Letters to the editor Dec. 1

Mailbox maintenance

Per the letter to the editor “Delivery Denied” (Nov. 21), let’s not be mad at our local post office employees. These are our friends and neighbors; they stand in line next to at the grocery store checkout; their kids go to school with our kids; and they do their very best at their job. Ever since Kalispell Post Office was downsized in 2013, all local maintenance (including the mailbox repair of Dominick Sassani of Coyote Meadow Trail) is scheduled by district headquarters in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and every now and then a maintenance employee will drive up from Missoula to handle those repairs as needed.

I know that from time to time this can be inconvenient, but the nice people who work at the Kalispell Post Office can only do what they can do.

—Bill Ball, Whitefish

Dash cameras in buses

Not familiar whether anyone has suggested this, however, after a 6-year-old child was hit by a car, which did not stop for the bus’ flashing lights, I wondered whether they are now going to provide (at least) all school buses with dash cameras.

Use the camera evidence to dispense traffic offense tickets for anyone running the school bus flashing lights. Put dash cameras in all school buses and make the public aware there will be high-end ticket offense costs for anyone passing a school bus when flashing lights are apparent — for oncoming or passing behind the school bus. More than two tickets is automatic jail time.

That’s all I have to say on the subject.

—Joanne Stern, Kalispell

Police substations

I want the Department of Justice to fund police substations in Heart Butte, East Glacier, Babb and Seville to enforce public safety and the rule of law that protects life and private property.

All towns in Montana have police. The Blackfeet Tribal Business Council closed all rural jails in 1972 by tribal resolution. No police in Blackfeet towns have created a criminal haven where felons hide and horrific crimes are done.

—Larry Reevis, Cut Bank

Conservative leadership in Helena

Business experience and conservative leadership is desperately needed in Helena. For 16 years liberal Democrats have controlled the Governor’s Office and frequently vetoed good legislation. We must change that.

I came to see Greg Gianforte as a state leader years before he ran for office. Since then he served us well in Congress. We need him as governor.

I invited Greg Gianforte to my small hometown to help mentor groups and individuals on high tech jobs, long before he ran for public office. In recent years as congressman he has held friendly meetings all over Montana, including rural communities from Eureka to Ekalaka. He understands the many issues across this broad state.

He took our voices to Washington, D.C. I appreciate his hard work as a public servant. His skill set makes him an ideal candidate for governor.

Too often campaigns resort to name calling and misrepresentation of information. Congressman Greg Gianforte will focus on the positive.

I support Greg Gianforte in his run for governor. Top notch executive experience, great service in Congress, and positive vision for Montana make him my choice.

— Sen. Mike Cuffe, R-Eureka

Net neutrality

As someone who works in the tech world, net neutrality is something that’s important to me. Net neutrality is the idea that broadband providers and tech platforms should treat all web traffic equally. They shouldn’t be able to block, throttle, or unfairly prioritize traffic from some sites and services over others.

In 2015, the Federal Communications Commission tried to sidestep court rulings by redefining broadband under “Title II” utility-style rules. While this change temporarily allowed for net neutrality regulations, it was a polarizing approach because it opened the door to much more heavy-handed regulation that went well beyond the scope of net neutrality, which critics argued would depress network investment and deployment over the longterm. The 2015 rules were subsequently reversed by the FCC in 2017.

Net neutrality has gotten caught up in the partisan politics that pervade Washington, DC. The Democrat-controlled House of Representatives passed a bill on a party-line vote that the Senate Republicans say is dead on arrival. The House bill went far beyond basic net neutrality protections by also imposing heavy-handed regulations on internet providers.

A bipartisan duo, Senators Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi) and Krysten Sinema (D-Arizona) are trying to figure out a compromise solution and craft a new Senate bill that achieves net neutrality protections for consumers and regulatory certainty for internet providers without going overboard with a “Title II” approach.

I urge Senators Tester and Daines to join their efforts to enact a permanent, nationwide solution.

—Todd Oppel, Bigfork