Your Letters for June 30
Published on Tue, Jun 22, 2010Read More Letters to the Editor
DECA thanks local businesses for support
Dear Editor,
On behalf of Lake Stevens DECA, I would like to publicly thank those businesses who purchased an ad in the 2010 DECA Enterprise. Your contribution will help support DECA and the DECA scholarship fund. By purchasing an ad, you have enabled many students to receive the benefits of financial aid to the college of their choice.
Students were able to practice the skills learned in the DECA program by contacting businesses and gaining their support.
We will use these skills in future encounters we may make whether it be selling ads for next year’s DECA Enterprise, or using the confidence to talk to business leaders in pursuits of gaining a job.
Our publication wouldn’t have been possible without the support of local businesses. Not only do these ad sales contribute money to the DECA scholarship fund, but they directly paid for our DECA Enterprise to be published.
Thank you for your valued partnership, and we look forward to working with you again in the future.
Nikole Harris, Public Relations
LSHS DECA
Larsen not in step with needs of the people
Dear Editor,
Recently Congressional Candidate John Koster (Snohomish County Councilman), received the endorsement of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and Rep. Rick Larsen is spouting that this demonstrates how Councilman Koster is not in-step with the people.
I believe that Rep. Larsen is the one out of step with the citizens of the 2nd Congressional District as he continually votes in-line with Speaker Pelosi.
What direction do we want our government to take; the continued spending sprees and weakening of our stance around the world, or financial responsibility, smaller federal government, and our greatness as a country demonstrated to the world? Rep. Larsen voted for TARP, Health Care Bill, and Stimulus Bill and therefore has his name on our huge deficit and growing national debt.
It is time for a change in Washington (D.C.) and electing John Koster is a step in that direction.
Todd Welch
Everett
Do voters or PAC’s/lobbyists select our representatives and senators?
Dear Editor,
PAC’s and special interest lobbyists spend over $10 million a day per The Examiner (April 29, 2010) to secure their wishes with Congresspeople. And, it is this quid pro quo system which has, in part, corrupted the total “representative republic” the founders had in mind.
PAC’s and lobbyists wine, dine and gift their favorites while contributing heavily to the campaign funds of sympathetic elected officials.
In addition, because it is virtually impossible to untangle the inter-relationships between PAC’s, their donors and other profit and non-profit organizations which also contribute heavily to getting their agendas into the public forum, the amounts of money are staggering and more than individual donors could ever overcome.
In our own Congressional District Race, Rick Larsen, the Democrat incumbent has over 64.64 percent of his funding from these PAC’s and special interest lobbyists vs. 34.88 percent from individual donors like you and me.
One of his opponents, John Koster, has only 2.6 percent from PAC’s vs. 97.31 percent from individual donors. Representative republics require the participation by a knowledgeable electorate.
While sometimes it is more efficient to donate to a PAC in order for the PAC to make larger contributions to campaigns, many PAC’s are not voluntary at all. Many are the result of union and other special interest group participation with mandatory dues/fee requirements for its members.
So, while you may pay dues to the, for example, Washington Education Association, which used to be a “professional” organization before it became a full blown union, you will have no voice into whose campaign those funds will go.
If you are concerned at all about the loyalty of our candidates to the people, I would advise that you educate yourself on where their campaign funds are originating as this would be a huge first step in insuring that they represent the “people” and not the special interest groups.
Catherine Paxton
Arlington
Social Security editorial information is suspect
Dear Editor,
I take issue with Don C. Brunell’s guest editorial in the June 16, 2010 edition of the Lake Stevens Journal.
He starts by stating that “…Social Security is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.”
According to the 2009 Annual Report of the Social Security Board of Trustees, Social Security will be able to pay 100 percent of scheduled benefits through 2037, and will be able to meet 75 percent of scheduled benefits through 2083.
If Mr. Brunell thinks this is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy he is either uninformed or dishonest (or he’s expecting the U.S. Government to default on its debt). Either way, everything else he writes is suspect.
Miriam Rorig
Lake Stevens
Dear Editor,
On behalf of Lake Stevens DECA, I would like to publicly thank those businesses who purchased an ad in the 2010 DECA Enterprise. Your contribution will help support DECA and the DECA scholarship fund. By purchasing an ad, you have enabled many students to receive the benefits of financial aid to the college of their choice.
Students were able to practice the skills learned in the DECA program by contacting businesses and gaining their support.
We will use these skills in future encounters we may make whether it be selling ads for next year’s DECA Enterprise, or using the confidence to talk to business leaders in pursuits of gaining a job.
Our publication wouldn’t have been possible without the support of local businesses. Not only do these ad sales contribute money to the DECA scholarship fund, but they directly paid for our DECA Enterprise to be published.
Thank you for your valued partnership, and we look forward to working with you again in the future.
Nikole Harris, Public Relations
LSHS DECA
Larsen not in step with needs of the people
Dear Editor,
Recently Congressional Candidate John Koster (Snohomish County Councilman), received the endorsement of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and Rep. Rick Larsen is spouting that this demonstrates how Councilman Koster is not in-step with the people.
I believe that Rep. Larsen is the one out of step with the citizens of the 2nd Congressional District as he continually votes in-line with Speaker Pelosi.
What direction do we want our government to take; the continued spending sprees and weakening of our stance around the world, or financial responsibility, smaller federal government, and our greatness as a country demonstrated to the world? Rep. Larsen voted for TARP, Health Care Bill, and Stimulus Bill and therefore has his name on our huge deficit and growing national debt.
It is time for a change in Washington (D.C.) and electing John Koster is a step in that direction.
Todd Welch
Everett
Do voters or PAC’s/lobbyists select our representatives and senators?
Dear Editor,
PAC’s and special interest lobbyists spend over $10 million a day per The Examiner (April 29, 2010) to secure their wishes with Congresspeople. And, it is this quid pro quo system which has, in part, corrupted the total “representative republic” the founders had in mind.
PAC’s and lobbyists wine, dine and gift their favorites while contributing heavily to the campaign funds of sympathetic elected officials.
In addition, because it is virtually impossible to untangle the inter-relationships between PAC’s, their donors and other profit and non-profit organizations which also contribute heavily to getting their agendas into the public forum, the amounts of money are staggering and more than individual donors could ever overcome.
In our own Congressional District Race, Rick Larsen, the Democrat incumbent has over 64.64 percent of his funding from these PAC’s and special interest lobbyists vs. 34.88 percent from individual donors like you and me.
One of his opponents, John Koster, has only 2.6 percent from PAC’s vs. 97.31 percent from individual donors. Representative republics require the participation by a knowledgeable electorate.
While sometimes it is more efficient to donate to a PAC in order for the PAC to make larger contributions to campaigns, many PAC’s are not voluntary at all. Many are the result of union and other special interest group participation with mandatory dues/fee requirements for its members.
So, while you may pay dues to the, for example, Washington Education Association, which used to be a “professional” organization before it became a full blown union, you will have no voice into whose campaign those funds will go.
If you are concerned at all about the loyalty of our candidates to the people, I would advise that you educate yourself on where their campaign funds are originating as this would be a huge first step in insuring that they represent the “people” and not the special interest groups.
Catherine Paxton
Arlington
Social Security editorial information is suspect
Dear Editor,
I take issue with Don C. Brunell’s guest editorial in the June 16, 2010 edition of the Lake Stevens Journal.
He starts by stating that “…Social Security is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.”
According to the 2009 Annual Report of the Social Security Board of Trustees, Social Security will be able to pay 100 percent of scheduled benefits through 2037, and will be able to meet 75 percent of scheduled benefits through 2083.
If Mr. Brunell thinks this is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy he is either uninformed or dishonest (or he’s expecting the U.S. Government to default on its debt). Either way, everything else he writes is suspect.
Miriam Rorig
Lake Stevens
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