The following letters to the editor were written in re

The following letters to the editor were written in response to the Reporter’s Jan. 14 editorial, “Making History.”

January 20, 2009 12:18 am

LETTERS

The following letters to the editor were written in response to the Reporter’s Jan. 14 editorial, “Making History.”

‘Bush Derangement Disorder’

Although I too wish President Obama success for the well-being of our country, I have a few comments about the Reporter’s editorial, which appears to have been written by some poor victim of “Bush Derangement Disorder.”

No Child Left Behind was a joint effort of President Bush and the ultra-liberal Senator Kennedy. The Act is intended to establish reasonable education standards for public schools. I don’t see the connection between that and the Lake Washington School District’s supplies and extra programs. Perhaps this issue would better be referred to Gov. Gregoire.

Regarding the Iraq war, there is sincere disagreement on that issue; however it is clearly won and Iraq is beginning the establishment a new order in the mid-east, which can well make this a safer world.

Regarding the “mess left by his predecessor,” President Bush warned about the dangers of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as early as 2001 and proposed limits for them, but Congress did not pass the Bush reforms until 2008, after they had collapsed. The blame rests more honestly upon the shoulders of Senator Dodd and Representative Frank, both Democrats.

Bernice Oberson, Kirkland

Bush is not to blame

C’mon. I am so sick and tired of hearing shrill far-left liberals blame everything that is wrong with the nation on Bush. True, Bush wasn’t perfect (I don’t know a single president who was) but he certainly is not the only one to blame for all of nations problems.

Take the current economy crisis. One could argue that it started with the housing crisis. Gee, I wonder how that happened. Could it have been Democrats and Democratic groups (ACORN) who pressured banks to give loans to folks who definitely did not qualify? Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are overseen by Barney Frank and Chris Dodd. That is, Democratic Congressman Barney Frank and Democratic US Senator Chris Dodd. The idea of everyone owning their own home is a grand one but it is not reality. Not everyone can truly afford a mortgage, and those folks are sadly now losing that home due to those bad loans. And the rest of us, plus our children, will be paying for the resulting bailout. Please, do your research before blaming Bush for everything.

Now let us look at just a few of the good things President George W. Bush did:

1. Created 15 new National Wildlife Refuges, designated over 330,000 square miles of the Pacific Ocean as national monuments in order to protect them, and for Washington state signed the Wild Sky Wilderness Act thus designating 106,577 acres as wilderness.

2. Bush has sent more money to help impoverished Africa than any other president in history.

3. And whether you believe it not, Bush has protected the U.S. from further terrorist attacks.

These are but a few good things.

Even though I did not vote for our new President, I wish Barack Obama the best and I look forward to all the good things he promises to deliver to us. If McCain had won, I wonder if the author of the “Making History” article would be wishing him the best. Or would the author be throwing darts at McCain’s picture simply because McCain is a Republican.

Judi Liedes, Kirkland

Bush ‘bashing’

I can’t believe you’re still Bush bashing! Why don’t you admit that you don’t know what Bush’s legacy will be, or how well President Obama will do. Do you have some kind of crystal ball that the rest of us don’t know about?

W.R. Swaffield, Kirkland