Letters to the Editor for June 7, 2011

Camas and Washougal should merge I believe there is a great need to make government more affordable to the taxpayer. All options should be looked at, including the merger of the city governments of Washougal and Camas. I believe our fine cities would benefit with a greater voice in Clark County and in Olympia. The savings would come thru supporting one city government. There would only be one fire chief, police chief, mayor and city council. There would be a complete merger in government, everyone would keep their addresses, but be supporting only one city government. My neighbor tells me this has been attempted at least three times in her memory, but the need to control the cost of government to the taxpayer should warrant looking into once again. 3rd Avenue speed reduction. There is no reason to allow traffic to travel at 40 mph along Third Avenue because it is unsafe and needs to be reduced to 30 mph. No bicycle lanes, and having traffic go by at almost highway speeds when on the sidewalk is scary. People are walking more, and Camas is a great place to get out and exercise. We are going to see more bicycles on the road as fuel gets more expensive and Camas and Washougal are not bicycle friendly. The new walking path is being used by both walkers and bicycles, but do not mix well when the path is crowded, especially with young families with kids. Anyone who has driven down Third Avenue knows that 40 mph to some is too slow and they shove you off the road while they blow by. Having to walk on the sidewalk with cars going so fast just inches away is a terrible accident just waiting to happen. There are no pedestrian crosswalks for almost a mile, and with the speed so high, it is terribly unsafe to cross. A drop to 30 mph would make Third Avenue safer for those of us who do not drive a car. Camas Cemetery looked great The Camas Cemetery looked terrific this Memorial Day. The staff and volunteers put a lot of extra effort into the grounds and it showed nicely. The Camas Cemetery needs a donation of a quality pressure washer. The cemetery has access to the city of Camas's, but when needed they take it back, and for cleaning grave stones it is too powerful. If you can afford to, please contact Ed Senchyna at the cemetery and he can tell you what he would like to have. Won't be cheap, but will be put to years of good use. The phone number to call is 834-4220. Allen Anderson, Camas Say 'yes' to yoga pants Yoga pants is latest addition to the Camas School District's dress code. Students wear yoga pants, not to attract guys, but to feel comfortable at school. In the Liberty Middle School's planner it states, "The most appropriate clothing items include jeans, sweatshirts and T-shirts, long pants, walking-type shorts or shorts that extend below the fingers when arms are at the sides of the body." Although some people might say yoga pants are inappropriate because they are form fitting, I say they fit under the description of "long pants." One thing I don't understand is why schools are stressing over yoga pants, when there could be much worse. As far as I am concerned, all yoga pants are covering undergarments and covering your legs and skin. Why focus all attention on yoga pants when other things are much more distracting? Some students come to school with pink dyed hair, piercings through the lips, and black makeup that looks like they have two black eyes. Although some might say yoga pants are distracting, I would have to go with a 'no' compared to what I just described. I believe staff needs to start focusing more on our education, than what we wear to go get it. It is time to stand up and side with the students to keep yoga pants in Liberty Middle School and other Camas schools. Nicole Loewen, Liberty Middle School Camas Herrera Beutler plays politics with debt limit I continue to be disappointed by Rep. Herrera Beutler (WA-3). She voted to kill Medicare and recently voted to put the United States into default. She voted for the Ryan-Care kill Medicare bill that includes an additional increase to the national debt, but now she has voted against raising the debt limit. Rep. Herrera Beutler already voted to spend money above the debt limit and then voted not to raise the debt limit. Rep. Herrera Beutler is a professional politician so I'm not surprised she is playing politics on the debt limit. She should heed the wise counsel of President Reagan "The full consequences of a default -- or even the serious prospect of default -- by the United States are impossible to predict and awesome to contemplate...The nation can ill afford to allow such a result. The risks, the costs, the disruptions, and the incalculable damage." Jon Haugen, Vancouver

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