Masks, fireworks, COVID vaccine mandate, climate change and other Herald letters

Laws protect us; so why no masks?

We should be wearing masks and getting vaccinated for the same reason we are required by law to wear a seat belt, obey traffic laws, secure children in the proper seating, not drive when impaired, not text and drive, etc., etc.

It not only protects us and those we love, but the rest of the population as well.

Let’s wipe out the viruses, not people. Is it really that hard to understand?

Dale Morrison, Burbank

Ban fireworks inside Richland

The fire departments across the Tri-City region responded to 51 separate calls on July 4. This region is dry and at a very high fire danger risk. Some members of the public also buy and set off banned aerial fireworks. Besides the obvious injuries associated with nonprofessionals setting off fireworks and the fire danger, there is also the detrimental effect these loud explosions have on beloved pets for days before, during and after July 4.

It is time for the CIty of Richland to join the City of Kennewick in banning the sale and discharge of fireworks. That way we can all safely enjoy the Fourth. The cities of West Richland and Pasco should consider doing this as well.

Amy Small, Richland

What is GOP trying to hide?

Just when most people thought my Republican Party had reached the bottom of the integrity barrel for endorsing voter suppression and anti-Democracy legislation, Republicans did something to make one realize the integrity barrel is much deeper than originally thought possible.

(House Minority Leader Kevin) McCarthy now complains the House Select Committee to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection is illegitimate because it does not have enough Republicans on it. Guess he forgot he refused to participate in the originally proposed bipartisan House Committee and also prohibited three other Republicans from participating in the House Select Committee. Makes one wonder what my Republican Party is trying to hide.....or possibly cover-up.

Carl Grando, West Richland

No choice given federal workers

Hypocrisy runs rampant these days in America. President Biden just issued a directive for mandatory vaccination of all federal employees and federal subcontractors. This directive affects nearly 9.1 million people, according to Project on Government Oversight. Either employees comply or undergo mandatory testing once per week.

I do not remember such government overreach and attempts to control people of the United States for a vaccine that is experimental, has not proven to prevent illness and that for some may represent greater risk than the disease.

Since Roe vs Wade, an estimated 62 million abortions have occurred in the U.S., roughly 615,831 abortions (reported by the CDC) in 2020. President Biden and his Democratic party stand on the rights of women to make this choice. “My body, my choice,” is the mantra. How dare anyone infringe upon the rights of the individual to make this choice?

Yet, the same president and party want to infringe on my individual right to make a choice regarding vaccination. If the vaccination is as effective as believed by our president, then the vaccinated should feel confident they are safe against the COVID-19 virus and leave the rest of us alone. It is, “My body and my choice.”

Steve Killoy, Pasco

We need to fix law on animal cruelty

Imagine for a moment that you work at a veterinary clinic, and every day you see animals taken home without treatment, knowing undoubtedly that this condemns them to an excruciatingly slow and torturous death. Now imagine the fear of losing your job if you were to call animal control. Would you make the call?

It happens, every single day. In part because only 20 of our 50 states mandate veterinarians to report cases of animal cruelty. Worse yet, only one of our 50 states mandates any animal care professional to report (it), and provides them with immunity from lawsuits for reporting.

Washington is a state which neither requires the reporting of animal cruelty nor protects animal welfare professionals from lawsuits for reporting acts of animal cruelty; a stance which inevitably discourages reporting of cruelty.

Is this the kind of society we want to live in? One which ties the hands of those who seek to help animals? Almost all of us love animals and wish to prevent their suffering, yet despite this, we have all collectively refused to demand better for them. Perhaps it is time we ask ourselves why that is.

Carly Larkin, Kennewick

No answer for his insurance question

I just got off the phone with the Washington State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s Office regarding his emergency action to disallow consideration of credit scores in determining insurance premiums. My question was, “For every person who previously paid too much for insurance because their credit score was incorrectly too low, how many people with good credit scores are now paying too much because of Kreidler’s ‘emergency’ action to eliminate discrimination?”

The commissioner’s office stated that they do not have this data. Citizens of Washington, how long can we tolerate bureaucrats and politicians who enact emergency actions based on their own opinions and desires, without the data to back it up?

David Garber, West Richland

Action needed now on climate change

The recently released report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes the need for drastic action on climate ever more apparent. This should entail a concerted mobilization of all resources and inclusion of all potential solutions, the type of effort that was needed for winning World War II. Putting a price on carbon, pushing renewables and non-carbon energy sources and removing subsidies for fossil fuels, electrification of transportation, changes to agricultural practices — a long list can be made of where to begin. Our failure to do very little or any of this after so many years of warnings by scientists is maddening.

The costs of inaction are orders of magnitude greater than the costs of addressing the problem. Failure to act is a matter of political will, not technological limitations. We can no longer afford incrementalism and giving any heed to the disinformation and special interests of those invested in the status quo. This is clearly a big problem now and an existential threat to future generations. The report makes clear that it is not too late to take action, but it must begin now. We the people need to overcome our own fears and apathy and push our leaders to do so.

Dennis D. Finn, Pasco

Time for deputies to drop lawsuit

Now that voters have shown their overwhelming support of local law enforcement by voting to oust Sheriff (Jerry) Hatcher, I ask Benton County deputies to drop their $22 million lawsuit against the county. Please. We taxpayers cannot afford it, and from here on out, it will only look petty and mean-spirited. Thank you for your service.

Linda K. Gragg, Kennewick

CRT not critical; it’s ‘dangerous’

I must respond to the letter from Michael Prudhomme in Sunday’s opinion section. This ... cannot go unanswered. Predictably, Prudhomme blasts all things Trump for the levels of dissent against and repudiation of the current liberal rage for critical race theory. Then he goes on to reveal his tragically misguided interpretation of CRT as nothing more than “critical thinking.”

Where to begin? Pretty much every adult believes that “critical thinking skills” are a good thing and must be taught in schools. What this writer utterly fails to understand is that CRT is not that. CRT has nothing whatever to do with critical thinking; indeed it is nothing more than a fascist fabrication of a “history” of our country, blaming one race (whites) for all the ills of all other races.

To require primary and elementary school students to adopt a sense of guilt for something they have no control over (their skin color), nor had anything to do with (the actions of people 200 years ago), is lunacy. And lunacy is not critical thinking; it is dangerous group think.

Lisa Davis Kennewick