Letters to the Editor

For editorial letters, please be sure to include name, address and home telephone number for verification. Mail any letters that you would like to see published or email letter to prescottjournal@hotmail.com. Otherwise, comments cannot and will not be printed without a verifiable source.

Don doesn't want your vote

Dear Editor,

The April 1 election for District 9 Gilman, Spring Valley, and Spring Lake area is coming soon. As hard as this is for me, DO NOT VOTE FOR ME, Don Nellessen, even though my name is still on the election ballot. If you vote for me and I win, your vote will be wasted and the Pierce County Board can appoint anyone they like to represent you. Please "write-in" Ken Snow, a long-time resident of our area, to make sure we are all represented on county issues. County issues have an immediate impact on your life and taxes; make sure your vote counts.

Thank you for your support.

Don Nellessen

Spring Valley

Watching your school dollars

Dear Editor,

It is unfortunate that the Journal's Editorial March 13, chose to take a cheap shot at school board member Nancy Paulson, rather than report on her message. Mrs. Paulson expressed her concerns about the SAGE program in terms of whether we can continue to afford it, as well as its inequitable demands on teachers (let alone students) dealing with 30 in a class.

Some voters think they voted for the last referendum because the school board promised to keep SAGE.

Others, however, voted for the referendum in spite of the board's acceptance of the SAGE program, considering that the board had cut other expenses and promised to stay within the additional $420,000 average budget increase provided by the referendum.

The problem is this allows only $142,000 additional spending for this next year, with $50,000 added as contingency for emergency spending, such as "unexpected fuel costs."

Each year an additional, similar amount will be needed just to keep even, "with no new programs." In four years the amount needed will be $600,000 additional per year, well in excess of the $420,000

If the SAGE program is now going to cost more in order to bring it into compliance, which seems to have been Mrs. Paulson's concern from the very beginning, the board will quickly overspend its promise to stay within the allowed budget.

This is the question that must be addressed carefully versus wishfully.

The board ought not dare to overspend if it wants support for the next levy override referendum in four years, which we can expect will be over $1.5M.

Jim Packard

Prescott

Let them hear your voice in Madison

Dear Editor,

I encourage all voters to go to the polls April 1 and vote "yes" on the proposed constitutional amendment. It is a very straight forward, simple two-page amendment. Please read it.

This Senate Joint Resolution is being submitted to a vote of the people. That's you and me. Let's hear your voice loud and clear. Vote "yes!"

James Gumbusky

Prescott

It is time to try democracy

Dear Editor,

We have been put upon for nearly two years by our presidential "hopefuls" trying to garner our support. They have raised obscene amounts of money to make media outlets wealthy while our jobs continue to disappear overseas. Hillary raised $35 million after Stupor Tuesday, but - alas - Barrack raised $50 million during the same period. During that time the price of a gallon of gas has risen about 23 cents a gallon.

Meanwhile, we bicker over whether Geraldine Ferraro is a racist or an aging former player who should keep her opinions off the front page.

Was Barrack "Hussein" Obama in the pew when his minister made inflammatory remarks about the poor treatment blacks have received in our country over the last 300 or so years? Who cares!

John McCain has received support from at least two fundamentalist preachers whose inflammatory remarks are an indication that neither would know the truth if it snuck up behind them and took a bite out of their collective butts.

We borrow money from the Chinese to stimulate an economy that has finally imploded from the greed of lending institutions and mortgage writers' greed and the willingness of homeowners to allow them to out and out lie on the applications.

For at least 10 years our economy was based on the financing and refinancing of real estate. In the 50s, four or five out of every 10 jobs was connected to the auto mobile industry.

For the last 15 years or so, it has all been tied to the construction of housing people were duped into believing they could afford.

We have long put all our eggs in one basket. It has now placed our fledgling Republic in a downward financial spiral that we haven't enough left to buy our way out of.

Our government plans to give us each $600 as long as we spend it at Target and not to put food on empty tables.

There is an easy button at Staples. Where is the "what's up with that" button in Washington?

We are being buried under our consumer debt. They say Nero fiddled while Rome burned. At least he had an excuse. Nobody told him that drinking his wine out of lead goblets would mess up his judgement.

We have no such excuse. We sit idly by while those we send to Washington to represent our interests betray that trust daily and with impunity.

We are the government if you actually believe the Constitution - we keep claiming total allegiance to.

When are we going to awaken from this long nap and take back the legacy we claim.

The operative concept at work here is ... If God wanted us to vote he'd have given us CANDIDATES!

Democracy sounds like a good idea. We should give it a try, don't you think?

Steve Cox

Prescott

Repair it right

Dear Editor,

RetireSafe has declared its support of the Motor Vehicle Owners' Right to Repair Act (HR 2694) and strongly urges Congress to pass the legislation on behalf of older Americans throughout the country.

Many older Americans live on a fixed income and Right to Repair ensures they can continue to enjoy the affordability and convenience of having their vehicle serviced at the repair shop of their choice.

As vehicles are becoming increasingly sophisticated with virtually every system either monitored or controlled by computers, access to accurate repair information is essential to the safety and well being of all motorists.

The Right to Repair Act was introduced in Congress to ensure that car owners and their trusted repair shops have the same access to safety alerts and repair information as the franchised new car dealer network.

Many older Americans rely on neighborhood repair shops to keep their vehicles operating safely.

Their independence may be severely compromised if they are forced back to the dealer for service and repairs, particularly if there is no dealership in their area.

Visit www.righttorepair.org to send a letter to each of your congressional representatives, urging them to support the Right to Repair Act (HR 2694) by adding their names to the growing list of co-sponsors.

Michelle Plasari

President RetireSafe

No letters to the editor concerning the April 1 Election will be printed in the Prescott Journal a week prior to the election date.

This action is taken to preserve a level of fairness for competing issues and candidates.

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