Counter-argument
Dear Editor:
The counterexample is a powerful wrecking ball for demolishing a fallacy. When someone makes a bold assertion like “All dogs are Poodles” the exhibition of a Corgi makes a fine counterexample.
The counterexample to the bold assertion “Human carbon use is causing global warming” is to be found in the geologic history of the last million years. Earth’s recent history is a series of ice ages lasting about 100,000 years separated by warmer “interglacials” of about 10,000 years. All of human history falls in second half of the current interglacial. Thus human activity could not have caused any of the previous 10 periods of global warming.
Global warming and cooling is governed by reflectivity. Snow cover reflects the sun’s warmth where dry ground absorbs it. Less snow at high latitudes and high elevations warms the Earth. Likewise more snow cover cools the Earth.
It is cold enough to be snowing in the Arctic almost any given day. Since the Arctic Ocean is ice-covered the Arctic is very dry so not much snow falls. The Arctic Ocean is losing its ice cover in recent decades. Once it is gone the Arctic will become humid and the snow will start falling. The next ice age will have begun.
It is time for those demanding restrictions on carbon use in the name of climate change to wake up and see the Corgi.
Dan Aspenwall
Winthrop
Let’s find solutions
Dear Editor:
I am writing to provide light on a situation that may not be appreciated by valley residents, with hope to facilitate discussion and action. The Methow Valley is described as awesome, beautiful, eclectic, a little slice of Heaven! It is our version of Garrison Keillor’s mythical Lake Wobegon where everything and everybody is above average.
However, for first-responders (EMS, fire and police) there is another side to this mythology, where poverty and mental health collide. These individuals have fallen though the safety gaps, in isolation with no resources to provide assistance; their calls to 911 often a late attempt to obtain help. Most never see it, but it is an all-too-common experience for first responders.
These individuals often exist in deplorable circumstances, where words inadequately describe their living conditions. As first-responders the desperateness of the situation happens at their front door: assaulted by the smells of human and animal urine and feces, rotting garbage and spoiled food. We may encounter garbage and human waste, infestations of flies and fleas and find our patient lying in bed soiled in excrement. Care is always provided, and may entail transport to the hospital, but too often we are unable to address the root cause of the problem and the cycle of 911 calls becomes a common occurrence.
The inability to resolve the patient’s problems can lead to first-responder exhaustion syndrome. As a community we are fortunate to have excellent social and health care resources, but gaps remain. The community has historically stepped up to challenges, whether it’s protecting our environment, establishing affordable housing, or providing social services. I call upon this community to take action! Things to consider: establish a community task force to fully understand the problem, identify and implement solutions; local journalists should initiate a comprehensive inquiry to educate the community; and, create adult care facilities that provide a safe and caring environment for vulnerable neighbors. We have a history of addressing challenging problems, so my hope is that we will collectively find solutions for our needy neighbors.
Charles Timchalk
Winthrop
Support aquatics district
Dear Editor:
The Friends of the Pool is full-steam ahead, working on a valley-wide, community-supported initiative to replace the beloved, but aging and dilapidated Wagner Memorial Pool in Twisp. We believe the current proposal for Proposition 1 (Methow Aquatic District) is the best reflection of years of public input to satisfy the need, future growth, and what our community can support. Putting this proposition to the Methow Valley voters is the most equitable and democratic way we can make this decision.
The current pool was originally built in 1966 after a tragic accident took the life of a young boy. Our rivers and lakes have not become safer in 2023 and the risk of terrible events persists. Yet we are at the eleventh hour with the Wagner Pool and risk being a community without a pool.
Recently there have been letters to the editor questioning the need and cost of building a new pool. Like libraries, critical access hospitals, and public safety agencies, pools are not financially viable on their own. Chances are that none of us have ever swum in a public pool that made a profit. Public pools exist for safety and fun, not profit. Public pools exist because communities value well-being and safety.
Swimming is a life skill best taught to children and adults in the safe and warm environment of a pool. Adults who know how to swim almost certainly learned this skill in a pool.
Friends of the Pool is asking you to value the safety and well-being of your community. The best way you can do this right now is to sign the petition for The Methow Aquatics District Proposition 1. We have signature gatherers located throughout the community all summer.
Lastly, if you have questions, frustrations, or excitement let’s talk face-to-face or on the phone! Call or text The Methow Aquatics District anytime at (509) 593-3848.
Justin Porter
Friends of the Pool Board Member
We’re all friends of the pool
Dear Editor:
When I moved to the Methow Valley in 1979, Wagner Mill was fully functional and a big part of life in Twisp, with many local families supported by mill jobs. From those only Wagner Pool remains, a tribute gift to Twisp after its construction in 1966. The Wagners included funds to help maintain the pool, and keep swim lessons affordable to locals. Their vision was to reduce the risk of children drowning in area lakes and rivers.
Wagner Pool programs are well attended. There have been as many as 100 children on the Killer Whales swim team each summer. Our children took swim lessons, joined the Killer Whales, and now our grandchildren have learned to swim here. Our daughter used her swim skills as a lifeguard while attending college. I enjoyed 6 a.m. lap swim summer mornings before work, and as a retiree I swim at noon. Many fellow lap swimmers have been retirees. Just one of many pool programs, Open Swim each afternoon in the Twisp pool is full of kids and families from Mazama to Carlton.
Many volunteer groups have been critical to keeping the pool operational for decades, among them Friends of the Pool. They quietly fundraise with many efforts, including bake sales, T-shirts for purchase, and Patty Yates’s creation of the whimsical fishes adorning the front of the pool building..
After 57 years of use, and recent repairs and upgrades, the Wagner pool is near the end of its life and the Wagner funds are ending. The proposed Methow Aquatic Center will be a great resource for families valley-wide. A year-round facility will give all of us another way to stay active and healthy as we age. Smoke from wildfires will no longer close the pool. The proposed Methow Aquatic Center will be a refuge for all of us when wintry conditions limit our activities.
It’s time we “pay it forward“ and create a new aquatic facility for those of us here today and for our future. Must we return to patterns from prior to construction of Wagner Pool and bus our children to Omak for swim lessons?
Jocelyn A. Murray
Twisp
