Disputes COVID-19 story
I am a former dean of science at the University of Idaho. Along with everyone else, I have been following the development and distribution plans for the COVID-19 vaccine with great interest.
I found misinformation in your article, “Vaccinations set to begin Tuesday in Washington, Idaho. ...”
In that article, Laurel Demkovich of the Spokesman-Review stated that after health-care workers and others in the first tranche come “older adults and those with underlying conditions, followed by essential workers and young adults.”
This is not correct. On the Idaho priority list, accessed this morning, older adults not in long-term care facilities and people with underlying health conditions are not even mentioned and all essential workers, regardless of age, are included (and poorly defined, such that essential workers could be expanded to include almost anyone who can’t work from home. Moreover, I learned from a worker ... at the Coronavirus Task Force office in Lewiston ... that the public health department was not consulted in drawing up this list, meaning it is likely to have a big political component. ...
Under almost all the assumptions that apply to our current situation, older adults should be prioritized after health care workers. ...
I recognize everyone will engage in “me first” thinking, including me (I’m older than 70), when it comes to getting the vaccine. But these decisions should be based on science. In addition to being incorrect, your article made no attempt to understand the reasoning behind the construction of the priority list.
Judith Totman Parrish
Viola
Show some respect
This is an open letter to all Lewiston-Clarkston Valley stores, restaurants, bars, shops and services. If you don’t have a “Masks Required” sign on your door, then I’m not coming in and you’re not getting a penny of my money. I know I’m not alone in this conviction, Many of my neighbors feel the same way.
I used to spread my purchases throughout the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley, but no more.
For the past seven months, the only establishments in Lewiston that I have visited are Home Depot and Harbor Freight because they have mask mandates. The rest of my shopping is done in Clarkston, not because it has better services, but because of Gov. Jay Inslee’s mandatory mask requirements. If you’re a Clarkston business owner, you should thank Inslee. He is the reason I’m coming into your store.
Wearing a face mask when out and about is a sign you care about your loved ones, neighbors and health care providers. Not wearing a mask is an insulting, slap-in-the-face to all the first responders, nurses and doctors who have fought the COVID-19 pandemic for the past 10 months.
A business owner who doesn’t require face masks clearly doesn’t respect our first responders and health care providers. If you don’t respect them, then I don’t respect you. If I don’t respect you, then I’m certainly not coming into your business.
Paul Oman
Clarkston
Facing Mussolini’s fate?
Given his history of anti-democracy rantings and actions, infatuation with dictators, an over-the-top ego and an apparent desire to remain in office forever, do you suppose President Donald Trump has ever paused to reflect upon the elevated and inverted fate of a similar autocratic, delusional, fascist despot — Benito Mussolini — by the people of his country?
Russell Gee
Lewiston
