Letters to the Editor

Readers write: Letters to the editor, July 2, 2017

What's next, lawmakers?

Well, well, well. No interruption to state business. Belated congratulations, legislators. And thanks for maintaining school funding (except for UA). That means I won't have to give my estimated state income tax assessment to Chester Valley Elementary School PTA. Since you did cut the PFD in half, I couldn't help but notice that you effectively "taxed" every person in Alaska what I figured I might have owed in income tax. In the immortal words of our President Donald Trump: "Sad."

So, next June, in your second special session, how do you plan to fund the budget, with savings gone and the price of oil in the tank? By then I hope many more of us will agree that replacing many of our ineffective legislators is the best plan we have.

— Jon Sharpe
Anchorage

Our nation's scourge illustrated

The worst statement regarding any pending national policy these days is "it passed/failed on a party line vote." A perfect recent example addressed how to fight the so-many wildfires raging around the West these days. Paraphrased: "This bill would fund fighting the increasing numbers of huge wildfires. The bill cleared its first hurdle (in a subcommittee) on a 23-12 party line vote."

Imagine. A subject as important to all as preventing/controlling/combatting wildfires is subject to "a party line vote." Sigh …

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— Steve Williams
Anchorage

GOP searching for a brain

Obamacare has a broken leg; the Republicans want to do a brain transplant but can't find one.

— Jim Miller
Anchorage

Share your ideas with the state on transboundary mining

Last month, I had the opportunity to attend a Transboundary Workshop hosted by Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott. A variety of people attended, including Native leaders, NGO leaders, fishing leaders and interested residents. State Departments of Environmental Conservation, Fish & Game, and Natural Resources presented. I recognized most faces and have had the pleasure to work with many of them through the HJR9 process, "Canadian Mines on Transboundary Waters."
The workshop focused on reporting and receiving feedback on the implementation of the Statement of Cooperation. The statement was signed by Mallott, British Columbia Minister of Environment Mary Polak, and BC Minister of Energy & Mines Bill Bennett in October of 2016 to enhance communication and transparency between Alaska and British Columbia, primarily in regards to the operation, maintenance, closure and potential development of Canadian mines.

The meeting was a helpful status update: The state of Alaska has created online web tools — including an interactive map — and a two-year work plan for implementing a Joint Monitoring Program. Although the cooperation statement is a huge step forward and beneficial in many ways, it also has its weaknesses. It is nonbinding and nonfunded.

As is frequently the case, funding and money are a primary concern. Canadian mines have different permitting processes than Alaska mines; they have lower standards and more risky outcomes. The 2014 tailings disaster at Mount Polley mine speaks volumes. If another catastrophe similar to Mount Polley occurs in the Alaska-BC transboundary watersheds, we currently have no monetary assurances. The leniency of Canadian mine permitting could wipe out our watershed ecosystems and leave us with no way to recover.

I am not anti-mining; in fact, I'm doing what I can to support the efforts of two potential mining projects on Prince of Wales. However, I am opposed to unsafe mining that could potentially harm one of our biggest economic drivers. I am pro-fishing in every way. Our fishing industry and lifestyle is vital to Southeast Alaska. Canadian mines also do not employ Alaskans and do not provide any economic benefit for our communities.

Our watersheds provide thousands of jobs, millions of dollars, and a way of life that is irreplaceable and must be protected. I am excited to see the cooperation statement grow as a working document, and am actively building off of the statement to find enforceable and funded efforts to protect our pristine and lucrative watersheds.

If you have any ideas for the state on the transboundary mining issue, please contact Barbara Blake or former state Sen. Albert Kookesh in the Lieutenant Governor's Office.

— Rep. Dan Ortiz
Ketchikan

Single-payer care for Alaska would cover everyone
and reduce costs

Deborah Holmes (Letters, June 29) is concerned about "what 'Obamacare' will do to us in the future," specifically about high and rising health care insurance premiums.

If premiums (plus deductibles, etc.) would be lower under Republican plans (which I doubt), it is only because many of those needing the most health care would be priced out of the market entirely.

But that wouldn't eliminate their health care costs, it would simply transfer them to the emergency system, which would be even more expensive for the rest of us.
Of course — if it's any consolation — some of those people would die earlier, thus putting a stop to their health care costs. (And the wealthiest among us would get a huge tax cut, if you consider that a positive.)

The basic question is whether we want a society in which everyone has health care insurance. Every other advanced nation in the world ensures universal health care insurance — with better overall results, at lower per capita cost — and we're the richest nation in the world, so we can certainly afford it.

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The most efficient systems we have now — without wasting money on insurance company advertising, ridiculous paperwork, excessive costs for exorbitant procedures, and profits — are Medicare and Medicaid as well as the VA system. We could save money and get better results — while covering everyone — if they were generalized to the entire population.

Alternatively, states could institute single-payer systems of their own (several states are considering it).

What about Alaska? Ms. Holmes, would you support that? We can cover everyone at lower overall cost. Of course everyone will have to pay — whether sick or not — that's the nature of insurance.

— Rick Wicks
Anchorage

Free-ranging cats kill billions of birds each year in the US alone

It is important to follow up on Rick Sinnott's column on feral cats ("Do feral cats have special needs or is it all in our heads?" June 21) and Teresa Chagrin's response letter ("Cats don't belong outdoors" June 27). Both touched on two major points that deserve the attention of any agency or person weighing the implications of free-ranging owned or feral cats: disease transmission and the ethics of exposing cats to outdoor hazards.

But the column and the letter did not mention the issue of predation by free-ranging cats on wildlife. Whether a cat is fed by its keeper or is feral and subsists entirely by itself, all cats are effective and active predators on native wildlife. This impact is far from trivial, as a recent scientific study showed that predation by cats on wildlife stands head and shoulders above any other human-caused mortality of birds. In another study that appeared in the journal Nature Communications, the authors estimated that in the U.S. alone free-ranging cats (both owned and feral) kill between 1.3 billion-4 billion birds annually.

Yes, you read that right: 1.3 billion-4 billion birds are killed by cats each year in the U.S. That's 4-12 birds killed each year for every man, woman and child in the U.S.

The same study estimated that 6.3 billion-22.3 billion mammals are killed by cats each year in the US (and cats don't discriminate the vermin house mouse, Mus musculus, and brown rat, Rattus norvegicus, from the native small mammals that naturally inhabit our woods and fields).

Mojo's Hope, Allie Cat Allies and their like are well-meaning but highly delusional to believe that the establishment of cat colonies is beneficial. The negative environmental impacts of free-ranging cats is overwhelmingly shown by the scientific literature. Unfortunately those who find that the science runs contrary to their agenda will sometimes simply deny (i.e., ignore) the science, and I expect the same from advocates for cat colonies. Additionally, releasing a novel predator that wreaks havoc on native wildlife is simply not ethical (and PETA should recognize this!).

So to the policymakers, please allow the science on the impacts of free-ranging cats, and not the emotion, inform your decisions. To the cat owner, keep your cat indoors or be willing to accept that you are the killer of innocent wildlife.

— George Durner
Anchorage

Thanks for Assembly news

My thanks for Devin Kelly's advance notices of what is coming up at the Assembly meetings! Is there a chance we could also get a next day report on action taken? These are the kinds of articles I most appreciate in a local newspaper — the national news is much more readily available.

— Bernadine Raiskums
Anchorage

Legislature works very efficiently getting very little done

After reading the recent article by Nathaniel Herz about our Legislature I was sorely tempted to write a very sarcastic letter. But on a second thought the people to whom it was directed — our legislators — would have probably missed the point and confused sarcasm for compliment. It was bad enough that legislators took 160 or so days to come up with an operating budget (one of their two top priorities), and kicking the can — read refusal to deal with a long-term solution to our revenue/spending problems — down the road again (for the third time in three years), now we are told that they are "weary and demoralized," they "need a break" and have "to get on with their lives." Poor things!

And apparently to heck with their other main responsibility: to pass a capital budget.

And what's the upshot of this failure? For example, what about the construction workers who won't work this summer because there's no state matching funds for already planned projects and the impact of these incomplete projects on the rest of us? I'm sure there are many other examples. One good thing about spending money from our state savings, I guess, is that sooner or later it'll be gone and maybe then our elected leaders will have to act. No, wait. By then they'll be worried about being re-elected, so then what? Maybe we voters will come together again and get rid of some if not all the folks who are not dealing with Alaska's financial issues in a constructive and creative way.

Finally, I had to laugh when I read the quotes from Sen. Peter Micciche: In one he says that he "wasn't very satisfied" with the results of this year's session and that he didn't think "using any metric that anyone could claim that we worked efficiently." I would have to respectfully disagree. He and his cohorts worked very efficiently at not getting anything done. Most of us know that it takes a lot of work to not accomplish anything.

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Second finally: Gunnar Knapp was quoted as saying that "without a credible fiscal plan, we're flying blind." Where is our leadership? The beat goes on. And on.

— Dave Hillemeyer
Anchorage

Alaska senators don't take stand

Well, the Senate Republicans have postponed their vote on Trump(couldn't)Care(less) Health Bill due to at least 5 Republican senators listening to the voters from their districts. Our senators were not among the "courageous" five. Lisa Murkowski couldn't make up her mind and can now release her breath, as she has both retained her position within the party and, hopefully, satisfied her constituents by looking "somewhat" opposed to making them pay more for their health care.

Of course, Danny Boy has said nothing as he is totally owned by the party and has not had an original thought since he voiced opposition to Trump being the party choice after Trump's admission on tape he is a sexual predator. (It was Danny's finest moment.)

Play it safe, Dan, you might get appointed to take Bannon's place when he's found guilty of something as vile as his politics, and put out to pasture by someone attempting to pull the reins in on Trump.

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— Dick Palmatier
Wasilla

Common sense government

The Alaska Marine Highway System has several vessels for sale. How about cut the budget and house the House of Representatives and Senate, and all aides, on the ferry and have their meals there. Great to keep the Southeast ferry workers employed.

Let's close the roads to Fairbanks and Homer. No road maintenance, or charge a toll and build booths. More jobs for Alaskans.

Charge a $100 head tax for every tourist who steps foot off a cruise ship or airplane. They are using our natural resources and the buses are destroying our roads. Let Alaskans rebuild our infrastructure.

No more free ride for oil or gas companies. They must pay to take our natural resources.

Make all the mining corporations pay to extract our gold, lead, zinc, etc.
Do not vote for any of the politicians who have a conflict of interest or can't walk across the aisle and agree to work out a budget.

No more travel for senators and House members to foreign countries.
Let our governor do his job.

Back to the 120-day sessions — and lawmakers can't leave until they get rid of stupid outdated bills and introduce bills that matter, like dealing with the heroin and opioid epidemic and the homeless.

The Legislature needs to pay the $37 million for the Legislative Information Office in downtown Anchorage debacle.

Streamline all state departments and unload mid-managers.
A lifelong Alaskan tired of seeing our government held hostage.

— Captain Loretto Jones
Juneau

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 under 200 words 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.

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