Letters to the editor for Nov. 9
Free roaming cats kill birds
Unfortunately, The Olympian’s recent article about the trap and release program for feral cats never gets around to explaining why they’re a problem. The closest it comes is a quote suggesting that not being cared for by people is hard on the cats.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s summary of the research, outdoor cats kill something like 2.4 billion birds a year. Other researchers estimate that about 800 million of those birds are killed each year by cats whose owners let them out to roam and hunt; the other 1.6 billion are killed by cats without owners.
Collisions with reflecting windows during the day and lit buildings at night cause about 600 million bird deaths a year. Land-based wind turbines cause about 325,000, and fossil fuel plants are estimated to kill around 12 times as many birds for a given amount of power production as wind plants do.
Thad Curtz, Olympia
Schools must stop bullying
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, an annual reminder of the impact bullying has on school-age students and what we can do to prevent it.
When my child was bullied in school, it impacted how he was performing academically and his willingness to go to school. That’s when I decided to move him to the Washington Virtual Academy (WAVA), a digital public school. He has been enrolled for two years now and the growth he has made academically blows me away!
Without the constant fear of bullying, he has thrived. His reading, spelling and math have all improved. The WAVA staff are amazing, and we appreciate all their hard work in teaching our kids. WAVA is the best thing we could have done for our son and our family.
One of the most stressful situations children face is how to deal with bullying. I’m grateful that WAVA has provided my son with a learning environment that has allowed him to succeed.
Joy Gomes, Olympia
$450K for a single ADU? Really?
The article “Olympia City Council gets update on housing projects” was encouraging, but two articles earlier this week offered lessons in futility and in hope.
One said City Council created a single ADU (accessory dwelling unit) for $450K. It also said Mayor Cheryl called out Lacey for not doing their share. She’s right on about that. When Plum Street Village (PSV) was being envisioned, both Lacey and Tumwater said if it was a success, they’d follow suit. PSV is, but neither has done so.
The other article said Low Income Housing Institute spent $1 million and built 262 units in tiny house villages north of us: that’s under $4K per dwelling.
The council needs a serious infusion of reality therapy, seems to me. Thurston County numbers are elusive, but whether it’s 800 or 1,600 homeless people, units that cost half a million bucks ain’t the solution, and frittering away Council time and effort in such foolish pursuits only moves us in the wrong direction.
From my volunteer time at SideWalk, I’d wager there are 600 homeless people hereabouts who would eagerly move into a tiny house at Plum Street Village tomorrow if one were available. The tiny house village being built on Anderson Franz Road is a great beginning. Tiny house villages are the least expensive and quickest way to get people off the streets. The cost in social services for each homeless person is said to run close to $40K. Housing them in large numbers is a winner.
Warren Carlson, Olympia
Legislators: Curb your grandstanding and get back to work
Our legislators have failed to address many issues that our state’s residents continue to face. Instead of embracing a toxic combination of identity politics and absurd moral grandstanding coming from both political parties, our legislators must reckon with a laundry list of pressing issues (rising business costs, lack of decentralization-focused K-12 school policies, a flawed environmental policy, and of course, the losses of jobs from the Inslee business shutdown).
Washington’s population suffers from rising business and energy costs, and the widespread erosion of opportunities for growth for everyone and law and order across our cities and communities. Our lawmakers need to stop their dog-whistling, bickering, and often condescending attitudes toward each other and their voters and embrace better ideas for making our state an example of sound policy.
As Washington is moving past the COVID-19 pandemic, our legislators must move on, too, and, with differences aside, deliver business and community-centered solutions for the long term.
Erick Dietrich, Olympia