‘Olympia’ is not to blame for sins of Legislature

I am writing to castigate Rep. Ed Orcutt, who represents the 20th district in the Washington House of Representatives. Rep. Orcutt, in his recent opinion piece on Initiative I-1366 (Oct. 15) employs a practice that has long annoyed me. Rep. Orcutt repeatedly uses the name “Olympia” as if it is some functioning governmental body. (Or in this case non-functioning.)

The government of the state of Washington is exactly that: i.e. governing the state of Washington. “Olympia,” however, is the name of the city that serves as the capital of this state.

While the distinction between between the two may seem petty to some, it is the correct interpretation. For example: Rep. Orcutt (and others) need to stop giving “Olympia” the negative connotation that he has in this piece.

The city of Olympia was established in the 1840s by settlers and will out-live us all. Who knows about the future of political bodies?

This story was originally published October 28, 2015 at 1:28 PM with the headline "‘Olympia’ is not to blame for sins of Legislature."