Wednesday, January 22, 2014 • Whidbey News-Times
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MORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Education
Cost of college overwhelming Editor, I would like to bring up an issue that has not perplexed me until this year. As a senior in high school I began the year excited to finally be here, but when college application deadlines began to pop up, it made me question just exactly who has the money to pay nearly $70,000 a year to a university or college. Presumably, I would love to get a master’s degree in the environmental field, so I would be paying $70,000 for each of those years for an estimate of about $420,000 dollars for a master’s degree. I could buy a house for that
amount. There is, of course, the option of scholarships, but they don’t make it easy to obtain them, you have to jump through flaming hoops to apply to get just the chance for the scholarship. Even then, unless you are a straight-A student, you most likely won’t get enough to cover your first year, maybe your textbooks though. It is painful to be working on my senior project and be fearful of even going to college because of the outrageous tuition most universities are charging. I just wish something could be done to help out our education system to ease this stress on the incoming generations, who will be unsteady about going to college because of the price tag we put on it. Caitlyn Connolly Oak Harbor
Warning
Don’t fall for woman’s story Editor, There are many generous, charitable folks in Coupeville, but that does not mean they deserve to have their hard-earned money taken from them by deception. As I have chatted with friends and neighbors, a pattern of deception in our community has emerged that has been going on for at least two years, or since the Arts and Crafts Festival of 2012 and maybe before. Individuals are being approached by a middle aged, slim blonde woman — not a lady — and after a smile and friendly hello, she starts telling a story about how she has just been reunited with
her children from Child Protective Services after a long time and they just need a few dollars to get back home. Home, she tells people, is either on the mainland or across the mountains. It seems there are no laws against panhandling on Whidbey Island unless they are aggressive and threatening. Therefore, when she is contacted, the only thing security personnel can do is ask her to leave the area. I am certainly not averse to charity and gifts from the heart being given to those who have had difficulties in life. We all need a supportive hand from time to time, emotional and even financial. However, honesty is the key here. Lying about your circumstances to take money deceptively from kind folks is just wrong. Don’t be taken in by this woman. Jack and Sue Tingstad Coupeville
GUEST COLUMNIST THE PETRI DISH
By JERRY CORNFIELD There is no mystery which Democrat will succeed Sen. Paull Shin in the state Senate. Rep. Marko Liias has been the only person seeking the vacancy created when Shin resigned Jan. 7 after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Liias is expected to be formally nominated Saturday by Democratic precinct committee officers in the 21st Legislative District and officially appointed Tuesday by the Snohomish County Council. Then the 32-year-old Liias will pack his bags in the House, where he’s prospered the past six years, and resettle in the Senate, where it won’t take long for his liberal beliefs and partisan inclinations to emerge. Democrats voting Saturday already know where the aspiring and loquacious pol is coming from. Here’s what the soon-to-be-senator wrote to them:
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• Business & Service Directory “Over the last year, we have seen the Senate change hands from a Democratic majority to a Republican-led coalition. Too often, Tea Party extremism and gridlock have prevented important action on the issues that matter to middle class families across our state. I am asking for your nomination as our next senator to change that.” While there’s an absence of intrigue for the Senate appointment, there is a bit of suspense surrounding the selection of a successor to Liias. Three people are seeking the House appointment: Lillian Ortiz-Self, Susan Phillips and Darrell Chapman. Under state law, their names will be forwarded to the Snohomish County Council for consideration. What Democrats must decide Saturday is who will be their first, second and third choices to represent the district, which includes Mukilteo, Edmonds, Lynnwood and south Everett. Ortiz-Self of Mukilteo is the odds-on favorite to garner the most votes. She’s been campaigning for the seat since October. That’s when Shin first announced he intended to retire at the end of 2014 and Liias declared he’d run for the seat. A middle-school counselor and member of the Washington Commission on Hispanic Affairs, Ortiz-Self has been endorsed by several state
lawmakers inside and outside Snohomish County. She’s also reportedly made a strong impression on House Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle. Chapman, of Edmonds, can boast a long record of serving the party and helping elect Democrats into city, county, state and federal offices — including many of those backing Ortiz-Self. He’s president of the Snohomish County Labor Council and political director of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. But that solid foundation may not be solid enough come Saturday. Phillips, of Edmonds, is the wild card. She entered late and has been the least involved in partisan activities of the three. As the president of the Edmonds School Board, she’s the only one with experience winning an elected office. Appointed to the school board in 2007, she’s won twice — in 2009 and again in November. It will be an interesting time Saturday, and the mystery will be solved next week. n Political reporter Jerry Cornfield’s blog, The Petri Dish, is at www.heraldnet.com Contact him at 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@ heraldnet.com
norma.smith@leg.wa.gov State Rep. Dave Hayes: P.O. Box 40600, Olympia, WA 98504-0600, 360-786-7914, dave.hayes@leg.wa.gov Board of Island County Commissioners: PO Box 5000, 1 NE Seventh St., Coupeville, WA, 98239. • Commissioner Kelly Emerson: 360-679-7354, district3@co.island.wa.us • Commissioner Jill Johnson: 360-679-7354, district2@co.island.wa.us • Commissioner Helen Price Johnson: 360679-7354, district1@co.island.wa.us Oak Harbor City Council: 865 SE Barrington Dr., Oak Harbor, WA, 98277, 360-2794500. • Mayor: Scott Dudley • Council members: Rick Almberg, Danny Paggao, James Campbell, Beth Munns, Tara Hizon, Bob Severns and Joel Servatius. Town of Coupeville: 4 N.E. Seventh St., P.O. Box 725, Coupeville, WA, 98239, 360-678-4461.
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THEY REPRESENT YOU U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen: Washington, DC office: 2113 Rayburn Office Building, Washington DC, 20515, 202-225-2605. Everett office: 2930 Wetmore Ave. Suite 9F, Everett, WA, 98201, 425-252-3188, Bellingham office: 119 N. Commercial St., Suite 1350, Bellingham, WA 98225. U.S. Sen. Patty Murray: Washington DC office: 154 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510, 202-224-2621. Everett office: 2934 Wetmore Ave., Suite 903, Everett, WA, 98201, 425-259-6515. U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell: Washington DC office: 311 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510, 202-224-3441. Everett office: 2930 Wetmore Ave., 9B, Everett, WA, 98201, 425-303-0114. State Sen. Barbara Bailey: Olympia office: 109-B Irv Newhouse Building, P.O. Box, 40410, Olympia, WA, 98504-0410, 360-786-7618. Barbara.Bailey@leg.wa.gov State Rep. Norma Smith: P.O. Box 40600, Olympia, WA, 98504-0600, 360-786-7884,
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• Mayor: Nancy Conard • Council members: Jackie Henderson, Bob Clay, Molly Hughes, Dianne Binder and Pat Powell Oak Harbor School District: 350 S. Oak Harbor St., Oak Harbor, WA 98277, 360-2795000, www.ohsd.net • Superintendent: Lance Gibbon, lgibbon@ohsd. net • Board members: Gary Wallin, Pete Hunt, Christine Abbott, Christine Cribb, Corey Johnson Coupeville School District: 501 S. Main St. Coupeville, WA 98239. 360-678-4522. www. coupeville.k12.wa.us • Superintendent: Jim Shank • Board members: Don Sherman, Jeff Tasoff, Chris Chan, Kathleen Anderson, Glenda Merwine Whidbey General Hospital: 101 N. Main St., Coupeville, WA 98239. 360-678-5151, www. whidbeygen.org
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