This letter is in response to Dannie Oliveaux’s column about the mistreatment of Miss California. I realize the column was an opinion column, but the column was as self serving as Perez Hilton’s inappropriate question was. As a reporter Mr. Oliveaux failed to include some important facts.

The reason her breast implants were controversial is because the Miss California organization paid for them. This seems like an odd thing for them to pay for.

The reason her semi-nude pictures were controversial is because the rules for Miss California state that the contestants have not and will not pose nude or semi nude for pictures.

Her explanation that the wind blew her top open during the photo shoot is laughable. Did the wind make her forget to put a bra on? She was also a minor at the time the pictures were taken.

Miss California’s “Today Show” appearance and lack of honesty was so disappointing to the pagent’s co-director, Shana Moakler, that Ms. Moakler resigned saying that she could no longer support the organization.

No one knows that the reason Miss California lost is because of how she answered the marriage question.

Miss California may have violated her contract by making appearances for conservative right wing organizations. As Miss California she does not have a right to free speech. She is essentially an employee and employees are not protected by free speech rights. The Miss California pageant took the unusual step of appointing the runner-up as the “Beauty of California Ambassador” to fulfill any duties that Miss California may not be able to carry out. What this means is open to interpretation.

As to Mr. Oliveaux’s comment that “You have to admire her,” no, I don’t.

Steve Bailey

Bonney Lake

Did you hear the news? Gov. Gregoire, D, just announced a new employee of the state of Washington. In the midst of layoffs and cutbacks, the governor announced the appointment of the Washington state poet laureate. That’s right, a poet laureate for the state. The person appointed to be poet laureate (a “volunteer” position) will receive up to $20,000 per year and receive reimbursement for travel.

Rest assured this has to be an essential service for the citizens because Gov. Gregoire assured us that essential services will not be cut. Can anyone tell me what essential need a poet laureate fills? Is it a new program called Chris Rewards Art Producers? I guess I am confused, I thought this state was in financial trouble due to the reckless spending of the Democrats over the last four years.

This is one more example of why I believe that liberalism is a mental disorder. That line of thinking that, even though teachers, state employees and services are being cut, Gov. Gregoire and the Democrat-run state Legislature feel it is more essential for us uncultured rubes to have a poet laureate. Of course, we should not be surprised by this newly-created position. It is liberal Democrats that refuse to do away with publicly-funded art.

You know what publicly-funded art is. A local example is the at the garbage dump. All the rocks dumped into a cyclone fence with metal animal cut outs. That is publicly-funded art and it is required by state law. Hard-working, tax-paying citizens paid for this so-called art.

If an artist doesn’t have the talent to sell their works of art on the private market, instead of finding another profession, they create their so-called art to sell to gullible government officials around the state. Hard to believe, but people make a living off of publicly-funded art.

Evidently the publicly-funded art community have powerful lobbyists working in Olympia. You would think the liberal Democrats that run the Legislature would have the guts to stand up to the big art lobby in Olympia and suspend or eliminate the publicly-funded art requirements for building projects to save taxpayers’ money during these tough economic times.

But no, they are stuck on stupid just like Gov. Gregoire and share the same definition of “essential services” with Gov. Gregoire. Evidently, instead of saving jobs and essential services, they would rather have tax dollars go toward publicly-funded art and a poet laureate. This is wrong and is a disservice to the hard working citizens of this state.

J. Buss

Enumclaw