Letters to the editor for Oct. 7
Be a voter
2020 is the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. 2020 is also the 232nd anniversary of the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, according the right to choose rulers to citizens of this nation. Yet, in the most recent election in Thurston County, the Aug. 4 primary, only 56.6% of registered voters chose the electoral outcome. In some elections is is even less, even as low as 30%.
We must exercise our right to vote and to choose our representative government if we expect it to continue to be that. We must vote! If you don’t know if you are registered to vote and current, go to Vote411.org and search your status. Then contact the Thurston County Auditor’s office and register to vote, if you need to.
Our all mail-in system is the safest and most accurate voting method in the country. We also are well informed with all pertinent information on candidates and ballot measures with the detailed brochure provided by the county Auditor’s office. We can mail our ballot or drop it at any of the 28 drop boxes in the county. We must vote to influence government in the direction that we choose.
Be a voter every election. Encourage your friends and relatives to vote as well. Our rights depend on our actions at the ballot box.
Stephen Wilson, Olympia
Support Beth Doglio
I am writing to urge voters to support Rep. Beth Doglio for Congress. Beth has been at the forefront of working on climate change policies for many years. Her expertise has never been more sorely needed than after the horrific summer and fall we’ve had on the West Coast, seeing millions of acres go up in smoke and keeping us confined to our homes to avoid that smoke. Beth knows the issues involved in working on climate change and she will work hard to enact policies at the federal level to address this issue.
Beth also will work on two issues particularly important to me: reproductive health for women and gun safety. I have watched Beth during the Washington state legislative session and have been so impressed with her willingness to listen to opposing viewpoints and then work tirelessly to solve those problems facing us here in Washington.
Please vote to send this impressive, dedicated and hard-working woman to Washington, D.C.
Jeanne L. Koenings, Olympia
Olympia’s ‘path to hell’
Downtown Olympia is a disgrace. It’s shameful this once nice little town has been allowed to degrade into the garbage hole it has become. How did it get to this point? Is it salvageable?
By my estimation, the decline of Olympia has been 50 years in the making, starting in the early 1970s, not coincidentally about the same time The Evergreen State College opened its doors. Olympia in the 1960s was a clean, prosperous, and vital little town, but the last five decades have seen it decay to the point we see now. Certainly, you recognize that current conditions in Olympia are unacceptable?
Politics in Olympia since the 1970s has strongly leaned liberal and progressive. I believe there is a nexus between the liberal/progressive politics of the last half century and the decline/decay that has occurred in Olympia. Is there any doubt about that?
My ideas to fix Olympia? Here is the short list:
- Zero tolerance for vagrancy. Those with mental illness and addiction issues live elsewhere and are supported by other means.
- Zero tolerance for graffiti and vandalism.
Olympia’s “path to hell has been paved with good intentions.” By that I mean to say that the approach taken by liberals and progressives over the years, although well-meaning, hasn’t worked and has caused real harm to downtown.
Next year you have the opportunity to vote for four of seven Olympia City Council positions. Please consider some alternative candidates. (God forbid, even a Republican!)
Bruce Carr, Olympia
This story was originally published October 7, 2020 at 5:45 AM.