Sitka’s Budget
Dear Editor: I have been studying the news about Alaska’s budget woes and the ‘‘trickle down’’ effect on Sitka’s budget very closely. We now pay two bills on our modest home ourselves: homeowner’s insurance and property tax. Our property has been about $1,500/year since we bought the house in 2002.
Our former home on Prince of Wales had no property tax.
I have been on a fixed income for about six years. My dear wife is considering early (Social Security) retirement next year. Neither of us has ever had a job that included: A. Health insurance in a (large) group plan; or B. Retirement benefits. I am a carpenter and she is a waitress.
So: our current tax translates to $125/month – 12x$125 equals $1,500.
I just two days ago got our home insurance and auto insurance down.
The combined annual costs of those two items was $1,300 a year or $108 a month. Our new cost is $936 a year, or $78 a month. Our groceries cost $500 to $600 a month. And cell phones plus cable TV are about $140 a month each.
Our City of Sitka utilities bills go from $280 to $560 a month, summer to winter.
To raise the mill levy from 6 mills to 12 mills would raise our property tax to about $3,000 a year, or $250 a month.
I very much agree with several recent letters to the editor by Bill Marx; also from the Kennedy couple.
So, citizens of Sitka, in October 2016 vote no on increasing property tax.
Maybe I should beachcomb some logs, sell our modest home, and build a floathouse. That is how we got our start on Prince of Wales Island. Love to all
Wayne C. Bowers, Sitka
Donald Trump
Dear Editor: After watching segments of the Republican National Convention last week and Donald Trump’s acceptance speech I am appalled that a party advocating the election of candidates displaying strong moral fiber and unimpeachable ethics could nominate Donald Trump for President of the United States.
Surely it became obvious during the primary season for all to see that Mr. Trump is not emotionally or intellectually qualified for the office. On the public stage he has shown himself to be a rude-prejudiced, and insulting man who goes out his way to cast aspersions on the character of others.
He also displays marked immaturity and petulance when things don’t go his way and a tendency to threaten revenge in a childlike manner when crossed or criticized. After watching and listening to him, I see him as the grown-up version of the school yard bully we all remember from elementary and junior high school, recruiting others to join his gang mostly to supply himself with acolytes who will look up to him and sing his praises.
As I think on the matter, there is strong evidence that Donald Trump displays many if not all the traits that characterize the psychiatric diagnosis of Histrionic Personality Disorder and you only need five to qualify. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5th Edition) to make a diagnosis of Histrionic Personality Disorder five of the following criteria are required to be present:
1. Is uncomfortable in situations in which they are not the center of attention;
2. Has interactions with others characterized by inappropriate sexually seductive or provocative behavior;
3. Displays rapidly shifting and shallow expression of emotions;
4. Consistently uses their physical attention to draw attention to self;
5. Has a style of speech that is excessively impressionistic and lacking in detail;
6. Shows self-dramatization, theatricality, and exaggerated expression of emotion;
7. Considers relationships to be more intimate than they actually are;
8. Suggestible (that is, they are easily influenced by others or circumstances);
9. Is easily frustrated or bored with routines, makes rash decisions before thinking;
10. HPD usually presents itself by early adulthood;
11. If present in childhood HPD behaviors may be the child’s way of getting attention from parents;
12. Individuals with HPD are frequently quite successful and shrewd and get ahead by manipulating others;
13. Individuals with HPD typically are unaware of the problem and thus are unlikely to seek counseling.
As I see it Donald Trump qualifies for the diagnosis and will be a hazard in any tense situation especially if he feels threatened personally and he is likely to take things personally. It is surely unwise to put a man with a hair trigger temper in charge of nuclear weapons if nothing else. He is likely to sue individuals he can’t intimidate. He is likely to propose simplistic solutions for complex problems.
With Donald Trump in charge of foreign policy we might well be advised to close the Department of State or replace it with an answering phone.
Thomas L. Conley, Sitka
Leaders Divided
Dear Editor: Last night I sat at the Baranof Island Brewing Company with a group of youths who, like myself, are concerned about the future and the implications climate change has for our generation. We asked Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who was in town for a meet and greet, if she shared Rep. Don Young and Donald Trump’s view that climate change is a hoax. A few of us had attended a meeting with Young last week where we asked what he was doing to promote renewable energy and protect Alaskans from climate change. His answer: “Nothing.” Murkowski, however, gave a very different answer. She clearly understood the science of climate change, and, unlike her Republican counterparts, talked about the need for mitigating and adapting to our changing climate. While it was encouraging to hear of some provisions in her energy bill that promote renewable energy, it is quite disconcerting that the majority of Alaska’s congressional delegation continues to treat climate change as a joke.
Alaska’s two U.S. senators and one representative are all Republicans and often vote together. But what about when it comes to climate change? It’s sad to see the division amongst Republicans and Alaska’s own legislators on an issue where there should be no debate.
Cassidy White, Sitka
