Instead of judging, how about ‘neighbor helping neighbor’ Day

From Helen Ann Hoverud

Starbuck

The easiest thing for us to do as human beings is to JUDGE – whether it be how someone looks, dresses, acts, our cars or someone’s property upkeep compared to our own as well as countless other things – we judge. How sad is that?

In response to Letters from Ms. Mulcahy and Mr. Rossum re: Starbuck property upkeep. I would like to point out some things to consider:

Some property dwellers are elderly and cannot do things for themselves. Some are disabled, have mobility issues, or have recently had surgery. Some have cancer and are undergoing chemotherapy. Some are single or widowed and have no family to assist. Some may have financial difficulties. There are many other possibilities. It is also difficult to find others to assist. Most businesses that could help are booked to capacity.

Put all these things together and many more and this accounts for things not measuring up to other’s ideas of what things “SHOULD” be. These are NOT excuses, they are realities. There are no easy answers, but judging just makes those of us being judged feel worse and doesn’t solve any issues.

Perhaps Starbuck needs to declare a “Neighbor Helping Neighbor Day” (think: BE KIND!) when some of the above writers’ concerns could be addressed.

I would like to suggest that next year when Ms. Mulcahy and her family return to Starbuck they may want to consider coming prepared to assist some of us “locals” who don’t measure up to help improve our property. As a resident of Starbuck Mr. Rossum could also choose to do this at any time. This would not only improve the appearance of Starbuck, it would also promote good feelings for the Mulcahy family as well as Mr. Rossum. It would also promote good feelings for property owners instead of shame. It’s a Win-Win!

If that is NOT an option, I would suggest that upon Ms. Mulcahy’s return next year and Mr. Rossum’s drives through town, they stick to the part of Starbuck south of Highway 29 so they can get back to their former good feelings about Starbuck.

Responds to myriad topics brought up by letter writer

From Jessica Erlandson,

formerly of Lowry

I suppose after the Governor received the letter referenced in last week’s edition of the Tribune requesting he repent in relation to laws enacted during the previous legislative session he would have immediately sought counsel from his advisers. The topic of discussion must be which exact God and accompanying will was this in opposition with and what judgement could be expected as a consequence? I am certain they found their answer right along with the passages referring to the categorization of how to diagnose and treat individuals with Klinefelter, Turner, or Fragile X syndromes along with a myriad of other reproductive endocrinology conditions. Perhaps the parable of the teenage girl with delayed puberty being discovered to be biologically male as a result of congenital adrenal hypoplasia due to SRY gene not activating on the Y chromosome during the fifth week of gestation would have enlightened them. Human genetics was certainly well studied in the ancient near east, right up there with the code of Hammurabi.

To not continue to support the war in Ukraine and try to make any attempt to appease Putin would be as foolish as a declaration of “Peace in our Time”. Considering the former president added 25% of the current debt onto the tab and prospect of Putin trying to rove over all of Eastern Europe and beyond to recreate a new USSR, losing Europe as our largest trading partner to conflict would also devastate the global economy. This would be secondary to the tidal of displaced refugees that would need assistance if we were foolish enough to allow such a circumstance to happen.

We are a country of immigrants, strangers in a strange land. My own surname Erland comes from the Old Norse erlendr or ørlendr, meaning foreigner. For many years I have practiced in a clinic treating children with tuberculosis and various other diseases, many of whom are “illegal” and fleeing violent conflict in their home country to a place where the language, customs, food, and populations are often very different. I often tell these families about my own family history and imagine the hope that shines through their eyes is a glimpse of the same glimmer that shone when my predecessors made their first steps onto this new soil after leaving everything else they knew behind. They are not a threat to us, nor are they the scapegoat to the reason why food or fuel prices have been inflated, as much as certain people who know better would want you to believe otherwise. To put in it pragmatic economic terms, with falling birth rates developed countries will have to rely on immigration to bolster the tax base ensure social programs such as Medicare and Social Security will remain solvent.

I am pleased that more are addressing the increased cost of higher education through tuition assistance and loan forgiveness. Despite the fact I worked most weekends and several nights per week at GRV during my junior and senior year of high school to save up for college to avoid burdening others with the expense, graduating with a relatively low amount of debt that I paid off myself well before forgiveness programs were introduced, I would not hold that over a younger person and bash them over the head for having an easier path than I did. Progress tends to lend itself to removing obstacles in a society, not holding them over as “that was the way it was for me”.

It will be informative to follow the coverage of the upcoming trials for P01135809 to find out exactly how great his innocence is and will be on display for all to see. He is certainly as innocent as Justice Clarence Thomas who only disclosed his trips with multiple influential billionaires after excellent investigative reporting revealed it had been undisclosed for years. We owe a great deal to the diligence of the fourth pillar, especially as it groans under the weight of such assault as it sustains repeated attacks on democracy from those that would seek to undermine it.