Letters: Richland skeleton response, hybrid learning, sex-ed re-try and more | Nov. 29

Thank you, from Kadlec Board

As long-time supporters of Kadlec and members of the Kadlec Community Mission Board, we want to express our thanks and admiration to the caregivers and providers who have been serving on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic in Benton and Franklin Counties.

At all the hospitals and health facilities throughout the area, staff have responded with professionalism and dedication. They demonstrate daily their commitment to providing safe, compassionate care at great personal sacrifice. Without the collective effort of the community, they will be overwhelmed.

This has been a long, challenging year for all of us. But those on the frontlines are exhausted and have been through more than we can imagine. As a community, we owe it to them to do all that we can to ease their burden. The best way we can support them is to adhere to state and local directives, wear our masks, practice physical distancing and limit indoor gathering.

Promising vaccines are on the way, but it is essential that we do all we can to reduce the spread of COVID in our community to prevent hospitalizations and needless deaths. We know this is especially difficult during the holidays, but we need to make sacrifices so that our hospitals are not overwhelmed, and our resources are not stretched thin.

We are fortunate to have quality medical care in our community, and we are thankful to have health care workers who are so devoted to caring for our friends, our families, and ourselves. Let’s pay it forward and do all that we can to thank our caregivers and flatten the curve of COVID-19 in our community.

Editor’s note: Names of individual board members can be found here.

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More to the skeletons story

In response to the letter submitted by JK Isbell (Nov.19) regarding the display of skeletons hanging from the trees in front of my home in Richland: Go find something else to whine about.

The display was entirely my doing and my housemate, Ms Cowell, was stating her own views about the display being “funny” and non-political. Fine, you didn’t find them funny, and they weren’t meant to be. Political? Absolutely. But, as determined by Richland Police, and affirmed by the city attorney, there was no “hate crime” as the skeletons were hung by the collar bones and there were no nooses.

You found them “hateful,” “offensive” and “racist”? I bought the last white-boned skeleton the store had, and the black one was not spray painted; don’t like it, talk to the retailer who sold it. I was exercising my right of Free Speech and if you don’t like my display, drive down another street so you don’t have to look at it. Get over yourself and leave Ms Cowell out of this.

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Gather input from staff, students

Since COVID-19, students have been doing online school. Some think this is a safe and simple solution to the problem; others feel the opposite. I am one of these people. I spoke with some citizens from the Tri-Cities, one that goes to school with me and one who is a parent. Cloe Logsdon stated, “It sucks that it’s my senior year, and I don’t get to experience everything for the last time.”

While high schoolers are waiting to go back to school, elementary kids have already started going back. I have talked to a parent who takes care of three kids in elementary school. This is what she said: “It’s definitely harder in a sense of trying to be on the same page as their teachers and getting children to pay attention long enough. I also feel like kids are missing out on in-class active learning ....”

Although online school is a safer and easier way to prevent our students and staff from getting COVID-19, there are many alternative precautions we can take such as masks, hybrid (learning), and continuous cleaning. Even though online school may be easier and safer, we need to rethink how our students and staff really feel.

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Evangelicals, Plutocrats, GOP

The Nov. 8 op-ed by Mark Mansperger excoriated evangelicals, free enterprise and conservatives’ just days after Joe Biden called for healing and unity in America. Evangelicals are defined as believing in the inerrant authority of the Gospel. Conservatives are those embracing free enterprise, private ownership and socially traditional ideas. The column concluded that “lying cheating evangelicals and plutocrats” are in consort with the objectives of Vladimir Putin. Plutocrats (persons with wealth derived power) are very unlikely to align with the GOP based on the contributions of such as Bezos, Soros, Zuckerberg, Gates and Buffet.

The column promoted “viable capitalism” defined as viable socialism. Contrarily, the free enterprise system allows private business to compete largely free of state control, making America the envy of the world and providing unlimited opportunities for achievement.

The disregard for the foundation of America is shocking. The National Mall is filled with numerous scripture locations; i.e., the Supreme Court and Washington Monument with its capstone “Praise be to God.”

“The propitious smiles of heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained” — Washington’s 1789 Inaugural Address.

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Let’s stop avoiding wearing masks

It’s ironic that there are folks who are protesting the lack of school openings (wanting their students to have in-person learning) that seem to also be those most up-in-arms regarding the loss of “personal freedoms” and continue to eschew face masks.

That’s a generalization, I know, but the mask issue is the key to either opening schools or continuing to have in-person instruction.

As we picked up our grandkids from school last week, a father, maskless, was telling his kids, “Wearing a mask just isn’t natural.”

I wanted to say, “Neither is being hooked up to a ventilator!”

Friends, let’s suck it up and mask up!

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Time to end the era of me, me, me

The soon to be ex-President Trump is the epitome of me, me, me. His rallies were COVID-19 superspreader events. Many of his non-mask-wearing supporters were sickened and some died. Trump refused to follow CDC guidelines and would not wear a facemask. He flouted his own public health advisers and got himself and those around him sick. Americans are now dying in record numbers from COVID-19 infections, and Trump spends his days golfing, sulking and tweeting after his failed re-election bid.

I have never seen an adult behave this badly. His rudeness and incompetence is epic. He is truly the sorest loser and the biggest liar.

This should be a wakeup call for all Americans. Be gracious, truthful, accept personal responsibility and care about the health and welfare of others. Wear a facemask, and wear it properly. Get your news from reputable sources.

And we must stop and reverse climate change, or the planet and all life on it will not have a future.

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We need new way to tackle COVID

With the recent lockdown implemented by Gov. Inslee, the economy of Eastern Washington is again at risk. Many people are facing loss of jobs, income and housing.

I would not wish COVID-19 on anyone. But do masks and lockdowns still work? Or has the virus mutated in its transmission? Is the virus transmitting in new ways that we are not aware of?

Maybe the virus can live longer on dry hard surfaces and we should wear gloves. Maybe the virus can hang longer in the air in droplets and penetrate our simple masks. Maybe the virus is secreted on skin through perspiration.

Some people have no idea how they contacted the virus. Scientists need to unlock the mutation and transmission of the virus. The human toll is tragic. But to ignore the economic toll is disastrous.

Gov. (Jay) Inslee, do not expect the federal government to bail this state out. Leadership is more than masks and lockdowns.

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I-1109 seeks to rerun sex ed vote

Hello, this is Washington State Rep. Brad Klippert. We are currently gathering signatures for Initiative 1109. If passed into law, I-1109 would take Sex Health Education out of Washington state government control and would put oversight of Sex Health Education in the hands/control of locally elected school boards. We need to gather 320,000 signatures by Dec. 21. You can sign petitions at all Tri-Cities area Griggs Ace-Hardware stores, Calvary Chapel Church Office, Desert Star Electric at 510 W. Clark St., Pasco, and The Bunker, Military Surplus at 225 Wellsian Way, Richland.

I urge you to get involved in this very, very important initiative. Take sex ed out of the hands of state government control and put it in the control of your locally elected school board officials.

God Bless you all. God Bless America.

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Student wants to try hybrid learning

I am a student in the Kennewick School District, and I would like to talk about remote learning and schools not being reopened. Many students are struggling to keep their grades up, and because of that, they feel the need not to attend zoom classes. But what they don’t realize is that not attending zoom will make them be even more behind, because they are not getting the extra help they need.

Teachers are doing an amazing job: they have study groups after school, tutoring, and even, during zoom, private chat to ask the teacher questions; however all this work is not helping us. For many teens, home is a very big distraction. I think hybrid learning is a great idea. For example, “even when K-5 students transition back to classrooms full time, they will still be required to wear face coverings and social distancing will be required.” K-5 is a very hard group to social-distance; they want to play with their friends during lunch and not wear a mask. On the other hand, teens have a better understanding of social distancing. We can handle it. This is why I feel so strongly about hybrid learning.

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Toddler Trump puts us in danger

Lest anyone still clings to the delusion that Donald Trump cares about our country, please take note of his actions/inactions during this time of transition to a new administration. He has refused to allow the General Services Administration to recognize Joe Biden as the president-elect.

This means the incoming administration has no access to the money, offices and contacts necessary to prepare and hit the ground running on Jan. 20. He has denied Biden the benefit of traditional presidential daily briefings, which potentially puts our national security at risk.

He is firing people he deems less than loyal to him right and left, thus leaving the new administration with risky levels of experienced staffing. He has instructed his people to refuse to consult with the incoming administration on issues surrounding COVID-19, thus putting the health of the entire country at risk.

When Trump weighs country and self, self always wins. He is like a toddler who refuses to share his toys with anyone else. We are all less safe for it.

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Opposite view on Iran nuclear deal

Jim Watkins, in his opinion letter of Nov. 15, stated that all of President Trump’s hard work to pull us out of the Iranian deal will now be undone. Well, I view that work by Trump was a huge mistake. The letter goes on to say that Obama gave Iran $15 billion dollars. Obama did not give any money to Iran! The nuclear agreement included China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. The deal did lift a freeze on Iran’s assets that were held largely in foreign banks. The money that was unfrozen belonged to Iran. The assertion that the deal allowed Iran to continue to develop nuclear weapons is false.

An important facet of the deal was that Iran would stop building their plutonium reactor. Their compliance was and is, verifiable. Plutonium is essential to a nuclear program. I believe that every nuclear weapon in the U.S. arsenal has a plutonium element. An important step in world peace is stopping the production of plutonium wherever possible.

Now Trump wants to attack Iran. This is not a question of perception by citizens. This is a matter or right or wrong!

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We will survive Biden’s 4 years

My “sour grapes” letter! I read/listen/analyze/decide on my own — something that most people do not do. Most rely on “feeling” about unity/togetherness/etc. All that feel-good stuff that is never going to happen. Socialism edicts are not American edicts, and the sooner you realize that, the better. I/we will survive Biden just as we survived Obama and his ObamaCare that sold us down the river. (“Keep your doctor,” Ha ha!) And hopefully after four years the nation will really “come together” and make a necessary change. Unless, of course, there are so many getting “free” stuff that they have gone over the edge to socialism.

This story was originally published November 29, 2020 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Letters: Richland skeleton response, hybrid learning, sex-ed re-try and more | Nov. 29."