Letters to the Editor

Big brother is always watching

I see you had a mostly maskless Deutsches Fest. I have a friend whose relative went home from the Fest infected with Covid. Real men or women don’t wear masks? More deaths from Covid are happening in Lincoln County. Death is apparently less scary than losing a sense of power (control). Looking from the outside in, I grudgingly acknowledge not one chink of doubt in your “suits of armor” has changed your white conservative beliefs. I remember a night in the 1980s when my partner Chuck and I entered the Biergarten. One of Odessa’s respected citizens checking IDs, who I knew and towered over, refused to shake my hand. In a fast-advancing half-century, little if any thought or activity has changed in Odessa. The community that I grew up in looks older. Take a Google Maps road trip through town, and you’ll see the deterioration of buildings and homes. Many trees are gone, yards neglected. Most homes for sale have not been renovated and are depressed. Neighboring towns have gotten even smaller; main-street store windows are boarded up. Yet you insist that you’re on the right side of history and that minorities are ruining your community and country!

I lived in Sonoma, Calif. for a few years around 2012. The Sonoma Speedway was less than 20 minutes from where we lived. One day, traveling to the VA Hospital in San Francisco, Chuck and I passed by the speedway. Preparing for a stock-car race, it had transformed into a camp...

Bruce Porter

– Honolulu

Bias alongside claims of fraud

The Washington Election Integrity Coalition United or WEICU and Jerry Schultz are protesting the results of the 2020 presidential race. While I agree it is their right to do so, I feel that it is wrong, in the face of no evidence of widespread wrongdoing in the election, that those of us who, while maybe not liking the results but accepting them, are forced to pay with our tax dollars for this fruitless attempt to overthrow one of the most secure elections in this nation’s history.

Donald Trump won this county, 73% to 24% (roughly), so I can think of only two reasons to request an audit. First, they believe that Joe Biden actually won and want an audit to prove it. Second, they are just trying to spread distrust in our voting system, which is the basis of our democracy. The first reason is just ludicrous given the voting history of Lincoln County, and the second reason could only be termed an undermining of our country.

The WEICU and Mr. Schultz should, if they believe in this so strongly, pay all costs upfront themselves, then if their claims are proved valid, should be reimbursed for monies spent. If, on the other hand, their claims are invalid, they should have to pay the court costs, not the rest of us.

People who file fruitless claims with no factual basis should not ask their fellow citizens to financially support their delusions.

Charles C. Puglisi

– Odessa

ADOPT A HIGHWAY VOLUNTEERS A SERIOUS COVID SPREADER

I am the Adopt a Highway (AAH) leader for Columbia Springs Estates in Lincoln County on SR 174, MP 23.38 to 26.00. This volunteer activity is no longer allowed unless I submit a Proclamation 21-14 - COVID-19 Vaccination Declaration form to the DOT. This requires having a Vaccination Verification Plan in place and requires that leaders obtain a copy of full vaccination against COVID19 or “properly exempted” for their group. AAH functions under the state DOT on-site activities. Per our governor’s proclamation, this puts AAH volunteers at extreme risk of being super spreaders as we pick up trash along the shoulders while we work anywhere from 10 feet to 1 mile apart on opposite sides of the highway. In defense of the DOT, it was not their decision to come up with this Proclamation and being forced to prove compliance.

This proclamation goes way beyond the current CDC guidelines for “safe outside activities during the pandemic” which lists twelve specific activities as being extremely low risk. Since AAH is not one of these twelve, we are a public danger according to our governor’s Proclamation. CDC also states that “when you are outside, fresh air is constantly moving and less likely to breathe in enough droplets to become infected”. However, our governor is convinced that the outside air AAH volunteers will breathe across a highway puts us at extreme risk for spreading infection.

As a former federal government employee, I am well aware that common sense plays no part in decision making. However, our state governor’s current proclamation takes the cake and wins first prize.

Unfortunately, cleanup is not going to happen. As the group leader I refuse to become involved in other people’s health status.

This is my personal opinion, and I do not presume to speak on behalf of our other volunteers though they also want to continue pickups.

Kathy Winzer, Grand Coulee, Lincoln County