Letters to the editor for April 28
Why isn’t war a crime?
I don’t get this stuff about whether or not Russia has committed “war crimes” in Ukraine. How is invading a sovereign nation without provocation not a war crime unto itself? In what world does it matter more how you kill people than that you actually did?
Putin’s army is committing war crimes through torture, rape and murder plus targeting hospitals, homes and humanitarian evacuation routes. But these are just sub-crimes, ones that happen in war. The ultimate crime is starting an unprovoked war in the first place by attacking a peaceful, sovereign nation.
This is the 21st century where no country should ever be allowed to invade or attempt to conquer any other country just because they want to and think they have the armaments to do so. War is the crime that must stop before the crimes of war will cease.
To this end, the free world should provide massive military aid to Ukraine to fight Russia. If the Ukrainian people are willing to die defending freedom, they should be given all the weapons necessary to do so, short of nuclear weapons.
And Russia should be absolutely strangled by all sanctions imaginable for its invasion of Ukraine. Target their economy, their oligarchs and all social/political/sports interactions Russia has with the entire free world. It’s time to show everyone that money and prestige can be just as powerful as bullets and bombs when it comes to preventing wars.
Steve Shanewise, Olympia
Careful wording a missed opportunity
In the excellent article about the retirement of Don Trosper, my attention was caught by a carefully crafted sentence: “The Bush-Simmons party settled here after an attempt to settle south of the Columbia River in American territory and being rejected based on the race of some of the party members.” It does not specify whose race was an issue, but it seems unlikely they couldn’t settle in American territory because some of the party was white.
This was a missed opportunity to gently and accurately point to the long history of racism in the United States — in this case used against George Bush, “a man of color.” I’m sure it was written in this non-specific way to not offend your mostly white readers, but you did a disservice by continuing to sanitize history.
Meryl Birn, Olympia
Homeless spending is a folly
The recent article detailing the city’s missteps in handling the homeless situation infuriates me. This throwing money at the problem without proper planning, staffing, and solid alternatives just continues this waste.
Juxtaposed to the article was one mentioning the additional $800 million the state has budgeted for dealing with this situation. How much misspent money will continue to be lavished without data proving any efficacy?
I am angry. Spending wildly doesn’t solve anything but must make the one spending feel good. Sadly, I find it hard to be sympathetic when I go past encampments so trashed I wonder how anyone can live in the midst of such debris — debris they created.
Stop this madness until a solid plan based on evidence of efficacy is developed. It’s hard to feel virtuous when what you do isn’t working.
Fred Yancey, Olympia
Say no to mandatory voting
Los Angeles Times writer Mark Z. Barabak proposes that we have mandatory voting. I object. Too much is mandatory now. Whatever happened to respecting someone’s right to choose? I have probably voted in most elections since 1976, and that was the last time for a Republican or Democratic candidate. No candidates from either of the big two impress me.
The Preamble to the Constitution lists five reasons for creating this nation: “in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.”
Our leaders have ignored those reasons from the beginning. We do not need mandatory voting.
We need more voices in politics. People should not be denied an opportunity to hear from Socialists or Libertarians and anything in between. It should be easier to run for office and maybe we should consider an alternate form of voting, such as ranked choice, or of governing, such as a parliamentary system. Let’s abolish the top two and let the people speak.
Michael H. Wilson, Lacey