Letters to the editor for Feb. 18

Republicans and valor

This letter is going to be short, bitter, and direct. If those in Congress are still unable to censure our ex-president, given all they experienced and we’ve all seen, they’ve lost all right to stirring speeches about the valor of American troops and other citizens who give all. Those in Congress won’t even chance their re-election — that’s cowardice, and I won’t listen to a coward.

Miles Folks, Olympia

Support ranked-choice voting

I first heard about ranked-choice voting (RCV) through a RadioLab podcast. It was 2018 and I was in the middle of my service term with the U.S. Peace Corps in Armenia.

As a United States citizen traveling the world during the 2016 election, I was stunned by how infamous our political system had become. We were spoken about in different countries daily and hardly ever in an inspirational light. Instead, we were a cautionary tale.

RCV struck me immediately as a way we might be able to do things better.

Though many people are just now getting introduced to RCV, it has a record of success. Evidence shows that where RCV is used, campaigns are friendlier and more issue-based and governments are more representative of constituents.

That’s why I think Washington should move toward RCV.

I’m not alone. Around 1,500 Washingtonians and I signed in “pro” at a Jan. 8 hearing to ask the legislature to pass House Bill 1156, an “RCV Local Options Bill.” This is the first step toward broader adoption of RCV in Washington and it may just be the first step toward a better reputation for America.

Aryn Eldridge, Olympia

Shame on the Republicans

I once regarded the Republican Party as the conservative party I hardly ever agreed with. Then they became the shady political party that engaged in extreme gerrymandering and all the forms of voter suppression in order to gain victory.

Now they are the toxic organization pandering to racists, white supremacists, domestic terrorists, and insurrectionists. They really are no longer a political party in a democratic system. Individual Republicans with integrity and a backbone should become independents.

Shame on the 43 Republican senators who put party over the constitution. The case against Donald Trump could not have been more clear and compelling. I weep for our country.

Edward Shaffer, Olympia

Unscenic Washington

I am disgusted whenever I enter or exit I-5 in the Lacey/Olympia area. I’ve seen the same trash for weeks and it continues to grow more ugly each day. Just shameful. Washington may want to consider changing its profile from “Scenic” to “Unscenic.”

When I’ve written to the city council members of Lacey and Olympia, the Department of Transportation, and various state government representatives, I rarely hear back — and when I do, it’s usually someone else’s fault.

Isn’t there anyone who has vision and the will to set goals to rectify the problem and the courage to eliminate any barriers that stand in the way of those goals?

What happened to the program that allowed incarcerated people to clean the I-5 corridor?

Barriers there, take them down.

So many people out of work, so much trash. Why not put folks to work?

Red tape there, find a way.

We certainly could use a statewide public campaign to promote pride in keeping our state roads clean.

Programs need more money? There is a price to pay to live in a clean and healthy environment.

There is a place for an organized volunteer corps as part of the solution, but the cities and state cannot and should not count on volunteers to keep the streets and highways clean.

If the area looked like this when I came to visit in 2015, I never would have invested in this community. I imagine many families will bypass Olympia and Lacey as a viable home.

Karen Romanelli, Lacey