Letters to the editor for July 23
Let’s change the way we elect the city council
We’ve got 12 people running for Olympia City Council. It’s great to have so many people willing to serve, but it illustrates a problem with the way we run elections. Why do we have them run in four separate races? All of the positions are citywide, so the separate positions are completely arbitrary.
This system limits our choices as voters. There is one council race where I would like to vote for two candidates, and in another race I’m not eager to vote for any of the candidates.
Running separate races also makes it less likely we will seat a mix of council members who represent the broad range of views in the city. This system lets 51% of the voters elect 100% of the positions.
I think it would work better to have all the candidates run in a single election in November, with voters ranking their choices. This would give us more choice as voters and give us a council that reflects broader representation of diverse interests.
Glenn Blackmon, Olympia
Let’s work together for the planet
We are all feeling the heat. The country and world are experiencing vast climate change impacts and we must work together with kindness to mitigate this trend.
We are far from powerless. Any act, small or large, helps. We’ve likely heard it before: shop local, eat more plants, take public transit, and compost. If we’re able, we can donate to reforestation organizations, install solar panels and/or ground-source heat pumps in our homes, or even upgrade to an electric vehicle.
Fortunately, state and federal legislation is moving mostly in a wise direction. We can ask our elected officials to keep supporting meaningful environmental protection legislation. Economic, environmental and human health truly go hand-in-hand.
May we continue to expand funding for renewable energy (like solar on residential and commercial rooftops), especially in low-income and disadvantaged communities. May we plant vacant lots with trees, and restore natural green spaces and green roofs in suburban and urban areas.
We could pay landowners to plant trees and native plants on their property, to encourage climate-friendly landscaping. Increasing financial aid to folks seeking to increase energy efficiency of their home or purchase an electric vehicle would also be helpful.
Above all, let’s examine our relationship with Earth.
Rebecca Canright, Olympia
State doing very well on vaccinations
In March, I wrote a letter to the editor criticizing the state of Washington for a slow start on COVID vaccinations, lagging many other states at the time. We were the first state to have a COVID-19 outbreak, and we were slow to ramp up our vaccination program.
I doubt that my letter had anything to do with it, but the state definitely did get on the ball, and is one of the highest- performing states in vaccination and COVID cases.
The Centers for Disease Control report that 68% of adults nationwide have received at least one dose, they report that 75.7% of adults in Washington state have. Some states, such as Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alabama are down in the 50-55% range.
Our performance on cases and hospitalizations also has been very good. We are No. 13 in population, but No. 27 in number of cases. In cases per 1 million people, we are No. 47. In COVID-19 deaths per 1 million people, we are No. 45. There are some competitions where you don’t want to be No. 1.
Many thanks to the Governor, Department of Health, our Thurston County Health Department, and all of the thousands of health care workers who have helped us achieve this dramatic improvement.
If YOU are not yet vaccinated, please walk into your neighborhood pharmacy tomorrow and get the jab. It’s good for you, for your community, for our economy, and for our nation.
Jim Lazar, Olympia