Readers write: Letters to the editor, May 8, 2017

Young fails to protect Alaskans

I read the benefits for the new House-passed insurance program. I believe it's called the Trump plan. It has a great benefit of up to $14,000 a year credit for health insurance you purchase for your family. The only problem is it's a tax credit. In order to be a tax credit it only helps those making above $75,000 a year. In other words it's a tax credit for the more well-to-do. A married couple with two kids, making a shade over minimum wage, only pulls in about $40,000 a year if both of them work. With a standard deduction of $12,600, and a per-person deduction of $4,050 each, they will not owe any taxes. Thus they do not qualify for a tax credit. It appears the Trump plan only benefits the wealthy.

How could Don Young, Lisa Murkowski or Dan Sullivan vote for a bill that will cut off any chance for tens of thousands of Alaskans to be covered? I understand many of the less well-to-do normally vote Democratic, but I was to understand Republicans and Democrats work for all the people in the state not just the ones who vote for their party. Young stated he just voted yes in order to pass the decision on to the Senate. What a cop-out. Members of the House and Senate have no worries on the health care issue because we, the people, pay for their great plan with our tax dollars. I cut Young from my "vote for" list. I hope I will not have to cut anyone else.

— Mike Gumbleton
Palmer

Young vote puts family at risk

An open letter to Rep. Don Young: I'm a lifelong Alaskan. I'm writing today to let you know my feelings about your vote on the health care bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. I'm appalled and disturbed by your vote to support the American Health Care Act. The public had no time to review and understand the ramifications of this bill. My brother was born with congenital pre-existing conditions and many other family members have pre-existing conditions as well.

I'm extremely worried for my brother, family members and friends.

At your advanced age, it is unlikely you do not have pre-existing conditions. It is my understanding that Congress will keep its highly desirable health plans while ordinary citizens are put at serious risk. What happened to the golden rule? How does this bill benefit all Alaskans? The lack of detail and Congressional Budget Office analysis leaves the general public to imagine the worst. What in the bill tells us things will improve — nothing I can see. The movement of money to insurance companies, while not defining effective health care coverage, is another win for corporations and the wealthy.

Expecting the dysfunctional Alaska Legislature to fund or figure out how to insure people with pre-existing conditions is a real long shot. It's not a good thing when people are fearful of not having affordable health care. As a U.S. student studying in Canada, I have not had to worry about paying to see a doctor.

Everyone is covered for basic health care. This reduces stress and increases everyone's sense of well-being, something Alaska desperately needs. The lack of affordable health care is weighing heavily on whether I will return to Alaska or not. I'm utterly disappointed in you, and will not be voting for you in the future.

— Avalon Lee
Fairbanks

Dairy cows never get holiday

Last week, The Washington Post published a major expose (ADN, May 7) of the U.S. organic dairy industry concluding megadairies scam consumers into paying extra for "organic" milk that isn't. The timing, a few days before Mother's Day, could not be more appropriate. Dairy cows, worldwide symbols of motherhood, never get to see or nurture their babies.

The newborn calves are torn from their mothers at birth and turned into veal cutlets, so the dairy industry can sell their milk. The distraught mothers bellow for days, hoping in vain for their babies' return.

Instead, they are chained on a concrete warehouse floor, milked by machines, then impregnated artificially to renew the pregnancy and keep the milk flowing. When their production drops, around four years of age, they are ground into hamburgers.

This Mother's Day, let's all honor motherhood and our natural compassion for animals by rejecting the dairy industry's cruelty. Let's replace cow's milk and its products, laden with cholesterol, saturated fats, hormones and antibiotics. Let's choose delicious, healthful, cruelty-free plant-based milk, cheese and ice cream products offered at our grocery stores.

— Alexander Durbin
Anchorage

Kudos for Gara's tax support

Thanks to Rep. Les Gara, D-Anchorage, for supporting a state income tax.
Not only is it equitable, but finally nonresidents who take their money and multipliers elsewhere, will have to start paying: two weeks on in Alaska, and two weeks off for Oklahoma-Texas ranchers, West Coast fisherman and tourism industry.

— Mary L. Turner
Anchorage

Palin, Nugent, Kid Rock indicate caliber of current White House

Unfortunately, Mr. Lieb's letter, (ADN, May 5) also "enhanced division."At first glance I too missed any "sneering in front of Hillary" (although I thought it was a still shot from a "Saturday Night Live" parody. However, I am more concerned by the assessment of the pic in the May 5 issue of "The Week" magazine. It's a taste of my concern — you decide if it reflects "real" or "alternative" facts. Quoting Jamelle Bouie from Slate.com, (I probably just enhanced our divisions by citing those "news" sources, but I shall press on.): "Every president tells us something about the image he wants to project through the entertainers, celebrities and sports figures he invites to the White House."

Kid Rock has flown the Confederate flag and told black protesters to "kiss my —." Ted Nugent called Obama a "subhuman mongrel" and his supporters "pimps, whores and welfare brats," and said the Confederacy should have won the Civil War. Sarah — well, we, more than most Americans, know the "things" she's said. I honestly don't care if any or all in that photo intended to flip Hillary off; I'm much more concerned about what their presence does to further legitimize such un-American attitudes.

— Keith Muschinske
Eagle River

Editor's note: Here are excerpts from letters to the editor written by eighth-grade students at Gruening Middle School in Eagle River. The students wrote about issues of their choice as part of Gruening's annual Project Citizen, a civics program aimed at learning how to influence public policy and bring about positive change.

Sign our petition to increase APD staff

I would like to talk about the rising situation with Anchorage's police force staff. The problem is the Anchorage Police Department is severely understaffed.

I do know there are many problems the police department is facing right now, but the biggest issue is the staff at our police force. The average police-to-citizen ratio is 2.7 to 1,000. Anchorage's police-to-citizen ratio is 1.2 to 1,000, according to the University of Alaska Anchorage Justice Center. That is very low. Something we would like to do is raise that number to 2.7 officers per 1,000 citizens. The Turnagain Arm community in Anchorage is proposing a tax increase to its citizens for police service. There is much debate about this topic.

My classmates and I would really like you to consider promoting our initiative to raise the police-to-citizen ratio. Please sign our petition at change.org/p/the-assembly-anchorage-needs-more-police.

Thank you for taking the time to consider our cause.

— William Spence
Gruening Middle School
Eagle River

Arts in schools lose out due to budget cuts

For Project Citizen, my class has chosen the problem of funding for the arts in schools across Alaska. Throughout schools in the Anchorage School District, students in elementary, middle and high schools do not have many choices or opportunities involving the arts. Each school has the basic music electives — band, orchestra and choir — but most do not offer more than that.

On the ASD website, it says if the school would like it can offer a beginning guitar class or music exploratory class or even a keyboard class — but because of budget cuts, none of the extra classes are offered. As you can see, funding for the arts is becoming an increasingly serious problem as the years go on, because of budget cuts. In all elementary schools, students receive two to three music classes a week. That is not including band or orchestra offered to students in sixth grade.

As for art classes, those only meet two times a month. That is roughly 6 percent of time spent on arts in a month. In middle school, arts, drama and music are all optional electives as well as in high school. ASD has a big deficit, and for art classes and other things that means no extra teachers. So, as a result, many schools have to share a music or art teacher. Rilke Schule and Winterberry charter schools share a music teacher, as well as Mt. Iliamna and Whaley schools.

Nicole Cox teaches at three elementary schools as the art teacher. She teaches at Kasuun, Scenic Park and Northern Lights ABC elementary schools. Rachel Landers also is an art teacher at many elementary schools. She teaches at Tudor, Ursa Major and Willow Crest elementary schools. In the end, most of this is because of budget cuts in ASD.

According to Dr. Bishop, director of fine arts in ASD, "Arts help you know what it means to be human." So without art classes, music classes and drama classes some students might not learn some valuable lessons.

Our class policy, which is an idea of how to help solve our problem, to help funding for the arts, is to increase the arts education in elementary schools and middle schools. This would mean elementary school students would have more art classes every month. So instead of two, they would be able to have up to four, which is an art class every week. In middle school this solution would possibly mean having more variety in art or music classes offered.

Alaska Dispatch News, I think that you could help our class raise awareness on this problem of funding for the arts in school because you are a news source, I am writing this letter to you, ADN, in hopes your readers might read this letter and understand the importance of arts in our schools and in a student's education. Also I hope that you might help us raise awareness in our area by writing an article on the importance of arts in a student's education and on the lack of money funding the arts in our schools. I hope you will see the importance of this issue in Anchorage School District and in the overall state of Alaska.

— Kara Johnson
Gruening Middle School
Eagle River

Sex assault prevention needed in schools

My class chose to focus on sexual assault in our community. Alaska has triple the national average. Sexual assault affects every community in Alaska.

The Anchorage School District can help stop sexual assault by informing the youth about how to prevent it. We would like to get Standing Together Against Rape, or STAR, and Green Dot into the middle and high school to educate them on how to prevent it. We would like you to help us by bringing awareness to sexual assault in Alaska.

— Samantha Douthitt
Gruening Middle School
Eagle River

Teens need sleep, so start school later

The problem my class chose was school start time. It should be started later so students do better in school. With the current school start time, it is impossible for teens to get enough sleep. Those teens are going to school tired. When you are tired you can't learn your best. I say this problem is pretty widespread because everyone in class said they don't get enough sleep. And most teens don't get enough sleep because of the current start time.

Our class policy is to change elementary and high school start times, because teens need more sleep than little kids. I think the Anchorage School District should change our schools' start times. Even starting school 30 minutes later could benefit the students. Please help us spread the word, because teens need sleep.

— Gabriel Dominguez
Gruening Middle School
Eagle River

Teach children early about drug abuse risk

The problem my class and I have chosen to address is substance abuse. Alaska has a substance abuse epidemic with heroin being the most commonly abused. Substance abuse is widespread throughout Alaska, with rural areas being the most affected.

The government should deal with our problem because it is plaguing our state. Our class policy is we believe solving the problem is crucial and want to bring awareness and educate youth.

This will help stop substance abuse over a period of time. Children are our future, so by educating children early on in life, they won't want to do drugs. What I ask of ADN is to simply raise awareness of substance abuse and what works in diminishing it.

— Anthon Hernandez
Gruening Middle School
Eagle River

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.