A signature, like a vote, is private

I want to thank Judge Benjamin Settle for the courage to stop the release of names of people who signed Referendum 71 ["R-71 signatures kept private," page one, Sept. 11].
Even though I did not sign this one, as a private citizen I think of these petitions as a vote. In signing them, people are essentially voting for or against an issue.

In this country we keep our votes anonymous. If these names are released, everyone will be averse to ever signing a petition again for fear of retribution by the opponents of it.
I hope Settle has the intelligence to make this temporary injunction permanent.

-- John Hed, Covington

Retribution is not free speech; signatures shouldn't be disclosed

The threat of publicly releasing Referndum 71 signatures defines what's wrong with today's political discourse: self-interest.

I signed the petition not because I am against anybody, but because I believe in equality of opportunity rather than equality of result. I am 41, never married and sexually abstinent -- not for lack of interest or desire but because of belief and conviction.

That said, I get no break on my health care for living a sexually risk-free life, nor do I enjoy the benefits of married couples or those living in domestic partnership. Equality of result would have me fight for those "rights." Equality of opportunity informs me I will have those benefits, too, someday, should I marry the woman of my dreams.

I signed knowing someone might use my signature against me without knowing me or asking why. Disappointing for sure, but this is still America where we are free to take sides, free to speak up and free to love our neighbors when the dust clears.

I disagree with releasing R-71 names and making them public. Not because I am afraid, but because hatred, anger, retribution and political expediency should never be masked under the guise of free speech.

-- Justin Kawabori, Redmond

Signing a referendum also supports direct democracy

As a teacher of Washington-state history I want to explain that not all the people who signed the petition to put Referendum 71 on the ballot oppose extending domestic-partnership rights.

I teach my students about the initiative and referendum process in my class, and we discuss what they will need to consider when they are asked to sign one.

What a citizen is agreeing to is that they want to have that issue come to a statewide vote. In this case, we may have people who signed it because they like direct democracy and believe citizens should be able to vote on as many laws as possible. Or people may have signed it because they believe a statewide vote will get rid of the law, or people may have signed it because they believe a statewide vote will keep the law.

My point is the assumption that all the people who signed it did so for the same reason is not true.

-- Todd Beuke, Sequim

Cabin owners are stewards of federal land

As described in The Times' article, families on Reclamation land who have had simple cabins 50 or more years now stand to lose them due to the new fee increase ["Families getting pushed out of cherished cabins," page one, Sept. 9]. Our experience with the Bureau of Reclamation is that of dealing with a heavy-handed bureaucracy whose hidden agenda is to remove all cabins from federal lands.

You will find cabin owners wonderful stewards of the land, and furthermore public access is not limited, as the general public has the right to use the waterfront on those leases. We have been working with the National Forest Homeowners and our congressional representatives to create a new method of valuation and fee establishment that would apply to all federal lands.

Hopefully this will become law in time to save those who cannot afford the new fee increases.

-- Bob McIntosh, Conconully Lakes Cabin Owners Association president, Renton

Cabins no sweetheart deal without renter's rights

I have talked to one of the people interviewed by Jonathan Martin for The Times article about families losing their Forest Service cabins, and the source assures me he emphasized several times that cabins on Forest Service land are there under special-use permits, not leases.

That is not a trivial distinction. Lease holders have rights Forest Service cabin owners can only dream of. We Forest Service cabin owners understood going in that the federal government would be our landlord, but the relationship is very one-sided. When they say, "jump," you have to ask, "How far?"

Regarding calling the cabins a sweetheart deal: If you project $1,400 for the life of the 20-year permit, that is $28,000 in fees to rent the land. Not exactly chump change, where you may or may not have power, phone, TV, paved roads, winter access, law enforcement or fire protection, to name just a few of the amenities city folk assume exist everywhere.

My cabin is in Northern California at Bucks Lake in the Plumas National Forest. Our fee increase is set to be 400 percent. There is something very wrong with an appraisal system that achieves a 400 percent increase in the middle of the most severe real-estate collapse since the Great Depression.

This is a real problem, affecting real families.

-- Mike Hoover, Reno, Nev.

To protect teachers' rights and public interest, introduce binding arbitration

No matter which side you believe is right in the labor dispute between Kent's teachers and their district's management, we can all agree teachers should receive fair contracts and a teachers strike is never in the public interest. So when negotiations reach an impasse, how can they be resolved without teachers applying the pressure of a strike?

The answer is simple: Give both sides the right to request binding arbitration when contract negotiations on a particular issue have stalled.

State law does not guarantee or prohibit a right to strike for teachers, but state courts have always granted injunctions against teachers that choose to strike because of the "irreparable harm" a long strike would potentially cause.

State law specifically bars police and firemen from striking, but the law gives them the right to binding arbitration when they hit an impasse in bargaining to preserve some semblance of a level playing field during bargaining. If teachers can be forced to work by the courts even when they do not have a labor agreement, they absolutely need the ability to bring in a fair and neutral arbitrator during bargaining to help them ensure disputes over contract provisions can be resolved quickly and fairly.

This simple reform would dramatically streamline negotiations, thereby saving taxpayers and unions a lot of money and completely eliminating the annual ritual of looming strikes in Washington schools every September.

The Washington Education Association should organize a ballot initiative to change the law in Washington state to specifically provide the right for arbitration wherever state law will not provide the right to strike.

-- Pat Mead, Maple Valley

Fine striking teachers, cut administrators' positions, salaries

Each and every one of Kent School District's striking teachers should be fired or at the very least fined at least $500 per day retroactive to the first day of the strike. In addition, they should work the full 180 days but receive no pay for the days on strike.

If class size is the issue, then teachers should give up any pay raise and give money back so the district can hire new teachers.

However, on the other side, the district needs to rid itself of half the administrators and reduce salaries. What they make for what they do is downright obscene.

-- Lynn Folsom, Issaquah

Think the strike is bad? Try being a teacher

As a former high-school English teacher and football coach, I understand the Kent Teachers' Association's position and support their strike. The attitude of some members of the public and the Kent administrators needs adjustment.

They want and expect teachers to go into classrooms with 30-plus kids, and within a 55-minute period, correct their disruptive behavior, observe them for signs of abuse, monitor their dress habits, censor their T-shirt messages and instill in them a love for learning. They want and expect teachers to check the kids' backpacks for weapons, counsel them on drugs and sexually transmitted diseases and raise their sense of self-esteem and personal pride. They want and expect teachers to teach kids patriotism and good citizenship; sportsmanship and fair play; and how to register to vote, balance a checkbook and apply for a job.

They want and expect teachers to recognize signs of anti-social behavior, and make sure the kids all pass the final exams. They want and expect teachers to provide an equal education regardless of the kids' disabilities while communicating regularly with parents in English, Spanish or any other language by letter, telephone, e-mail, newsletter and report card. And they want and expect teachers to do all that and more with a piece of chalk, a blackboard, a bulletin board, a few books and a big smile.

All that and more is expected of teachers on a salary that qualifies most of them for food stamps. Yet teachers are castigated for striking for smaller classroom sizes, more time with their students and a pittance of a raise in salary.

-- Patrick Watson, Federal Way

Teachers are fighting for the quality of education

My wife and I have wisely decided to have only one child. The reason is not because we don't like children, but because it is much easier for us to manage if we only have one rascal than to have more than one.

My heart goes out to Kent School District teachers on strike, and I give them 100 percent of my support for their sad plight.

If I whine because it is tough to manage one child in my household, how much worse would it be if your job is to manage around 30 students in a single class by yourself at least six hours a day everyday? That is a mountainous job.

I don't blame teachers for their courage to go against the court injunction to go back to school to teach. Disobeying the court order doesn't mean teachers don't have regard for our court of law. It does mean that if they decide to go back to work against their consciences, the quality of education will certainly be affected.

Picture yourself as a teacher with 32 students of different ethnicities, traits, characters, idiosyncrasies, likes and dislikes. Do you think it's easy to manage that big of a class? I bet it would drive you nuts!

-- Warlie Villasencio, Kent

Teachers need time in detention

While I'm sympathetic to the goals of Kent School District's striking teachers and value the bargaining process, the teachers' decision to defy a court order is not OK.

They are teaching now in a very dramatic and visible way, as all adults do by their actions, that the judicial system doesn't apply to them -- only everyone else, I guess.

Will students respect guidance from teachers expecting rules to mean something when those expecting to be respected have publicly violated what a judge says? Will students feel respect for teachers who ignore the law, and instead of doing their job while continuing to negotiate, as professionals, have treated a court order the same way a hoodlum would?

This isn't OK. Kent teachers need to go to detention.

-- Kevin Grossman, Shoreline

A loving home, a life among discrimination

I will be voting to approve Referendum 71 to provide legal protections for couples and families like mine.

My same-sex wife -- we were married in Canada -- and I are raising two children. Our son is a special-needs child, and our daughter is an honor student who will be a high-school junior this year.

My wife and I co-own our home, have combined bank accounts and live as a married couple in every way. Our household of two kids, two cats, two fish and a yellow lab is a busy one, filled with love and laughter, joy and tears and is deserving of all of the protections and respect of any other.

I am a Metro transit operator, and my wife is an administrative registered nurse with a company providing assisted-living services. We abide by all of the laws of this state and country, pay our taxes and are responsible members of our community.

Despite this, when I was injured at work recently and opened a Labor and Industries claim, I was told my claim would be filed as single with no dependents and that I would be receiving a reduced benefit.

Not only are my wife and I being discriminated against in this instance but our children are as well. Please join me in making Washington a state that protects and respects all of its citizens.

-- Nancy Suppe, Bothell

Let couples that stand a chance be married

I have managed to be married and divorced three times before turning 45. Thankfully, I knew I wasn't good parent material so I avoided advancing that defective gene set. I've also managed to stay unmarried for 20 years and counting.

I am completely offended with the notion that extended rights for domestic partnerships is in any way a threat to me, any marriage I ever had or any marriage anyone else has had or may have.

I want to support and defend any couple that has the courage, commitment and optimism to get married. If their church doesn't have an issue marrying same-sex partners, why should I? As for the state, it's a civil-rights issue. Nothing more, nothing less!

My marriages should not be defended. They failed. I favor marriages that stand a chance.

Can we wake up with civility, humanity and basic human rights and see Referendum 71 for what it is?

-- Sandy Person, Redmond

For the love of families, support extended partnership rights

Thanks for your editorial in support of all Washington families ["Basic fairness, equality for Washington families," editorial, Sept. 2].

To voters who would deny me and my family equal rights, I'm not afraid to let you know who I am.

My partner and I met when we were Peace Corps volunteers 23 years ago. We've traveled the world together. We've cared for each other in illness, in job loss, in moves across the country. We've stood by each other when each of our fathers passed away. Our lives are about love, joy, laughing, dark chocolate and being good stewards of this world.

In our child-raising years, we've become part of communities that include gay and straight parents. We sit side by side at our kids' talent shows -- beaming with equal pride. We share advice and tips on the latest phase in our kids' development. We go to our jobs or are looking for work. As a community we've come together to support each other in our greatest losses and unite for our shared concerns. What is gained by discriminating against any family?

For the love of all families, support equality. Now that it appears destined for the ballot, vote yes on Referendum 71.

-- Cathie Bachy, Seattle

Washington is a place of equality

Editor, The Times:

I was elated to read your editorial ["Basic fairness, equality for Washington families," Opinion, Sept. 2] encouraging voters to approve Referendum 71, upholding the domestic-partnership law, when it comes to the ballot this fall.

The Washington I know is a place where people of all different races, backgrounds, creeds and, yes, sexual orientations can live together in respect, tolerance and equality. It is on those values I hope voters will base their decision on Ref. 71.

This November, voters will face one question: Should this law be approved? I hope voters will also ask themselves another question: Should someone be allowed to commit themselves to someone they love? Truly, that's all this issue asks, and there's only one, simple answer.

Yes, I am a gay man. But I reject the notion that I am intrinsically inferior to others because of this. I hope voters will, too, by turning out to approve Referendum 71.

-- Tucker Cholvin, Snohomish

Keep the conversation in the realm of executive responsibilities

King County executive candidates Dow Constantine and Susan Hutchison have weighed in on marriage benefits for same-sex partners. Now what?

This illustrates how far off base we have drifted in how we choose our elected officials and why they seem so incompetent when in office. Voters and the press continue to ask questions and probe positions that, while interesting, are irrelevant to officials' jobs.

The current example of Referendum 71 and King County executive shows how we drift in how we choose our executive. What does Ref. 71 have to do with overseeing Metro transit and managing the aspects of the county that person is responsible for? Nothing.

Why don't we get back to basics, and see how they are qualified for the job, not how they feel about social and political issues that are out of the scope of their jobs? While it may satisfy our curiosity to know how they feel about same-sex marriage, health-care reform or other popular debates, it obfuscates how competent they will be at the everyday tasks of their jobs.

That suitability will affect us directly. Valuing how they feel about Ref. 71 and other issues is exactly why Mayor Greg Nickels is being booted: He expended more effort toward posturing on global climate change and provided incompetent direct response to the snowfall in Seattle when that was the climate change he should have focused on.

King County executive hopefuls should be focusing on their executive skills, not political skills. Otherwise it's just another snow job.

-- Bob Johnson, Mercer Island

For referendum signers, no special protection

The attempts to block the release of petition-signer information by the backers of Referendum 71 ["Foes sue to block Referendum 71; backers can't hide donors' names," NWFriday, Aug. 28] reminds me of a sketch from 1977's crude "The Kentucky Fried Movie."

The sketch has a daredevil wearing a fire suit, helmet and gloves walk up to a group of black men, yell the "n-word" at the top of his lungs and then run for his life.

The difference is that Ref. 71's heroes want to replace the protective suit with blindfolds for the rest of us. The notion that the despicable and malicious nature of their speech entitles the signers' to special protections from public censure is an absurd and disturbing perversion of the First Amendment.

-- Jonathan Kallay, Seattle

Ref. 71 could be an infectious change

I predict Referendum 71 is going to become a big deal and a defining moment in the history of gay rights.

People have been choked by Proposition 8 in California passing. People have learned. This won't happen again. It will be the beginning of a "Yes, we can" movement that is much bigger than the gay movement, a movement of "Yes, we can take care of our society and our people, no matter who they are."

It will go well beyond Washington state.

-- Emma Le Du, Seattle

Strike illegal, but will teachers face consequences?

For being educated people, striking Kent teachers don't seem to understand their strike is illegal, yet they still serve no consequence for their action. ["Kent teachers delay decision on whether to stay on strike," page one, Sept. 4.]

Kent teachers point their fingers at other school districts when they talk about money and class sizes, so why don't they leave the Kent District and go to those other districts?
The teachers' strike has caused the rescheduling of the start of classes, so why don't the students, parents and taxpayers insist the teachers' union pay the district's expenses for the period of time the strikes cost?

-- H. Lontz, Kent

A history lesson in strikes from the Boston Tea Party

Is there ever a right time to strike? A right time to break the law?

Some of my ancestors believed strongly it was right to remain loyal to the crown, so they moved to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Canada; others thought the law bad, so they disguised themselves as Native Americans and threw tea into Boston Harbor to protest.

These Americans thought they had an inalienable right to break a bad law.

I taught for 31 years, and I am sure there's more to the Kent teachers' strike than is on the surface. I say, "Throw the tea in the harbor."

-- Delbert O. Lawrence, Bellevue

Put teachers back in the classroom

What frustrates the general public about teacher strikes is that the solution to teachers' concerns is always the same: more money toward salaries or to hire more employees. The mantra is always the same, too: Strikes are "for the kids" while, not surprisingly, the solutions always seem to benefit the adults.

Kent teachers say they are striking ["Kent teachers vote to strike as talks go on," page one, Aug. 27] for lower class sizes, and their solution is to hire more classroom teachers.
Here are the facts: The Kent School District Web site says the district serves 26,833 students and employs 3,292 people, of which 1,745 are teachers.

This is 15.4 students per teacher. If class sizes are too big, then a solution lies with the staffing ratio of non-classroom teachers.

It appears the actual average districtwide class size is about 25 students, which would fill about 1,073 classrooms, yet the Kent District employs 1,742 teachers. Simple math says there are 669 teachers who are not "in the classroom," and 1,550 other nonteaching positions.

Replacing non-classroom teachers with in-classroom teachers should not cost more money, and if done well, could actually save money.

I am confident the teachers will support this, since it is for the benefit of the kids.

-- Daniel Hillman, Tacoma

Reduce class sizes by bringing in fresh faces

How would raising the salary of the teachers in the Kent School District reduce class sizes?

I suggest we take away say 5 percent to 10 percent of teachers' salaries to hire new teachers to help downsize the numbers in the classrooms. They should be happy to eliminate the stress of so many children they are responsible for. How, I repeat how, can the classroom numbers be reined in by paying the existing teachers more?

Is the state ultimately responsible? We all (should) know the answer is yes. Even at the cost of loosing some overpriced art projects, we all have to fund in this state. Throwing more money at teachers will not diminish class sizes. Hire teachers, put people to work and replace the "deadwood" who have lost the desire to make a difference.

Please, hire new talent, and people who are interested in making a difference and glad to use their education. Now is the time to rid our educational system of the teachers who have lost their drive, as we cannot afford their expense or the negative impact they have on the children. We all know the ones we had in our time.

The teachers union should be at the front of this movement, if only for its members' jobs. The union is well aware of problematic teachers.

If the union chooses to defend them, it will become one of the untold unions in this country that was all about itself, not in touch with the reason it was even formed.

-- Richard Eirich, Kirkland

Teacher on strike? That will be $100 a day

I think it is about time to fine teachers so they suffer a monetary loss while striking -- something like $100 a day. Bargaining employees in other sectors suffer financially, and it takes real backbone to strike, but if they didn't lose anything there would be strikes all the time.

It takes a strong person to strike. Teachers can do it because they lose nothing and just create hardship on students and parents by late start and ending of the school year.
Financial loss is the only answer to stop them from going on strike so easily.

-- Ed Williams, Renton

Teachers look like fools striking during recession

Its amazing to me in a time when all workers are being asked to do a little more, stay a little late and perform a little better during a recession, the teachers in Kent School District and other districts go on strike.

Teachers have every summer off, every weekend and every holiday. In Kent, they have been asked to meet in the morning and afternoon; I have asked my management team to do so as well this year to ensure every penny is accounted for, and we are all on the same page and performing well.

It's amazing and a sad day for the unions again, when in the face of obvious hard times and struggles for everyone, they choose to stand up and make themselves and their members look foolish.

-- Thomas Olson, Sumner

Individual attention important to future success

Editor, The Times:

I am a 2003 graduate of the Washington state public school system now working in Portland. I've remained friends with several fantastic, supportive and inspiring teachers from my past, including several that are now working in the Kent School District.

As my K-12 school memories fade further into nostalgia and my agenda focuses more and more on my future theoretical children, the issues that the Kent teachers are fighting to amend ["Kent teachers vote to strike as talks go on," page one, Aug. 27] have a new sense of importance and urgency. We can't afford to let our kids suffer in large, anonymous classrooms and become nothing but a number in a district database. Not in a recession, not in a rebound, not ever.

Teachers and education are institutions that stay with us past high school, past college, into our daily lives to create successful and contributing adults. With attention and guidance from a young age, they teach us how to behave well and listen to others in classrooms and future board meetings. They teach us to respect each other and stop gossiping on the playground and around the coffee pot. They help us find how we learn and work best, so we can get our homework and our business proposals done.

Lessons like these, begun in the home and nurtured in the classroom, are much too important to compromise. It is with all this in mind, and at stake, that I put all my support behind the Kent teacher's strike.

-- Tabitha Blankenbiller, Wilsonville, Ore.

Teachers' raise a little relief in tough times

Let me get this straight. Many teachers have lost their jobs this fall due the financial meltdown of the marketplace. Those teachers who still have a job are facing higher classroom sizes due to the loss of their colleagues.

They will be working longer hours each day to keep up with their added responsibilities. The Legislature gave them a 0.6 percent pay cut by reducing the number of days they work by one day this year. And teachers' out-of-pocket expenses for family medical premiums will increase by around $100 per month more than the hundreds of dollars they already pay. And your Aug. 24 editorial ["Merit pay for teachers would end fight on pay," Opinion] complains because Seattle teachers got a 1 percent pay raise this year.

Don't you realize this 1 percent raise won't even cover the loss of state pay and the rise in monthly medical premiums? It's not like teachers' lives are getting any easier. If fact, this year will be extremely difficult for most workers in our state.

If you need to complain about pay raises or bonuses this year, then you should spend your time complaining about the outrageous raises and bonuses financial people on Wall Street and executives in board rooms are making this year. They are getting pay raises while teachers are taking an overall pay cut.

Stop blaming the average worker for trying to maintain their working wages in this economy, and demand financial institutions stop giving outrageous salaries to the very people who tanked our economy in the first place.

-- Peter G. Mohn, Bothell

Merit pay not a quick fix at all for improved education

The depth and breadth of the editorial board's ignorance of our educational system and of teachers' concerns and motivations took my breath away when I read the editorial on merit pay for teachers that appeared in The Times Aug. 24. In good conscience, I cannot let such a blatantly misleading portrayal of the situation stand unopposed by the facts.

The author states that, "Teachers are professionals who deserve strong compensation," immediately after an unveiled dig at the teachers' union for negotiating a 1 percent raise for its members "despite a recession meting out few raises anywhere."

Does the author support strong compensation for teachers or not? The snide remarks about teacher strikes being illegal further undermined my belief in the board's genuine support for teachers. By the way, if you were paying attention, you know that teachers in Bellevue felt compelled to strike because of detrimental teaching practices that had been foisted on them. Salary concerns were a secondary issue.

Merit pay is offensive to many teachers who, like me, bridle at the assumption that I would work harder to do a good job of educating my students if you paid me more. I wouldn't.

I work as hard as I can right now because I am a dedicated professional, and I have a very challenging job. Public education functions fundamentally differently from private industry, in which incentives like pay raises for increased productivity make sense.

People want educational reform because they want improved teaching and learning. Hallelujah! That takes a concerted effort over the long term with a significant investment of energy, research and resources.

If you'd like to know how it can be done, read the thoughtful article published in The Times about Finland. The Finns did it. It just took a commitment and plenty of money, a lot more than a futile quick fix like merit pay.

-- Marianne Clarke, Seattle

A stark picture made worse by merit pay in rough schools

It sounds so logical to tie student achievement to teacher's employment and or pay.
Teacher merit pay, based on a child's progress from A to Z, is inherently flawed and demeaning to teachers. You need only to teach or sub -- not just visit -- in the Seattle School District's "extremes" to be startled at the push for performance pay.

In the so-called failing schools, a teacher using all effort and resources may move a student only one bump on a progress chart. This hardly measurable step represents the best and deserves recognition.

In these poor achieving schools:

Income issues dominate family life, and one parent, grandparent or foster family are all too often the home life of many students. Parent involvement is minimal and adults at home are frequently victims of school failure while serious language and cultural issues run deep.

Class sizes can't be reduced but school aids are. Volunteers are few and far between. Discipline is complicated and daily disruptions rob children of learning.

Contrast this picture with "high performing" schools, which operate under the other side of all the negatives.

Contrary to the unchallenged mantra, we don't need to find and place the best teachers in our "failing" schools -- they are already there. We only need to honestly support them.

-- Michael McCullough, Seattle

In alternative schools, creativity thrives

Kudos to Lynne Varner for describing alternative public schools in Seattle as "models of creativity" ["State needs to hone its game in fight for education dollars," Opinion, column, Aug. 26]. Thanks also to Gov. Chris Gregoire, who also recognized that our programs can hold their own against the ever-popular charters: "The secretary was clear, that's what they're looking for -- nontraditional schools that allow students to excel," Gregoire told The Los Angeles Times. "I would like to show him some of our alternative schools and get his feedback."

As a parent of two children in public alternative programs, I have been disappointed that local leadership has been unable to recognize what alternative schools offer. The nonsupport we have become accustomed to over the last several administrations has turned into action that directly harms our programs under Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson, including school closures, forced relocations and the loss of autonomy so central to the charter model.

We hope the district's alternative-school audit, scheduled for September, will highlight the innovation that has been happening in our district for decades. Otherwise, alternatives will be out, and we will be stuck with charters, which were recently shown in a national study to offer little improvement over traditional public schools.

-- Chris Stewart, Seattle

An unforgettable moment with Kennedy

Editor, The Times:

In 1995, the Aberdeen High School choir made a trip to Washington, D.C. As a young staffer for Sen. Patty Murray and a graduate of Aberdeen High School, the senator asked me to accompany her visit with the students. After posing for pictures, answering questions and listening to a couple of songs, Murray needed to leave for a vote on the Senate floor.

Shortly thereafter, some of the talented students noticed Sen. Ted Kennedy looking at them over a balcony. He said, "I just wanted to hear where the beautiful music was coming from." The students implored the senator to come down to visit with them and, to my surprise, he obliged.

As he ambled up to the group of students, he shook my hand and whispered, "Who are these people, and why are they here?" I responded that they were from my hometown, a small town in Washington state, and were here to visit Murray.

Immediately, Kennedy whirled around and spoke to the students about the time Jim Whittaker was speaking with his brother about climbing Mount Rainier. He said, "Whittaker was telling Bobby that everyone should climb a mountain, or visit a national park, to remain close to nature, but Bobby turned it around on him and said that everyone should visit their government to ensure we protect beautiful places in our country like Mount Rainier."

Over the years, I had several opportunities to be in Kennedy's presence both in Washington, D.C., and Washington state. He always remembered I was from Aberdeen. And I will always remember how easily he related to "normal" people.

And, I'm confident those students will always remember their trip to visit their government. He will be missed.

-- Shay Hancock, Washington, D.C.

An era passes with Kennedy's death

And so, Camelot comes to an end.

For those of us who watched the'60s unfold as children, the passing of Sen. Edward Kennedy is particularly poignant.

Whatever their political affiliations, presidents and colleagues praised that his passion for causes was tempered by his willingness to compromise -- qualities lacking in today's polarizing politicians and pundits. And if they did not agree with him, they never questioned his commitment to those Andrew Jackson identified as "the humble members of society."

At a time when concentration of power in the president and vice president has rocked this nation and its Constitution to the core, I offer King Arthur's closing lines in Camelot in remembrance of the Kennedy's perseverance: "Thank you for saving Camelot. You have reminded us that a kingdom's strength is not based on the strength of the king but the strength of the people."

Kennedy promised at the 1980 Democratic Convention that his "work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives and the dream shall never die."

"By whom, now?" is the question that should haunt us in coming months, as public frustration simmers over perceived haves and have-nots.

Because if average Americans lose faith they can still aspire to prosperity, then what?

-- Douglas Jensen, Sequim

Name health-care reform after the Liberal Lion

The Kennedy family name will live forever in America's psyche, but none more so than Ted Kennedy's.

The Liberal Lion was passionate in his liberal social causes, but health-care reform was at the top of his agenda, and in the'70s he gave a firebrand speech that delineated what we as a nation must do to attain coverage for all. The way he went about it was with all the verve he could muster.

Kennedy had many friends across the aisle, as well as within his own party, and his death yesterday couldn't have come at a worse time, but I have a suggestion: Let us name our health-care reform in his memory.

How about the Ted Kennedy Health Care Plan?

-- Max W. Don, Mukilteo

Not just a lion of liberalism, a phoenix committed to justice

Who among us hasn't sighed -- especially during the George W. Bush years -- and wondered what John F. Kennedy might have achieved had he lived?

From the loss of Joe Kennedy Jr. in World War II, to the assassinations of John and Bobby Kennedy, to John-John Kennedy's unspeakable accident, it's easy to focus on what might have been.

Even when we speak of Ted Kennedy, whom we have only just lost, we may recall the "long shadow" of the Chappaquiddick car accident and bemoan the missed opportunity for another Kennedy president.

But Ted Kennedy was a phoenix. Call it penance for a fatal mistake on that bridge in Massachusetts, but he has served the people in the truest sense -- wholly committed to the causes of justice.

In 47 years in the Senate, he achieved his lion status through the force of his personality, passion and commitment -- especially when it came to universal health coverage, for which no one worked more tirelessly or spoke more eloquently.

Though the outpouring of grief and personal tributes are fitting expressions of our loss, the real tribute to Ted Kennedy's legacy will be when -- like Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act JFK had worked to achieve -- President Obama signs into life Kennedy's dream of health care for all.

-- Teresa R. Herlinger, Portland, Ore.

Honor Kennedy with real health reform

Sen. Ted Kennedy spent a long and important career fighting every day for real health-care reform. We should all honor his struggle by letting our senators, Congress and president know we want and need real reform with a strong public option.

Don't let the squeaky right-wingers stop this.

-- Peter O'Neil, Seattle

Reform is all about saving those ill like Kennedy

The coverage of Sen. Ted Kennedy's death brings more attention to the partisan arguments regarding health-care reform. However, we must remember that reform is about saving lives. As an advocate for an organization without a partisan political agenda, I can tell you the reform bills being debated represent tremendous progress for people fighting cancer.

Under the existing system, even if a person is lucky enough to have affordable, quality health care, they risk losing that insurance. A cancer patient or survivor who is laid off or cannot work is virtually uninsurable. Annual and lifetime insurance caps can limit treatment, and pre-existing conditions can be used as excuses to limit or even deny coverage.

In comparison, the health-care reform bills would guarantee affordable access to treatment and prevention services. Annual and lifetime benefit caps would be eliminated, and no one would be denied coverage because of pre-existing medical conditions.

There is room for further progress, but we need reform now, so all Americans have access to affordable health care. We need Congress to make sure people no longer have to choose between losing their life savings and saving their life.

-- Ray Sasaki, Seattle

In shut parks, a lost connection to earth

Editor, The Times:

A great sadness filled me as I read of the possibility that 39 King County parks may be shut down due to recent economic woes ["39 King County parks may be shut down," page one, Aug. 18].

Alas, what a devastating picture of national economic and global policies over these past eight years coming home to roost in our local neighborhoods, where there is little money for the needs of ordinary citizens but billions of dollars still handily available nationally for wars and corporations.

What will become of us if our green spaces are inaccessible? What will become of our children, many of whom have little access as it is to experiencing the joys of running across an open field or lying on the sweet green grass to look up through leafy trees at clouds against a blue sky?

How will our young ones learn to love the Earth so they grow up to become citizens who will care for it?

-- Jackie Leksen, Lynnwood

No sense in expensive light rail, closed parks

There are many, but rarely have I seen a better example of a dangerous malady that has been sweeping this state and country. A recent Seattle Times headline read, "39 King County parks may be shut down."

At the same time, Seattle opened a $2.5 billion light-rail line. This is the most expensive light rail ever constructed, costing $180 million per mile or $10,000 per Seattle household. Now, the operations of the train must be subsidized by taxpayers with $10 per ride if the number of riders estimated by Sound Transit are realized, which is doubtful. Further, Sound Transit is planning to spend many billions more to expand this ineffective rail system.

This indicates an unconscionable disregard for community priorities and the placing of politics and ideology ahead of the community's greater good. There are no winners but many victims.

Those who need transit and have no alternative will pay more and have less service, taxpayers will subsidize mostly people who have an alternative and the more than 90 percent of travelers who use the roads will continue to experience increasing congestion because money wasted on rail systems will not improve congestion or pollution.

When will we connect the dots between this stupidity and elected officials?

-- Jim Skaggs, Gig Harbor

Thanks to columnist for sharing universal moment

I wept as I read Jerry Large's moving column about having to place his mother in a care facility ["An aging parent; a sad choice," NWThursday, July 2]. With the news these days dominated by the absolutely tragic, the unfortunate and the downright ridiculous, it was refreshing to spend a few moments reading about something that nearly everyone can and will relate to eventually. I appreciated him sharing this difficult moment in his life with grace, emotion and honesty.

Thank you for giving this reader a few moments to attach to the every day, rather than try to once again relate to the often incomprehensible world around us.

-- Xlc Dlaqael Joloronde, Poulsbo

Bullying dads into unfair custody agreements

DADS Against Discrimination has seen thousands of court cases in which fatherless families are intentionally created by rogue judges. I myself obtained custody of my daughter in 2001 without an attorney.

Yet, the opposing attorney is still permitted to harass and demonize me in court.
Bill Harrington ["Children lose when the law fails to recognize both parents' rights," guest column, Feb. 26] makes a misplaced statement.

Sure, 93 percent of final-custody decisions are agreed upon. But, this doesn't reflect how fathers are bullied into bad agreements after they have spent thousands on rogue-parenting investigators.

The norm is more like a case in Pierce County, in which Judge Stephanie Arend ordered the children be taken from the custodial father and placed with the mother, whose live-in boyfriend is a registered sex offender with three felonies. The mother had a felony for stealing a car from the murder victim of her previous boyfriend. The court also knew the two smoked marijuana around the children.

The only ones who really know how corrupt our family courts are the victimized parents -- mostly dads, a few mothers.

These courts will never change until the media expose them for what they really are.

-- James Christianson, Federal Way

Always about the money

You have got to be kidding about Washington being a shared-parenting state.

I am a noncustodial father who has now been paying child support for 13 years for a son my ex-wife won't let me have a relationship with. I tried to get joint custody after she tried to commit suicide, which is why I divorced her in the first place.

The Washington state legal system won't let fathers have joint custody because they manage hundreds of millions in support dollars -- and it's always been about the money.

I just found out two months ago that our 17-year-old son was allowed to drop out of school before his 15th birthday. No one ever told me; I had to find out on his MySpace page.

Washington state is a joke when it comes to custody law regarding kids of divorce.

-- Michael Gary, St. Petersburg, Fla.