Purposeful fake news
On Dec. 5, in a story headlined, “Inslee cheered by salmon advocates,” Tribune Outdoor editor Eric Barker wrote this: “Snake River salmon and steelhead runs once numbered in the millions but declined dramatically following construction of eight dams between Lewiston and the Pacific Ocean.” Barker’s statement is a purposeful misrepresentation of facts, intended to mislead the public concerning the four lower Snake River dams.
In the 1800s, an estimated 16 million anadromous fish entered the mouth of the Columbia River annually. By 1938, the first year fish could be counted at Bonneville Dam, approximately 400,000 fish passed over Bonneville. These runs had already been reduced, largely by commercial overfishing, from 16 million to just 400,000 fish annually.
These runs remained between 400,000 and 600,000 fish from 1938 until around 1999. From 1999 until 2016, the largest anadromous fish runs ever recorded reached Bonneville Dam. Those numbers reached as high as 1.55 million fish in 2000 and as high as 1.6 million fish in 2016. Remember, all four lower Snake River dams were in place after 1975.
Barker consistently and knowingly misleads Tribune readers with false statements concerning the effect of the dams on anadromous fish runs. One can only conclude he has an agenda to breach the lower Snake River dams despite the truth. He truly is a purveyor of “fake news.”
Dick Sherwin
Lewiston
Don’t shirk, senators
I am extremely concerned to learn that Sen. Mike Crapo has expressed that he is willing to allow President-elect Donald Trump to use recess appointments to fill some cabinet positions.
Sen. Crapo was elected by Idaho citizens to do the job of a United States senator. Part of that job is to vet the people a president nominates for Cabinet positions. If he and/or Sen. Jim Risch allow Trump to dictate recess appointments, then they will be abdicating their responsibility under the Constitution to advise and consent to the appointments.
The people of Idaho pay their salaries and voted for them to do the job, not to shirk it. They need to do so.
Audrey Adams
Melba, Idaho
End these sales taxes
Here are some no-brainer tax cuts for the upcoming 2025 Idaho legislative session:
Let’s finally cut the “pink” sales tax. Cut sales taxes that punish women solely because of their gender: those on menstrual products, bras and nursing products. Menstrual products are like sanitary napkins, tampons, cups, discs and period underwear. This is not providing free products in schools or public bathrooms, just removing the sales tax at the register.
Exempt bras — not panties or lingerie — and without stupid rules on where you buy them, and nursing products like nursing bras, nursing pads and breast milk pumps. Again, these are all sales taxes that punish women only because they are women, on items they need to survive as a human in the modern world, which guys don’t normally need to buy. A couple dozen states already do this, so it’s not a radical, communist idea.
Also let’s exempt baby diapers from sales tax, which directly supports Idaho’s anti-abortion and pro-family sentiments. A couple dozen states already do this as well ... .
Tell your Idaho representativess you want this with a simple social media message, post or email. This is a triple hitter on tax breaks for constituents. It’ll be very popular and will be reported nationally. The people will carry legislators around on their shoulders, cheering. OK, maybe not that far but it’s still a great idea.
Kirk Hingsberger
Idaho Falls
