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.

A cougar removed while dangerous pit bulls are ignored

Did any one else see the dichotomy of these situations: A cougar living in its natural habitat, which happens to be near an urban area is hunted down, captured and moved to a more remote area because of the potential of the danger its presence presents ["Discovery Park cat gets treed and freed," page one, Sept. 7]. I am glad this happened, both for the people nearby and for the cougar itself.

Meanwhile, in another case in a different locale, five dogs who people reported and complained about ["Neighbors warned agency of dogs," NWWednesday, Sept. 9] and who had in the past threatened and intimidated people were basically ignored. Left until "real" injury was imposed.

Saying a response is made within 10 minutes of a reported attack is no comfort; in 10 minutes much of the damage is done. Walking our neighborhoods has become more and more dangerous thanks to dog owners who, I believe, acquire some dogs only to intimidate others.

-- Jan Broz, Redmond

In cougar relocation, a shining example for other states

Seattle and the communities surrounding Discovery Park should take pride in their calm, cautious and reasonable response to the cougar recently discovered in their vicinity. They did not panic nor did they demonize the danger the cougar presented.

We are very fortunate in Washington state to have a number of extremely experienced and well-trained biologists. As a nature and science writer, I have worked with these scientists and have written a number of articles so the rest of the country might become aware of their innovative work and findings.

They have studied the mountain lions in Washington state for many years, and their expertise was evident in their handling of this recent event. We are so fortunate to have a healthy population of these amazing cats. Very few states can claim this.

By agreeing to relocate rather than kill this cougar, Seattle has shown how humans can coexist with wildlife. Washington state must set the example for the nation by making every effort to preserve its wildlife treasures by supporting the work of these biologists.

-- Laura Bowers Foreman, Issaquah

Lay on fines for negligent pet ownership

Your story about the dogs' brutal attack on the two mares ["Mares killed after dogs attack," NWMonday, Sept. 7] turned my blood cold.

However, I disagree with the euthanizing of the dogs. I think they should have been split up for adoption to responsible pet owners.

Now, I'm waiting for the happy ending: I want to hear about this negligent knucklehead of a neighbor getting a massive fine for the lives of the mares, another hefty fine for the injuries to the colts and their heartbreaking loss and another huge fine for the pain and suffering of Patricia Clark. The court should demand that Negligent Knucklehead build a eight-feet-tall fence between Clark's property and his.

I'm sick and tired of hearing about these things happen because our courts don't crack down and make the fines and punishment stiff enough. Throw the book at 'em!

-- Lee Ryan, Des Moines

Loss of handicapped parking irrelevant in long run

The Seattle Times story regarding the Seattle Center's apparent disregard for disabled citizens ["Theatergoers protest plan to move disabled parking," NWTuesday, Sept. 1] failed to put the whole situation in perspective.

Part of the Seattle Center's Century 21 Master Plan calls for the creation of new underground parking beneath a completely transformed and revitalized Memorial Stadium area. This will eventually render the Mercer parking garage itself obsolete and allow easier access to the entire center for all patrons, including the disabled.

Unfortunately, due to the rush order put on the Peter Donnelly Memorial Garden grant, all people see currently is the elimination of 13 handicapped stalls in favor of an ostensibly meager mini-park.

The master plan, however, provides a much more cohesive, awe-inspiring vision for the future of the Seattle Center. I urge anyone interested or concerned to check it out at seattlecenter.com.

-- Christian Nelson, Seattle

In remembering benefactor to arts, protect access for all

The best way to memorialize Peter Donnelly is to remain dedicated to providing equal access to the arts at Seattle Center. The very idea that it would be OK to relocate handicapped parking spaces further away from the venues they serve calls into question the Seattle Center's commitment to accessibility.

Patrons of the Seattle Repertory Theatre, Seattle Opera, Intiman Theatre and Seattle Center have already expressed strong objections to the options being proposed. The upcoming years of construction on Mercer Street cannot be ignored.

For example, would that proposed drop-off area even continue to be available? What of the path between the garage and the center grounds? Construction will surely bring changing -- and inaccessible -- pedestrian routes. As already-scarce parking becomes nonexistent, maintaining dedicated handicapped parking spaces should be the center's overriding priority.

Surely there is a rational argument to be made that accessibility for citizens is a better use for precious space than landscaping -- however well-intentioned the memorial garden might be.

I do not presume to speak for the man who epitomized an individual's commitment to bring the arts to all in our community, but I cannot believe Donnelly would approve.

-- Deborah Witmer, Seattle

Makeshift handicapped parking just doesn't cut it

Peter Donnelly was a champion of theater in Seattle, and I hardly think he would have wanted to hinder patrons' access to Seattle Center venues.

Isn't there another spot on the grounds for a memorial garden? The handicapped parking must stay, based on the comments of theater patrons quoted in the article.

Spaces in the garage across the street are not acceptable. There is a place for people to be dropped off, but what if the driver is the handicapped person who needs to park and attend the theater?

-- MaryAnne Seibert, Seattle

In energy bill, include funding to save pika, other species at risk

The pika is but one of many animals that may become endangered due to changes brought about by global warming ["High-country icon in peril?" page one, Aug. 21]. Rising temperatures, changing rainfall and disrupted snowfall patterns are also impacting the Northwest's salmon and native birds.

The same issues driving pika to possible extinction are also threatening wildlife in national parks across the country. The National Parks Conservation Association recently issued a report suggesting management strategies to alleviate the stress on animals in parks.

Strategies include protecting critical habitat, developing corridors to allow wildlife access to new habitat as their current ranges become unsuitable and reducing additional stresses from pollution, invasive plants and disease.

We urge Congress to support setting aside modest funding in the energy bill for projects on our public lands that will help animals adapt to climate change. We need to preserve our national park heritage and animals, including the pika, so our children and grandchildren can also enjoy those "brave squeaks."

-- Sean Smith, National Parks Conservation Association policy director, Seattle

Boy's big catch nothing to celebrate

I was disheartened to read the celebratory tone used in your story and accompanying "Good day, bad day" photographs about the 150-pound sixgill shark caught near Burien ["Boy's 150-pound fish tale is true," NWTuesday, Aug. 11].

Celebrating this catch does a huge disservice to the efforts to restore and recover a rapidly declining Puget Sound ecosystem, a nationally significant issue The Times has covered frequently.

It also does a disservice to shark-conservation efforts under way around the globe. Although the shark was released, and The Times included information about the decline of the sixgill shark in Puget Sound, the celebratory tone was unmistakable.

I am saddened to think this article will inspire young boys throughout the region to go shark hunting in hopes of getting a spread in your paper. It will be a very good day when the sixgill shark and other species in decline in Puget Sound are recovered.

But I remain highly skeptical about this outcome if the media remains steeped in outdated and harmful modes of thinking.

-- Hilary Culverwell, Bellingham

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

Nice news in story of man who has recovered identity

Editor, The Times:

The Seattle Times has published a great series of stories on Edward Lighthart, the man who woke up in Seattle's Discovery Park and couldn't remember who he was ["Mystery of man's identity apparently solved," page one, Aug. 21]. Many thanks to reporters Ian Ith, Craig Welch and Susan Gilmore as well as The Times.

This is the nicest news story I've read anywhere in quite a while.

-- Doug Muhler, Beaverton, Ore.

Shellshocked with disappointment in Obama

I think I know who Jon Doe is ["Who is this man?" page one, Aug. 20]. He's a guy who voted for that "hope and change" guy Barack Obama, and he just woke up to realize what he got -- an even less transparent and more coercive government.

And the shock is so overwhelming that he lost his bearings and is denying reality.

-- Bruce Martin, Bainbridge Island

An invasion of property rights in new tree-cutting rules

I do not like the tone of the new tree-cutting rules ["Tree-cutting rules to get more strict in Seattle," NWTuesday, August 4]. City Council President Richard Conlin is quoted as saying something about "our urban trees." That may be true for trees in parks and parking strips, but the trees on my property aren't "our" trees, they are "my" trees.

I have close to 50 trees on my property in West Seattle. I selected them, I paid for them, I dug the planting holes, I pay for the water at third-tier summer rates, I fertilize, I pay my gardener to prune, transplant or remove as I choose.

Some of my trees have been in the ground since the late ' 80s and are pushing 20 years old. If I decide I don't like their appearance or growth habits or there is another type of tree I want to grow instead, it is my choice what to do with them.

My garden is my art project -- it doesn't belong to the city. If I sell my property, it is the right of the new owners to decide if they want to continue our style of gardening. This is a private decision, and the city has no say in it. Some people don't like shade or trees hiding their houses.

The city of Seattle should put its own house in order and take care of its own trees. City Light crews still butcher trees to accommodate power lines; recycle trucks and garbage trucks routinely snag and tear branches of parking-strip trees in our neighborhood; trees in public spaces are frequently underwatered and ungroomed; the madronas in Lincoln Park are diseased and need thinning and removal of dead limbs; the Kwanzan cherry trees in the median on Admiral Way have been removed and replanted at least four times in the past two decades by street crews.

These sins against city trees are just the ones in my own neighborhood. Multiply that many times and city crews could be busy for years taking care of what they already have.

-- Kathy Schwartz, Seattle

Saving trees or letting government go unchecked?

Your headline regarding saving trees in Seattle is misleading and downright bad journalism. The new resolution, not yet a law, will allow the following, if passed into law: "... the Department of Planning and Development] may permit exceptions to this prohibition when evidence is presented that development of the site would be substantially precluded or prohibited or when documentation is provided by a licensed or accredited professional that the health of the tree would be ignorantly undermined as a result of construction."

This is a loophole that not only makes certain trees will lose out in any development case, it also creates a situation of government powers that are unchecked. If the DPD decides so, then any tree may be removed for development at any time, based on this clause.

You should do some investigative writing, not just promote what those in power want us to believe.

-- Thomas Erdmann, Seattle

Seagulls, like the Needle, a Seattle landmark

I wonder what Ivar Haglund, founder of Ivar's restaurant, would think about the new War on Seagulls ["The war on seagulls," front page, August 4].

Can't speak for him, but I'm pretty sure if someone had called Ivar's Acres of Clams while he was still alive and asked for comments on his "feed the seagulls" sign, they'd have gotten quite an earful.

Especially if they had told him people were gassing baby seagulls and others were trying to blame the "seagull problem" on his restaurant.

His sign has been there since the early '70s; seagulls have been munching there for even longer than that without hurting anyone, and they're every bit a Seattle landmark as the Space Needle.

-- Andre Duval, Seattle

Aggressive seagulls only defending their young

All respectable parents, of any species, become aggressive if they have to defend their young ones.

I have seen crows divebomb our cats if they come too near a nest. If only we could see ourselves as the nuisance animals we are and learn to live in harmony with the wild critters who were here first, long before people were riding ferries and long before Ivar put his "Seagulls welcome here" sign up outside his restaurant.

The Department of Fish and Wildlife should be aggressive in educating people to not feed wildlife. Children love the ritual of feeding seabirds, but they are also the first, if appropriately explained at home and in school, to understand that it hurts the animals and, as in the case of the seagulls, may lead to their brutal death.

-- Ruth Kildall, Seattle

Seagull problem? Eat it away

If an endangered, threatened or protected species becomes an inconvenience, well then get rid of it. That's just human nature.

But don't waste those seagulls. Eat them. Having feasted on leftover fries and such from Ivar's, they should be fat and plump. If cooked properly they ought to taste pretty good -- a little bit like bald eagle and a little bit like barred owl.

-- Marshall Sanborn, Friday Harbor

Removing dams, bringing back recreation

Editor, The Times:

I am a professional fly-fishing guide on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. I read Lance Dickie's recent column on the Snake River dam removals ["Reservoirs of uncertainty behind the Snake River dams," Opinion, July 24] with great interest.

As the column pointed out, the promises of a great economic boon to the region, as a result of building the dams, never materialized. Much of the river traffic engaged in shipping and barging comes at an unrealistic cost. The dams themselves have done more to harm the environment and the economy than they have ever done to contribute anything positive to the domestic life of the region.

The benefits of removing these dams are virtually guaranteed; a free-flowing river would bring recreation, paddling, river trips, scenic adventures, birding, camping and fishing back to the region.

All of these activities have one great thing in common: They do not damage the quality of the water or the environment, and they take nothing away but memories. Though this may seem a small contribution, recreational angling alone counts as a multibillion-dollar contribution to our economy already.

Add to this the benefit of increased cash flow and social culture to the Lewiston and Clarkston communities and the potential for a vast improvement in the fishing life of the tribal stakeholders, and it is hard to understand why the politicians are dragging their feet. Dam fools!

-- Bob Triggs, Port Townsend

Dam closure will be a win for both economy and environment

I liked everything about Lance Dickie's column on the changing dynamics in the Inland Northwest concerning salmon recovery and the fate of the lower Snake River dams -- except his characterization that this is another debate pitting the environment against jobs.

I am a fishing guide and a store manager at Creekside Angling Company in Issaquah. My livelihood depends on healthy fish populations. These fisheries depend on a healthy habitat.

Just like any other creature, salmon and steelhead exemplify the essential connection between environment and economy. It is most encouraging to see local leaders in Lewiston and Clarkston taking the initiative to push for the resolution of this dogged issue.

Whether the dams stay or go, our region needs to work together right now to restore healthy runs of salmon in a manner that benefits and serves any affected communities.

-- Brett Wedeking, Kirkland

Follow example of neighbors in salmon recovery

After what I consider nearly two decades of failures, it is hard not to be discouraged about Columbia Basin salmon-recovery efforts. Lance Dickie's column, however, gives me new hope at a time when change really does seem afoot -- except perhaps here in Washington state.

Idaho's senators have expressed support for convening stakeholders to tackle this issue. In Oregon, Sen. Jeff Merkley and Gov. Ted Kulongoski have said the same, and President Obama has recommitted the federal government to science-guided policymaking.

There is, however, a deafening silence coming from our congressional offices here at home. Pulling together the various competing stakeholders around a single table to work together to craft a lawful, effective and responsible recovery plan strikes me as something out of a Politics 101 course.

To Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell in particular: We need you on board and as part of the solution, not part of the problem.

-- K. Robert Johnson, Renton

No excuse for troopers who killed seagulls

Editor, The Times:

There is no excuse for the two state troopers killing young seagulls in their nest at the Seattle ferry dock ["Troopers: Trying to clear gulls from area," NWWednesday, July 22]. The article describes a violent episode of beating these young birds to death with batons. If the gulls were a nuisance as it was alleged, these law-enforcement officers should have let the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife handle the problem.

Fish and Wildlife officials would have come up with a better solution, since they protect wildlife from harm. Protected species or not, this method of killing was far from humane. It is rewarding to have laws in place to ensure this incident will not go unpunished.

It is wrong that some animals also seem victims of "racial profiling" -- people thinking it's OK to get rid of them in such a way just because they are only birds.

If this incident helps educate anyone on humane killing methods and on protecting species, then these baby gulls will not have died in vain.

-- Claudine Erlandson, Shoreline

Could the troopers exterminate in my neighborhood?

I invite the troopers and their batons to Lake Washington to try to clear the hundreds of geese from the area. Please.

-- Diane Dambacher, Seattle

Beating obnoxious birds is not the answer

Regardless of the fact that seagulls are considered protected wildlife under Washington state law or whether these birds were in fact a nuisance, the bottom line is that one doesn't resolve the problem by beating the animals to death with a baton.

Consequently, it should be deemed a crime punishable by law. It bothers me greatly that the troopers did what they did, and it sure makes me wonder what was going through their minds when they did it.

-- Barbara Gust, Lynnwood

Time, money being wasted because of tattling

One of the first things children learn about developing social awareness and trust is not to tattle.

The supervisor of the two State Patrol troopers, who inadvertently may have killed two immature seagulls while destroying a nest, tattled on them. And as a result, the Department of Fish and Wildlife is obligated to engage the prosecuting attorney who is now obligated to attempt to file criminal charges. Meanwhile, maybe the FBI will have to get into it, and the two officers are on paid leave.

All of this is wasting our taxpayer dollars because we have a supervisor incapable of standing up for their men and instead tattled on the officers.

This supervisor needs to be advanced to where his or her decisions cannot cause all of this grief and wastefulness. Two immature seagulls are not worth all of this, endangered or not.

The troopers should be commended for being proactive and effectively getting rid of a disturbance hampering ferry safety and security operations.

-- Norman Brueske, Bellevue

Punish the supervisor, not the troopers

Give these State Patrol troopers $5 each for coffee, and put them back to work.
Then, when state and federal government have a spare minute or two, cancel the protected species designation on all seagulls, including the young.

Talk about a situation that has been completely blown out of proportion. This is insane. Fire the trooper's supervisor, who has a propensity to see a red flag and a falling sky from the vantage point of a bird's nest, and anyone else who doesn't have anything more productive to do.

-- Hal Edwards, Edmonds

Enough already: city choking strip clubs with regulations

Wow! On July 4, The Times published five letters online all against the strip club opening near Safeco Field.

Everyone wants to protect children from exposure to these vile sex dens filled with perverts and degenerates. However, couldn't Seattle's puritanical regulations on strip joints be the reason children are the new target audience?

Since the strip clubs don't allow smoking or drinking and lap dances must be from a distance of several feet away, why would a rational adult male waste his money on such a lame excuse for a strip joint?

I could probably find more stimulation at a prayer breakfast sponsored by a virgins' abstinence club.

--Dennis Doucette, Auburn

Join the militia

Please carefully read the first 13 words of the Second Amendment:

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

All persons carrying loaded weapons into our National Parks shall immediately report to the forest ranger for their duty assignment. We must have a well-regulated organization of people bearing arms to help protect innocent visitors from violent crimes and danger.

A hundred people, each carrying a loaded weapon, is not a well-regulated group if they are randomly wandering around the park.

If you do not want to report for duty with your loaded firearm, it must not be loaded.
The National Rifle Association preaches and strongly lobbies that the Second Amendment must be upheld to allow each of us the right to keep and bear arms. Each of us should have that right on our own property. However, that right should not infringe on the rights of people on property that we jointly own. Both groups of people own the National Parks.

Each of our rights carries a responsibility. Our responsibility is to be part of a well-regulated militia.

-- Jim Ehnborn, Graham

A nation of vigilantes

I once read an article on the psychology of gun ownership. It said people who own guns firstly see themselves as the good guys who feel a need to protect themselves. Over time that need expands to one's immediate family and then others around them. They start to become paranoid and see danger everywhere.

They read of a bear spotted in an urban area and assume extremely dangerous bears are everywhere. Of course, other people are suspect and potentially bad guys that everyone needs protection from. Of course, it is the bad guys who are trying to take the guns away from the good guys. Unfortunately, the pro-gun letters I have read all fit in nicely to this idea and I have to laugh when I read these brilliant letters.

Ours is the most violent of the industrialized nations in the world. We have more people in prison than any other country, including Russia. Weapons do not lessen violence, they exacerbate it. Suicides, homicides and accidental shootings cause far more pain and death than defensive shootings.

Are we a nation of laws or are we a nation of vigilantes? The gun industry, through its money, influence and simplistic thinking, are behind the spiraling down of our culture. To paraphrase a worn out adage: "When grenade launchers are outlawed only outlaws will have grenade launchers."

-- Jack Pedigo, Seattle

Missed opportunity to keep cans

Given that Seattle just concluded a new comprehensive contract with Waste Management to accept garbage, food/yard waste and recycling, why didn't the city include the same set of services at city parks as part of the required services provided by the winning bidder? ["City to park users: Take out the trash," page one, May 25]
Packing your waste out makes sense in a wilderness environment, but not in urban parks.

-- Michael Jacobson, Seattle

Cash incentive is no-brainer recycling solution

Why is our supposedly "green" state (or city) still ignoring the easiest way to clean up bottles and cans -- by simply slapping a nickel deposit on each container? ["From garbage to litter," Opinion, editorial, May 27]

This system works very well in most states and provinces, changing sloppy behavior and creating something that the legions of unemployed homeless can do for a little income. Who is standing in the way?

-- Ted Irwin, Seattle

Article missed grass-roots community effort

Tuesday's front-page story on St. Edward State Park ["History echoes in the decaying halls of St. Edward Seminary," page one, May 26] portrayed a sad nostalgia too common in American life today. It's a hopelessness propped up by the empty wish that someone else will bring about change.

The piece utterly missed the people in the community who felt St. Ed's sadness and have turned it into action.

It missed that the creative playground was the result of a grass-roots community effort. It missed legislators like Ruth Kagi, who fought for the funding to arrest the most serious decay of the seminary. It missed the mountain bikers and hikers who do trail maintenance. It missed the city of Kenmore, which started a great summer concert series. It missed the group dedicated to the use and preservation of the park and the volunteers who have, for two years, run a free environmental-education program on a shoestring budget with the long-term vision of using the park and its historic building as a world-class environmental school focused on sustainability.

America doesn't have to be a place where we only gawk at decay and past misdemeanors. It's a place where we are empowered by our liberty to do something about it.

-- Bill Pierce, Kenmore