Letter: Read before writing that check

Coincidence! I too am a Lakewood-Lover, and unlike the earlier poster, I am grateful to have input on issues that we citizens should know about before we vote. Rarely do we receive this information from anywhere else, so thanks for reminding us why we need to become informed citizen-voters. It appears that some want the citizens of Lakewood kept in the Dark.

A reminder – Kent Keel is ALSO running for the Washington State House of Representatives position. Mr. Keel is confident and eager to be the voice of the people. He is well qualified, smart and ready to begin to help our community with current concerns such as getting our unemployed people back to work, public safety and valuable education in our local schools and colleges.

Thank you Lakewood Lover. I too am sooooo tired of David Anderson getting on his soapbox about gambling. We voted, you lost, give it up. Smoking is bad for you, people do it. Fast food is bad for you, people eat it. Drinking is bad for you, it still happens. Are you trying to keep this up until you get your way. It’s getting OLD. Worry about yourself Mr. Anderson and QUIT trying to push your morals onto the rest of the good citizens of Lakewood!

Kolohe, if David Anderson is “trying to push [his] morals onto the rest of the good citizens of Lakewood”, could it not just as easily be said that you, and proponents of gambling in Lakewood, are not “trying to push *your* morals onto the rest of the good citizens of Lakewood”? Please explain how your argument is valid, and his is not. The previous Referendum was not about gambling in Lakewood; because it was ill-timed during a general election, it was quickly morphed into being about police personnel cuts. Because gambling in Lakewood is so very divisive in our community, perhaps for that reason alone, it should be banned outright by a forward-thinking city council. Perhaps we as a community would better be served by concentrating on bringing businesses and families into out midst so that we aren’t reliant upon casino money. Casino money isn’t raising academic performance in our schools. Let’s ALL work toward achieving that goal, because prospective businesses and growing families certainly do look for a sound and stable school system which fosters a sound and stable community. Families and booming businesses do not move to Lakewood in order to have easy access to casinos! But, good schools, along with a service-oriented, forward-looking government, bring stability, good jobs, and expanding businesses!

The previous 2008 referendum WAS about gambling, and the citizens of Lakewood decided to vote it down. We listened to the same people and groups going on and on ad nauseam about the perils of card rooms and casinos. They made their case very loud and very clear. Unlike those groups, I’m not trying to push my morals on anyone. I don’t go into the casinos and game rooms here in Lakewood or anywhere else. However, if I want to go to these establishments I can, and if I choose to spend my money that way I will. I also have never given my children a lotto ticket as a gift, and that is MY choice. Have I played a fun hand of blackjack and Texas hold’em with my son, yes. He is well aware that we were “gambling” with chips but he also knows it is a fun card game and I can honestly say I haven’t corrupted him because he has played a few hands.

I find the above March 17, 1:28p response from Kolohe253 to be both amusing, and most telling. Is he not aware that what youth learn in their home as children often stays with them throughout adulthood, even “fun card games” complete with chips played with their father. Parents don’t know whether they have “corrupted him” (interesting choice of words not used previously in this thread by anyone else) for several years, and perhaps not even for many years. Would these parents similarly introduce their minor children to sharing a couple of shots of hard liquor in their home, as they share their “fun card games”? Drinking and “fun card games” do go hand-in-hand in casino gambling. The Olympian article above referenced by David Anderson states, “Parents must understand there are serious risks associated with young people and gambling.”

It is a stretch to ask me to understand how someone who shares with their son “fun card games” complete with chips could possible expect others to believe the person when he states, “I’m not trying to push my morals on anyone”, especially when he states that his son “is well aware that we were ‘gambling’ with chips”.

But Kolohe (unless he is Wurts) is not the subject of this discussion. The subject here is Brian Wurts, and his personal aspirations to represent Lakewood taxpayers in Olympia. Does Wurts – and his conduct while a policeman – represent the values which Lakewood citizens cherish and value about our community? Does being a policeman automatically qualify one to be a representative of ‘we the people’ in Olympia? How much do we know about Wurts’ official conduct while an on-duty policeman? Has his conduct thus far in Olympia represented Lakewood’s values?

“People are looking for authority they can trust. There’s no need to tiptoe around facts, evade hard issues, or equivocate on clear matters. If you know the truth, speak it with authority! That’s what true leadership does.” – John MacArthur, The Book on Leadership.

And, I would add, if you have the truth, there is no need to hide behind a pseudonym, which literally means “false.”

In marked contrast to pro-gambling ‘opinions’ and pseudonyms, anti-gambling activists have been quite distinguished for both their authenticity and their factually-substantiated positions.