To the editor:

So the South Whidbey Fire/EMS will get a new $500,000 fire boat. A fire boat! Now I’m sure there’s been a crying need for a fire boat on South Whidbey. What? Maybe not so much, you say? Well, can anybody tell me how many times we’ve lost a boat or a house or anything for that matter, for want of a fire boat? Oh, but wait, it’s funded by FEMA grant money! That makes it sort of like almost free, yes?

Well as a matter of fact it does not. These funds do not come from divine providence or even Santa Claus, even if our government officials think they do. The money comes from our taxes. You know, the money that the government (at any level) just can’t get enough of. Ever. And boy, do they love to find ways to spend it. Even for something as asinine as a fire boat. Personally, I’d like to see those funds used to build a new touch-and-go practice strip up in Oak Harbor for those noisy Navy jets, if you know what I mean.

Robert Jobe

Freeland