Seattle Press on Line - Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor

Feb 21, 2001 -- Customer Isn't Always Right

To the Editor:

Re: people asked not to return to video store (letters, February 7 issue).

I just read a letter in your paper from a couple of folks who were asked not to return to rent from their local video store. As a small business owner I wish to comment on this letter.

I got into my own business to have more control over my life. Part of this is being able to decide what kind of people I want to have around me; this includes employees AND customers. I am well behaved, as are my employees--as we expect our customers to be. The customer is not always right; sometimes the money you get from a sale is just not enough to pay for putting up with bull. I have no problem asking people not to return, and I rarely have to. I do have the feeling that this was probably not the first problem that video store owner had with this particular couple.

Crystal K. Carlson

Marshall's Problems are District-Wide

To the Editor:

I am a custodian for the Seattle School District for the past 13 years and have worked in all the high schools, all the middle schools and [most of] the elementary schools.

In the older buildings custodians clean every third day. In the new buildings, maintenance and cleaning are done on a daily basis. But for the most part, there are not enough personnel to cover the cleaning, permits, activities, maintenance and well-being of the buildings.

Marshall is not the only school facing lack of equipment, lack of personnel and lack of activities. There are vacancies throughout the Seattle School District for coaches of various sports and activities. I disagree with Dr. Drake's statement, "We're a low priority for the school district. They don't like alternative programs." The district supports the Indian Heritage School, the African American Academy, Coho Elementary and New Options Middle School (NOMS). I feel quite offended when a person of Dr. Drake's stature makes a statement that is untrue. At Marshall, the locker rooms are storage because no one takes a shower, and the tools were sent away long ago--because there was no one at the school qualified to teach the usage of the tools or any other shop program. There is money for art, sports and crafts: there are grants from city, county, state and federal government to fund such programs. What Marshall needs is a good grant writer.

I have seen what these students can do. When you get a chance to look at some of their artwork, poetry--these students have deep issues and are quite creative. Some of them do not belong in regular classrooms because regular classes do not challenge them enough. These students need people to care for them, not just to have better facilities. You could have all of the best facilities in the world, but if you do not have mentors it isn't going to matter.

Have you eaten the student lunches? Most of the food is government subsidized and meets the minimum FDA requirements. Why can't we serve anything maximum?

Stephen P. Croston

Greens Put Bush In Office

To the Editor

At the rally in Seattle on inauguration day, I was amazed to see three banners (large banners) supporting the Green Party. Imagine, the party that helped to elect Bush was there to support us, the people who voted against Bush. Kind of ironic. It appeared that a few of you were even dumbfounded about why, those of us who voted against Bush, would be angry at you, the people who helped elect Bush. Want me to explain? Again?

First, you pushed your party at a time when the party that could do the most harm to all that you claim to hold dear, i.e., the Republican Party, was at its strongest. Any first grader can tell you when you're playing "tug of war," the way not to win is to have two teams of seven and three individually go up against one team of 10. The teams of seven and three will lose. No brainer.

Second, you gave us a candidate who, although intelligent, obviously sincere, and dedicated to his cause, was altogether unqualified for the job, if only for the fact that he continued to run when it was clear that to do so would assist the party that would do the most harm.

And third, you elected George Bush.

So, we're angry. And if you continue to support the Republicans by weakening the Democrats, we'll continue to be angry. Like it or not, we have a two-party political system. And if your candidates are too naive or unsophisticated in the world of politics to acknowledge that, they don't deserve to be elected. You want a third party? Fine. Go for it. But think like a first grader and do it at a time when the Democratic Party can withstand the loss. Otherwise, regardless of whether you continue to pick up a few percentage points each year or not, you'll continue to elect Republicans and assure the demise of the earth, the middle class, and individual rights.

But don't despair, everyone's not angry with you. The Republicans love you, you know. That's why they paid for campaign ads supporting you. You're that bag of money they carry to the bank, laughing all the way.

Patti Good

Changing Traffic Lights "A Boob's Idea"

To the Editor:

In his "Small Ideas for Seattle" column concerning traffic signal synchronization [February 7], Dick Falkenbury quotes H.L. Mencken. Poor H.L. must be spinning in his grave being quoted by a member of what he would call the "booboise."

While it might be "clear which lights are not in synch," simply changing them ("What's the big deal?") is a boob's idea.

Very often, Mr. Falkenbury, when there is a traffic light on a particular street there is also a traffic light on a cross street in the same general vicinity. That is, changing the lights along one street necessarily affects the traffic patterns of cross streets, which affects...

This isn't rocket science, and I'm not a rocket scientist (nor am I a traffic engineer), but even I can imagine that changing lights along one street without consideration for the effect upon the larger system will not have overall positive results.

Kent Koprowicz

Neighborhood Shops Losing to Superstores

To the Editor:

The choice is ours.

The Ravenna Puget Sound Consumer Co-op (PCC), after one year of competing with its rival Whole Foods, has closed. This store has served this community for 30-plus years and is one of the main reasons I live in Ravenna. As a consumer and a neighbor, I question my own actions that contributed to this dilemma.

I confess. I partook in the delectable table of Whole Foods' deli. I reveled in the numerous options on those nights I didn't want to cook. However, it did not take long before the lack of community became apparent. I also noticed there was little effort to educate the consumer about organic foods, the protection of local farmland, or the need to support local growers. My visits ebbed.

To know my dollars were supporting the local community was by far more meaningful than having a deli, easily accessible, hosting a variety of gastronomical delights. As a member of the PCC, I sadly received the letter from the main office informing us of their decision to close Ravenna. The letter read, "PCC wants to focus on providing its customers with a larger product mix, especially in produce, meat and deli." I understood the focus to be on creating larger stores that could compete with other food giants. Clearly, I had not been alone in my visits to Whole Foods. My actions, no matter how minute, conveyed a message I had not intended.

This type of change appears to be sweeping over Seattle. Fremont's City People's [Mercantile] began closing its doors before the holiday season. REI chose to become a monolith, in order to appeal to a broader market, relinquishing its more quaint origins on 11th and Pine. A number of small stores on 15th Avenue on Capitol Hill have been pushed out by retailers willing to pay higher rents. Fremont continues to be under further construction, making way for larger retailers. In a world of impermanence, change is the one factor we can rely upon. But how do I, we, maintain that part of Seattle that is comprised of quaint, community stores? How do we assist these stores to remain competitive in today's market? As consumers, our choices are pivotal to the process.

Was it necessary to lose the Ravenna PCC in order to reawaken the conscientious consumer? While I mourn this loss in my neighborhood, I sincerely hope I have learned to remain vigilant. Complacency has brought about the loss of a valuable community member.

The reality is Whole Foods might expand into other enclaves. From one concerned neighbor to another, we must be clear about who and what we support. The choice is ours. Let us support the neighborhood stores that grew out of our conscious actions, and not succumb to our cultural, quick-fix mentality.

Seattle's neighborhood co-ops provide the city with charm as well as an opportunity for conscious shopping. They now need our assistance with both our dollars and ideas in order to pass into the new millennium. Let us work together to support that which has heart and meaning. Each and every one of us makes the difference.

Tracey P. Stover

Nikko: Famous or Infamous?

To the Editor:

In the review of Nikko in the February 7 "Three Squares," I believe Zachary L. Lyons intends the word "famous" rather than "infamous" which he actually used. I can't imagine there is anything "infamous" about Nikko or the Westin, unless Mr. Lyons knows something I don't know.

Elizabeth Ramstad

Your Cartoons are Terrible

To the Editor:

Your latest "cartoons" are terrible. Witmore (sic) (more like Witte-less than more) (sic) and the silly 8th-grade Alaska "humor" are both pretty second rate. Where is "Meat the Press"? Wake up.

Walt in Wallingford

Bring Back Real School Lunches

To the Editor:

Thank you for the article about the food service at Marshall High School. I can't speak to the unsatisfactory kitchen conditions described by David Westberg ["My Two Cents," February 7], but I do know about the pre-pack lunches that other schools are also getting. A senior program, SPICE, at Wilson [in the Northgate area] got the same pitiful and meager lunches, and most of them quit coming. Many of the children had no other choice.

Dave Westburg also mentioned the 1946 Nation School Lunch Program. Because of wartime exams for military service in WWII, Congress had become aware of the widespread and bad effects of childhood malnutrition. The program they enacted was administered by the Department of Agriculture and funded nutritious and low-cost meals for all schoolchildren for the next 40 years. It was the Reagan administration that cut funding and changed the program to one for low-income children.

We have many single parents these days and two-parent families who both work and are not considered particularly more affluent than previous generations. There is arguably an urgent need to restore funding to meet the original intent of that 1946 law.

Barbara Haley Roberts

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