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I00eaders' 00]ournal:
Inform ,yourselves, voters
Editor, The Journal:
Prior to the last election on the
propos(,d Pioneer high school
bond. a sign in the Agate area
ask(.(l voters to "Get Informed."
S¢)m did, many didn't, several
havtmq, and others won't. It's tru-
ly a ham(, that so many people
don't bother to look at both sides
()f l}w issue.
First of all, I like the idea of a
higl school in our district. What I
(J(>l)'t like outweighs it by tenfold.
I was born and raised in the
Agate area. My husband and I
s(mt our five daughters through
th( Pioneer and Shelton school
syst(!ms and now our grandchil-
dren are the tburth generation re-
peating t:he cycle. I've seen and
c×p(rienced the good, bad, and
s,htma (thanktiHly), the ugly.
I,t:t's begin by examining some
very real facts, lntbrmation being
han(led out refers to matching
funds, which come from the state.
Many individuals are under the
impression that "matching funds"
mean 50 percent or dollar for dol-
lar At the present time, the state
merely provides 25 to 35 percent
lbr all new construction, although
tler is current legislation
fsittinv in a tied-up legislature)
ihat is seeking additional funding
measures. Would these funds be
r¢troactive to our bond issue, if
passed now? Presently, we do not
have matching funds! Property-
lax payers pick up the remaining
millions.
Next, the information states
that we'll be able to keep the
$400,000 in-district that now goes
t, the Shelton district. It's my un-
derstanding that the impending
plan will put that money into
l)ioneer's general fund and as
soma as the new high school is
built, a hefty maintenance-and-
operations bevy will be asked ot"
tlw l)roperty-tax payer. To sup-
port a high school comparable to
any existing ones we now have
will no doubt cost considerably
more than we are already paying
for the primary and middle
schools.
The past few years indicate
lhat t)imeer has slipped a few
notches behind in test scores.
While I believe that is true, I also
believe that programs are now in
place, at the primary level at
least, to correct many problems.
l)iscipline remains a problem, but
I believe that: all schools are af-
ticted with this disability. Per-
haps a way to get a better hold on
that situation would be to hire a
vice principal to handle discipli-
nary actions and allow the princi-
pals to t:'ocus on the overwhehning
administrative duties. I would
much rather support what we al-
ready have and make it the best
we can, and we all know that
takes more money. By building
and supporting another school,
[,specially a high school, we'll be
slretching the money so thin,
we'll he back where we started.
Would $400,000 a year come close
to covering the (:()st of maintain-
ing a high school? l don't believe
SO.
l.et's not firget, tblks, we also
support many other entities :in
the counly with our property tax-
(,s: fire department, roads, law
enforcement, Department of Nat-
ural Resources, hospital, library,
the list goes on, all vital to our in-
frastructure. Let's talk about a
bigger jail, which we desperately
need. How about a 48-hour men-
tal-health holding facility, which
is a need. We have a lot of needs,
countywide, and they all go after
the property taxes.
In the mid-'70s, the voters
were convinced to place their lo-
cal school taxes in the state gen-
eral fund to be disbursed
throughout the state's schools so
that all would be funded equally.
That was short-lived, as are most
laws that take your money for the
"good of education." This particu-
lar law should be repealed or at
least amendments made as it no
longer does what it was intended
to do. A total reconstruction of
school funding needs to be done.
Yes, bonds are low right now,
but with growth management
along with the proposed fish and
wildlife ordinance, low bonds will
not be a benefit in the long run.
The state's plans are to restrict
private property to the point
where it will drop in value, possi-
bly creating a property-tax reduc-
tion. Who will suffer beside the
property owner? You got it - all
those entities depending on those
taxes. Now where does that leave
our schools?
Now let's address the busing
situation in the Pioneer School
District. The earliest students,
picked up at 6:15 a.m., live on
Harstine Island. Average rider-
ship is about 14. They are deliv-
ered at Pioneer at 7 a.m. to be
transferred to a bus which deliv-
ers them to Shelton High School
around 7:30 a.m. Note that school
doesn't start until 8 a.m. The
driver of the second bus does have
another run, driving a smaller
bus and going back to Harstine
Island for one student who is then
transported to a special-needs
class in Shelton.
Incidentally, for those who are
unaware, Pioneer spends roughly
$50,000 extra in nine months just
in driver's wages, gas and oil, and
normal wear and tear (not includ-
ing additional repairs) to drive
back and forth two and three
times daily by keeping their bus-
es housed in Shelton. It is said
that the buses would be housed
back at Pioneer if the high school
bond is passed. Personally, I have
not seen anything to indicate that
fact. When the primary school
was built, we were told, verbally,
that the buses would be returned
to Pioneer. Where are they? The
present proposal appears to be
just as vague as was the primary
school manipulation.
Some folks I've talked with feel
that voting for a new school with-
out visually witnessing a plan
gives the school district a blank
check. A few others have remem-
bered a former board member,
years ago, stating that once they
received the money, it was their
decision where to spend it, even
though it was delegated for a spe-
cific purpose. (A special levy cov-
ering construction of a water tank
and re-roofing the original build-
ing; cost overruns on the water
tank; a roof neglected, to leak for
months to come.) This happens to
be one issue that will haunt all
board members, perhaps forever.
Recently, during a debate, I
was told that if I couldn't afford
the taxes, then sell out. Not only
was I offended by the narrow-
minded remark, I was appalled
that anyone could make such a
judgment of the many people who
have worked very hard all of their
lives for what they have accumu-
lated. Pioneer School District
does not have an abundance of
wealthy homeowners that can af-
ford every issue put before them.
Even with continued growth,
there won't be the tax base to
support it all reasonably (unless
of course someone is aware of Mi-
crosoft, Boeing or an industrial
boom constructed within the dis-
trict's borders). The proposed
bond, if passed, and the M&0 levy
that will follow will increase my
property taxes by $400 per year.
John Diehl's letter (April 8) to
The Journal and one by Gaylord
Kidney (March 18) were excel-
lent. Mr. Kidney wrote in part,
House Bill 1828, if passed, would
make money available for school
construction. We have got to
make the state more accountable
for educational resources as a
whole.
Please call your legislators - do
something before we're taxed out
of our homes. Our kids deserve it.
This is about our children. They
also need a home to live in.
$400,000 a year to Shelton's
School District and its extracur-
ricular programs, maj be the
most cost-effective means at our
disposal for the time being. If we
must pay for new construction in
Shelton, at least all of the dis-
tricts involved pay a share of the
funding. If Pioneer has its own
high school, we may forfeit more
than we can afford, in more ways
than our tax dollars. Vote "no" at
least for now.
Irene Goldsby
Agate
Confusion
Editor, The Journal:
I would like *to clarify a possi-
ble point of confusion. The Jour-
nal publishes the results of food
establishment inspections for Ma-
son County. Unfortunately a pro-
gram run by the Mason County
Senior Activities Association (its
food bank) received some viola-
tion points during its last inspec-
tion. This program is in no way
related or associated with the Se-
nior Nutrition Program.
The Senior Nutrition Program
is routinely inspected by the
health department, and we have
never received any unfavorable
reports. I am sorry for any stress
this situation has caused you, but
rest assured, the program is
heavily monitored to ensure the
safety and welfare of our clients.
If you have any questions or
concerns, feel free to contact me
directly at 438-1100, Extension
14.
Robert Colt
Director of Senior Services
Community Action Council
Big Band Soun00 s!
Dancing and Dinner Buffet
Saturday, April 24
Tickets
on Sale
Now!
Dinner Served 6:00-7:30pm
Music and Dancing at 8:00 pm
$12.50 per person
Join us for the
Big .Band Sounds of
Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey,
Benny Goodman, Count Basic,
LesBrown, and many more! i 'wing Coo
AAAAA&AA
Open Dally • Interchange H/101/10fl, $helton • (360) 4Z7-7711 • m.lttlle-¢lek.com
Check out our new hour: Sunday thru Wednesday 10am to 4am 10am to 6am
Pa;je 6 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, April 15, 1999
Adults should secure guns Home
meet set
Editor, The Journal: If you have children, teach key words here. The "We the People ofl.j
County" Committee has
uled a home rule charter °
tional meetina for 7 to _,,
Thursday, Apr'l 22, at the pup'
Much has been written recent-
ly about the issue of gun control,
and here is another letter. I want
people to consider the fact that if
adults who owned guns acted RE-
SPONSIBLY, there would be no
problem with children getting
possession of guns and shooting
themselves or other children be-
cause they do not understand the
significance of the gun.
Adults who own guns need to
secure them so that children can-
your child the danger of guns,
that they are not toys. Teach your
children to RESPECT your pos-
sessions, leaving them alone. Do
not tell your children where your
firearms are located, for they
have no need to know. This is not
a matter of your trusting them, it
is a matter of your protecting
them.
Today, there seems to be an at-
titude that children have the
right to know everything that
not get hold of them. No matter if goes on in a family and they have
the gun has a lock, is in a lock box the right to use anything that is
or stashed under a mattress, se- in their house or anyone else's
cure the ROOM they are housed house. They do not, and it is the
As for the general public gain-
ing possession of a gun - if strict
gun controls are put into place,
only the law-abiding folks will be
affected. Those who commit
crimes with a gun will still be
able to do so; those who are de-
mented will still be able to get
one and as long as law-enforce-
ment agencies sell the guns they
take from those committing
crimes, the sky is the limit.
Government cannot legislate
people to have common sense, to
act responsibly or to have respect
for other's property. If it could
there would be no need for seat-
Auditorium.
Home rule spokesman
gley says the meeting
the committee an
explain charter
address questions
The committee seeks
cal support for home
for Mason County.
tion is available from
(360) 275-0396.
in so children cannot get hold of parents' (or adults in the house- belt laws, no need for drunk-driv- lqlld
them when your back is turned, hold) responsibility to protect the inglimits, no need for prisons. Youth
Keep ammunition in a place other children from themselves. Re- J.W. Johnson
than wherethegunis, sponsibility and respect are the Shelton when CY cl
Officials destroy freedoms hats bank
A 13-year-old boy
Cartoon by C.W. Mason
Editor, The Journal:
We ask our leaders to protect
our rights, then cry out about the
loss of freedom.
We ask our leaders to protect
our property and cry out against
growth management.
We ask our leaders to protect
our environment and cry out
against loss of industry.
Too often we hear the cry,
"There ought to be a law," and the
lawyers fill our libraries with le-
gal verbosity (and their pockets
with legal tender) while claiming
sole sovereignty over proper in-
terpretation and presentation in
the courts.
A couple thousand years ago
we were given 10 simple laws on
tablets of stone, but we seem to
have mutilated those laws in a
multitude of amendments by
pleading for "protection." We have
placed our freedoms and our
rights in the hands of elected offi-
cials. They, and innumerable reg-
ulatory agencies, are destroying
both.
It was Benjamin Franklin who
said, "They that give up essential
liberty to obtain a little tempo-
rary safety deserve neither liber-
ty or safety." C.W. Mason
Shelton
Mason General
injured spleen
near mile 1 of Binm'
Road east of Shelton.
The boy was riding
motorcycle when
bankment and was eje
cording to the Wa:
Patrol.
Troopers said the
was totally destroyed
the boy was wearing a
the time of the crash.
Skok
group set
A special meeting
komish Flood
trict Advisory
been scheduled for
night at the Skokom!
Hall on Skoko
Road.
The purpose of the
to discuss a proposed
control high-water
Bambi Farms Road.
More information is
from the Mason County
ment of Public Works
9670, Extension 450.
Buy "em rigid off the Jrwk
or we can delJvorl
HURRY!
Quantities
are limited!
When they're gone,
they're gone!
SEAIRS
Shelton Sears owned and operated by
WALLY JOHNSON
301 Wallace Kneeland Boulevard,
Suite 236, Shelton, WA
432-9166
I00eaders' 00]ournal:
Inform ,yourselves, voters
Editor, The Journal:
Prior to the last election on the
propos(,d Pioneer high school
bond. a sign in the Agate area
ask(.(l voters to "Get Informed."
S¢)m did, many didn't, several
havtmq, and others won't. It's tru-
ly a ham(, that so many people
don't bother to look at both sides
()f l}w issue.
First of all, I like the idea of a
higl school in our district. What I
(J(>l)'t like outweighs it by tenfold.
I was born and raised in the
Agate area. My husband and I
s(mt our five daughters through
th( Pioneer and Shelton school
syst(!ms and now our grandchil-
dren are the tburth generation re-
peating t:he cycle. I've seen and
c×p(rienced the good, bad, and
s,htma (thanktiHly), the ugly.
I,t:t's begin by examining some
very real facts, lntbrmation being
han(led out refers to matching
funds, which come from the state.
Many individuals are under the
impression that "matching funds"
mean 50 percent or dollar for dol-
lar At the present time, the state
merely provides 25 to 35 percent
lbr all new construction, although
tler is current legislation
fsittinv in a tied-up legislature)
ihat is seeking additional funding
measures. Would these funds be
r¢troactive to our bond issue, if
passed now? Presently, we do not
have matching funds! Property-
lax payers pick up the remaining
millions.
Next, the information states
that we'll be able to keep the
$400,000 in-district that now goes
t, the Shelton district. It's my un-
derstanding that the impending
plan will put that money into
l)ioneer's general fund and as
soma as the new high school is
built, a hefty maintenance-and-
operations bevy will be asked ot"
tlw l)roperty-tax payer. To sup-
port a high school comparable to
any existing ones we now have
will no doubt cost considerably
more than we are already paying
for the primary and middle
schools.
The past few years indicate
lhat t)imeer has slipped a few
notches behind in test scores.
While I believe that is true, I also
believe that programs are now in
place, at the primary level at
least, to correct many problems.
l)iscipline remains a problem, but
I believe that: all schools are af-
ticted with this disability. Per-
haps a way to get a better hold on
that situation would be to hire a
vice principal to handle discipli-
nary actions and allow the princi-
pals to t:'ocus on the overwhehning
administrative duties. I would
much rather support what we al-
ready have and make it the best
we can, and we all know that
takes more money. By building
and supporting another school,
[,specially a high school, we'll be
slretching the money so thin,
we'll he back where we started.
Would $400,000 a year come close
to covering the (:()st of maintain-
ing a high school? l don't believe
SO.
l.et's not firget, tblks, we also
support many other entities :in
the counly with our property tax-
(,s: fire department, roads, law
enforcement, Department of Nat-
ural Resources, hospital, library,
the list goes on, all vital to our in-
frastructure. Let's talk about a
bigger jail, which we desperately
need. How about a 48-hour men-
tal-health holding facility, which
is a need. We have a lot of needs,
countywide, and they all go after
the property taxes.
In the mid-'70s, the voters
were convinced to place their lo-
cal school taxes in the state gen-
eral fund to be disbursed
throughout the state's schools so
that all would be funded equally.
That was short-lived, as are most
laws that take your money for the
"good of education." This particu-
lar law should be repealed or at
least amendments made as it no
longer does what it was intended
to do. A total reconstruction of
school funding needs to be done.
Yes, bonds are low right now,
but with growth management
along with the proposed fish and
wildlife ordinance, low bonds will
not be a benefit in the long run.
The state's plans are to restrict
private property to the point
where it will drop in value, possi-
bly creating a property-tax reduc-
tion. Who will suffer beside the
property owner? You got it - all
those entities depending on those
taxes. Now where does that leave
our schools?
Now let's address the busing
situation in the Pioneer School
District. The earliest students,
picked up at 6:15 a.m., live on
Harstine Island. Average rider-
ship is about 14. They are deliv-
ered at Pioneer at 7 a.m. to be
transferred to a bus which deliv-
ers them to Shelton High School
around 7:30 a.m. Note that school
doesn't start until 8 a.m. The
driver of the second bus does have
another run, driving a smaller
bus and going back to Harstine
Island for one student who is then
transported to a special-needs
class in Shelton.
Incidentally, for those who are
unaware, Pioneer spends roughly
$50,000 extra in nine months just
in driver's wages, gas and oil, and
normal wear and tear (not includ-
ing additional repairs) to drive
back and forth two and three
times daily by keeping their bus-
es housed in Shelton. It is said
that the buses would be housed
back at Pioneer if the high school
bond is passed. Personally, I have
not seen anything to indicate that
fact. When the primary school
was built, we were told, verbally,
that the buses would be returned
to Pioneer. Where are they? The
present proposal appears to be
just as vague as was the primary
school manipulation.
Some folks I've talked with feel
that voting for a new school with-
out visually witnessing a plan
gives the school district a blank
check. A few others have remem-
bered a former board member,
years ago, stating that once they
received the money, it was their
decision where to spend it, even
though it was delegated for a spe-
cific purpose. (A special levy cov-
ering construction of a water tank
and re-roofing the original build-
ing; cost overruns on the water
tank; a roof neglected, to leak for
months to come.) This happens to
be one issue that will haunt all
board members, perhaps forever.
Recently, during a debate, I
was told that if I couldn't afford
the taxes, then sell out. Not only
was I offended by the narrow-
minded remark, I was appalled
that anyone could make such a
judgment of the many people who
have worked very hard all of their
lives for what they have accumu-
lated. Pioneer School District
does not have an abundance of
wealthy homeowners that can af-
ford every issue put before them.
Even with continued growth,
there won't be the tax base to
support it all reasonably (unless
of course someone is aware of Mi-
crosoft, Boeing or an industrial
boom constructed within the dis-
trict's borders). The proposed
bond, if passed, and the M&0 levy
that will follow will increase my
property taxes by $400 per year.
John Diehl's letter (April 8) to
The Journal and one by Gaylord
Kidney (March 18) were excel-
lent. Mr. Kidney wrote in part,
House Bill 1828, if passed, would
make money available for school
construction. We have got to
make the state more accountable
for educational resources as a
whole.
Please call your legislators - do
something before we're taxed out
of our homes. Our kids deserve it.
This is about our children. They
also need a home to live in.
$400,000 a year to Shelton's
School District and its extracur-
ricular programs, maj be the
most cost-effective means at our
disposal for the time being. If we
must pay for new construction in
Shelton, at least all of the dis-
tricts involved pay a share of the
funding. If Pioneer has its own
high school, we may forfeit more
than we can afford, in more ways
than our tax dollars. Vote "no" at
least for now.
Irene Goldsby
Agate
Confusion
Editor, The Journal:
I would like *to clarify a possi-
ble point of confusion. The Jour-
nal publishes the results of food
establishment inspections for Ma-
son County. Unfortunately a pro-
gram run by the Mason County
Senior Activities Association (its
food bank) received some viola-
tion points during its last inspec-
tion. This program is in no way
related or associated with the Se-
nior Nutrition Program.
The Senior Nutrition Program
is routinely inspected by the
health department, and we have
never received any unfavorable
reports. I am sorry for any stress
this situation has caused you, but
rest assured, the program is
heavily monitored to ensure the
safety and welfare of our clients.
If you have any questions or
concerns, feel free to contact me
directly at 438-1100, Extension
14.
Robert Colt
Director of Senior Services
Community Action Council
Big Band Soun00 s!
Dancing and Dinner Buffet
Saturday, April 24
Tickets
on Sale
Now!
Dinner Served 6:00-7:30pm
Music and Dancing at 8:00 pm
$12.50 per person
Join us for the
Big .Band Sounds of
Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey,
Benny Goodman, Count Basic,
LesBrown, and many more! i 'wing Coo
AAAAA&AA
Open Dally • Interchange H/101/10fl, $helton • (360) 4Z7-7711 • m.lttlle-¢lek.com
Check out our new hour: Sunday thru Wednesday 10am to 4am 10am to 6am
Pa;je 6 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, April 15, 1999
Adults should secure guns Home
meet set
Editor, The Journal: If you have children, teach key words here. The "We the People ofl.j
County" Committee has
uled a home rule charter °
tional meetina for 7 to _,,
Thursday, Apr'l 22, at the pup'
Much has been written recent-
ly about the issue of gun control,
and here is another letter. I want
people to consider the fact that if
adults who owned guns acted RE-
SPONSIBLY, there would be no
problem with children getting
possession of guns and shooting
themselves or other children be-
cause they do not understand the
significance of the gun.
Adults who own guns need to
secure them so that children can-
your child the danger of guns,
that they are not toys. Teach your
children to RESPECT your pos-
sessions, leaving them alone. Do
not tell your children where your
firearms are located, for they
have no need to know. This is not
a matter of your trusting them, it
is a matter of your protecting
them.
Today, there seems to be an at-
titude that children have the
right to know everything that
not get hold of them. No matter if goes on in a family and they have
the gun has a lock, is in a lock box the right to use anything that is
or stashed under a mattress, se- in their house or anyone else's
cure the ROOM they are housed house. They do not, and it is the
As for the general public gain-
ing possession of a gun - if strict
gun controls are put into place,
only the law-abiding folks will be
affected. Those who commit
crimes with a gun will still be
able to do so; those who are de-
mented will still be able to get
one and as long as law-enforce-
ment agencies sell the guns they
take from those committing
crimes, the sky is the limit.
Government cannot legislate
people to have common sense, to
act responsibly or to have respect
for other's property. If it could
there would be no need for seat-
Auditorium.
Home rule spokesman
gley says the meeting
the committee an
explain charter
address questions
The committee seeks
cal support for home
for Mason County.
tion is available from
(360) 275-0396.
in so children cannot get hold of parents' (or adults in the house- belt laws, no need for drunk-driv- lqlld
them when your back is turned, hold) responsibility to protect the inglimits, no need for prisons. Youth
Keep ammunition in a place other children from themselves. Re- J.W. Johnson
than wherethegunis, sponsibility and respect are the Shelton when CY cl
Officials destroy freedoms hats bank
A 13-year-old boy
Cartoon by C.W. Mason
Editor, The Journal:
We ask our leaders to protect
our rights, then cry out about the
loss of freedom.
We ask our leaders to protect
our property and cry out against
growth management.
We ask our leaders to protect
our environment and cry out
against loss of industry.
Too often we hear the cry,
"There ought to be a law," and the
lawyers fill our libraries with le-
gal verbosity (and their pockets
with legal tender) while claiming
sole sovereignty over proper in-
terpretation and presentation in
the courts.
A couple thousand years ago
we were given 10 simple laws on
tablets of stone, but we seem to
have mutilated those laws in a
multitude of amendments by
pleading for "protection." We have
placed our freedoms and our
rights in the hands of elected offi-
cials. They, and innumerable reg-
ulatory agencies, are destroying
both.
It was Benjamin Franklin who
said, "They that give up essential
liberty to obtain a little tempo-
rary safety deserve neither liber-
ty or safety." C.W. Mason
Shelton
Mason General
injured spleen
near mile 1 of Binm'
Road east of Shelton.
The boy was riding
motorcycle when
bankment and was eje
cording to the Wa:
Patrol.
Troopers said the
was totally destroyed
the boy was wearing a
the time of the crash.
Skok
group set
A special meeting
komish Flood
trict Advisory
been scheduled for
night at the Skokom!
Hall on Skoko
Road.
The purpose of the
to discuss a proposed
control high-water
Bambi Farms Road.
More information is
from the Mason County
ment of Public Works
9670, Extension 450.
Buy "em rigid off the Jrwk
or we can delJvorl
HURRY!
Quantities
are limited!
When they're gone,
they're gone!
SEAIRS
Shelton Sears owned and operated by
WALLY JOHNSON
301 Wallace Kneeland Boulevard,
Suite 236, Shelton, WA
432-9166