HCN LIGHTS THE WAY
Just received and read the December issue. Once again: Incredible! I, like so many of us, have been in quite a state of being since the election. I’m looking for wisdom and trying to find the light in these times. The editor’s note was well done. I thought “Unsteady Ground” was an amazing piece and why I respect HCN so deeply with complex issues. I love the various perspectives on how to move forward on such tricky territory!
HCN is relevant for families on the East Coast; it’s not a West-only magazine. You are the canaries in the coal mines for us with weather, fires. Plus, you all are so ahead of us when dealing with issues such as reparations, LandBack, eliminating dams.
All to say, HCN keeps our spirits strong in these times.
Ricky Baruch
Orange, Massachusetts
UNTANGLING THIS MESS WON’T BE EASY
Thank you for trying to provide a thoughtful, come-together message (“Dear Friends: Finding common ground in divisive times,” December 2024). I don’t see it that way, though — 70% of Westerners say they want a clean environment, wildlife habitat protection, etc., but they don’t do it. Sure, pockets of people are actually on the ground improving habitat and reducing resource consumption, but the F-150 is the most popular vehicle and a third bigger than 30 years ago. Energy use for transportation has doubled in 50 years; homes are 30% bigger than when I was a kid. In general, resource consumption has been on an escalating trend since forever. That isn’t stewardship. The expected dismantling of resource-management agencies, the push to develop wildlife habitat — our neighbors voted for that, or didn’t vote to stop it. I’m going to have a hard time finding common ground. I just hope folks who do actually respect the land and understand the responsibilities of stewardship don’t become shrinking violets.
A society that worships a growing GDP that excludes the value of healthy ecosystems and rewards the hoarders of that economic substance; a public seduced by a constant stream of shiny new things, convenient and addictive non-food consumables and futuristic individual transportation is one in need of a serious health check-up intervention. The symptoms of an ill society are going to get worse if we don’t face reality. Finding common threads to mend into something useful is going to be about as easy as untangling my fishing line when I was 10. Only back then, I could just cut my losses when patience wore thin.
Steve Moore
Captain Cook, Hawai‘i
DAMN THE DAM SIRENS
The problems faced by Carnation, Washington, and the Tolt River Dam are not unique (“The dam that cried wolf,” November 2024). Many communities in the West are located immediately downstream of large dams. The “cry wolf” issue regarding false alarms is a major reason there aren’t more sirens in use for flood emergency management below dams. However, an early warning system that monitors reservoir levels, downstream discharge and other information could provide information to alert authorities of a pending dam-related emergency. Once an emergency is verified, methods in use now can rapidly alert the public. A phone call can be more effective than a siren because it can provide very specific information — such as where to go to get out of the flood zone — and can convey an evacuation order’s urgency. Ensuring public trust is important to dam-operating agencies, and for this reason, maybe sirens should be avoided.
Bruce Feinberg
Boulder, Colorado
Retired federal dam safety engineer (USBR)
STORIES ON THE WEST, PLEASE!
I am a longtime subscriber and support your efforts to expand the notion of what qualifies as “news of the West” to include a wider range of social issues. However, I don’t understand how Afton Montgomery’s “How to write about abortion” (November 2024) remotely qualifies. While the book she reviews — Pam Houston’s Without Exception: Reclaiming Abortion, Personhood, and Freedom — references places in the West, her piece is not really about the West. It is about abortion and abortion rights, which I can read about elsewhere. There are many more stories that no one else but HCN covers that I would prefer to read in High Country News.
Don’t get me wrong: I am a strong supporter of abortion rights and bodily autonomy for all. I wouldn’t vote Republican for dog-catcher.
Jeff Sussmann
Santa Fe, New Mexico
MORE THAN ONE HAZARD LOOMING
Thank you for “The big spill” (September 2024), about a potential catastrophic oil spill into the Willamette and Columbia rivers. It is worth noting that there could also be a catastrophic spill of millions of gallons of radioactive waste into the Columbia River from Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington. Our unchecked corporate and military-industrial complex is a growing threat to us all.
Marc Norton
San Francisco, California
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