Determining the pay
Determining an appropriate city comparison base can be tricky. Basing it on just population and their firefighter pay is too simplistic.
Demographics are not included, such as what is the household income distribution (% poverty and/or retirees)? What firefighter income do they feel they can afford? Household income can be affected by whether a state is right to work or unionized (i.e. Idaho vs. Washington). Where the tax revenue comes from to pay for the wages is another factor.
I think the mayor’s approach of using just Idaho cities is more appropriate than using the entire Pacific Northwest, since most other states have higher median household incomes than Idaho and Lewiston.
Ged W. Randall
Lewiston
Remembering Plagge
Some names deserve to be shouted down through the pages of history with a megaphone: Karl Plagge is one of them.
Plagge had a conscience, a heart and a backbone. Oh, he believed Adolf Hitler’s line about bringing “peace” in the beginning — he joined the Nazi Party. But once seeing atrocities, he stepped up to work against it.
As commanding officer, overseeing an automotive repair labor camp where Jews were also housed in Vilnius, Lithuania, he convinced overseers the men imprisoned there would work better if families were kept together. He even forged work certificates to “take in” unskilled workers, sparing lives. He “pulled in” like-minded officers to ensure respectful treatment of Jews, provided plenty of food, firewood for warmth, medical care, etc., and allowed “malinas” (secret spaces ...) to be built for emergency use.
Eventually, Nazi SS soldiers stormed housing units, brutally rounding up and killing children. Plagge was gone at the time, but once back and finding out their plans to take over, he covertly warned remaining Jews. Hundreds heeded the warning and hid within the secret wall spaces. Some survivors remain alive today — along with children/grandchildren — as a result.
Watch the free documentary “The Unsung Hero: Karl Plagge and the Jews He Saved” to know more.
On International Holocaust Remembrance Day (Jan. 27), reflect, mourn and appreciate those heroes who “did not love their lives unto death.” Say the name “Karl Plagge” and take in his courage, strength and love. We need it today.
Ronda Granlund
Clarkston
Remembering Whitman
Our tribute to Silas C. Whitman: We are saddened to hear of Si’s passing. He was a good friend, and such a damned good man.
Si was a role model for me and for so many others, and we are sure that he is doing the same on the other side. His compassion, intelligence and sense of humor is unparalleled.
Sleep well, you prince of fame and fate.
Wyman and Thelma McDonald
Ronan, Mont.
Respect firefighters
It has been disheartening to hear about Mayor Dan Johnson’s blatant disregard for the contract with the Lewiston firefighters.
The firefighters and the city couldn’t reach an agreement in negotiations so, as per state law, the issues were settled by an independent commission. The commission decided in favor of the union but the mayor has refused to implement that decision, despite language in the contract that says fact-finding would be binding. Quoting the mayor, “... Recommendations of the fact-finding commission shall be binding on the city and the union.” You don’t need to be a lawyer to understand what binding means.
The mayor’s main issue seems to be the medical expense reimbursement plan (MERP). The MERP was instituted 12 years ago and it is so important to the firefighters that they gave up raises for two years. To give up the MERP they would need to be made whole, the raises that were given up compounded by all cost-of-living-adjustments since. To make matters even worse, the mayor has decided to withhold holiday pay and uniform allowance from the firefighters that was due in October for the holidays worked in last year.
The members of Local 1773 deserve respect and fair treatment. I would urge the mayor and council to reconsider their decision and uphold the process that was agreed upon in good faith. Supporting the firefighters is the right thing to do and it is essential to the safety of the community.
David Stradley
Juliaetta
Give cabinet a chance
Reading the Lewiston Tribune and watching the news, you would think that President Donald Trump has made the worst selections ever made for his cabinet.
President Joe Biden said his vice president would be a woman of color; he appointed a gay person as secretary of transportation; a so-called nonbinary person as (a) Biden administration nuclear official; and many more who were appointed for what they were rather than being the best possible person for the job, no matter what gender or color they happened to be. And the media proclaimed and celebrated it as the most diverse cabinet ever; nothing was mentioned about their ability to do the job.
Why not give these new people a chance? If things are as bad as predicted, the House and Senate will be Democrat-controlled in 2026.
There are 7,000 FBI agents in Washington, D.C., with a total number of government employees at 2,950,000, and we pay them $136.3 billion a year, with $15 billion in Washington, D.C., alone. The American taxpayer pays $15 billion for office buildings that have been empty since COVID-19 with the employees working from home.
I do hope Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy make fair and needed recommendations for the bloated government we have. We’re more than $36 trillion in debt, and we just spent $5 million to study why prisoners want to escape from prisons. I was thinking about putting in for a $10 million grant to see if it’s better to be a millionaire then poor.
Dan Long
Clarkston
A few points to make
Flush with delight over Donald Trump’s election victory, John Webb and Jim Griffin both wrote letters about the “liberals” (Nov. 17 Tribune).
I have a few points. First, Webb asserted that I “hate” Trump, which is not true. Webb has no understanding of “hate.” I am Serbian on both sides as far back as anyone can remember and, in old-time Serbian society, hatreds go back hundreds of years. It makes the Hatfields and McCoys look like pikers. I have given up “hate” because I know that it eats you alive from the inside out, like cancer.
Second, although labels can be a sign of muddy thinking, I will just say I consider myself a moderate. The only reason I may seem like a liberal is that the ultra far right in Idaho is so off the scale in that direction that even fellow Republicans seem liberal by comparison ... .
Third, since Webb seems obsessed with bacon, I will give him 10 pounds of bacon gratis if he will never write another letter to the editor.
Fourth, Griffin, as far as the Huey helicopters coming for me, ooooh, scary. I have lots of guns and lots of bullets so I wager I can punch a few holes in them if you want to send them around.
Finally, Griffin, as far as local taxes go, I pay mine, like any good citizen, and have no control over them. Why don’t you run for office and take care of that problem you perceive?
Danny Radakovich
Lewiston
Salute to rural health
The United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, observed rural health month in November. We recognized all the doctors, clinics and health specialists who serve rural areas in the nation, and particularly here in Idaho.
Among the states, Idaho has the lowest number of active physicians per 100,000 people and the lowest number of direct patient care physicians. People may wonder why the USDA Rural Development is the federal agency funding health care in Idaho? The reason is that we describe ourselves as “everything rural.”
Over the years, USDA Rural Development has provided more than $42 million in loans and grants to Idaho clinics, hospitals, and rural health programs. Towns that have received USDA health care funding include Council, Ashton, Shoshone, Bonners Ferry, Rigby, Preston, Lava Hot Springs, Salmon, St. Anthony Emmett, Weiser Glens Ferry, Bear Lake, Chalis, American Falls, Cambridge and the Nez Perce and Shoshone Bannock Tribes.
We salute our rural health care providers.
Richard Rush
Boise
