Carbon Fees
Dear Editor: Even if you question the cause of climate change, the costs from life-threatening health issues, environmental destruction, and pollution are being ignored at our own peril.
Eighty percent of U.S. imports come from countries that already have a carbon price on fossil fuel production. The EU is poised to enact a border tax in 2023. If U.S. businesses do not have a price on carbon, we will have to pay a carbon price to access EU markets. Instead, let’s adopt our own carbon price and return a monthly dividend to Americans, leveling the trading field, decreasing U.S. carbon pollution and taking care of Americans.
Did you know that a fee on carbon is popular across the political spectrum? The fastest, fairest, most effective, efficient means of making a real impact, charges fossil fuel producers for carbon production and distributes those fees to US families, helping them transition to clean energy. Over 3,000 eminent economists support this market-based approach.
Congress members increasingly support climate action but need to hear from bipartisan constituents. Tell them we want a price on carbon and a dividend paid to families. This crisis requires targeted, effective, quick action. Tell Senators Murkowski and Sullivan and Congressman Young, “There is no time to hesitate.”
More information about carbon fees and dividends can be found at:
https://citizensclimatelobby.org/europes-carbon-border-tax-puts-pressure-on-u-s-to-enact-carbon-price/
With our future and children in mind,
Kay Kreiss, Barb Bingham,
Pat Magnuson, Leah Mason,
Kent Barkau, Lisa Sadleir-Hart, Jennifer Alley, Darby Osborne,
Toby Campbell, Norman Campbell, Grace Brooks, Charlie Morgan,
Michelle Putz, Ted Howard
and Julie Schmitts
Babies and Books
Dear Editor: Sitka Babies and Books engages young readers and their families through a variety of free events, activities and through the provision of books. We changed our methods in 2020 and our efforts would not have been possible without the help of our volunteers, donors and partners.
We want to extend our sincerest gratitude to the organizations and individuals who helped make Sitka Babies and Books a flourishing part of the community in 2020:
Jackie DiGennaro, “Stuffed Animals Sleepover at the Library” (January 2020); Mt. Edgecumbe students, “Paint Party” (February 2020); Bernadette Rasmussen, Darryl Rehkof, Libby Stortz and Brooke Volschenk, “Teacup Gnome Garden Grab and Go Activity” (June 2020); Rebecca Peterman; Sitka Public Library; Sitka Legacy Foundation, an Affiliate of The Alaska Community Foundation; Friends of Sitka Public Library; CHARR; White Elephant; Rotary Club of Sitka; Old Harbor Books; Raven’s Hook; KCAW; the Daily Sitka Sentinel.
Thank you all for your continued support. We look forward to 2021 and another year of dynamic programming for children. Sincerely,
The Sitka Babies and Books
Board of Directors
Maricruz Vega, Irene Ferguson,
Ally Witherspoon, Marilyn Guhl, Maite Lorente, Lois Rhodes,
Jane Seesz and Cheryl Vastola
Inauguration Day
Dear Editor: On Inauguration Day of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris I am going to celebrate for all the work done by so many honest and brave individuals who stepped forward the last four years to expose reign of terror and absolute power.
It took all the honest people’s combined effort to remove from office and in many ways it was a historic effort. These warriors stood tall, exposed themselves to great risks, and even suffered having their careers destroyed to do the right thing. They exposed so many things from the Russian interference in the 2016 election, the caging of immigrant children, land acquisition of Texas ranches and sacred Native sites to build a ridiculous border wall, allowing a Russian bounty to be placed on U.S. soldiers, allowing a murder of a U.S. journalist by Saudi Arabia, shutting the government down over the holidays so military had to rely on food banks to eat, destroying allied relationships and global safety from a climate change ticking time bomb by pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement, and so many other actions.
They bravely stepped up and testified about the beginning of his illegal campaign plans to retake the presidency through a Ukraine scheme that cost that country lives and land loss. They bravely impeached him with evidence of his illegal acts warning us, “if we let him go he will do it again.” On inauguration I am going to celebrate the honesty of the press, judicial system, legislators, governors, mayors, state houses and hard-working people who made the inauguration day possible.
Here are a few people who stick out in my memory. Thank you Marie Yovanovitch (U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine), Fiona Hill (Russian expert for National Securities Council), Bill Taylor (previously served as U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine), Laura Cooper (deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine & Eurasia), Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman (director of European affairs for the National Securities Council) and many, many more.
The heroes in the United States Congress who exposed Trump and never gave up and worked tirelessly to make democracy work. They honored their oath to the Constitution and stood against teaparty/freedomcaucus/whitesupremacist/seditionist congressional members. But gratitude has to go to the people of color who pulled themselves up, took control of their destiny, registered to vote, trained and volunteered to be poll workers, and turned out in record numbers to remove a deranged con-man president. Then when it looked like the effort was going to fall short, Georgia, of all places, saved us. Stacy Abrams, who could have backed off after she lost her run for the Senate, never gave up. She organized a monumental effort to make every vote count and now we can see a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Now we can have a national effort of getting vaccines out, supporting our national healthcare system, and rising above this virus plague. We can again trust the CDC, FDA and our medical experts to be working in our best interest. We will get our EPA back in working shape.
Yes, we can do this. We have so many good people to thank for this Inauguration Day of Jan. 20. Let’s all stand across this nation and tighten our bonds. We have much to do, but when we help each other, it makes the work worth it. I am glad my family lives here among so many hard-working, honest people!
Patricia Dick, Sitka
Roosevelt Quotes
Dear Editor: Here are a few more Theodore Roosevelt quotes for us to consider:
“Probably the best test of true love of liberty in any country is the way in which minorities are treated in that country. Not only should there be complete liberty in matters of religion and opinion, but complete liberty for each man to lead his life as he desires, provided only that in so doing he does not wrong his neighbor.’’
“Of one man in especial, beyond anyone else, the citizens of a republic should beware, and that is of the man who appeals to them to support him on the ground that he is hostile to other citizens of the republic, that he will secure for those who elect him, in one shape or another, profit at the expense of other citizens of the republic. It makes no difference whether he appeals to class hatred or class interest, to religious or anti-religious prejudice. The man who makes such an appeal should always be presumed to make it for the sake of furthering his own interest.’’
“Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president or any other public official, save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth, whether about the president or anyone else.’’
“This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless we make it a good place for all of us to live in.’’
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else.’’”
John Feryok, Sitka
