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Page 4 Shelton—Mason County — Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023
I "
Keeping an eye on skater girl and child
without judging, but it
can be a liberating activ-
ity. Be the observer. Drop
your ego, shut up, turn off the
sensors that require you to
criticize. Let a scene play out
in front of you. Watch. Listen.
Here’s a scene I wit-
nessed some summers ago:
A woman who looked to be
in her mid-20s was standing
at the entrance to a cross-
walk on a downtown street
around dusk. I was in my car,
stopped at a red light, when
the woman caught my atten-
tion to my right.
The woman bore a full
backpack, she had a beverage
in one hand, and one foot was
on a skateboard while her
other foot was awkwardly try-
ing to propel the board as she
entered the crosswalk. On her
left hip, she balanced a child,
maybe 2 years old.
The woman was trying to
It’s hard to watch humans
Journal Letter Policy
The Journal encourages original letters to the editor of local
interest. Diverse and varied opinions are welcomed. We will
not publish letters that are deemed libelous or scurrilous in
nature. All letters must be signed and include the writer’s
name, physical address and daytime phone number, which
will be used for verification purposes only. All letters are
subject to editing for length, grammar and clarity.
KlRK ERlCSON
THESE
TIMES
work out how to balance her
load. She repositioned her
foot on the board, moved the
child higher onto her hip and
bent her standing knee more.
Her position looked wobbly.
My parental eyes wid-
ened, and I feared she’d fall
and the child would be hurt.
I imagined the beverage,
perhaps coffee, spilling and
burning the child. I imagined
calamity.
I watched. The woman
figured out the balance and
a quarter of the way across
the intersection, her pushing
foot went onto the board and
she began to roll easily to-
ward the curb. In an instant,
she went from ungainly to
gainly, like 'a kite that had
just caught the wind. The air
puffed up the bangs of the
child’s hair, and the child
glowed.
She rolled up the curb cut
and stepped off the board ef-
fortlessly. The light turned
green, and I turned left, driv-
ing slowly to the next inter-
section so I could keep an eye
on the pair. She alternately
pushed the skateboard with
her feet along the sidewalk
and rode it to a bus stop,
where she stepped off the
board, dropped her backpack,
and put down the child and
her beverage.
The child climbed on the
skateboard and scooted along
the sidewalk while the wom-
an stretched and ensured the
child didn’t go astray.
The light turned green and
I went.
My initial take was this
woman was endangering a
child. I didn’t give her credit
that she could do what she
was trying to do. And here’s
the thing about such criti—
cism: It’s often hypocritical.
I was sometimes accused
of putting my own two —— now
grown - children at risk, but
I knew it was behavior I could
do safely and that my boys
would enjoy. But to some, it
looked dangerous, just as the
woman on a skateboard with
a child looked dangerous to
me.
I stewed when people ac-
cused me of being reckless
with my children, and that
woman on the skateboard
likely heard similar sermons.
(For the record, just one of my
boys ever had an emergency
room visit, and that happened
with a babysitter.)
I can hear the tut tuts.
There are obvious cases
where a parent puts a child at
unnecessary risk. Those cases
do require judgment and ac-
tion. But we’re not talking
about that here. We’re talk-
ing about instances of paren—
tal acts — a woman holding
a baby while riding a skate-
board, a father holding a son
upside’down by one leg — that
exist in a gray zone, where
there’s a likely potential for
fun and a less-likely potential
for harm.
Instead of seeing a woman
imperil a child, I couldhave
instead seen a woman show-
ing a child a wonderful time
on a summer evening.
I Email Kirk Ericson at
kirk@masoncounty.com
LElTEll'S 10 THE annan
Marxist Democrats"
Editor, the Journal,
Democrats and politics are difier—
ent today. Democrats embrace woke
politics and critical race theory social
issues. Their textbook is “Rules for Radi—
cals” from America’s leading Marxist,
Saul Alinsky Alinsky’s
rules were meant to change politics.
Democrats believe America has social
issues so use Alinsky’s rules to fix these
problems. Marxists use these rules to
cancel our Constitution. Defund the po-
lice is an heir to the violent Marx—
ist movement when anti—war protesters
threw bags of feces at returning Viet-
nam veterans rather than protest politi-
cians who funded the war. Democrats
march locks'tep with Marxists. Here are
three of Alinsky’s rules“
First rule: “Power is not only what
you have but what the enemy thinks
you have.”VGood citizens protest cops
rather than politicians who set police
policy, judges who practice turnstile
justice, and prosecuting attorneys who
advocate no-bail laws. TVand print
reporters show the violence and looting
of protests, implying everyone agrees
with protesters. Naive Democrats can ’t
see that they’re being played by the
‘ - Marxists.
Third rule: “Whenever possible, go
outside the experience of your enemy.”
Marxists attack our justice system
claiming bail laws are racist. Prosecu-
tors and judges release looters faster
than store owners can clean up the
Sinitonillaamtnuutn lloumal
uses 492-800
POST MASTER: Send address changes to Shelton-Mason
County Journal, P.0. Box‘430, Shelton, WA 98584.
Published weekly by the Shelton-Mason County Journal
at 227 W. Cota St, Shelton, Washington.
Mailing address: PO. Box 430, Shelton, WA 98584
Telephone: 360-426—4412
Website: www.masoncounty.com
Periodicals postage paid in Shelton, Washington.
mess. Thieves are repeat ofi’enders,
not poor people stealing bread. This
enriches career criminals. It’s not pro—
mating justice. Gullible Democrats ac—
cept violence, promote bail reform, and
replace cops with social workers, but it
ain’t working. Fentanyl deaths, murder
statistics and open borders are proof of
Democrat injustice.
Fifth rule: “Ridicule is man’s most
important weapon.”Biden calls Re-
publicans MAGA terrorists. Democrats
won’t debate issues. Facts are their en—
emy; truth is our ally. Letters to editors
often attack writers rather than poli—
cies. An Agate reader wrote a snarky
letter using lots of big words proving
only she owns a dictionary and a the-
saurus. She claims she rarely reads op-
posing letters. Is she afraid of facts, log-
ic and truth?A wise person would read
and respond factually to unfriendly let-
ters rather than hide. Watch responses
to this letter as proof of rule No. 5.
Republican Nikki Haley is run—
ning for president. Unlike President
Joe Biden, she’s experienced in foreign
policy as ambassador to the United Na—
tions. Unlike Biden, she has leadership
and executive experience as governor of
South Carolina. Unlike Biden, she would
face disasters like the chemical spill in
Ohio or spy balloons head-on. Unlike
Biden, she will close the borders and
stop the illegal importation of fentanyl.
Unlike Biden, Nikki has principles,
brains, integrity and guts. Unlike Biden,
she’s honest, experienced, intelligent,
responsible, courageous and articulate.
Owned and published by
Shelton—Mason County Journal, Inc.
The Journal is a member of the
Publisher: John Lester
Advertising:
, Theresa Murray, Ad Representative
She’s reminiscent of John F. Kennedy,
when Democrats had honest politics
and honorable candidates. As a point to
ponder, a Marxist assassinated JFK.
Ardean Anvik
Shelton
Regulations save
Editor, the Journal,
There is a small town in Turkey
called Erzin that was about 70 miles
from the recent tragic earthquake epi-
center. Residents and officials say Erzin
suflered no deaths and saw no buildings
collapse in the powerful temblor, and
they credit a long-standing determina-
tion not to allow construction that vio-
lated the country’s building codes. There
was some damage to buildings, but
again no deaths or injuries.
civil servant worker ofErzin said
everyone knows that they live in a ma-
jor earthquake area. He cited the insis-
tence of the current mayor and previous
ones not to allow buildings that failed to
meet construction codes of the country"
to be put up.
He also said that whenever officials
realized there were buildings that had
been illegally built, they would get them
taken down.
He also said some of the local people
living in the illegally built buildings
were really mad about having them
torn down. But he said the mayor held
firm, knowing that a major earthquake
could come one day. And it did.
Front office: I
Dave Pierik, Office Administrator
Karen Hranac, Customer Service
Washington Newspaper Publish- Delivery:
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Composing room:
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Building codes, seat belts, smoke
detectors, COVID vaccines mandates,
drinking water watersheds, no lead
in paint, no more use of PCBs, recalls
on dangerous toys or swings, sewage
treatment plants, building codes for
bridges, availability of MSDS sheets
for hazardous materials, septic tank
regulations, wearing safety glasses and
hearing protection and full protection
gear, food inspections for eateries, mo-
torcycle helmets, speed limits on streets
and highways, vaccine requirements '
for school children, sprinkler systems in
buildings, fire code stairwells in build-
ings, fire alarms in buildings, and the
list just continues and continues about
controls for industry and individuals.
When people and contractors and
politicians play games with building
codes and safety regulations people will
get hurt and some will die. I want to
commend the mayor and previous may—
ors of Erzin, Turkey, for standing firm
about the building codes in their town. .
It took courage and moxie to go against
the greedy and the powerful and the
corrupt to have the building codes 'en-
forced. And as a result of their actions
people in their town did not get hurt
or die. People, please stay vigilant that
our building codes and public safety
requirements are being followed and
enforced.
Earl W. Burt
Bremerton
:22; LE1TERS, page 5
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