Rethink agenda

It might be time for rethinking how effective the liberal agenda has been, especially on MSNBC and other media outlets. Declaring that our president is a racist white supremacist daily has not been a winning strategy. Referring to Trump voters as racist is not helpful or true. Repeating a lie continually does not make it true. Reducing most talking points to race is tiresome and silly.

Two other left-leaning standards are not only ineffective but dangerous and I pray will end. The first is the idea of “women’s health,” which in practice means death to many thousands of our unborn each year. This tragedy is preventable. The second is the agenda being taught in our public schools and universities. Check out a fifth-grade math text book and tell me it makes sense. It’s no wonder our students rank out of the top 20 internationally. Shame on our educators to promote such a curriculum. It is no wonder that a significant number of public school teacher’s children do not attend public schools.

James Monaco

Madras

Not worried about fire dampers

My son is in his fourth year at Summit, and he and I have worried about many things in that time — friends, essays, grades, who to eat with at lunch. And these days, I worry about many other things — the apparent decline in decency and civility in our national discourse, climate change, smoky days in the spring, people who hire attorneys for dubious reasons. One thing I’m not going to worry about — the fire dampers at Summit High.

Angela Liesching

Bend

Car water skiing

In response to your support of studded tires, I’m pleased to announce establishment of the Automotive Water Skiers Club.

Enrollment will be limited to those who, like me, have experienced the religious conversion which occurs when, in the process of trying to change lanes, one encounters the water/ice filled ruts created by studded tires and the front wheels happily levitate and exercise directional free will.

Although geneticists assure me that my permanent white knuckles and partial baldness are due to DNA, they’re wrong. The culprits are the ruts I encountered during seven years of driving once a week to a job in Portland. In those few seconds of levitation, one’s life does pass before the eyes.

True, the inconvenience of putting on chains or slowing down a little with winter tires in icy conditions is perhaps more than many hardy citizens can bear.

But convenience does have a value, in this case $8.5 million, and it’s hard for me to see why that particular congregation shouldn’t pay for it.

Oh, the Automotive Water Skiers Club Web site will be up soon. Donations are welcome, and membership will be closed as soon as $8.5 million is raised, which will be contributed to ODOT.

Dwain Fullerton

Bend

Don’t worry about equity

On Oct. 31, an editorial was published entitled “Don’t make Bend less affordable with fossil fuel reduction.” I decided to write a response as a private citizen in support of the Climate Action Resolution with the perspective of someone who sits on the City’s Climate Action Steering Committee.

The CASC is a City Council-appointed committee charged with making recommendations to the council to implement a climate action plan tailored for the Bend community. I know from experience that the CASC welcomes criticism from the community it serves; the editorial warrants a response to address the issue of equity.

Though there is intention to incentivize people to buy renewable energy to power their homes and businesses, there are also intentions to make renewable energy cheaper and more affordable, and to be equitable in Bend’s pursuit of reduced emissions. Equity is a top priority of the CASC. In fact, one of the five objectives adopted by the Energy Supply Subcommittee of the CASC reads, “Improve accessibility to renewable energy in Bend for all residents.”

The CASC is not in favor of, and has never been in favor of, making Bend’s lower-income residents pay for things that they can’t afford. In conclusion, thank you for sharing your thoughts on the proceedings of the CASC, but your fears of lack of equity in this process are unfounded. I assure you that the CASC is just as concerned about equity as are you.

Andrew Skidmore

Bend