Listen to small businesses
It seems as though every week there is a new political divide on some issue in this country, and frankly it gets tiring, and that's coming from someone who has been involved in politics for a long time! When a legislative issue does come along that has bipartisan support, it seems logical that our members of Congress can put aside their differences and pass something, right?
Well, now is one of those times when the call of unity is upon us and there are real consequences to inaction. The Health Insurance Tax is going to go into effect January 2018, Sen. Murkowski and Sen. Sullivan must support a one-year delay of this tax for the sake of Alaska small businesses and their employees.
This tax will result in higher premiums, more expenses for businesses, and it will limit the economic growth across the whole state and country. Our senators have supported small businesses in the past, and they both need to demonstrate their support now. Delay the HIT from emptying businesses pocketbooks and putting employees' health at risk.
— Steve Colligan, former vice-chair of Alaska GOP, small business owner, Wasilla
Clarification on 2 avalanche centers
The Alaska Avalanche Information Center, a state and federally recognized Not-For-Profit 501(c)(3), whose mission is to support and promote avalanche forecasts, education, research, professional development and networking of practitioners in the pursuit of healthy lifestyles and the reduction of unintentional injury and death, hereby provides written notice that this organization is in no way affiliated or providing support to the Anchorage Avalanche Center, operated independently by Mathew Brunton. This separation was formally announced by the AAIC Executive Board of Directors on July 15, 2015.
Mr. Brunton has been contacted and directed to remove all reference and affiliation to the AAIC from his operations. There is no public record of a state or city business license or nonprofit status issued to the Anchorage Avalanche Center or Mathew Brunton for fundraising purposes.
Any questions or further clarification can be directed to info@alaskasnow.org.
Our goal at the AAIC is to remain transparent in all of our operations and to assure the general public that all funds raised for the AAIC go directly to fund and support approved forecasting and education services to benefit the general public.
— Debra McGhan, Valdez
Don't open wildlife refuge
I am an Alaskan and I don't want to see the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge opened for development.
I have spent the past 20 years hiking, paddling, hunting, camping, and guiding in the Arctic refuge. I've fallen asleep with my tent surrounded by caribou, had snowball fights in July with my son on the tundra, and watched visitors from afar tear-up when it was time for them to leave the refuge, deeply touched by the timeless landscape. I plan on spending the rest of my life exploring and sharing the Arctic refuge.
Now is not the time to eliminate protected areas anywhere in our nation. An overwhelming majority of Americans oppose oil development in the refuge and a great many Alaskans concur. Particularly here in the north, we need intact and vibrant ecosystems with ample space for wildlife and people to adapt to a rapidly changing climate.
Drilling in the refuge will not balance the budget. Some estimate that oil leases will bring in less than 10 percent of budget projections, leaving our nation deeper in debt. Drilling in the Arctic refuge will eliminate recreational and subsistence opportunities for many Alaskans, and will destroy a small but vibrant part of Alaska's tourism industry.
I need wild places. Alaskans need wild places. The nation needs wild places. To quote the late Mardy Murie, "I hope the United States of America is not so rich that she can afford to let these wildernesses pass by, or so poor she cannot afford to keep them."
I am an Alaskan and I urge you to protect the Arctic refuge.
— Michael Wald, Fairbanks
GOP has gone downhill
I voted a straight Republican ballot when Wally Hickel first ran for governor in Alaska but have since become an independent. I never thought I would see the day that the RNC would endorse and raise campaign money for an alleged child molester. (Mitch McConnell has said that he believes the women.)
Neither did I think that a U.S. president would ever endorse and hold a backdoor campaign rally for such a person. It appears to me that, for them, morality is not even relative. It is simply absent. The rationale seems to be anything goes.
Expressed in words, the tenet must be this: Do evil to do "good." The ends justify the means.
— John Jensen, Anchorage
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter under 200 words for consideration, email letters@adn.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@adn.com.