Citizens United
Dear Editor: On Jan. 21, 2010, the Supreme Court loosened restrictions on corporate spending in elections. In the four years since the Citizens United vs. FEC ruling, Alaska elections have attracted millions of dollars from corporate interests in and outside Alaska.
Last legislative session, the Alaska Senate approved Senate Bill 21, a massive tax cut for the oil industry. The bill will cost the state billions of dollars over the next decade and will especially impact rural communities like Sitka, that are most dependent on state funds.
While supporters claimed that the tax cut will eventually lead to greater oil production, even a leading supporter of SB21, Sen. Kevin Meyer, acknowledged that the economic benefits to the state are uncertain at best: “It’s kind of a crapshoot. You really don’t know, and the industry certainly isn’t going to say one way or the other, because you know their motivation is to try to keep the rates down as low as they can” (Juneau Empire, March 15, 2013).
Why did elected officials put the interest of the oil industry over the interests of Alaskans? The oil and gas industry contributed over $167,000 to candidates for state office in Alaska in 2012 alone, including $3,340 to Sen. Meyer. Gov. Parnell, who initiated the change in Alaska’s oil tax structure, has received over $75,000 in political contributions from the oil and gas industry (http://www.followthemoney.org).
The Alaska Oil Tax Cuts Veto Referendum – on the Aug. 19, 2014, primary ballot in Alaska – seeks to repeal Senate Bill 21. The repeal effort is preparing for an expensive political fight over the next year – oil companies are expected to spend millions in order to protect their unwarranted windfall.
“We Are Alaska,” a political group established to campaign for pro-industry political candidates, spent $45,717 on advertisements aimed at preventing the referendum from qualifying for the ballot. The group collected $139,348 in the first six months of 2013 alone, according to a quarterly campaign-disclosure report submitted to the Alaska Public Offices Commission. Another pro-industry group, “Vote No on 1,” registered as a political group in Oct. and has already broken the million-dollar mark – taking in $350,000 from BP, another $350,000 from ConocoPhillips, $250,000 from Repsol, and nearly $100,000 from Pioneer Natural Resources.
The group supporting the veto referendum, “Vote Yes! Repeal the Giveaway,” has raised about $90,000 – mostly from small contributions – and spent a lot of it during the signature-gathering part of their campaign. The group is focusing on organizing at a grassroots level rather than trying to compete in an expensive advertising campaign.
According to referendum sponsor Jim Whitaker, the referendum offers Alaskans a chance to say “no” to corporate interference in the electoral and legislative process: “I think all Alaskans should be pleased that we have a chance to make a decision individually about something that is going to affect the future of our state for a long time. And this is our shot. This is our chance to do what we think is right.”
Meanwhile, ConocoPhillips announced profits of $494 million for the third quarter of 2013 from their Alaskan operations alone. Furthermore, Conoco’s per barrel oil equivalent profit measured $32.04 for Alaska operations compared with $6.64 in the Lower 48 and Latin America.
For more information on the veto referendum: http://www.repealtheoilgiveaway.org
For more information on the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United and its impact on our democracy:
https://movetoamend.org/
Cindy Litman, Libby Stortz and 52 members of Alaskans Against Corporate Personhood
Science Day
Dear Editor: Last Saturday the Keet Gooshi Heen multipurpose room became a temporary interactive science museum for over 300 visitors.
Families learned about birds, fish, mammals, marine debris, the human body, how to use a microscope, and how fragile a watershed can be. Many families also enjoyed learning about Sitka’s night sky in Starlab, a portable planetarium.
As with almost every successful event in Sitka, the list of essential folks who helped out is long, indeed. We are grateful to Rob Parsons and the Sitka High National Honor Society students, the Alaska Raptor Rehabilitation Center, Sitka National Historical Park, the U.S. Forest Service, the UAS biology department, Sitka Conservation Society and the Sitka Sound Science Center. Perhaps most critical to the smooth operations on Science Saturday were the AmeriCorps volunteers Alexa Sample, Kara Mihalik, Kelly van Frankenhuyzen and Courtney Johnson, as well as Starlab presenters Bridgette Whitcomb and Jack Davis.
Science Saturday is proof once again that Helen Keller was correct when she said, “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” We hope to see everyone again next year!
Rebecca Himschoot, Teacher,
Keet Gooshi Heen
Elementary School
‘It’s a Wonderful Life’
Dear Editor: Recently, our Long-Term Care Residents (as well as Pioneers Home residents) were treated to a very special showing of “It’s a Wonderful Life.” With deep gratitude, thank you to the Coliseum Theater owner Scott Bowen for allowing us to come and watch this classic movie (now digitally re-mastered and colorized) on the big screen.
It was such a special movie to watch in the theater and it was amazing to watch in color! This outing could not have taken place if it weren’t for Scott, and his employees, Laila Freeman and Justin Shallow, who came in on their Saturday morning to set up the movie and the concessions. These two were very helpful the entire time, and we are so appreciative of their kind service.
Our residents were also treated to popcorn and other concessions with money raised by Sitka Community Hospital’s own Patient Financial Services office and we appreciate their generosity as well. Thank you to everyone who went out of their way to see that our residents would have a great time watching this classic American movie. One thing is for sure: “It’s a Wonderful Community!”
Lindsay Evans,
Long-Term Care, Activities
Sitka Community Hospital
Skipper Benefit Thanks
Dear Editor: Wow! What an amazing community we live in! The Sitka Skippers and their families would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to Pizza Express for generously giving a percentage of Sunday, Jan. 12, night’s proceeds to our team to help us fundraise for travel to our regional tournament in Juneau.
Skippers and their parents had the privilege to assist the amazing hard working staff of owners Miguel and Hector; kitchen staff Oscar, Octavio, Federico, Silvia, Tano, Lupe and Jeffery; server staff and bussers Vanessa, Jennifer, Sami, Lucia, Maribel, Brie and Isaac; phone orders Sharayah, Deanna and Veronica; and the delivery drivers Laurel, Josh, Jay and Oscar.
On top of that, THANK YOU to all the support from the community who donated by calling in orders, dining in and picking up orders, none of it would have been possible without you. In addition to Pizza Express the skippers would like to thank Coastal Excavation and Reiver Fisheries for a matching donation. Thank you for the generous donations from Hard Rock Construction, Allen Brackley, Colleen Dahlquist and other cash donors from the community.
The team also wants to thank the Sitka Sentinel, KIFW and Raven Radio’s community calendar for the spectacular advertisements.
Sitka Skippers, coaches,
and their families
