America fixated on breaking records
But do new records change the course of history like we think they do?
America has been the “greatest nation on earth” for so long we think we must look for some exotic frontier to conquer to top our current greatness.
After World War II we planted 800 military bases and outposts across the earth to prove our invincibility and further our national wealth. After that, what was there left to do?
Here’s what we are doing today. We are going back to space. We are counting Super Bowl rings. We are building massive new baseball, football, basketball, and hockey stadiums and arenas. We are drooling over an aging Madonna’s record-breaking beach concert in Rio. We are throwing tons of money at Caitlin Clark just because she can lob a round ball into a ten-foot-high hoop from further away than most girls and boys.
We are ballooning up to 400 pounds and then losing 150 so we can turn body shame into body fame.
We go to excess in personal consumption because we can. We have all the resources we need. We waste “news” media time on stupid reports of celebrity sightings because there is nothing left for us to do. Or is there?
What is really going on here is irresponsible focus on the unimportant accomplishments while important things, mostly negative, are happening all around that need attention but are going unreported and uncorrected.
How about we go back to school, whether literally or figuratively, learn from history, and accomplish some things that will go down in real history books, instead of the “flatter ourselves” evening news.
Kimball Shinkoskey
Utah
Disappointed in airport failure on contamination
As president of a small Class A water system serving 49 homes on the West Plains, I have been very concerned about the PFOA-AFFF contamination first at Fairchild Air Force Base and now from Spokane International Airport.
I remember back in 2017 I was told by FAFB that the contamination would never cross U.S. Highway 2. Sadly, we now know that wasn’t true.
I am very disappointed that SIA after they learned about their contamination failed to disclose this information to the public and only admitted it after a Whistleblower submitted a FOIA request, received the information, and turned it over to the Dept of Ecology. I am very disappointed in my elected officials primarily Spokane County Commissioner Al French for his stonewalling of the process. SIA as a FUDS (Formerly Used Defense Site) IE: Geiger Field Air Base then a Washington National Guard Base flying fighter aircraft until 1976. As a FUDS site I believe they (US Government) have the same responsibility as FAFB to clean up the whole West Plains area as ONE SITE and quit pointing fingers at each other on who’s fault it is. It was a FEDERAL requirement to use AFFF it should be a FEDERAL requirement to clean it up. People on the West Plains deserve better than what they are getting.
Jerry Goertz
Medical Lake
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