Letters: Trump, coronavirus, wind farms and more | May 7

Trump’s mind is source of TDS

I’d assumed last week’s letter to the editor was an aberration, but today, after reading a second letter about Trump Derangement Syndrome, I find that I was wrong. I thought TDS referred to people who approve of his treating refugees like cattle, his embracing white supremacists, his rejecting our allies (even going so far as to blackmail and betray them), his ignoring climate science (not to mention medical science), his narcissism and dishonesty and incompetence, and in general, his ongoing effort to diminish the stature of the United States in the eyes of everyone except his followers. Evidently I was wrong, but I believe I see why: the notion of Trump Derangement Syndrome must have originated in the mind of Donald Trump himself.

Irresponsibility rises with viral toll

Each day, the Benton Franklin Health District provides information on COVID-19. The charts and graphs indicated that the number of cases had risen from three on March 15 to 740 on April 21. Of those cases, 126 are health care workers.

Yet with this rise, I see irresponsible behavior on the part of some individuals and the commissioners in Franklin County. People are standing close together and some are waving their guns. They seem to be saying that it is their constitutional right to get the virus and spread it. Likewise, as the commissioners declare businesses are open; they too foster the spread of the virus and a continuing increase in deaths.

Unfortunately, it is the rest of us and especially health care workers who will bear the brunt of this foolish behavior.

Remember the movie line, “Stupid is as stupid does.” Act like grownups and do the right thing — stay home. If you need to grocery shop, then wear a face mask and practice social distancing.

Lastly, listen to scientists and review the data. Stop listening to Trump and the right-wing commentators who lie and give misinformation.

Trump’s signature

The President of the United States has put his signature on the COVID-19 relief checks. Brilliant PR move.

Using the same logic, if he opens the country against medical advice prematurely, he should place his signature on the death certificates.

Putting a band-aid on a bullet wound

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, stated that he was taking every precaution to protect “medically fragile and the elderly” by keeping them out of harm’s way while opening the state’s economy. His administration will accomplish this by extending the stay-at-home order for these at-risk residents.

Does Gov. Kemp understand what constitutes “medically fragile?” In a recent paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, diabetes, obesity, and hypertension were identified, along with advanced age, as comorbidities for COVID-19. By following Gov. Kemp’s lead, a prophylactic sequestration wouldn’t just affect the roughly 39 million elderly, but would also affect 34 million diabetics, 75 million people suffering from hypertension and roughly 70 million citizens who are classified as obese.

While a Venn diagram of these comorbidities would certainly exhibit significant overlap between obesity, hypertension and diabetes, a not insignificant number of the U.S. population would be sheltered in their homes, hindering their wider participation in the general economy. Taking the Georgia model nationwide, nearly a third of Americans would be unable to participate in the economic recovery. Gov. Kemp’s plan sounds like a band-aid for a bullet wound.

Wind farm energy powers California

When Michael Rucker talks about “Wind energy myths generate confusion” (Tri-City Herald, 4/2/20), he adds to the confusion: He says it will bring “wind energy to the region and the state of Washington,” but he really means it’s electricity for California and its renewable energy mandate; we have plenty of energy for Washington with hydro and nuclear.

He talks about generating $2.4 million per year in taxes and 16 jobs; that pales in comparison to Tri-City visitors spending $560.2 million in 2019, generating $54.5 million in taxes and 6,370 jobs (Visitor Bureau). I think the visitors from the West Side enjoy the sweeping and unspoiled views of our hills when visiting local wineries.

These wind turbines are giants: at 500 feet, they are much taller than the Statue of Liberty (305 feet). Imagine the views from our popular Badger Mountain: 212 wind towers on 60,000 acres in 24-mile rows on the ridges of the Horse Heaven Hills and a forest of churning blades and blinking lights.

Global warming is real and we need to combat it in sensible ways, but this industrial-scale destruction of our landscape is not the way to go.

Governor isn’t solely to blame

Speaking of fishing: The Tri-City Herald cast out into the Coronovirus fight, but landed their editorial short of the mark.

The Sunday April 26 opinion laid the blame on Jay Inslee’s doorstep for much of the disorganized effort of “opening the economy.” While virtually every state in the “Un-unified” States of America is struggling with this issue; one has to ask why that should be? Governors should not be solely, in this position, alone, at all.

Now, I understand, most all the readership of this newspaper, in a solid, “red county,” in a very “red” half of this state, are put off by any “advice” coming from “the other Washington.”

The only thing we know that works, to impede this health crisis, is to use “shelter in place guidelines.” Yes, this is potential economic disaster, but imagine the difficulty of spending your money once you are in the grave! While drinking Lysol, hitch up your U-haul to the hearse and “take it with you!” Also difficult!

Simple logic dictates, we need to be alive first, then, hopefully, united, we can reel in something that looks like a new economy. In a health crisis, solutions may not be popular.

Next epidemic will be blame, lawsuits

Brace yourselves for a second pandemic, a plague of our own making, — blame! I already see it beginning to spread. Finger-pointing makes headline news, etc. I don’t know much about germs, but I do know there is plenty of blame to go around. Was anyone ready for the reality of COVID-19?

I read how some law firms are getting ready. The people we clap for now can expect to get slapped (with lawsuits) later. Nursing homes, hospitals, etc., are expensive enough. How much more expensive will they be (or even open) after their malpractice insurance goes through the roof? And will that make anything better?

“Could you have done a job better?” is an indefensible charge. We all could. We need to have faith we are all getting through this completely-beyond-our-experience event as best we can. We did it in WWII. We can do it now; share responsibility, without blame.

Meanwhile, Congress should pass lawsuit protections. Please write to them asking for that.

This story was originally published May 7, 2020 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Trump, coronavirus, wind farms and more | May 7."