Alternate truths
Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, a Republican, has exposed another failure by the current administration resulting in economic loss and the loss of workers’ lives: the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Schmitt doesn’t know yet how Cozy Joe caused the bridge over the Patapsco River to collapse, but we are certain that Cozy had something to do with it, just as he did with the attack on innocent concert-goers in Russia and in Israel. ISIS terrorists, you say? No. Biden-supported ISIS terrorists. Hamas terrorists, you say? No, Biden-supported Hamas terrorists. The evidence forthcoming will show beyond a doubt that Cozy is responsible for these outrageous attacks, just as he is responsible for the collapse of the bridge named for the author of the lyrics to our national anthem. Another attack on the foundations of our righteous country.
Of the diverse ways Cozy could have precipitated the collapse, the most obvious is by using neurally directed, giant, whiskered blue catfish (native to Maryland rivers) to implant tiny bombs on the girders of the bridge so that upon impact the underwater explosions would destroy the girders, thus causing the bridge to collapse.
And to create devastating impact, Chinese agents infiltrated our “open borders.” From Singapore, the destination of the cargo carrier, these agents, posing as sailors for an independent Singapore, but in reality Chinese communist terrorists, gained easy access to the ship’s innards and implanted high frequency operated tiny bombs in the ship’s engines to be exploded remotely. When the ship approached the bridge, a button was pushed and, voila, the ship’s engines inexplicably stopped, and the ship rammed the bridge.
When the alternate truth wins out, our loving, trustworthy, faithful, Bible-hawking, alternate-truth-telling leader will again be ruler of our kingdom. All praise and honor to his name.
D’Wayne Hodgin
Moscow
Support for Ukraine
I am a pacifist. I lived through the Vietnam war in my youth and protested the first Gulf War and invading Afghanistan. But I see the U.S. needs to support Ukraine. Why? Because the Ukrainians are fighting for their own land. Ukraine is resisting an aggressor that has waged a war of disinformation along with guns and armies. The disinformation is working to weaken the resolve of the countries that have come to the aid of Ukraine, especially the U.S.
Mike Johnson is holding up aid in the U.S. House of Representatives at a critical time for Ukraine. Johnson is carrying Putin’s message: like saying it is too costly to help Ukraine. Fact, only .5% of the military budget goes to Ukraine. It is in our own self-interest to support their war effort, lest Putin successfully capture Ukraine and go on to threaten NATO countries, thereby drawing in U.S. troops on the ground.
I am writing to our U.S. representatives to urge them to pressure their speaker to bring aid for Ukraine for a vote.
Zena Hartung
Moscow
Arrogant elitism
Steve McGehee wrote a letter (March 20) responding to my letter (March 13) which critiqued his March 8 column, “What religion hath wrought.” This is Part 1 of 2 of my reply, as there is a lot to cover.
I was relieved to read that he was granting me a mulligan; my self-esteem had been hanging by a thread. Hopefully he will knight me with a Certificate of Basic Esteem (CBE), to complete my life. But I am well-aware of his positions: I read most Daily News columns most days, and have read many of his. I must confess that on some of his, I give up halfway through; there is only so much semi-unhinged Berserkeley leftist ranting and raving that a sound and rational constitutionalist mind can tolerate.
McGehee then notes that he is a professor of political “science” (which I have always felt were really “arts” — where is the science?) and then directly implies that I should let the experts opine. What arrogant elitism, especially after he did not even acknowledge my correction of his March 8 statement that “separation of church and state” is in the US Constitution (it is not). So let me disabuse him of this foolish thought. Thomas Paine only had five years of grammar school education, but his pamphlets, “Common Sense” and “The American Crisis,” had huge influence on the American Revolution. They and “Rights of Man” had an impact on the French Revolution. “Common Sense” sold 125,000 copies in a population of 3 million; i.e., 4%. Today that would be more than a million copies. And Orwell famously opined that (paraphrase) “That idea is so stupid that only an intellectual could believe it.” Q.E.D.
Dave Bakken
Pullman
For the love of trees
Who doesn’t love trees? They keep us cool and provide shade in the summer and shelter us from wind in the winter. They contribute to our physical and emotional wellbeing. Trees beautify cities and landscapes and benefit many species. They enhance real estate values. They filter air and water, enrich soil and prevent erosion. Most importantly now, they sequester carbon and thus limit the deleterious effects of climate change. American forests store enough carbon to offset 15% of our emissions and energy.
In prehistoric times, there were 5 trillion trees on earth; now there are 3 trillion. Throughout history, forests have been cut to make way for fields, towns and cities. The biggest losses of trees presently are in the Amazon and Congo Basins. Wildfires now have a devastating impact; due to climate change, they are hotter, more destructive and more frequent.
What can you do?
n Plant a tree, or a hundred trees. Maximize the tree canopy on your property. Choose trees that fit the natural Palouse environment.
n Celebrate Arbor Day on April 26.
n Support organizations that advocate for trees and healthy forests, including the Arbor Day Foundation, Citizens’ Climate Lobby, Palouse Conservation District, Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute and Friends of the Clearwater.
n Get certified with the Arbor Day Foundation. Moscow and Pullman are each designated as a “Tree City USA,” and the University of Idaho and Washington State University are “Tree Campuses”; the Arbor Day Foundation also has a Tree Campus K-12 program.
n Use less paper, and recycle.
n Eat less beef and lamb, which take more land, water and energy to produce than any other foods.
n Don’t waste food.
Plant a tree and make the world a better place. Trees aren’t the only solution to climate change, but they have a huge impact.
Leonard Garrison
Moscow
