As your readers know, King County Water District 54 is working with the City of Des Moines, South King Fire and Rescue, and developers to upgrade our delivery system to meet their needs for redevelopment of existing properties.

The District stands firm that "Growth should pay for Growth," not the existing ratepayers where about a third of them are over age 65.

The water from District 54 comes directly from wells and is uniquely free of additives. In compliance with Department of Health testing, our water does not require chlorine and the citizens of District 54 have always chosen to remain fluoride free.

During our meetings, it came to me that all I knew about fluoride was what I had been told since I was a child. I really had no idea what fluoride was, where it came from or how it got added to so many of our water districts.

I set out to find the answers. I did not expect to have be belief system changed when I "Googled" fluoride.

The fluoride added to water is hydrofluorosilicic acid, an industrial waste product recovered from the smokestack scrubbers during production of phosphate fertilizer. It is not FDA approved and is not pharmaceutical (purified) grade. It contains trace amounts of heavy metals such as lead, arsenic and radium.

In August, a formal complaint including claims of ethics violations was filed with the Center for Disease Control's Oral Health Division and the CDC director. The complaint specifically questions why CDC's own data on disproportionate harm from ingested fluoride in minority groups (seniors, infants, diabetes, kidney patients, HIV infected) is not being communicated to these communities. The complaint also contains photos of a condition called dental fluorosis, a staining and pitting of teeth indicative of overexposure to fluoride.

At the same time over 600 doctors, dentists and other professionals had signed a statement that is being delivered to members of Congress calling for a halt to water fluoridation and to hold congressional hearings on fluoridation. As of October, there were more than 1,100 professionals' signatures.

The complaint and the professionals' statement broadening public awareness about fluoride can be found at www.fluorideaction.net.

There you can also send an on-line message to Congress in support of the professionals' statement calling for an end to water fluoridation and a new congressional hearing.

Alli Larkin, Commissioner

King County Water

District 54

Critic stands behind "facts"

I keep hoping that this will be over, but Ralph Nichols and Ivan Weiss have teamed up to smear me in the Times/News and attempt to discount the evidence supporting my exposure of Stephen Lamphear's public record.

In response to their comments, and letters recently published by the Times/News, I repeat, again, that every referenced item in the letter is backed by copies of the originals, including PDC complaints, lawsuits, the State Auditor report, attorney briefs, newspaper articles and signed letters by Lamphear which I freely offered to anyone. It is not my opinion that Lamphear has harassed so many people, or that he mismanaged the King Conservation District, etc., it is documented in the public record. All I did was to collect it and present it for public evaluation.

Ironically, all of the data (and more) was delivered to the Times/News in 2005 and presented in detail to Ralph, witnessed by Eric Mathison, two Robinsons, and others. Nichols called the information "devastating" but declined to write an article from it because Lamphear had just lost the election and it was "no longer news." When asked the same question this election cycle, he again declined, now calling it "old news." I am incredulous that Ralph would refer to the stack of documentation as merely "opinion" in his column. He went on to contradict himself by confirming Lamphear's behavior as "nasty and vindictive," just as I have alleged.

I have tried to be careful and civil in presenting very difficult material to a wide audience, understanding that not everyone would be pleased by revealing inconvenient truths. The responses from Ralph, Ivan and Lamphear supporters have been not so civil. Here is a sampling of epithets gleaned from those writings: defamatory, mud slinging, hate mail, lie, toxic, mistruths, smear, bashing, bizarre, devious, vicious, drivel, bitter rhetoric and filth.

Judging from the election results, the voting public can, and does read the fine print, and makes up its own mind, especially when a full disclosure of information is available. The number of voters was highest for seat 4, and the win/loss margin is easily the largest in Burien's history.

I feel that I have reached the point where I can no longer be useful in this style of debate and I will now turn my attention to community work in less controversial areas.

Ron Seale

Burien

Burien victor offers thanks

I would like to thank all of the people who supported me in the election last week. I am so very grateful for your faith and trust.

I also would like to thank and praise my opponent, Ed Dacy, for the way he ran his campaign. Ed and I agreed at the very beginning of this campaign that we were going to run our races on issues, not personalities.

We were both saddened and disgusted at the vicious personal attack piece sent out by Ron Seale. Mud slinging like that diminishes us all. Our city deserves better.

Kathy Keene

Burien

Jerry's "joyful" breakfasts

Jerry Robinson is able to glimpse into the lives of the people who live in Burien through his column. He is able to personalize our stories and let others know who we are and what we have been doing. I wish to thank him for these stories of those around us.

However, I wonder how many readers of the Times/News know that Jerry creates a fancy breakfast plate for his wife every morning. There is usually a whole fruit that Jerry has taken great pains to make look like a face: raisins for eyes, maybe a nose and perhaps pieces of cherry for the mouth, a piece of toast also decorated and something to drink.

These creations are creative, delightful, entertaining and joyful. He takes a picture of the snazzy plate and then emails it to his friends.

Next time you see Jerry, ask him about Elsbeth's breakfast. He can explain it better than I can.

It's really great to know that Jerry and Elsbeth are truly devoted to each other. The plate says it all.

Elizabeth Williams

Seahurst

Kudos for public's support

The district has been doing a lot of construction recently and that has placed a burden on the very community we serve. We have been busy completing the new higher capacity sewer outfall. This construction, which was tidal dependant, made noise that kept people up after normal work hours and had temporarily compromised the public use of the very beautiful Des Moines Beach Park.

While this construction may have been inconvenient, one thing I have noticed is how understanding and cooperative most people have been. I think it is a reflection of the people who make up this community. Our inspector, Ole Olson, and I have met a lot of nice, patient and friendly people who have taken the imposition of this construction in stride. In general people understand that the work being done is important infrastructure improvements that are being built to serve the community.

The Board of Commissioners and staff at the Midway Sewer District apologize for the inconvenience. It is our intention to leave our work area in better condition than before we started construction in order to show our appreciation.

Now that the barge and other construction equipment are gone and the marine mitigation work is complete, the District will declare the old trunk sewer and outfall as surplus and will transfer these assets to the cities of SeaTac and Des Moines, and the Port of Seattle. They plan on using these pipelines as a high flow partial bypass for Des Moines Creek. During storms excessive flows will be stored in a regional pond that will discharge through the pipelines we donate. This should help to prevent erosion, flooding and harm to the stream environment. It is expected that the overall habitat of the Creek will improve allowing for a more productive ecosystem.

Thanks to the City of Des Moines, including the Parks Department and the Marina, together with the local community, for helping to make our project a success. We could not have done it without you!

Ken Kase

Midway Sewer District

Defense of White Center

I am writing you because I have long sat back and digested the words used to describe White Center by Burien residents. It sickens me to hear that I must be less than human and definitely less than they (Burien residents) are because of my geographical location. It is appalling to me to hear about how they think of me, my family, and my neighbors.

Burien residents have a holier then though attitude that they are better than we are. Burien residents are making it us versus them mentality. I have news for those in Burien that feel this way, you are worse then we are! We are a community of character and uniqueness. You fear diversity. You fear those different then you are. This may have some to do with that White Center is a hub of many cultures all washing together. I feel it has more to do with the fact that we collectively have less money then you do. This is a show not of racism but of classism.

Burien residents look at my friends, and fellow human beings that are linked together by geography as the residue of society. I am writing because we are not the residuum. If Burien residents were of any intellectual level, diversity is not a bad thing. I have read the staff studies put together on Burien residence's ideas of White Center and the ignorance that is so overly abundant in the common Burien resident.

Burien residents most common argument is that "annexing White Center would deteriorate our quality of life." We are not a third world country. We of White Center and unincorporated King County are separated from Burien by a single street, 128th Street. We are neighbors, like it or not. Our quality of life is not much if any different then Burien. In fact I would argue that living in this unincorporated area of King County is of better quality. It is less homogeneous and such allows for a more diversified upbringing and education, which leads to better adjusted adults.

People of Burien you need to wake up and realize that you are fearful of a community of human beings. We are not monsters but people trying to get through life just as you are. You need to be less ethnocentric. I would like to finish up by saying that when it comes down to it that the stigmas applied to this area are overly generalized and that the people of Burien need to realize that what you have is not necessarily better than what we have.

Chris Sims

White Center

Quality of lake a concern

As a park advocacy group of North Highline neighbors who live near Hicks Lake, Friends of Hicks Lake/Lakewood Park (FOHL) is dismayed that a testing process completed by the University of Washington this past summer identified E. Coli pollution in our lake.

This report, entitled Fecal Coliform Pollution Testing - North Creek and Hicks Lake, BIS293 - Coastlines and Estuaries, completed by the University of Washington, Bothell Campus, used eight samples from Hicks Lake. These samples all showed consistently high levels of Total Coliform and Fecal Coliform (E. coli) in the water. According to the report, the levels of these pathogens are up to 200 times the acceptable state standard for this body of water.

These potentially fatal bacteria are considered non-point pollutions, meaning that they come from animal feces, malfunctioning septic systems nearby, and agricultural run-off. Friends of Hicks Lake is concerned that part of the problem is the large school playfield south of the lake. But FOHL also recognizes that there are 110 homes on septic systems in Top Hat/Greenbridge area, just above the lake in the Hicks Lake watershed.

We are concerned that these septic systems are contaminating the aquifer and waters that partially feed Hicks Lake. We are asking for a public hearing on the quality of water in Hicks Lake, and ask that the Southwest Suburban Sewer District and King County participate in this public hearing to assist us in finding a solution that will make these waters safe for swimmers again, as they were in the 1970s.

Dick Thurnau

Mark Ufkes

Friends of Hicks Lake/

Lakewood Park

Landlord problems aired

I lived in my beloved apartment for over 15 years. However, when I had a leaking toilet for over 8 months and a non-working dead refrigerator for over 2 months I knew I must move because my landlord refused to fix things.

I contacted the City of Burien's James Bibby and a landlord/tenant lawyer to get some help and all I got was the "run around."

The apartment I'm living in now on 156th Street isn't any better. I had heavy debris behind the stove, refrigerator, washing machine and dryer-a fire hazard. The first day I moved in I mentioned to the landlord I had no hot water (May 2007). In August I asked to break my lease because of no hot water and he said NO. On October 18 I had the City of Burien-James Bibby and the Fire Marshall-in my apartment. I was verbal abused for being an older female whistle blower against a young male landlord. They outraged, belittled criticized and humiliated me.

As of today I still have no hot water.

If our landlord refused to fix things in a timely manner-where can we go to get some help? All of the landlord/tenant phone numbers are worthless. If the City of Burien, landlord/tenant lawyers, Fire Marshall are for lazy landlords, what other sources do we have to get some help or support?

Carol Gregor

Burien