Letters to the editor: Impeachment, gun control, salmon, public transit
Impeachment trial
I am a proud Idahoan. I was born in Salmon, delivered by the famous Walt Blackadar. I was raised by a Republican family. I grew up working the family ranch — hard work. I married a veteran, a man who graduated from the U.S. Military Academy and served his country. I’m raising my children to be strong, kind and giving.
Never have I been so ashamed of my representation. Never have I been so ashamed to be from Idaho. Never have I been so ashamed to explain politics to my young children. Today I have to tell them that the men elected to represent them — our future — believe that the peaceful transfer of power is no longer important.
My dreams will be troubled by the loss of life from this event, and the understanding that my senators will lose no such sleep, because they rest well knowing that they’ve bowed to their god, Donald Trump.
Sheri Edmond, Boise
Gun control
I would like to welcome our new neighbors from California, many of whom have moved to avoid California’s strict gun laws. I would like to remind you why California has strict gun laws. In 1967, the legislature passed the Mulford Act and it was signed into law by Gov. Ronald Reagan. The act was passed as a reaction to Black Panthers’ exercising their 2nd Amendment rights and openly carrying guns, including when they marched on the state capitol building. The then-conservative California government was worried about the Black Panthers openly carrying, and thus the strict laws you are escaping were put into place. They were not passed by liberals trying to take conservatives’ guns away. They were passed because, as Ronald Reagan said at the time, there was “no reason why on the street today a citizen should be carrying loaded weapons” and that doing so was a “ridiculous way to solve problems that have to be solved among people of goodwill.” Keep that in mind.
Brennan T. Wurtz, Nampa
Save the salmon
Finally, we have an Idaho politician with the courage to support recovery of Idaho’s salmon and steelhead runs.
News reports of Rep. Mike Simpson’s natural river plan have indicated that “many” fisheries scientists support breaching as the only alternative to extinction. If it were an election, folks, it would be a landslide. Nearly all professionals involved in Northwest salmon management and research agree.
Over 20 years ago, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission identified breaching the four Lower Snake River Dams as the most certain road to recovery. It’s time we caught up.
Russ Fulcher and his exploitive compatriots cast doubt that removing the dams will restore fish populations. Their demand for surety is laughable. I remember when folks of their ilk assured us that we could have the dams and still have salmon. They were wrong then and they are wrong now.
I find it ironic that some find it OK to destroy God’s creation to the benefit of man, but balk at destroying man’s to the benefit of God’s.
Idaho politicians have long declared that the Snake River is Idaho’s lifeblood. Well folks, without salmon it would just be water. Let’s bring it back to life!
Bill Goodnight, Boise
Public transit
The planning and implementation of robust high-capacity public transit service in the Treasure Valley is long overdue. We are experiencing and expect to continue to experience precipitous population growth. Currently, we compensate for the effects of that growth on our system for moving people around our community in the most expensive way possible — by continually adding lanes and widening roads. Dense housing that allows people to live in close proximity to services, recreation and employment opportunities is part of the solution, but recent surveys by COMPASS indicate that the majority of current residents will want suburban-style housing on large lots in the future. The Treasure Valley already has many sprawling communities that revolve around distinct activity centers, so effective transit service will need to connect these centers in order to allow people to access the opportunities they offer. Many of these centers lie along a distinct corridor that may also have some existing usable infrastructure, making it prime for high capacity transit. COMPASS is conducting a survey about potential options. I urge you to respond before the survey closes on Feb. 27!
Ethan Schweitzer-Gaslin, Boise