Editor,

I just watched the Port Townsend City Council meeting on Jan. 5, 2014,  available online.

The council commissioned anti-Navy advocate Karen Sullivan to write a five-page letter challenging every aspect of the current EIS.

She recently wrote a letter to the editor of the Whidbey News-Times falsely labeling Capt. Mike Nortier’s statements as “myths.” She included the outrageous “Navy emitter will cause cancer” argument.

Amazingly, that council approved the letter including outlandish statements such as:

• “We question the transparency of the Navy’s public process.”
• “Our second major concern is with noise.” What noise in Port Townsend?
• “… no documentation impacts to property values.” What?
• “EA is inconsistent in providing assurance that electronic attack weapons will not be used.” Weapons?

Aside from outsourcing this letter to an anti-Navy advocate, the council’s statements were more concerning:

• “If we are going to get into this fight, then we need to go all the way.” Fight with the Navy?
• “The military does not think of themselves as a governmental agency … we are the owners of our government.”
• “There ‘could’ be an impact on the animals and we need to delay …” Really, what animals?
• Not to be topped, a couple “citizens” had comments:
• “I was a board member of WISE … The sound [at the Coupeville ferry terminal] is loud.” But you live in Port Townsend?
• “Growlers are made to scare people.”

Let’s review two facts: First, not a single council member or “citizen” complained about jet noise in Port Townsend – makes sense since they are far from the flight path. Second, the small Port Townsend fringe group, of which Ms. Sullivan is a leader, is the same one that disrupted public meetings in Port Angeles and Port Townsend.

There are no noise issues in Port Townsend — the intent is to jeopardize the NAS Whidbey training and 30,000 middle class jobs.

Before they “get into this fight all the way,” maybe, just maybe, they can take a look at the larger picture and realize that Whidbey aviators, who are saving Kurds and protecting U.S. military personnel, deserve the continued training at the Olympic National Forest — the same area where WWII aviators practiced before defending America.

Scott Smith

Oak Harbor