Letters for Feb. 22, 2022

Not about masks at CVSD Board meeting

At the Feb. 14 Central Valley School District Board meeting, an anti-mask group with whom board member Pam Orebaugh met on Jan. 31 came forward to serve papers to the board. This is about politics, not masks.

This group, through Pam, pushed the board for a letter to the governor demanding the lifting of the mask mandate. It would create a precedent for school boards to refuse state directions. What mandate will be next? Imagine these parents requiring the overturning of the mandated reporting rules concerning suspected abuse or endangerment of children. This is not about masks.

Three parents raised concerns about racism in our schools specifically about white students using racial slurs toward Black students and white students wrapping themselves in alt-right flags. At past board meetings, the anti-mask group frequently spoke about their concerns for the fragility of white students. They believe that if the facts of history are taught, the white students could not handle the truth. However, the stress and trauma done to our Black, LGBTQ and female students are, by default, sanctioned. There are things that are simply true: the earth is a sphere, the Holocaust did happen, Native lands were stolen, slavery was brutally practiced in our country, and white students can learn to handle the truth.

Public schools belong to all children of differing faiths, gender identities, places of birth, colors of skin, and differing incomes. “Serving the board” was about political power to overturn state direction, whitewashing history and defying science.

The Rev. Genavieve Heywood

Spokane

Science is hard

A recent letter in The Spokesman-Review wants to lay responsibility for the COVID-19 pandemic handling and impact solely on government officials and medical experts (“Strip them of their power,” Feb. 16).

Machine-gunning out questions, in the tone of judge, jury and executioner is unhelpful, uninformative and misguided. Before the pandemic onset, Obama developed a recognition and response playbook. At least he was thinking about the issue and planning for a future event that scientific/medical people knew would one day come upon us. Trump’s response was to throw out the plan and make the issue all about himself and his polling numbers. It was all going to go away magically in a few weeks. Over two years later and 900,000 dead we’re still spinning.

Trump dropped the ball, failed to own his job, and set the tone for all that followed. By focusing on his egomaniacal need to be viewed as perfectly correct in all things, Trump and his sycophants overrode existing medical knowledge and the critical initial response phase to the pandemic.

Science is a process, not an arrival spot. Even without Trump, there still would have been mistakes. It’s a learning process, but the basic awareness in any respiratory illness is that social distancing and the associated masking and cleanliness are essential. Treatments follow as soon as they can be identified and implemented. Yes, a lot of damage has been done.

But Monday-morning quarterbacking the blame to knowledgeable people who have been trying to plan for and actually address the issue is scapegoating.

John Koehn

Spokane

Larry Haskell the prosecutor

Thank you, Larry Haskell, Spokane prosecutor, for doing your part to keep our community safe. Thank goodness you, your attorneys and staff, as well as our police and sheriff’s departments, are working hard to hold accountable those that are breaking our laws. Of course, it is important to advocate for programs, like Spokane Mental Health and Veterans Courts as long as they are effective. Fortunately, Spokane has not adopted the policies of Seattle City Council and their prosecuting attorney. The new Seattle Mayor, Bruce Harrell, in his state of the city address reportedly talked about “balancing the paradox that is police reform as violent crime reaches unprecedented heights in King County” (MyNorthwest.com).

It is unfortunate that Mr. Haskell is being condemned for the actions of his wife. Undoubtedly they have discussed the situation; it is an issue between husband and wife. When we marry, we take an oath that often includes “for better or worse, in sickness and health, as long as we both shall live.”

While critics say that he must hold some of the same derogatory views expressed by his wife, many couples have differing opinions from one another. Democrat James Carville and Republican Mary Matalin are a prime example of a couple who are often polar opposites when politics are involved.

I trust that Larry Haskell will continue to be a dedicated, fair prosecutor. Of course, those that are the most vocal in their criticism would never support him regardless of what he does as prosecuting attorney.

Gretchen McDevitt

Spokane

Oppose HB 475

This is to urge Idahoans to oppose HB 475, a bill to legalize private militias in Idaho.

First, the bill would be unconstitutional. The United States Constitution clearly gives the right to bear arms to members of a “well-regulated militia.” Idaho and Washington law says the definition of “well-regulated” means controlled by the government.

During the previous president’s administration conservative legislators legalized that mentally ill people could own guns. I recall the toddler who pulled his mother’s gun out of a purse in a shopping cart in North Idaho and shot his mother dead. Now shootings are a regular occurrence.

Christians are forgetting what Jesus preached about turning swords into plowshares. When are we going to start practicing what Christ taught?

During the Coeur d’Alene Militia experience I personally observed really old people and kids barely big enough to hold a gun milling around Sherman Avenue. I was told by friends at the Chamber of Commerce that many of the militia were drinking and that many people were afraid to go shopping downtown.

A conservative friend told me there were 2,500 antifa coming to Coeur d’Alene and claimed the militia scared them off. To me, it just meant there was no antifa threat in the first place.

In my opinion, we would be safer with fewer guns, not more. Please oppose HB 475.

Gary A. Edwards

Post Falls