Letters: Dams, coronavirus, grout and more | April 19

Are power costs just ‘guesswork?’

Concerning breaching the dams: claims made by opinion contributors in a recent column that it could “increase power costs in the Ti-Cities by 50%” (written by a farm manager and barge manager), and another that it “could increase electric costs up to 30 percent” (a PUD representative) are just estimations and guesswork. Well, who is doing this guesswork? The PUD representative also went so far as to say it would cost one school district “$400,000 annually . . . to pay for electricity”. More guesswork? Of course these “estimations” are meant to hit us where we live.

Do what you will or will not with the dams, but do not make claims based upon conjecture in order to rile the emotions of your public. It exposes yourselves only as favoring your own interests and contrived motivations, in order to rally and gather individuals to join your side.

What of the fish and the natural community and their beliefs? Are they able to speak for themselves, or come up with reports and studies or legal representation? Maybe we should take this into account when we are deciding about the future of our revered river.

A parable for our current times

A parable:

There once was a wonderful country called the United States of America. A Constitution of laws and rules was established to protect the nation and the people. The nation was ruled by a leader called the president. Many helpers would gather information, discuss options and then the president would make a ruling.

One year, a new president with much wealth was elected by the people. Persons of wealth were installed into places of authority, even though they did not know the laws of the land. The new president also did not know, or understand, the laws that had stood for years, and he didn’t care, as his rulings were his orders.

A dangerous disease called egotism, from the egocentric new leader, started creeping over the nation. Some symptoms were greed, falsehoods and lust for power. The people were terrified and fear and uncertainty spread over the land. This new president was obsessed with himself, which was of great concern to all. He would make fun of and criticize those who didn’t agree with him. So his people were afraid to tell him that he might be wrong.

Seriously, could this be a fantasy or a reality — happening now?

We let lapse our common defense

I feel sad for my country, my state and my community over the coronavirus. Amid the conflict, the lack of trust, the distribution of blame, I am reminded that many of our fellow Americans have died, and we seem to forget the national mourning this deserves. Many individuals have lost loved ones, many are in pain.

The Preamble to the Constitution includes “provide for the common defense.” The coronavirus reminds us that there are many kinds of conflict, not just those fought with tanks and bombs. We needed to be protected from the coronavirus, and we were not prepared. Yes, war can come from an unknown assailant, such as a virus. It can also come from cyberattacks against our infrastructure or our elections, also for which we remain unprepared. The Preamble reminds that this is the job of the national government, not the states. We need vigilance in protecting our democracy. We have become careless, from not only the costs of such vigilance, but also perhaps from our sense of exceptionalism that we will somehow be protected. I argue that we will maintain our exceptionalism only if we maintain vigilance. That is the job of us all.

He rates Trump zero for empathy

If anyone else were president, Republican or Democrat, would he/she have rated him/herself a 10 for his/her handling of the coronavirus pandemic? Personally, I rate him zero for empathy and off-the-charts for egotism.

Why do folks still go out in groups?

Why does it take two or more persons to go grocery shopping? While health officials have urged residents not to assemble in groups, I regularly see couples or adults with another adult or with one or more children, sometimes infants, in the grocery store where I shop. Interestingly, they are almost hip to hip and most are not wearing a protective covering over their mouth. The more people who are potentially exposed, the greater the potential danger. What does it take to get people to practice healthy and safe behavior?

Cover your eyes when going out

Open your eyes guys. If you are wearing a mask, you still have two holes in your head that are perfect for absorbing droplets and airborne virus. (unless you’re wearing glasses). You can see other people’s breath in the winter. Would you walk through that with your eyes open if it might be infected? Wearing your glasses or wrap around sunglasses or clear lenses not only protects your most absorbent openings but it also holds the mask tighter around your nose. If the general public had been aware of this, maybe we wouldn’t have lost so many lives and jobs, and we wouldn’t be going so deeply in debt.

One world not for benefit of all

Re: The Herald’s April 9 editorial cartoon: The hope of the world is He who created this universe whether you personally believe in Him or not. He wills good for all of us. And asks us in return to use our free will, given to all of us by Him, for the good of ourselves and others. Not all United Nations policies are for the good of all or of our world including their one-world policy.

Why is Sanders staying in race?

Recently, Bernie Sanders announced that he was suspending his campaign for president, yet would continue on state ballots and accumulate delegates. Why? In order at the nomination convention “to exert significant influence over the party platform and other functions.” What influence is he seeking to make?

(1) “Entitled to health care as a human right” through “universal health care.”

(2) “Entitled to decent wages and working conditions.”

(3) “Entitled to all of the education we require to fulfill our dreams” to not be “saddled with huge debt.”

(4) “Entitled to live in a world that has a clean environment ... ravaged by climate change.”

(5) “Entitled to live in a world of justice, democracy and fairness.”

But, the most important term is “justice” – economic, social, racial and environmental. I would ask all Americans to ask themselves what a progressive just America would truly look like. Sanders believes “the future of this country is with our (progressive) ideas.” He says, “Real change never comes from the top on down, but always from the bottom on up.”

Change may come from the bottom on up, but the revolution will result in rule from the top upon those on down. Wake up America!

Thanks due to our front-line workers

First, I want to give a major thank you to everyone out on the front lines during this pandemic, including but not limited to food service workers, postal delivery workers and police. But, I would like to bring awareness to the people who are helping fight against this virus and heal people with it: our healthcare workers. With family members in the healthcare field, I see how passionately they are caring for their patients, but I also see the lack of protection they have in their places of work. Re-using a fabric surgical mask when performing a sterile procedure risks the health of the patient and those performing procedures. People with probable cases are being transferred to different facilities, further spreading something that urgently needs to be contained.

I’m asking that we as a community protect ourselves and essential workers by staying home. To those helping make fabric masks, thank you, they are greatly appreciated in the shortage of PPE. If you can’t make masks, please don’t buy disposable ones and use a scarf instead, it’s not the same, but other people need them. Most importantly, please stay home and stay healthy.

Resurrect cartoon from St. Helens

In the days following the eruption of Mount St. Helens, your paper ran an editorial cartoon that — believe it or not — is just as relevant now In these COVID-19 times as it was 40 years ago (and how many editorial cartoons could say THAT?), and which I now regret not having saved. The cartoon showed the Seal of the State of Washington with George Washington wearing a filter mask. I wish you would dig deep into your archives and reprint that cartoon in your editorial section. Those of us who remember those times would appreciate it. Thank you.

Editor’s note: We found it!

Keep wearing your masks

We should always wear a mask when in public, just in case we are carriers!

Grouting low-level waste is proven

In response to the op-ed article written by Gary Petersen on March 29, Mr. Petersen was absolutely correct: the low-level waste in the underground storage tanks at Hanford can be, and should be, safely disposed of in grout as is being done at most other nuclear facilities (e.g., Savannah River nuclear site).

In 1989, Westinghouse Hanford Co. at its Grout Treatment Facility successfully completed a test run to turn low-level waste to a concrete-like substance (grout) for permanent underground disposal. One million gallons of “simulated” low-level waste was disposed of in a 1.4 million gallon concrete vault in the 200 Area of Hanford. The demonstration met all criteria for safe disposal of the waste.

However, at the time, the State of Washington objected to this method because it constituted “permanent disposal” on site and wasn’t “as good as vitrified waste in glass.” That was 30 years ago. Had we continued that program, perhaps half to two-thirds of the low-level waste stored in the underground tanks would have been immobilized. Let’s complete the current grout demonstration test and get on with grouting of the low-level tank waste.

Derangement syndrome or?

“How do we handle lies at debates?”

“Is Russian rigging of 2020 okay?”

“Press for carbon dividend measure”

These are the titles of some “Letters to the Editor” in Sunday’s (3/8/20) Tri-City Herald. The titles are very misleading in that two are really just Trump Bashing personified because he is a “vile” person and he “lies” almost uncontrollably. At least that is what I get from the content. Trump Derangement Syndrome on full display!

Now another one is just ridiculous in that it projects a 90% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. First, how could anyone make such a prediction? Oh, sorry, I forgot, if you are a climate change nut you can predict with great accuracy. Scientific, my a--! Let’s be clear: This is a control of society through taxation, nothing more, nothing less. You will pay from your earnings for very little, if any, progress on the carbon emissions front while destroying the economy along with substantial loss of jobs/employment.

Respectfully submitted, well, almost so,

A Right Wing Redneck Conservative Republican

5 good reasons to keep our dams

I am a current and former resident of the Tri-Cities. I have long admired and subscribed to the Tri-City Herald. While in California, I learned of the ongoing battle over the dams.

Removal of the dams is one of the worst things we can do for some simple reasons:

1. We’d lose a huge amount of green energy.

2. There is no way to guarantee that fish runs would be restored.

3. We would lose control of river water.

4 The planet is undergoing changes in regional climate. We may lose our fish from this despite dam removal.

5. Movement of products by barge might become unfeasible.

I pray the Army Corps of Engineers and the Northwest will not do something foolish.

The Hippocratic Oath (paraphrased) “Do Thy Patient No Harm.”

Test all of us, then consider change

The president has thrown out another “aspirational” date for America to “go back to work.” Really? When only two million have been tested out of 330 million? That is 0.6%, including those in the hospital and those that have already died.

Even those who have been tested, with negative results, how do we know they not infected now? We need a national day of testing, or at least a coherent plan to test everyone, to see who has it and who doesn’t in real time! In essence, allowing every American the same testing regimen that Mr. Trump enjoys, nothing less.

We all know the president and vice president have both been tested at least twice, and everybody who goes into contact with the president also is tested, the asymptomatic too.

As mass testing in both Iceland and Vo Italy have showed that half of those who tested positive were asymptomatic, or based on today’s confirmed positives 467,000 means we have that many asymptomatic walking among us.

No, Mr. President, we are not going back to work, not until we can go back with the confidence that we are not infected and those around us are not infected either.

No farms, no food

I agree with the letter by Michael Cochrane of Kennewick, who suggested that the Kennewick Irrigation District use the canyon behind Zintel Dam as a reservoir for water. This would be better than taking over the Cox family farm in Badger Canyon. I’m reminded of a bumper sticker I once read, which said, “No Farms No Food.”

Running short in Benton City

I hope this coronavirus thing goes away soon. I’m almost out of toilet paper.

This story was originally published April 19, 2020 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Dams, coronavirus, grout and more | April 19."