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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
June 29, 1978     Shelton Mason County Journal
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June 29, 1978
 
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JourqMl pf OPINION00. 00you KNOW Top-heavy hive ME?,00OREYoUP°, The bees are coming home to roost in the state's institutions. And the drones outnumber the workers. Shelton's Washington Corrections Center, once the focus of nationwide attention as the prototype of enlightened penology, has now degenerated into a warehouse for bodies. The deterioration began during the administration of Governor Dan Evans. Although the three-term charmer appeared to have a genuine concern for the outcasts of society who make up the populations of state institutions, that concern was not reflected in the operation of those facilities. € Evans legacy to the citizens of Washington is a proliferating bureaucracy that is heavy at the top with the high-salaried nobility of public servantdom and light at the bottom with a minimum of the troops that do the work. This teetering structure worked when the state's economy was expanding and tax dollars multiplying. There were enough workers to get the job done while the drones of the nobility buzzed around the governor's throne and jousted with the legislature. But when added programs, inflation and dips in the economy took big bites out of the budget, it was obvious that changes were needed. And changes were made; the changes that distinguish all entrenched bureaucracies from the real world. Workers were lopped off at the bottom, more drones hired, and additional millions drained from the budget by personal service contracts for drones with entree to the royal court. At Washington Corrections Center this meant that guard towers went unmanned, allowing prisoners to escape, and personnel necessary for the testing, evaluation and assignment of prisoners shrank to the point of uselessness. Dan Evans inherited an institutions' program that had made a start toward abolishing the barbaric treatment given to prisoners, the mentally ill and the retarded. He left the program a shambles. And he had plenty of help from legislators-and drones more interested in money, power, and self-perpetuation in office than in public service and performance. Then, eighteen months ago, into this mess was plopped a new governor, the mistress of the smartass remark and the meat ax. Under Dizy Lee Ray's erratic hand, the mess has gotten messier. In a misguided attempt to solve the problem, she fell for the oldest fallacy in the know-nothings' book of easy answers. Knowing nothing about either business or government, she appointed a clutch of businessmen to tell her how to run a government agency. A chimpanzee should realize by now that businessmen know nothing about running,a government. Busi!aesses are run to make a profit: Govemments are formed toprovide services. The two cannot be run with the same set of rules. ltorrible Example No. 1" The United States Postal Coitgoration. Washington's last melding of business and government in the prison business was a financial success but left something lacking as a humanitarian effort. Four businessmen built Washington Territory's fh'st penitentiary in 1877 and signed a contract with the territorial legislature to run it as a private business. The contractors received a per diem amount for each convict incarcerated, which returned a tidy profit. But these champions of private enterprise made a sizeable forttme by exploiting convict labor in a coal mine, a brickyard, a cooperage, a sash and door factory and a sawmill. The convicts also cut firewood for the railroad, cleared hind, built roads and were leased out to work on farms irl the area. The operation became so odiferous that the legislature concluded the nine-year public-private arrangement and built a territorial penitentiary at Walls Walla. So much tbr businessmen and prisons. Until the latest move by Dizy, who this week appointed a 36-year-old project manager for Pacific Northwest Bell as the secretary of the Department of Social and Health Services. The new secretary was a member of the business "management team" that made the study for the governor. One of its primary recommendations was the addition of more drones to the already top-heavy DSHS structure. The immediate result of that recommendation at Washington Corrections Center was the dismissal of the institution's last remaining psychiatrist and one of its two physicians, both essential workers in WCC's diagnostic and treatment program. Governor Ray went into office with a mandate from the voters to shake up the bureancraey. The monster DSHS was the place to start. Somewhere on God's green earth there is a dedicated, experienced government administrator with the brains and guts to make an attempt at curbing the drones and strengthening the workers. Dizy should fiave kept looking until she found him. Instead she has become a worthy successor to Dan Evans in the open-purse-at-the-top, meat-ax-at-the-bottom approach to state government. She can go him one better by having her new business expert put the convicts to work in the woods and sawmills. Or maybe digging ditches for Ma Bell. "Oracles must be very rich or very poor. Banality in the mouth of the anonymous middle class sounds banal. The same opinions acquire the weight of great wisdom when amtounced by the New York Times, by a man who has made $100 million in conglomerates, or by a .tgt' who feeds on roots and berries in Boulder, (dorado." Lewis H. Lapham Page 4 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, June 29, ! 'U'D BE SURPRISE:P How. I PEOI?LE I::ofl'l",, C_.apitolCDome: Hazardous cargo authority split 37 ways By ROBERT C. CUMMINGS Both short.range and long-range defenses against the perils of land transportation of hazardous cargo are being built by legislative committees. The House Transportation Committee's subcommittee on safety headed by P.J. (Jim) Gallagher (D-Tacoma) plans to recommend statutory designation of a lead agency to take charge in the event of any accident involving hazardous cargo. The probable designee is the Department of Emergency Services. Too Many Thumbs in Soup Gallagher said there are 27 federal and ten state agencies which currently have jurisdiction, with each "jealously protecting its own area of responsibility. "No one is in charge." Though the Legislature can't act 'until January, Gallagher is hoping to get an informal agreement on a lead agency to and fire department personnel who would be specially trained to identify and deal with the wide array of hazardous materials which are now being shipped across the state. The plan, however, would require funding - probably with the major share provided by the state - so must wait until the next Legislature convenes. We Knew It All the Time A survey conducted in the Eighth Legislative District by Representative Claude Oliver (R-Kennewick) confirms that women's rights wasn't the issue said they were opposed to women's rights. More than half said they disagreed with the Women's Council's activities, and opposed spending tax dollars on "unnecessary bureaucratic functions." More than 88 percent approved of Governor Dixy Lee Ray's decision to disband the Women's Council. In view of the 72 percent majority by which the Women's Commission was rejected, the sentiments expressed in the Tri-Cities probably reflects the general consensus statewide. Agreement on in voter rejection of the bill One Point , 'S establishing a Women .... :, .,Th:H:°:use In,surance: Commission last November. Committee has learned that the Less than six percent of tankers serving Puget Sound those replying to a questionnaire refineries are well covered by lllllllllulllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Mack McGinnis' take charge until the proper le'--00"'ommen legislation can be passed. Col In this he has the support of the statutory Legislative Budget Committee. Senator Paul O,Conner (D-Sequim) says the danger "is too pressing" to wait until the next legislative session. Plan for the Future Meanwhile, Senator Peter vonReichbauer (D-Vashon), chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee's subcommittee on safety, has called for formation of local tactical squads to cope with hazardous situations. The squads would be composed of law enforcement llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Overheard: "The reason so many Amedcans buy automobiles is that they have to pay cash when riding a bus." (Wayne Mackey in Oklahoma City Times) Don Kite knows a girl who got her birth control pills, tranquilizers, and saccharine tablets all mixed up. Last week she had the sweetest baby boy in town and nothing ever bothers him. (John Raudonis in North DeKalb Kiwanis Beacon, Atlanta) A Women's Lib meeting at Lib headquarters had to be postponed due to plumbing problems. The joan wouldn't flush. (Claude McDonald) insurance, but Chairman Jeff Douthwaite (D-Seattle) isn't satisfied. He plans to hold another hearing. He is concerned about what he calls "captive insurance companies," which operate out of Bermuda and were formed through voluntary agreements between oil companies and tanker operators. Meanwhile, he has learned there is one point on which environmentalists and insurance companies agree - that tankers are a high risk. The premium on a 200,000-ton vessel runs about $500,000 a year. Members of the House Re,enue Committ£e have received the message contained in the current "taxpayers' revolt." Though the sales tax exemption on food becomes effective Saturday, they so far haven't considered any new revenue measures to offset the impact. In fact, they are convinced that if state revenue continues to run ahead of projections at the present rate, it will be possible to get through the 1979-81 biennium without any increased or new taxes. Revenue has been exceeding original projections by as much as 20 percent over the past year. Even revised estimates made as recently as last February have been exceeded by three percent. The shortfall estimate, including $400 million for full funding of education, and the impact of the sales exemption combined may not exceed $200 million if current revenue trends continue. Weekend party at mid night By JOHN GAAR Film director Robert Altman defined a cult as, "A group of people too small to be a minority and much too small to finance a film." The estimate seems accurate as each weekend about 0.10 percent of the King-Snohomish County population gathers at a Seattle movie house to shout, throw rice, light candles, sing and dance to their favorite flick - "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Cult movies are like country music in that it's impossible to tell the good from the bad. Still, any human endeavor will draw a crowd. "Our intellectual marines, landing in little magazines, capture a trend," was poet W.H. Auden's chiding of the smug. So your columnist went to the picture and asked why people would wait in line for an hour to see a movie they had seen before. Seen before? Some have seen it almost a hundred times. Currently, critics claim neither Johnny nor Janey can read or write. Another educational deficiency can be added: I doubt if they can think or articulate an idea either. Why they like the film is a real trip to Alice's Wonderland. One man said "You know" 18 times (I have him on tape). Others, as wellspoken, relied on "I don't know, it's just great." Oh well, fans the world over lack critical faculties. At least the people in line weren't as hateful and heartless as many of their parents. So I'll tell you about the film. It parodies horror films, chiefly Frankenstein, and musicals of the 30s. Dr. Frank N. 1978 Furter, the main character, is a transvestite from the planet Transsexual in the Transylvanian galaxy. Undeniably, he's strikingly handsome. Let me remove any lingering doubts - it's bizarre. This information prompted one couple from Denton, Texas to gasp, "Holy Mackerel." Their cousin had led them to expect a musical and they liked "Oklahoma" and "Carousel." "Y'all pulled the wool ovah mah eyes agin," he noted. But they didn't leave. If you don't mind the theme, which is played for laughs, the film is surprisingly good. The music and dancing are infectious, the acting is above average and there's no bad language or nudity. But... Fans who are in their late twenties, who pride themselves on discovering the film last summer, even find a message: "There is no harm in giving yourself over to pleasure." Frank N. Furter transgresses and earns his reward; then the cast does the Time Warp again, a very popular and simple dance. If you attend, go with someone who's seen the movie as there is a steady din - people shouting - and you'll need a guide/translator. Remember the plea, "Don't send your children to church, take them?" Try using your kids as the guide. You'll learn more about them, what they're thinking, and the shape of the future than you will asking them about school. And it's a lot more fun. They may no longer think of you as an "old person" but, then, my daughter never did. aRea ders 'Jo u rtta l : Remember parable Editor, The Journal: C. Yerkes' letter of June 22 contains a factual error as well as insulting snideness. Most people are capable of reading around insults but errors must be corrected. The area given for Washington's reservations may be correct. However, each Indian does not have "75 acres of tax exempt land." First, much reservation land (ahnost all on some reservations) was taken from the Indians due to the federal government's policy of assimilation. This land now belongs to "dumb Americans" who pay taxes on it. Second, much of the land which remains in trust status (tax exempt) is of no use to the owners. Another federal policy has caused land to become owned by many (dozens in some cases) heirs of the original allottee. No single heir can use or sell the land without the consent of the others. Injustice is not in the eye of the beholder; it exists in the of the recipients. It is absurd claim that the Indians anywhere near the amount the white people dished they lost most of their they lost much of their and many of them lost their trying to keep the first two. I don't know what axe Yerkes is grinding, fulfillment of the treaties in 1855 between two nations is not going to hurt I but the most selfish In fact, it is in our (I am i Indian) interest to ensure the federal government trample on any minority fights. Remember the parable the Catholic priest in Germany: He said nothing they took away the socialist, i gypsy and the Jew; when came to take lure no one left to speak up! Toby Letters ignored Editor, The Journal: Those of us who respond to requests for comments from the public by agencies about to make decisions of importance to the people are beginning to think that the decisions have already been made, that our letters have little if any influence. Word that the U.S. Forest Service plan for the Canal Front (eastern Olympics) is for logging as the predominant use of this area, despite over 1,000 letters urging more wilderness preservation is a disappointment. Their plan has wilderness study for 16,000 acres and mostly logging for 109,000. Those who wish to see more of the timbered river valleys left in their natural state are told that the decisions "must continue to be based on professional judgment without an overreaction to public emotion." However, environmentalist groups have their forestry specialists too and have pointed out specific areas better left unlogged. The Olympic Park Association has asked specifically for preservation of the mostly wild Gray Wolf river valley, Mt. Zion, the Lena Lake corridor and areas around Mounts EUinor, Washington and Mountain near Lake The Gray Wolf area in says David Pavelchek, Sierra forestry specialist, has timber regeneration potential! "hardly land you'd want to into a tree farm." There is a July 3 deadline public comment on the Front plan. Send to Ol  National Forest, P.O. Box Olympia 98507. Is there use? Frances R. A friend Editor, The Journal: To Steve Patch: Thank so very much for doing marvelous story on a very friend, Ethel Dinning. I cot a real privilege to know enchanting lady! Ever' should get to know Ethel now thanks to last Journal a lot more people make it a point to meet her be as lucky as I to count her! a very special friend, too. Carmen Harstine Christians too prou00 Editor, The Journal: I read the letter written about the empty churches and it made me think of my views, as I can add a little to that letter. I think the Christians are too proud, filled with pride. The pastors and deacons and members of the board are filled with self-importance, and they figure they are the only ones able to get behind the pulpit to lead songs, prayer requests, etc. Anyone other than them is wrong, in the board members' and pastor's eyes. The rest of the people aren't good enough to be used in church no matter how long they've been converted. But you never see the deacons or pastors do any physical labor for the church. They leave it to the ones lower than them. Lower in the pastor's and deacons' eyes, anyway. I've gone to church for quite a number of years now, to the same church, I might add, and I've never seen some of our deacons lift a finger in physical labor to help clean or fix up their church. I not only call it being too proud but it is a big case of laziness, also. And let's not forget the husbands of the board memb They are too lazy and expect t i women in the church to do it :: while they stand around watch.But as we all see, some : these same husbands don't 11' a job and they also can't sup their families. Living off w f¢l and food stamps and taking i!i couple foster kids brings in I1 money. But, praise God for men ¢ become foster parents and W °1!' to support their own families t. way God's word tells them ti: God's word says that "A r! who can't support his 0 family is worse than an ini €1/| So the lazy Christians l'jl , seen in the home as well s! the church. But it is the past and deacons who are the aZ! of all. That's what most of  I see. s The pastors and deacon ., to be an example. So if ' people aren't doing an3 d look at your deacons  pastors. They aren't d0i anything but sitting idle in tit  pride and laziness. That's wb  the shame lies. ,, Donna Mil Route 5, Shelt en k ' .eltoq. L Mailing Address: Box 430, Shelton, Wa. 98584 Phone 426-41[ 227 West Cota Street, Shelton, Mason County.J/ Seco nd-Oas? ;Sobs it:ggte°;a i? 58 4'h e/;ekl, Ywa sh i ng t o n. .J [ IPTION RATES: $7.00 per year in Mason County i1 $9.00 per year in State of Washington $]2.00 per year out o! EDITOR AND PUB-UIS-ER - . ............. Henry G.i' lildi Tw in ! i