Why might this be so? Well, in the next issue of The Columbian was a story from Texas: “Man suspected of giving drug-laced treats to cops” at multiple police departments, resulting in officers’ getting sick. I’m sure those “treats” were also presented as acts of kindness.

It is too bad that we need to question the motives of others these days, but that’s just the way it is. It could well be that it wasn’t the act of kindness that wasn’t appreciated, but rather the “gift” chosen to express their kindness. I suggest next time passing out gift cards instead of food. I bet those would be appreciated.

Doug Shannon
Battle Ground

Isolated from the public
Unfortunately, I have to agree with LucyAnn Kendall’s July 8 letter, “Kindness unappreciated.” What a pitiful example was set for these good Samaritans. Clark County agencies delegated “To Protect and Serve” do neither. They isolate themselves from the public. And why do they have such a lack of trust in their fellow citizens? Just look within the ranks: Officer Roger Evans pulls a gun on a butcher. Officers shoot and kill an unarmed homeless man last year.

To be sure, there are a few good men and women among the ranks but they are woefully in the minority. Instead of patrolling like a pack of wolves, they should get out of their unmarked and marked cars and meet the public, face to face. Get rid of the hugely expensive SWAT team vehicles, the military-style camouflage uniforms, and the excessively high-powered weapons designed to kill not disable. And then, maybe, we can learn to trust one another again.

Peter Knight
Vancouver

What about average Joe?
July 4 was the historical end to rule of the colonies from England, but since 1973 we have been very dependent on other countries to give us oil. We are so dependent that we produce only 30 percent of the oil we need. We are in desperate need of the other 70 percent.

Wind and solar won’t make it for a long time. Politicians are subservient to the ecology group and nothing will change until they think we really care a great deal. Ecologists in California think drilling for oil off their shore will look bad for the movie industry. In Florida, the real estate groups think oil drilling will be bad for their image and people won’t buy any more houses. Those in Alaska are worried about the polar bears and caribou.

What about the average person who is worried he can’t have enough gas to get to work?

Lloyd Johnson
Vancouver

Slow down to save fuel
I am finding it difficult to sympathize with those who complain about the high price of fuel. Each day I am on the freeway with my cruise-control set at the speed limit. Each day 90 percent of the traffic passes me like I’m standing still. Surely these drivers have read the intense coverage in newspapers and on TV regarding the fuel- saving benefit of slowing down.

Now I read that legislators are considering lowering the speed limit to 55.

Why waste the time and effort?

Mary Riker
Ridgefield

Humans become devalued
Anti-capitalist, humanistic and Marxist to the core, environmentalism as a pseudo-religion has unfortunately become wedded to the professional politician, the latter aptly described as the scourge of the last century. The result is a toxic patchwork of evolutionary dogma, eco-feminism, New-Ageism and pagan Earth worship where humans are not only devalued, but in rarefied Green circles, ultimately not around to burden mother Earth at all.

It’s the mother’s milk of socialism, not the environment, which is the main lure for most liberals and is why the two have become inseparable. Radical environmentalism is the latest epic effort to redistribute wealth according to the dictates of scam artists such as Robert Kennedy Jr. Plundering our economy won’t produce a cleaner environment as most of the environmental messes are historically common to socialized nations, ones that lack individual profit and incentive structures absent government coercion.

Healthy is wealthy.

Mike Goodpaster
Washougal

Mistake is light sentencing
Greg Williams’ July 8 letter “Why is group singled out?” disturbingly equates sexual offense as an “earlier mistake in life.” Are you kidding? Sexually abusing a child and rape are not a “mistake.”

Williams says “registration forces a sex offender to live under a black cloud forever.” What about the victim? Does Williams suppose they’re living a life of rosy, sunny days? Williams then says “official studies show first-time sex offenders as least likely to re-offend.” I’d point out that “least likely” doesn’t mean they’ll never re-offend.

Just what exactly does “first-time offender” really mean? The first time they’re caught? Williams concludes with “the ease of prejudice is a society’s shame.” My response to that statement is the shame of our society is we have not forced our lawmakers to impose mandatory minimum sentences for the deranged creeps who really deserve it.

Timothy Desparois
La Center

Need for police ignored
I read about cuts in police budgets and I am concerned that our leaders in the city of Vancouver and mayor’s offices need to come out to the real world and see the lack of enforcement now.

I had called the mayor’s office and asked why we don’t use photo enforcement for both speed and red lights. I’ve had no answer.

Then I read the July 10 story, “Budget cuts hit Vancouver police,” about cuts for detectives and patrol officers. I think we need more, not less.

Carl G. Halgren
Vancouver