Letters: Vote by mail, school nurses and COVID | Aug 27

Be true to your oath, not party

Washington state has had mail-in voting since 2005. Remember 2004 when Christine Gregoire eventually won the Governor’s office after two recounts? That was managed under Sam Reed, a Republican. Since 1964, our state has had only Republicans as secretary of state. In Eastern Washington, all officials are Republicans.

The election in November is being tampered with. The USPS has slowed down service by Trump appointee Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The USPS has sent memos to 40 states that mail-in ballots might not arrive in time.

To be stamped with the election date, send ballots no later Oct. 28.

It’s time for Republican elected officials to put their loyalty to the Constitution and affirm publicly that our elections remain secure. Never before in America’s history has loyalty to the office of the president been in conflict with loyalty to the Constitution or democratic process. Our elected officials need to remain true to their oaths of office and (the) public they serve above their loyalty and fealty to Trump and the Republican party.

Don’t allow your rights to be taken away. We cannot stand by and let the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment be the year our democracy dies.

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Nurses needed at every school

A school nurse in Alabama who was interviewed recently on television said school nurses were better qualified than educators to establish guidelines for reopening the schools. Unfortunately, due to funding restraints, some schools do not have nurses at all, and others must share nursing coverage.

As Tri-City school districts try to meet the challenge to reopen, parents, teachers and staff would have more confidence in the process if they knew a certified nurse was on site all day, every day, at each of the schools, to direct safety protocols and to continually monitor temperatures and other symptomatic issues for the safety of students and staff.

When I was teaching in Kennewick, students who were feverish, vomiting, had nose bleeds, etc., were sent to the office, and if it was not the day the nurse was there, the school secretary was pressed into nursing service. This was certainly not part of her job description, but it happened routinely!

With COVID-19, we have to do better than that. Our school boards need to address this issue, put a certified nurse in each school and be guided by the nurses’ recommendations, if our schools are to reopen safely.

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Richland mayor right on COVID

I am writing to say I completely agree with Richland Mayor Ryan Lukson was talking about at the July 21 City Council meeting with regards to the opening up criteria: they seem to change quite frequently. One day the criteria will be one way and then the next day they are changed again. It does seem as if we are stuck in this Phase 1.5 with no way out of it.

I am glad to see most everyone in the Tri-Cities area is now doing their part by wearing masks when going out, but are they doing any good? The mask compliance rate is said to be quite high, and yet it seems we set a new infection record almost every day. I want to stop the spread of the Coronavirus disease as much as anyone, however the way we are currently handling this health crisis doesn’t appear to be working. Perhaps it is time for a new approach.

This story was originally published August 27, 2020 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Vote by mail, school nurses and COVID | Aug 27."