Oppose Arctic drilling
EDITOR: As a college student who wants to secure a safe and livable climate for future generations, I am angered that the Trump administration is moving to allow oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Not only would doing so violate the habitat of countless wild species like caribou and migrating birds (who depend on the refuge as a safe place to raise their young), it also threatens our shared right to a healthy future climate.
We must decrease our dependence upon outdated and polluting fossil fuels like oil, which are exacerbating climate change thanks to their greenhouse gas emissions. And transitioning to renewable energy will provide a clean, climate-friendly alternative that creates thousands of jobs in the energy sector and moves us closer to clean energy independence.
Believe it or not, a dollar invested in the solar power industry creates about three times the jobs that a dollar invested in oil does. I urge our legislators to stand up for the breathtaking Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by opposing oil drilling exploration and instead supporting the transition to a sane and beneficial alternative, renewable energy. The fate of future generations rests here, now, in our hands.
Rebecca Canright
Sebastopol
Open letter; support nonprofits
EDITOR: To PDHCD detachment supporters:
For those of us receiving tax bills in the detachment area, note that the direct charge for the Palm Drive Health Care District has been reduced from $155 to $106.64 this year, thereby saving us $48.36 in direct charges. Those are monies that won’t be going toward future mounting hospital and district debt.
$48.36 may not be a lot of money for individual taxpayers, but when multiplied by the thousands of parcels affected, those funds can go a long way to support our local nonprofit agencies. While I understand that not everyone can afford to do so, if you are able, please send your windfall to your favorite local nonprofit agency or service, whether it be one of our local firefighter associations (Monte Rio, Russian River, Forestville, etc.), school foundation or one of the many agencies supporting firestorm victims.
Barbara DeCarly
Guerneville
Elevating each other
EDITOR: In recent months our country has been embroiled in a contentious social and political climate fixated on how fundamentally divided we are. The fire disaster and crisis that has befallen our counties here in northern California transcends political views, prejudices and controversies that pervade news and social media.
These disasters have made national headlines, but when the news cameras and media attention recede from covering the fires’ destruction, we’ll be here slowly trying to recover and rebuild. I have heard and read instance after instance of people who acted as quickly as the fires started to help the victims who lost everything: fundraisers were started by those near and far, volunteers responded en masse to help at evacuation centers, donations poured in and other kind deeds.
Fire victims’ devastation, loss and grief were met with generosity, compassion and support. Fire victims too, including the firefighters and first responders, put the needs of others before their own. All of these acts of selflessness show us at our best during the most traumatic of times.
I think it’s possible to help redirect some of the nation’s focus on controversies and divisions to highlight the ways we take care of each other. People who lost their homes, property, businesses, loved ones and pets during the fires will continue to need help.
We can make public the stories of our local support for fire victims that may otherwise go unrecognized; sing praises for the would-be unsung heroes who are helping in ways big and small — your neighbors, friends, co-workers, educators, students, strangers in line with you at the store.
While most people who open their hearts and provide support don’t ask to be recognized or see themselves as heroic or extraordinary, we can emphasize, seek out, or share the many ways kindness and generosity are being demonstrated in our own neighborhoods.
Since the fires I’ve been reminded how similar we are at our cores, despite our ideas of politics or patriotism. While we collectively have the momentum of generosity and altruism right now, we need to keep it going. It’s going to be a long, arduous road ahead.
Beyond donating or volunteering during the aftermath, you can engage in solidarity and understanding. You can spread word and share examples of how you see people supporting each other. There are plenty of ways people are lending hands or taking care of our fellow community members in need. Perhaps discussion and attention on our actions of aid can help calm the turbulent, divisive waters in our country.
Promoting an atmosphere that’s centered on building others up rather than tearing others down is a better use of our time and energy than falling into the prevalent topics that are dividing our country. Maybe emphasizing the goodness others posses and maintaining our solidarity during our county’s crisis can reduce some of the national vitriol. There is more to gain by elevating each other and our discourse about our unities rather than our divisions
Kristi Witt
Cloverdale
