SCHOOL SAFETY
What is Vashon’s plan?
We are a month from the Uvalde, TX school shooting. This isn’t a gun control letter, as I will leave that to others, but a question of how prepared Vashon schools are for this type of situation.
We are an isolated community, with two deputies on shift and backup is 30 minutes or more away. It is becoming more apparent that the Uvalde first responders and the school district in particular were not prepared to respond effectively.
I have many questions about how prepared we are for a similar event. Do Vashon Island School District (VISD) and King County have a crisis plan and is it up to date? Who is in charge? Are there master keys available and do first responders know where they are and how to access them? Are there officers from other police departments that live on Vashon that may be available to respond? Is there a list of these officers and their contact info available to King County? Can needed equipment, ballistic shields, vests, etc. be cached at the schools or perhaps the Vashon Fire Department so responders have the equipment they need? How secure are the schools and what needs upgrading?
Many more questions, but not enough words available. However, I believe it is critical that the residents of Vashon know that there is a plan in place and deficiencies are being addressed prior to the start of the next school year in just over two months.
The plan should not be disseminated publicly, but the fact there is one and it is up to date should be. Hopefully, it is never put to the test, but it is better to be prepared than not.
Scott Hitchcock
Editor’s note: An article in next week’s Beachcomber will detail current school safety plans.
COVID-19
Time to end the mandate
Much has changed since last October. A significant portion of the population has been infected by COVID. As we saw just last month in the Vashon Island School District, vaccines and boosters are not preventing infection. With that in mind, it is time for Gov. Inslee to end the vaccine mandate. It seems totally counter-productive and unnecessary at this time when so many public service jobs need to be filled.
Up north, BC Ferries last week began calling back its unvaccinated crew members. It has acknowledged that the pandemic is not over, but the situation has changed. Jay Inslee should take action to help state and local jurisdictions address their staffing needs. According to WSF, we will not see ferry service restored on the Triangle Route until next spring “at the earliest.” If the mandate is ended, perhaps that timeline can be shortened.
If you agree, call, email or write Gov. Inslee’s office urging him to act now. Don’t forget to share this with anyone who lives in Washington, especially our representatives in the 34th District.
Scott Harvey
We’ve learned a lot about COVID
In a recent issue of The Beachcomber, we were urged to be alarmed at the high transmission rate of COVID-19. But should we be?
Let’s recall what we understood at the start of our COVID response: that the intention was to slow the spread so that hospitals would not be overwhelmed. Slowing infection would also give us time to find out more about Covid-19 and develop ways to treat it. And, it was understood that in time we’d likely all get COVID.
Some areas of the U.S. and the world took a herd immunity approach to COVID, allowing the infection to run its course through the communities. Here on Vashon, we tried a version of a zero COVID approach. We chose to postpone natural immunity at the community level. The spike that is occurring now is to be expected, and not something we could hold off forever.
But why should we look with fear at this situation? In two years we’ve learned a lot about COVID-19, and how to support our immune resilience and optimize our body’s defenses. Within our island community, individuals and families have actively supported their health and immune response via foods, herbs, supplements, and pharmaceuticals. Rather than fueling fear, let’s exchange therapeutic information and positive stories.
Remember that joyful living also nourishes immune health: laughter, hugs, time outside, good sleep, wholesome foods, movement, spiritual wellness, celebration, and myriad facets of kind human relationship. Need I point out that fear and isolation have been shown to lower it?
Islanders, it’s time to embrace our expertise, resourcefulness, and good cheer, and engage in creative community health together.
Jane Valencia
Natural immunity, post-infection, provides protection
It was unfortunate that the “Myth Buster” article (June 9) focused primarily on booster use for COVID prevention. The authors overlooked recent research showing that boosters only work for a limited time and that natural immunity provides protection from future COVID infections. Taking mRNA boosters without considering all the data may lead to unpredictable long-term consequences.
In February, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported that patients who received three doses of Pfizer or Moderna had higher vaccine efficacy (defined as COVID-related emergency room or urgent care visits) than patients with two doses (tinyurl.com/4jbht9mr). However, this efficacy wore down over time, with the third dose showing a marked decrease after four months. Recent national data from Israel also show that protection from COVID infection decreases in proportion to the length of time since vaccination (tinyurl.com/3zrazxcx).
Just last week, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study of patients who were vaccinated, who had no vaccination but a prior COVID infection, or who had “hybrid” immunity (vaccine and prior COVID) — tinyurl.com/4m3p32fj. All patients had strong protection against symptomatic subsequent COVID infection, but the authors also observed “rapidly waning vaccine protection after the second and third doses but slowly waning protection from previous infection.”
Furthermore, the Pfizer and Moderna formulations do not target new COVID variants. Each year, U.S. flu vaccines are modified for expected new strains. Without these modifications, they would be ineffective therapeutics. Why should this situation be different for COVID?
I recognize the importance of limiting serious COVID cases in order to prevent long COVID. However, with the disease now endemic after two years, we no longer have a “one size fits all” situation. Alternate therapeutics, smart lifestyle decisions, and improving our quality of life all need our focus at this time, not just boosters.
Caitlin Rothermel, MPH
ABORTION
Joe Biden is complicit
Now that Roe v Wade has been reversed, Joe Biden is weighing in with his irrelevant two cents. Mr. President, if you’d read any U.S. history, you would know that any major change in this country has always been preceded by violence. So stop with the silly non-violence posturing.
You should have thought about that at the Senate committee hearing when you were destroying Anita Hill to put Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court. And by the way, what happened to adding liberal justices to balance the court? Adding justices to the court would require legislation, not a constitutional amendment. Still a bit much for a finger-in-the-wind politician like you.
Shelley Simon
