Letters to the editor, Sept. 10, 2008

Letters to the editor
Sept. 10, 2008

Likes and dislikes
One of the things that I love about Sequim is the fact that changes are slow and challenged. I appreciate the intelligent reasoning and clear voices. One of the things that I dislike about Sequim is that changes are slow and challenged. Too often the challenging voices are self-serving or NIMBY minded. I asked myself, "Why do we need another crematorium in this area?" I was told that the other crematoriums would not allow Mr. Linde to use their facility. It reminded me of the good old days in Sequim when you either paid the noncompetitive fee of the locals or you had to travel outside Sequim. We traveled a lot in those days. I hope that we have another crematorium in Sequim. I know that their prices will be reasonable and we will have another option that will permit us to keep business in the area. I don't like the death taxes that we pay here.
Roz Sorensen
Sequim


New guardrails don't make sense
Recently new guardrails were installed on
Sequim-Dungeness Road (Way) just north and south of Sanford Lane where I have lived for 14 years. I believe that this is a waste of tax funds.
What is the rationale for this installation? Safety? Who normally runs off a straight road with a 45 mph speed limit? An inebriated speeder is the most likely candidate. And what happens when he sideswipes the rails? Chances are he will carom wildly off the guardrail with his vehicle out of control right into the path of an oncoming vehicle.
There is another concern. A small, low-slung auto coming south on Sequim-Dungeness just above Sanford Lane can scarcely be seen. The little vehicle is almost totally obscured by the guardrails. A driver coming up the Sanford Lane incline could easily pull out into the path of a car coming down the hill. Now this is a real safety concern.
I would be very interested in hearing why the county is not using more common sense when spending our money. What agency makes such decisions?
Robert Glenn Brown
Sequim


Affirming freedom of speech
For 184 years western civilization was one nation under God. Then the ACLU and atheist judges began their assault on Christianity. The Supreme Court has ruled public school students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the school house gates." Washington state schools have breached this law in policies and practices. The American Center for Law and Justice will provide intervention when that occurs.
The impact of removing the moral compass from public education has resulted in a youth crisis where one-fourth of the youth never achieve productive lives. Education cannot be called education if it neglects the most essential aspects of man's nature.
Billy Graham has proclaimed we must take back our public schools; the Southern Baptists have proposed withdrawing millions of students from public education.
The U.S. Department of Education sums up religious freedom in American schools as:
• Students can pray, read their Bible or other religious books and talk about their faith at school during school hours.
• Students can organize prayer groups and religious clubs and announce their meetings.
• Students can express their faith in classwork and homework.
• Teachers can organize prayer groups and Bible studies.
• Students can express their faith at school events including graduation ceremonies.
 Back to school is an excellent time to remind public educators of their responsibility to assure students of their constitutional freedoms. Correspondingly, community ministers need to remind their congregations of these freedoms and consider the youth crisis their mission responsibility.
Don Albright
Sequim


Crematory concerns unfounded
I would like to respond to two of the allegations or worries that some have expressed over Linde Family Funeral Services' application to operate a crematory unit in the Carlsborg light industrial park.   
No. 1 - A concern that a cremation unit would create more pollution in the Carlsborg light industrial park.
Response: I can appreciate the concern over pollution. We live in a time when it seems that there is more pollution everywhere. Thankfully, we also live in a time when more is being done to help lessen the impacts of pollution and pollution itself. Mr. Linde will be operating a state-of-the-art, new crematory unit that will use the newest technologies to lessen the environmental impact of the crematory process. Let's also remember the often chosen alternative to cremation, i.e. traditional burial in a large metal casket. Surely there was substantial pollution that went into the air while manufacturing that casket and it, along with the cadaver, will eventually decompose into the ground and contribute to some form of ground pollution. In our efforts to control and minimize pollution, we must be mindful of the reality that we all eventually die and need to be disposed of somehow. When considering the alternative, cremation actually has less of an environmental impact than traditional methods.
No. 2 - A concern that the location is not appropriate for a cremation unit.
Response: To this I would respond with another question ... Where is a more suitable location than a light industrial park? For more than a year Mr. Linde has complied with every request from the county. He has proposed the most logical zone for such an operation. Let us not forget that the only other two crematory units in the county are located in Port Angeles, near the Roosevelt Elementary School. Mr. Linde has already been granted a conditional use permit to operate the crematory in the industrial park. The industrial park is the appropriate location for Linde's crematory. 
In conclusion, I would like to invite all who are interested to visit Linde's funeral service at www.lindefuneralservice.com and see the benefit that this service has been to the community. Mr. Linde brings a much needed, reasonably priced funeral service to the peninsula
Danny Wakefield
Sequim


Put personal investments in perspective

I ask you to put yourself in my shoes for five minutes to understand my concerns with the planned crematorium in Carlsborg. Its existence here, in my view, will negatively impact some business owners. These owners have not only paid their taxes every year but also invested decades of time and energy into building their American dream. Is the county being fair to them?
I am the agent of record for an 8-acre property (Short Plat No. LDV2007-00077), just across the street from the planned crematory in Carlsborg. The county received our application to subdivide it on Aug. 31, 2007. The county's approval of the crematorium could decrease our property value and limit our plans for future development. I ask the county whether such an outcome would be fair to us.
The county based its decision on the mind-boggling notion that a human crematorium is similar to a veterinary clinic. A crematorium is more typically associated with a cemetery, a "prohibited" type of business in the Carlsborg Light Industrial Park. In its Growth Management Goals (CCC 31.01.200), the county promised to protect landowners' rights from "arbitrary actions." But I feel that the county may not be keeping that promise.
When the sun sets on this issue, I hope the county will understand our perspective along with that of numerous others who might suffer. I don't find it fair that taxpayers who followed all the rules might be getting stomped on by the county. Some of us would have planned differently, had we known that a veterinary clinic could mean crematorium in Carlsborg.
I have been in this community for numerous years and have networked with many successful business owners. I know that if they were in my shoes, they would share my perspective on this issue. If you would like to learn more, visit CitizensForCarlsborg.org. And join us on Sept. 16 at the Clallam County Courthouse to fight the conditional use permit, which I believe was issued in error.
Arthur B. Green III
Sequim


Other zones suit crematory
As a current business owner who employs a number of technical and professional people in the Carlsborg Industrial (CI) area, I oppose the establishment of a crematory in CI. Here is why:
1. A crematory does not conform to the CI zoning code of Clallam County (see Table 33.20.040(A)). The code specifically prohibits a cemetery for the disposal of human remains within the CI area. A crematory's disposal of human remains conforms more to the function of a cemetery than to light manufacturing.
2. Because a crematory and cemetery provide services for the disposal of human remains, Washington state law (RCW 18.39.217 (3)) places the regulation of crematories under the direction of the Cemetery Board (Chapter 68.05 RCW). Since a cemetery is prohibited within the CI area, a crematory to burn human remains should, likewise, be prohibited here.
3. There are four county land use zones where a cemetery is conditionally permitted (CR, CV, CN and CC).  Those who seek to have a crematory within Clallam County should find a location where the county's zoning permits for the disposal of human remains. It makes common sense that any prudent business owner would seek to establish his business within its proper land use area.
4. As a Carlsborg CI business owner, I feel a crematory next to my business will negatively impact my business and its land value. I don't see any way that this loss can be mitigated. Why should a business owner invest thousands of dollars in a new project, if the investment can be undermined by an arbitrary land use permit?
Additional objections to, and legal questions about, the crematory are expressed on this Web site: http://citizensforcarlsborg.org.
Ted McDonald, Ph.D.
President
A-M Systems, Inc.
Sequim


Old-fashioned highway leads to accidents

Al Hiebert wrote a helpful letter last week regarding the tragic four-car crash at (U.S. Highway)101 and Louella Road. He's right that responsibility rests as much with the person who stopped for a left turn as it does with the driver who failed to stop for her. But responsibility also belongs to the state of Washington DOT. Why? Because of out-of-date highway design. That section of 101, where we have to pass by three old, dangerous intersections - Louella Road, Palo Alto Road and Happy Valley Road - is too hazardous now that traffic is much greater than years ago. We should close direct 101 access to all three roads and do the following: Connect Palo Alto Road through to Happy Valley Road at the nearest point, then connect Simdars Road to Happy Valley at the nearest convenient place. This should also include making the Simdars/101 interchange full directional access. These changes would clear up the current life endangering, old-fashioned design mess that contributed to this latest crash.
Glenn Garner
Sequim


Safe turning on Highway 101

In response to the "Use Common Driving Sense" letter from Al Hiebert to the editor, I can agree with his suggestion concerning how to make a safe left turn off U.S. Highway 101. Back in 1983, my husband and I were rear-ended on 101 while waiting to make a left turn into our property. Although a number of cars behind us had safely gone around on the right, one car did not. Fortunately, no one was injured, but our car was totaled. The Highway Patrol responded to the accident and the trooper suggested that in the future we pull over to the right if we couldn't make the left turn immediately and wait until the traffic was clear to make the turn. This surprised us as we thought that it would be illegal to make a left turn from the shoulder of the highway. The trooper remarked it's better to be safe than to have an accident. We took his advice for future left turns. I don't know if the driver of the car that hit us was cited. We were not. I do think that many Highway 101 drivers don't allow enough room between them and the car in front. They're often driving faster than the posted speed limit and/or not giving attention to the scene ahead and thus not prepared for the unexpected to happen. I'm not convinced that new legislation is the answer.
Betty Munger
Sequim


How sporting?
A friend of mine was approached by a hunter who'd asked if he could hide in a tree on his property so that he could shoot deer he had seen nearby. The property is located in a populated area just outside of downtown Sequim. Apparently, hunting is still legal in that area. (How long has that law been on the books?) Aside from having people shooting deadly weapons in our neighborhoods, the deer that the hunter had seen are semidomesticated animals that wander through our yards, coexisting with humans on a daily basis. That is like shooting fish in a barrel. I ask you: As the "sportsman" is hiding up in a tree, wearing camouflage and outfitted with a GPS and a $1,000 weapon, how sporting is that?
James Drew
Sequim


A good soldier

The father and grandfather of Sen. John McCain were both admirals in the U.S. Navy. Sen. McCain carried on the tradition of honorable duty to our nation just as his father and grandfather did.
When Sen. McCain graduated from Annapolis he finished 894 out of a class of 899, which means that 99.5 percent of his class finished ahead of him. Remember that Annapolis is a military college. Remember that Sen. McCain is a nominee to be commander in chief of our nation. Do we want the man in charge of our military to be one who finished in the lowest 1 percent of his class in a military college? I don't think so.
In comparison, his opponent, Barack Obama, worked his way through college, finished Harvard Law School and finished at the top of his class.
A good soldier or sailor belongs in the military. An intelligent statesman belongs in the White House.
Vote for the Democratic candidates in November.
Fred Bedford
Sequim