Letters To The Editor

from [email protected] & r & & r & Lakes Can Die, Too & r & & r & & lt;span class= "dropcap " & T & lt;/span & hank you for your story covering the Coeur d'Alene Lake Management Plan ("Who Will Pay?" 7/10/08). The costs for the plan that you portray are high. My interests lie downstream of Little Falls Dam, on a little bit of the land that I have on the river from my grandmother's allotment, given to her from the days when the Spokane Indian Reservation was formed.





The costs to maintain the current level of water quality pale in the reality of what costs would be to attempt to rebalance Lake Coeur d'Alene, should it lose its ability to retain metals contamination due to a reduction of oxygen. My enjoyment of a healthy Spokane River flowing into the Columbia would become a battle with a sick and compromised lake. It would signal a sad day all along the river.





Lakes can die, and for the Tribes along the shores of Lake Coeur d'Alene and along the outflowing Spokane River that would be tragic. Perhaps the plan should include a budget comparison, showing that the price tag to maintain a stable system is very small when compared to the exponential costs to recover the lake should it succumb to abuse.





George LeBret


Spokane, Wash.





Barreling On


& lt;span class= "dropcap " & T & lt;/span & hank you for your interesting article regarding the management of Lake Coeur d'Alene ("Who Will Pay?" 7/10/08). However, it is our understanding that the lake itself is not, as yet, delisted. This depends on the acceptance and reliability of the master plan and whether or not there is money to pay the bills. So far "delisting" is wishful thinking on the part of those more concerned with short-term economic profits than environmental and human health. We fear that the whole thing will drift along with little done to protect the lake from all the ills Kevin Taylor mentioned in The Inlander article. One weakness of any plan is that the institutional controls implemented in the upper drainage and the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes are inadequate and will eventually fail, further contaminating the lake and ultimately the Spokane River, which in turn recharges the aquifer.





Have a look at the latest boondoggle -- the siting of a toxic impoundment site in a wetland, adjacent to the freeway and across I-90 from the Mission of the Sacred Heart. Common sense alone would say don't do this. Yet DEQ and EPA barrel on ahead ignoring public opposition -- and the opinions of experts who were never consulted.





Bob and Jeri McCroskey


Coeur d'Alene, Idaho





Thanks, Coast Guard


& lt;span class= "dropcap " & I & lt;/span & 've been reading your paper for a long time, for years. The story you ran about the two local guys who where rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard ("Terror at Sea," 7/17/08) was probably one of the best stories ever!





The story pulled me in, it made me sad, it made me happy. It made me feel empathy for these two guys. Now I respect the work of the U.S. Coast Guard more than ever before.





Ira McKinsey


Spokane, Wash.





Listen to Al


& lt;span class= "dropcap " & F & lt;/span & or those of you who missed Al Gore's speech on the climate crisis and renewable energy, I urge you to visit wecansolveit.org and view his challenge to America. His challenge is to be [using] 100 percent carbon-free energy within 10 years. As a nation, we need to lead the world into carbon-free energy. By doing this, we are investing in the American economy and creating green-energy jobs here at home. Please let us take action and move toward a carbon-free energy lifestyle.





Ashley Gardner


Spokane Wash.








Put Away Your Toys


& lt;span class= "dropcap " & W & lt;/span & ith her Inlander Commentary about activities surrounding the purchase of the raceway ("A Question of Racing," 7/24/08), County Commissioner Bonnie Mager carried me beyond my lack of appreciation for the "sport" of burning and inhaling fossil fuels to the practical side of balancing our needs and wants. I'm sure many auto racing enthusiasts attended Commissioner Hearings about purchasing the track to register their hopes and dreams for maintaining a recreation facility.





Meanwhile, as Commissioner Mager said, reality enters the picture placing demands on finite County taxpayer dollars to fulfill the needs of our community (drug court, mental health facilities, wastewater treatment). What is that famous quote about being a child and wanting childish things then growing up and learning to put away our toys in order to fulfill the needs of our adult years? Thank you Commissioner Mager for speaking with the voice of an adult for the needs of Spokane County.





Carrie Anderson


Spokane, Wash.





Stereotyping Shame


& lt;span class= "dropcap " & W & lt;/span & ow! I just got done reading "Hot Lead" (7/24/08) on your Website. I don't know if I should laugh at the author or feel slandered. He seems to have a lot of numbers that do not make sense, like half of the people at gun shows are good and the other half are... Last time I checked, the Department of Justice and the FBI say less than 1 percent of criminal guns are purchased at gun shows.





I have worked at the gun show in Spokane, Portland and Puyallup in the past for a gun dealer. Most vendors at the show are required to do the proper background checks. There are also private sellers there selling their own stuff. Stereotyping the shoppers at the gun show by their appearance, age or tattoos is no different than stereotyping people based on their race, religion or sexual orientation. The integrity of the author is a slap in the face to good journalists everywhere. Maybe your readers who have not been to a gun show will know why reporters and the press are not welcome.





Ty Cranswick


Bellevue, Wash.