"We would not need to keep wasting money on Prince Rupert"

Oh where is the love? An interesting and somewhat entertaining letter to the editor of the Sit News came across the Google news wire this morning.

A rambling and wide ranging examination of affairs in our sister city to the North and some of the issues of concern to one citizen. In the midst of the position platform of sorts was a throw away line about wasting money on Prince Rupert, which didn't exactly come with a explanation but seems to be one of the many burrs under his saddle.

It makes for a bit of insight into a few of the issues in Ketchikan, though must be tempered with the realization that letter to the editor writers, much like bloggers tend to whistle in the wind and through their hats so to speak. And more than a few tend to just rattle off thoughts in a rather haphazard fashion.

Regardless though, should Mr. McRoberts ever become Mayor of Ketchikan as he threatens, one suspects that North/South relations might become a tad thorny...

Natural Gas, logging, roads and so on.
Viewpoints
Sit News
Ketchikan, Alaska
By Robert McRoberts
March 12, 2007Monday AM

Why do ideas have to come to my head? Is a natural gas line so important that we can not come up with a better way? Well how about something that can last many life times. The other day watching the news they showed them just burning off the gas like a big torch. My thought! We're just wasting the stuff. Why are we not burning the gas on location to power large electrical plants and selling power? I am very much sure we could power are whole state from the waste and for years on end. Free power. We're going to give it away so the oil companies make billions in profits. Then what's left over could be sold online to the east coast, they could then heat with electricity instead of wasting billions on a gasline we really can not afford to buy. Run power lines it's a whole lot cheaper. I bet you combine the hydro sources and gas we could power most of the U.S. - clean power and no global warming, unless it's being powered from all our electricity.

I can understand that the state government can over look such possible long term money just as they allow round log exportation of our timber like we do not need more worker jobs here. Export for the fast buck. Our own state university sells property so low, that it only took the first two loads of logs to pay for the property leaving at least a hundred more loads to put into one lucky guy's pockets. Then when we would like one piece of beach front property to enjoy they say they want more money. What's up with that? Look at the resources we are just sending off to some other place. If we refined our own oil and sold it to Washington pre-refined you know they would never try to put a hundred dollar fee on shipping containers, because they would be sent back loaded with barrels of refined oils, and other products. kiln dried lumber and I bet you're thinking of many other things. Heck we have been selling ourselves out for the fast buck. I wouldn't be surprised if the reason it's getting like that is because there are a lot of people getting ready for retirement and they do not care much for our future.

Now I know retirement is a well deserved service but that is one thing that is going to wipe government out. We can not afford to pay for all the people who only serve for a short time and get benefits for years. I took the choice to become a small business owner and I have to take care of my own. I keep telling my daughter that some day she may have to take care of me. And in all other countries they take care of their elders. But yet we Americans are too proud.

Back to things I can do something about. I would of liked to voice my opinion at the TLMP meeting the other day but I was concentrating on getting some money in my account so I can keep living here. As I have written a few years ago, leave Gravina alone. We should be concentrating on the roads out of town and off the island. If only we could drive to Petersburg there would only be the need for one ferry servicing the northern panhandle and one servicing the lower state. We would not need to keep wasting money on Prince Rupert. One ferry could be left to pimp the runs when one boat needs repairs or maintenance. Oh but that makes scents, but it requires different organizations to work together.

Well I can go on and on but nothing changes unless I make a effort. So I've been joking with friends about running for Mayor of the KGB. Not one person said they would not vote for me. So I think I should. The only problem is I see so many things that need to changed here and that could be overwhelming. Ketchikan has lost so much respect from other communities. You ever notice the statewide news channels will not even report Ketchikan's temperatures? But with the attitude that we care nothing about spending four-hundred million on a bridge to nowhere, I can see why. I just wonder what the new airport ferry is going to be like, hope the cabin is not in the middle of the deck so we can take things to Gravina with out having to balance out the load with other heavy trucks and so on. We will never get the bridge of choice if we down-graded to a bridge that left from what will soon be the old IFA ferry terminal to Boat Wreck island. Tell the ships to go around. Oh, but that might take twenty minutes out of their shopping time. Well if you think I might make a good Mayer, let me know I don't want to be wasting time and money I don't have. But we all know we're on a sinking ship.

Robert McRoberts
Ketchikan, Alaska.
Received March 08, 2007
- Published March 12, 2007


Note: Comments published on Viewpoints are the opinions of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Sitnews.