NAMPA COUNCIL IS SHORTCHANGING OUR COMMUNITY
Shame on our Nampa City Council for your continuation of shortchanging our local community.
First it was local animal shelter, where between yourselves, Caldwell city council and Canyon County commissioners, you continue to iniquitously underfund the West Valley shelter. The dogs and cats that the shelter takes in everyday deserve a proper place to live and be properly fed while waiting for that forever family to come along.
Next you take away all funding to Valley Ride public transit. Where hundreds of folks ride these buses every week to and from work, doctor’s appointments and other needs. Every day I see folks walking up and down Cassie Street from home to work and back in 100+ degree temps because they have no choice. A good idea would be instead of cutting public transportation in Nampa, you should expand it to local neighborhoods that feed off main boulevards.
The third items are cuts to our beloved library. It is cornerstone to all of Nampa where everyone comes together to pick out books, movies, take a class or gather for a weekly meeting. Many families rely on services that library provides and if you cut funds, you are cutting needs that all ages depend on for school, work and everyday living.
Don Benson
Nampa
TODD BLANCHE AN EMBARRASSING CHOICE FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL
Open letter to Idaho Senators: I am appalled and ashamed that my senators were among the craven, cowardly, and un-American GOP members willing to confirm the most corrupt AG in the history of our nation. Todd Blanche has done nothing but protect and serve his client, Donald. The AG is not meant to serve the President, but the PEOPLE. I assume you know how unpopular Blanche is because your bunch confirmed him at 4 a.m. on Friday, Aug.7, before heading home immediately.
I certainly hope you, too, are ashamed to be among this illegitimate regime's legislative lackeys willing to go along with the withholding of most of the Epstein evidence in order to protect sexual abusers, pedophiles, and the moneyed interests behind them.
We the People want our nation back. That requires Senators who honor and uphold our constitution and who at least make an effort to do right by constituents. But instead of doing anything to stop the incessant and unnecessary data centers, the abusive ICE thuggery, the plundering of the nation’s coffers, or to actually make a difference in people's lives (and budgets); you've chosen loyalty to a corrupt, illegitimate, and evil cabal bent on destroying the USA for Putin. Stop it.
Carol Johnston
Boise
FUNDING, NOT POLICIES, BEHIND FAILING FIRE MANAGEMENT
In response to a guest commentary by Dorothy Moon in the Saturday, August 1 edition of the Idaho Press, I have this reply.
I agree with Ms. Moon’s statements that “…Idaho is once again reminded of the awesome power of wildfire.” Also, “For those men and women in harm’s way, this is Armageddon. For politicians it is an urgent responsibility.”
However, I disagree that the problem is “…federal agencies whose policies often fail to reflect realities on the ground.” The policies are not the problem; it is that the funding by the U.S. Congress has been inadequate for many years and still is. In addition, the drastic cuts in experienced staff at the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and other federal agencies in the past year are very detrimental to the ability of the agencies to prepare and respond to the awful fires that were being planned for.
Ms. Moon implies that the State of Idaho would do much better at land management and fire management than the federal agencies, as exemplified by the management of our state-owned lands. This would require way more funding than the State of Idaho could possibly afford. Therefore, if Idaho were to take title to lands that are now federal lands, the state would sell most of the land to private interests.
If this were to happen, we would be shut out of these beautiful places.
Please contact our Idaho and U.S. members of Congress and let them know how you feel about privatization of federal lands in Idaho and the Western U.S.
William Brudenell
Boise