Remembering ‘Balloon Boy’ while rolling the dice in Reno

Pay-by-mile system coming to Washington

Hey Dori, I just wanted to comment on this gas tax/pay-by-mile nonsense. First of all, it’s not my problem that the city can’t manage its money. Everyone who pays taxes in this city needs to grow a pair and start demanding that the city start being held accountable for how they spend our money, period. Secondly, I don’t have a job that allows me to take public transportation for various reasons, so why should I, or anyone else for that matter, be taxed per-mile to drive because Seattle hates cars? Third, they should make all the all-electric car drivers pay by the mile to drive; they aren’t contributing to the gas tax, so why should gas users have to pay twice and make up the difference?

This is out of control. My family has lived here since the ’50s, and in the house we are in since the early ’60s, when much of Lake City was still dirt roads. My family barely made it when things were cheaper, and we are barely making it now. Between Seattle City Light ripping us off and all these other taxes and the pay-by-mile garbage, it’s going to get worse. What happens if people can’t pay by the end of the year? No tab renewal until you pay? No driver’s license renewal until you pay? All they’re going to get is a bunch of unregistered and unlicensed drivers on the road who won’t be able to get car insurance because of the aforementioned things. We taxpayers need to stand up and say enough is enough.

– Tiffany in Lake City, Seattle

Love for Heather’s journalism

Dori … I love Heather Mac Donald. Please bring her back and talk about her other work. She is wicked sharp and tears apart the lunacy of the left. Great show!

– Jim in Lake Stevens

Hi Dori. As an active duty member in the Army with experience of being stationed at JBLM on three separate occasions, I now catch your show via podcast (on a non regular basis — sorry). I am writing on the recurring issue of homelessness and drug use in King County. Recently, there was mention on your show in the Heather Mac Donald segment of how this situation is enabled by refusal to enforce public standards. To this end, I want to give a plug for the drug court program in Pierce County. I have a loved one there who went through the program, graduated, married, and will soon be a parent. This loved one made it through with our support, the support of those lawyers and judges involved, and because they did hold him to standards. Such a contrast when just up the road, the ramifications of not offering the same are played out in grand, negative public fashion.

– Terry in Korea

Not fair to Nancy

Hi Dori, I listen to your show on a regular basis, but this week I had an issue. As much as you talk about the slanted media, you repeatedly played an altered Nancy Pelosi interview that made her sound drunk. As much as you rant about this kind of stuff, you continued to play and comment about it, and I know a great deal of your audience believed it. Snopes has confirmed that it is a doctored video.

– Trish in Ferndale

Where is the opposite of 976?

I’m just wondering why there is no “Vote Yes on 976” response on the air to the heavily advertised and inaccurate “Vote No” ads? It sounds like the public does not have both sides of this important issue. Vote No does not mention the corrupt method of vehicle value. Furthermore, the bridge collapse was because it was hit by an oversize truck, not due to lack of money. Your thoughts?

-Bud in Shelton

Remembering ‘Balloon Boy’ and Reno

Hey there Dori, thanks for the 10-year update on Falcon (the “Balloon Boy”) and family. I heard you say that it was a hoax at the very beginning of all the hysteria. I remember I was at the Peppermill in Reno playing craps when the news on a nearby TV reported that it was all a setup by the father. I yelled, “Right on, Dori!” and immediately sent you a email telling you the Peppermill tale. You emailed me back saying, “What about the important part — how’d you do on the tables?” Ha! Remember that? Anyway, you brought back some great memories. Thanks!

– Larry in Lake Stevens

No hablo español

Dori, my man, please stop trying to pronounce Hispanic names and places like you know Spanish. It sounds so contrived. I love you, I love the show. Just do it normally, dude. Again, love you man.

– Dave in Phoenix

To preserve or not to preserve the Columbia River dams?

The Columbia River dams’ main purpose is flood control and water for agriculture. The power generation is secondary. To save the salmon, we need to change the Marine Mammal Act and kill some sea lions and seals. They are over-running the West Coast. Also, increase the hatchery operations; there is no difference between and hatchery salmon and native salmon.

– Roy in Montesano

I agree with you 99.9 percent of the time. But hearing you say you would choose clean power over salmon struck a nerve. Salmon play a large role in our marine ecosystem. It isn’t just people who eat salmon. You might want to rethink your choice and look at the big picture and effects. I still love the show.

– Matt

Removing the dams is not a popular answer because nobody wants to do anything that would seem insensitive to the Native Americans. The dams they are proposing to remove have been around since the 1930s and ’40s, and are key to agriculture. The salmon population has been in a steady decline since the Boldt decision in 1975 that opened the doors to unchecked fishing by Natives netting the rivers with impunity. There is little to no oversight, and we can remove dams all day, but if they’re still netting and there are no fish, there’s no point. Look at the Nooksack (in the area of the Lummi Tribe). There are no dams at all, and it’s a largely wild river, yet the salmon population is still declining. They blamed the farmers, and are proposing removing the dams, which have no influence on their home river. Yes, hatchery, habitat, and hydro have hurt the populations, there’s no doubt, but nobody wants to look at the fishing. And I love fishing, by the way.

– Charlie in Ferndale

Listen to the Dori Monson Show weekday afternoons from 12-3 p.m. on KIRO Radio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.