Letters: Nov. 17, 2019

Keep coffee out of roundabout

I completely agree with Don Taylor and Cary Moon’s letters, putting a drive-thru (which means lines of cars) at a roundabout that is already so busy at certain times of the day is the most ridiculous traffic planning I’ve seen since the hazardous mess called “improvement” at the blue bridge.

Someone needs to fire the planning committee that approved this idea!

Thanks to voters from fire district

I’d like to express a heartfelt thank you to Benton County Fire District No. 1’s community for its support. We had a bond for fire truck and station renovation on the Nov. 5 ballot, and at present it’s passing with 62.3 percent.

The bond will fund significant renovations to accommodate staff at Station 150 (Badger Canyon), and replace a fire ladder truck at Station 120 (Finley). Replacing the ladder truck will help maintain our current insurance rating for fire district apparatus. Renovations to accommodate 24-hour staffing will improve response times district-wide, and lower the fire district’s insurance rating, which means lower premiums for home and business owners.

The emergency response we provide is funded by taxpayers, and we’ll keep our community members informed as we make progress on these capital projects. We will continue to be accountable and transparent to our taxpayers.

Nation’s security being put at risk

A foreign adversary that interferes in America’s internal affairs — whether social, economic, or political — does so in its own interests. It certainly doesn’t do so to make America great.

My 20 years in the military, followed by over two decades of work in national security, included assignments in intelligence, counterintelligence and psychological warfare aka information operations. During this time, I came to see the former Soviet Union, now the Russian Federation, as a formidable adversary. They remain so today. And as a result of America’s confused and counterproductive posture toward NATO, as well as the recent decision to green light Turkey’s incursion into Kurdish-held territory in Northern Syria, Russia has gained strength and influence in key areas of Interest.

When an American president actively seeks out Russian help to win an election, he not only betrays his oath of office, he also makes America vulnerable to further interference in America’s internal affairs. To follow that up with a blatant, if incompetent attempt to pressure the Ukraine into launching an investigation into a political rival demonstrates disdain toward the U.S. Constitution and constitutes criminal negligence toward the national security of the United States.

This story was originally published November 17, 2019 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Nov. 17, 2019."