From July 1, 2006

Bremerton schools

Teachers, students, parents give in to stereotypes

This letter is in response to the editorial “Teachers Can’t Raise Bremerton Children” (June 24). As a 2006 graduate from Bremerton, I’d like to share a few ideas on why I think our district has developed such a negative image.

I feel that once this “Bremerton district is stupid” outlook started, no one really cared. However, our grades started to greatly support this theory. Teachers start to lose motivation for teaching “dumb Bremerton” because no matter how hard they try, we’ll still have the negative stereotype cast upon us. The same goes for students. Some kids might think, “Well, people already think we’re dumb, what does it matter?”

Students just don’t care anymore. For each student, the reason varies but I think maybe the more and more lazy society becomes, the more it rubs off on teens and kids. Parenting also plays a big part. Kids pick up on parents’ behaviors and, well, Bremerton doesn’t have the greatest neighborhoods and friendliest people. I’m not saying Bremerton is all bad; we’re a very diverse city, with pleasant people and not-so-pleasant people.

Basically, it all comes down to the student. It’s their responsibility to take advantage of the education they’re given and go as far as they want. It’s harder for some kids to recognize how great and how wonderful education can be if parents didn’t instill the right values in them.

ALECIA LIVIE

Class of 2006

Bremerton

Election 2006

Lent, Sheldon: No comparison

A recent ... attempt to favorably compare County Commissioner Patty Lent with State Sen. Tim Sheldon was a flight of fantasy, and notoriously lacking in fact or substance.

Point: Sen. Sheldon’s voting record reflects his championing of his constituents’ essential constitutional property rights.

Ms. Lent’s voting record reflects either an ignorance of, or a personal rejection of such constitutional rights. Benedict Arnold would be proud of Ms. Lent’s operating with authority untainted by knowledge or wisdom.

As an example: Her vote in the “updating” of the Kitsap County Critical Areas Ordinance -- where her casual signature took slices of private lands totaling more than 30,000 acres, valued at approximately $934 million from our fellow citizens, without a penny of compensation for their loss, while allowing them to continue paying full taxes on the purloined property.

That action cannot be alibied as Ms. Lent breaking the bonds of domination by “Republican Party politics.” That is banana republic politics of uncompensated confiscation by the state -- all easily verified by anyone who would look up the facts of this “taking” from we the people, rather than listening to the pitter patter of political apologists.

Pitter patter Patty Lent,

Here’s the way the campaign went:

Hiding this, denying that --

Ignoring truths, ignoring fact.

Study avoided, conclusions bent,

Chitter chatter Patty Lent.

HELEN MILLER

Bremerton

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