19 stating that Valdez does not have a veterinarian, we would like to make a correction.
Our clinic, Valdez Veterinary Clinic, has been established for 27 years. In addition to providing full service care to the community of Valdez and surrounding areas, we also work closely with the Friends of the Valdez Animal Shelter spay and neuter programs and provide care for the shelter animals.
— Drs. Kelly and Kathryn Hawkins
Valdez
Adults teach tolerance of cruelty
Laughing while torturing is a learned behavior: Those kids dragging that dog to its death were taught that behavior. Adults in the village who claim ignorance are practicing tolerance, and allowing the canine abuse simply teaches the future generation it is acceptable.
Life is different in the village but compassion is the same in any town!
— Michael Anderson
Anchorage
Our congressional delegation should heed pope's message
I haven't quite finished reading my copy of "Laudato Si," the pope's encyclical concerning the environment and poverty, but I can assert that it is truly inspiring. This encyclical, and the pope's address to Congress, could bring about profound good in the world. Our congressional delegation needs to pay attention.
Our congressional delegation tends to regard any attempt to protect the environment as a personal affront: Obama is always wrong, the EPA is always wrong. But what is always predictable is that our delegation responds reflexively; Dan Sullivan will talk about "overreach." The right-wing assumption is always that environmental protection and economic prosperity are mutually exclusive.
However, if one examines the effects of our environmental laws and the progress of our economy, we find that the reverse is true. Most of our environmental laws were developed in the 1970s, and overall they have had a salutory effect on our nation. They nowhere correlate with economic failure. On the other hand, our economic failures are easy to trace. To use a few examples: Congress deregulated the savings and loan industry during the Reagan administration, and in short order those financial leaders engaged in massive fraud. Some went to jail; the cost to the government (the assets were insured) and the economy was large. That segment of the financial industry disappeared entirely.
The misbehavior at Enron cost the government and the economy billions of dollars. The numerous bubbles that have created our frequent recessions are the result of economic mismanagement. And, most disgracefully, smart and rich investment bankers brought down the entire economy in 2007-2008. And the perpetrators always complain about regulation (or "overreach," Mr. Sullivan?).
Environmental laws and regulations don't hurt the economy. Human misbehavior hurts the economy. "Overreach" is certainly not the problem.
The pope correctly links poverty with environmental degradation. A growing body of work establishes that inevitable connection. (See Naomi Klein, "This Changes Everything," and the writing of Elizabeth Kolbert, and go way back to "Small is Beautiful.")
There is a very strong positive correlation between environmental health, economic prosperity and economic justice. There is also a very strong positive correlation between environmental degradation, economic failure and poverty. It is no accident that the people who attack environmental laws and regulations are the same people who created the conditions for our outrageously high level of poverty in this fabulously wealthy nation of ours.
I fervently hope that our congressional delegation is emotionally prepared to absorb the pope's message.
— Clarence Crawford
Anchorage
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter for consideration, email letters@alaskadispatch.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@alaskadispatch.com.