Letters to the editor | Feb. 5 edition
Published 1:30 am Thursday, February 5, 2026
Enough is enough
I write this with deep sadness and anger over the latest horrible murder perpetrated by Trump’s Gestapo: The killing of Alex Pretti.
We must stand up and not be cowed by this heinousness. Please do whatever moves you. Write or call your legislators and do the same with Republican senators, even though they aren’t “your” Senators, and tell them to oppose the administrations use of ICE, DHS, CBP to illegally detain, intimidate, and harm legal immigrants and American citizens.
Let them all know that these undemocratic, unlawful and authoritarian tactics will not be tolerated anymore.
Get out on the streets and protest/ demonstrate peacefully. Even in small towns like ours. Let your voice be heard.
Make posters, outfits, giant puppets, wear costumes, whatever. Any action brings solidarity and joy to the community showing we are not alone in this madness.
And also shows the tyrants that we actually have the power. But please do something. Enough is most definitely enough.
Bill Jarcho
Immigration
George Carlin had it right. He said he likes people, but they tend to form into groups. More than four people and they start to behave badly.
As the crap in the streets caused by ICE roars on, we go along with an underlying dopey premise: nations have some magic right to tell people where to live. I don’t agree. We come into this world naked, kicking, and screaming. People form into groups, nations, that start pushing other people around. I don’t care if my neighbor is an undocumented immigrant. As long as he behaves himself and doesn’t wear some ugly uniform and carry a gun and kill people, he’s okay with me.
By the way, doesn’t God own all the land? I think people should live wherever they want and governments should back off. They have too much power. They are a group of people behaving badly.
Would letting people live where they want create some chaos? Maybe in the short run, but how could it be worse than the murdering we have today?
We don’t need national sovereignty. We need human sovereignty.
Shelley Simon
Grateful for MIH
I am a long time island resident who had his first nasty senior fall (turned 73 last year) on Sunday.
EMT was called and referred me to urgent care at Kaiser in Tacoma.
But I had previously booked an appointment with VIFR’s Mobile Integrated Health (MIH) for the next day to check my vitals. So after the scary fall in the middle of Pohl Road, I had a lot more medical and life issues to discuss.
In the fall I got a huge leg laceration requiring nine stitches at urgent care, plus skinned palms, wrenched back, and a bruised ego about never having fallen.
My appointment at MIH was the most thorough, compassionate and helpful medical session I think I have ever had.
A shout out to Paul who did his very best to listen to way more information and life stories than he needed to but he was patient, and I could tell he valued what I was sharing.
We should be so grateful for this important and valuable resource on our Island.
In addition to the great care I get from SeaMar, MIH adds a valuable option for so many urgent but not emergency care needs in our homes and at the station. Our taxes pay for this service, and we should be proud of what they provide.
Stephen Bogan
A call for comprehensive reporting
I appreciate the Beachcomber’s coverage of community issues, including challenges facing our local organizations. However, I believe the recent article about Vashon HouseHold deserves a more complete perspective.
VHH has served our community with distinction for many years, providing essential affordable housing and support to island residents. This work represents some of Vashon’s core values, and VHH is held in high regard for their commitment to those values.
While I don’t diminish the concerns raised by Hilary Emmer, I believe balanced journalism requires more attention to multiple perspectives. What about the experiences of other residents at Island Center Homes? How has this situation affected the broader community living there? These voices deserve to be heard as well.
As for social services available to residents, VHH must work within real financial constraints. It seems as though VHH has created reasonable access for its residents by collaborating with the Island organizations that serve our vulnerable populations. ED Amy Drayer clarified that on-site social work was never part of the contractual agreement for Island Center Homes, though it may have been discussed as an aspiration early on. Given budget realities, VHH appears to be doing their best to maximize available resources in the best interests of all their tenants.
I hope that follow up reporting on VHH and Island Center Homes residents expands to include a fuller examination of the challenges facing VHH as a provider of affordable housing. Our Island benefits most when the Beachcomber strives to illuminate the complete picture, so readers might better understand the broader context in which organizations like VHH operate, keeping both individual needs and the needs of the whole in mind. It’s complicated.
Susan McCabe
Protect our marine mammals
Once again, our cherished Washington seals, sea lions and migratory birds are under siege in the state legislature. Two troubling bills, HJM 4004 and SJM 8013, seek to amend the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, allowing the killing of these species under the guise of “helping endangered salmon.”
This is a misguided assault driven by cherry-picked and misrepresented science peddled by lobbyists funded by commercial fishing interests.
For millennia, seals, sea lions, and migratory birds have coexisted harmoniously with salmon populations.
While a small portion of their diet includes endangered salmon, a larger share consists of predators that devour salmon smolt before they reach the sea — actually aiding salmon survival.
Before the Industrial Revolution and rampant hunting decimated their numbers to near extinction in our region, these marine mammals thrived in balance with abundant salmon runs.
Since the Marine Mammal Protection Act’s enactment in 1972, their populations have rebounded and stabilized over the last 30 years, proving the value of protection.These incredible animals deserve our admiration, not scapegoating.
Seals and sea lions are highly intelligent and athletically remarkable, with some are even serving in the U.S. Navy. They detect and disarm underwater mines, provide security around sensitive naval assets—all for a reward of simple herring. In Puget Sound, they enrich our ecosystem and bring joy to those who encounter them.
As a group of us open water swimmers on Vashon, we’ve researched this issue extensively and are fighting to prevent these species from being unfairly blamed for salmon declines caused by habitat loss, dams, overfishing and pollution.
Let’s protect them from commercial interests and continue enjoying their presence in our waters.
I urge your readers to take action now: Submit comments on HJM 4004 and SJM 8013, and contact Representatives Joe Fitzgibbon, Briana Thomas, and Emily Alvarado to oppose these bills. Together, we can safeguard our marine heritage.
Joe Yarkin
