Supports Johnson for Senate

To the editor:

I enticed myself to go to the Greater Palmer Chamber of Commerce Senate Candidates Forum today with the thoughts I would confront Bill Stoltze.

Bill and DeLena Johnson are the two Republican candidates for District F, which includes my precinct.

As I suspected the forum was pretty boring, it wasn’t a debate. I was surprised it was only slightly twisted to put Bill in a better light than DeLena. I really expected a much more blatant silencing of DeLena knowing who was moderating and sponsoring the event. But it was enough that I can say I am very opposed to Bill and not feel my bias is any more than was shown Mayor Johnson (it was fun to watch David Combs apparently on purpose demeaning-ly stumbled several times over the word “Mayor,” as if DeLena did not deserve it).

The positions were pretty much the same, classic Republican talking points. What was different was the respect and demeanor and perhaps the truth. DeLena doesn’t have a 30-year record of abuse and bullying in the legislature to either exaggerate or downright lie about. Bill avoided a lot of questions to tell us all his interpretation of himself. OK it was a dog and pony show. To my dismay no questions were allowed from the audience. Oh the disappointment.

But Stoltze did three things that anyone but a blind person would see his true and not very nice character. He chastised and intimidated two audience members, one who represents the film industry, which he gutted in favor of his favorite Alaska reality shows. Yes, he took the $200 million a year in state film subsidies, which brought in a billion dollars in economic activity, and gave the money to Sarah Palin. A recent issue of Alaska Dispatch News has an article on this. The other person he came down on was from the Alaska Salmon Alliance, apparently he only likes the fish that contribute to him.

It was the third thing he did though that really threw me — he blamed God for putting the Pebble Mine project at the headwaters of Bristol Bay. I suspect he blames God for the disaster in British Columbia you know the Cariboo Regional District environmental disaster following the release of five million cubic meters of effluent from a tailings pond at the Mount Polley gold and copper mine near Likely on Monday.

No wonder he is down on the fish people, or on Alaska’s greatest resource.

Gregory Gusse

Butte