Insurance rates, electoral college, masks and athletes and other Tri-City Herald letters
Insurance chief needs to be ousted
Wonder why your insurance rates skyrocketed this year? It’s thanks to State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler and his “woke” bureaucrats cramming through diktats under the guise of “emergency orders” that he previously failed to pass through the people’s representatives (the Legislature). They admitted, “A ban on use of credit scores will result in consumers paying more for insurance.”
However they insist on pursuing their own definition of “equity and racial justice” while opining on their “woke” ideas: “It’s a systematic change that will be allegedly costly to some but to whom begs the question. Is it the threat to resource hoarding that propagates resistance to equity efforts that stretch beyond symbolic?” (Candice Myrum, deputy commissioner, Policy and Legislative Division, Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner, July 14, 2020).
The insurance commissioner and his office were not hired to impose their own personal social engineering ideas of “equity efforts and social justice”. And it is especially egregious when they do it by bypassing the Legislature under an emergency order after the Legislature previously declined to approve it. If you “resource hoarders” agree, let them know how you feel, and let’s kick the bums out at the next election.
David Garber, West Richland
Electoral College is the real fraud
The real voter fraud, perpetuated on all Americans, is that each of our presidential votes were counted equally in determining the outcome.
Only Electoral College votes decide.
Within the states, the majority takes all of its Electoral College votes. Get slightly more than 50%, take all of the state’s electoral votes, and ignore all other voters. The “majority or nothing” Electoral College is completely blind to any minority.
Nationally, ‘win’ a handful of high-population states by the narrowest of margins, and no other states, no other votes, matter.
“In fact, the growing divide between large and small states means most of the people who voted for Trump in 2020 live in states won by Biden.”
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/12/09/most-trump-voters-live-states-won-by-biden/
One doesn’t need the most popular votes to become President.
“Republican presidential candidates have won the national popular vote only once in the last 32 years.”
Most states are branded entirely ‘Red’ or ‘Blue’ (mirroring their electoral outcomes). They’re considered immovable, irrelevant and largely excluded from presidential campaigning. Branded states are less contested, challenged or informed. Isolated, ill-informed political divisions deepen.
Democracy requires equal representation.
Abandon the 1824 Electoral College.
Ensure all American voters, in every state, can contribute one — equal — presidential vote.
Michael Harrington, Pasco
Stop telling me what I should do
Tired of mask whiners. I grow weary of the pro-mask people telling me I can get groceries online. Well, so can they. If masks truly worked, honestly, we have been doing this mask thing for over a year, would we still be getting sick? I am not suffering this coerced way of controlling anymore.
I am an intelligent adult and don’t try to put that guilt trip on me, “wear a mask thereby caring for your fellow mankind”. Please, wear your mask or not. Just stop telling me what to do!
Ellen Jennifer Hendricksen, West Richland
Reader not a fan of Mansperger
I write to voice my objection to the guest opinion articles by Mark Mansperger (diatribes). While readers have little or no control over the left-leaning and leftward political drift of the Tri-City Herald, we don’t want to be spoon fed left-wing political garbage from a local. At a minimum, the Herald should allow a head-on response any time we are subjected to one of Mr. Mansperger’s thought streams.
Election results show that the Herald’s readers are far more conservative than Mansperger or the Herald. The Herald’s extensive use of New York Times and Washington Post articles and left wing cartoons shows an obvious bias. I don’t recall any Fox News, NewsMax, Blaze or even Breitbart articles in the Herald. So much for being fair and balanced. Mansperger’s article was about 700 words. My response is limited to 200 words.
In his Jan. 23 article, Mansperger managed to slander every Republican, every conservative and conservative media while telling untruths and half truths. As is often the case, the left is projecting, accusing the right of doing what it (the left) is doing.
Mansperger gives a disclaimer but would you want your child to be subjected to this ideologue?
Terry E. Miller, Richland
Consider benefits of energy project
I read Annette Cary’s Jan. 24 article about a proposed bill in Olympia by Rep. (Mark) Klicker, R-Walla Walla, that would delay new wind and solar farms in Washington state. His argument hinges on the premise that rural Washington will see “nothing in return” from these projects.
This is short-sighted, and the authors of the bill have a responsibility to be more transparent with their constituents about the jobs and investments that will be generated in rural communities across the state, including the Tri-Cities. As Ms. Cary’s article noted, the Horse Heaven Clean Energy Center project has the potential to inject hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment along with hundreds of jobs for our friends, family and neighbors.
There are always impacts and trade-offs in developing new projects that need to be considered, but these discussions cannot ignore the massive potential benefits we stand to gain. We have a strong history of developing clean energy projects in Eastern Washington, and whether we like it or not, the state is pursuing an aggressive clean energy agenda. I for one would like to see the Tri-Cities in a position to take advantage of what could be a generational economic opportunity for our community.
Justin Raffa, Richland
Masks are bad for athletes
I am voicing my concern about high school athletes and the Covid restrictions with sports. As of right now, the rules state we must wear a mask during practice even though athletes who haven’t got Covid are still testing every week, and athletes who have already had Covid have antibodies for 90 days after symptoms.
I feel like it’s obscure to have to wear a mask while you are active at practice, but don’t have to wear them during a game. The mask covering your nose and mouth restricts the amount of airflow to the lungs and can be very harmful. This is a problem because it can cause many health issues. It can lead to collapsing of the lungs, lightheadedness, breathlessness, and getting tired easily. Therefore, we should go back to the old rules of not having to wear a mask while actively playing your sport.
Madilynn Rendall, Kennewick
Taxpayers pay for free COVID tests
Why does the government and media continually say COVID-19 tests are free? They are in no way free. The taxpayers pay for them. Oh, you don’t pay taxes?
The trillions of dollars printed causes inflation so even non-taxpayers are paying for them. KNDU, KONA, KEPR and every other news station, stop it.
Mike Wingfield, Richland
No ‘Build Back Better’ hats?
I’ve been looking and I have yet to see the first person wearing a “Build Back Better” hat. I have seen lots of Go Brandon and MAGA hats!
Ira Johnson, Kennewick
He wants divorce from Nancy Pelosi
Democrats care little for democracy or they would divorce (House Speaker Nancy) Pelosi. The nerve, letting illegal immigrants vote for our laws. Make them be citizens — for crying out loud
James C. Langford, Richland
This story was originally published February 14, 2022 at 11:38 AM.