Letters to the editor for May 6
Al Kimbel’s legacy
Too often the contributions of dedicated public employees go unrecognized by those who benefit most from their contributions. Thank you, Art O’Neal, for identifying the projects that Al Kimbel managed during his years with the city of Olympia: The Olympia Center, the Washington Center of Performing Arts, the Percival Creek Bridge and the major expansion of the Wastewater Treatment Plant where his efforts resulted in the city paying only 5-10 percent of the project costs.
All city of Olympia taxpayers benefited greatly by Al Kimbel’s contributions.
Lucille Carlson, Olympia
Thinking through the transformation to electric
If somehow every vehicle in America was suddenly transformed into an EV, is it possible to power them using wind and solar? Can our power grid systems somehow charge up all these trucks and cars using renewable energy? I’m not able to do the math, but I seriously doubt it’s possible.
How are all these EVs going to be manufactured without using fossil fuels? How many wind turbines would it take to replace a single fuel station along I-5? How can any birds survive all these wind turbines?
For those who don’t fully understand the core issue that cannot be bargained with here it is: Anything that burns needs oxygen. Things that burn include coal, gas and the engines that use it. Even our own breathing burns up oxygen using the food we eat. All this burning consumes oxygen and emits carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is a heavier molecule than oxygen and holds more heat for a longer time. Only plants can consume carbon dioxide and they are being systematically removed while more and more engines are produced.
How can this vicious spiral into doom be stopped? Stop the foolish dreaming about windmills and EVs. Create a new branch of the armed forces dedicated to fighting fires. Equip them with squadrons of huge water bombing planes. Find a way to scrub the CO2 from our atmosphere mimicking photosynthesis. Use nuclear power if needed. Stemming our reproductive rate would help too.
Randy S. Gray, Olympia
Flexibility needed to support equitable school access, not a new school
As a parent, I am concerned the Olympia School District is making a mistake by spending resources on a new Virtual Academy instead of current schools.
Students find support with familiar faces and peers whether on-site or distance. OSD has created a virtual school and is considering requiring current students who opt for distance learning to transfer in the fall. This is unfair, discriminatory, and inequitable. It is vital for the social, emotional, and physical health of students to offer ingenuity and flexibility within their current school of choice. We do not know what next school year brings. How will my vaccinated children be treated while others “opt” out? How can I trust OSD to keep my children safe without allowing the flexibility I need to make choices regarding the setting?
Students and families, especially middle school and high school, must have the option to be grandfathered into their current school, even if requesting distance learning. Our family has attended both OSD neighborhood and alternative schools. OSD does not fully fund IEP services to alternative schools. Rather than adding another alternative school with only a select few spaces for IEP students, let’s just support students at their current schools with technology and other means so we can get through this crisis as a community together.
We need flexibility for families at their current schools of choice for the 2021-2022 school year, not a mandate for distance learners to attend a new school. Working together we can get through this.
Kerry Dyer, Olympia