Alaska editorials

Here is a sampling of Alaska editorials:

Sept. 15, 2018

Ketchikan Daily News: Seafood tariffs

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines collateral damage as “injury inflicted of something other than an intended target.”

In terms of armed conflict, collateral damage is “civilian casualties of a military operation.”

What then might be the collateral damage inflicted by a trade war?

We’re learning more and more about that every day.

The U.S. appears locked in such a conflict, primarily with China. The ostensible targets are fair trade, and reductions in Chinese infringements on intellectual property, cyber theft and demands for technology transfers.

These are worthy goals. It’s yet to be seen whether launching a trade war to achieve those goals has been - or will be - worth the collateral damage.

On Wednesday, more that 80 trade associations from around the United States linked up with agriculture groups to announce an “Americans for Free Trade” coalition and an associated “Tariffs hurt the heartland” campaign.

With a trade war underway and the U.S. preparing a new round of tariffs, business sectors are beginning to feel the effects of the current taxes and are growing ever more concerned about what’s likely to come next.

Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, was quoted widely on Wednesday as saying every sector in the U.S. economy stands to lose from a trade war.

“The stakes couldn’t be higher for American families, businesses, farmers and workers threatened by job losses and higher prices as a result of tit-for-tat tariffs,” Shay said.

Here in Alaska, the seafood industry (for one) is facing the tariff bite.

China has been a growing market for Alaska seafood, as well as a component in some of the processing/logistics chain from sea to table.

The prospect of steep tariffs in a trade war of unknown duration is causing problems, as Sen. Lisa Murkowski noted in a Sept. 6 hearing of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Subcommittee.

Murkowski said about one-third of Alaska’s seafood exports - which includes 40 percent of Alaska salmon and 54 percent of cod - now goes to China.

“Now, Alaskans are facing steep Chinese tariffs on these exports - a pretty significant trade barrier,” Murkowski said, adding that the tariffs are in addition to trade actions by Russia, the European Union, South Korea and Japan.

According to a recap of the hearing supplied by Murkowski’s office, the senator asked federal International Trade Administration Assistant Secretary Nazak Nikakhtar about the agency’s strategy towards tariffs and trade barriers faced by the seafood industry.

Murkowski said that U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer recently told the subcommittee that China is a longer-term problem, for instance, than NAFTA and that a resolution with China is “going to take time.”

“The implication is that we just need to wait it out, but the seafood producers in my state are watching a trade dispute over technology transfer and cyber theft resulting in lost market access for products like salmon and cod - which isn’t an acceptable answer to them,” Murkowski said. “They are not seeing that this is a winning strategy with China to just wait things out. They’re asking how long they’re going to have to endure the tariffs on their seafood exports before the administration acts to resolve rather than escalate these trade disputes. . If you can share with us what that strategy is, I think, here, in open testimony, that would be greatly appreciated.”

Nikakhtar, as quoted by Murkowski’s office, said the administration is working on the China trade strategy - and they’ve always had an open channel to present good ideas to the adminstration and Lighthizer.

“And so I’m always happy to hear from industries and develop a strategy that works for them and then present it to the administration,” Nikakhtar said.

Which suggests two things - that there was and is no coherent overall strategy, and that individual industries can lobby for protection.

In any war, leadership without a winning strategy, coupled with every-man-for-himself opportunities to avoid the front lines, is recipe for disaster.

But, here we are.

The trade war has begun. May victory come easy, sure and swift. And may the collateral damage be far less than the calamity that it could be.

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Sept. 16, 2018

Anchorage Daily News: Alaska’s mental health services deficit exacerbates the state’s problems

Alaska’s issues with its mental health services are by no means secret. A host of news articles and opinion columns have appeared on the Daily News’ pages during the past several years, exploring a lack of capacity to care for Alaskans with mental health challenges and issues at existing facilities. State inquiries and studies have itemized the problems and issued recommendations to fix them. But the state’s mental health services deficit persists - and it’s contributing to many of the other problems affecting Alaska communities. The resignation Friday of the director of the Alaska Psychiatric Institute and other high-level state health executives in the wake of a scathing report about API serves to further underscore the seriousness of the issue.

Mental health challenges contribute to nearly all of the state’s most pernicious issues. A substantial share of Alaska’s homeless population has unmet mental health needs. Difficulties in holding down stable jobs lead some with untreated mental health issues to commit crimes; others’ issues leave them vulnerable to being preyed upon by criminals themselves. As a result, systems not meant to deal with such issues directly on such a broad scale are being strained: Homeless shelters, first-responders, law enforcement, the court system, emergency rooms and prisons.

More than 4.15 percent of Alaskans - 30,000 total, or roughly one out of every 25 residents - suffers from a serious mental illness, according to the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Those Alaskans are among the most vulnerable members of our communities. Expanding the definition to any mental illness, almost 19 percent of Alaskans ages 18 and older experienced mental illness in the past year. That’s close to one in five. If the importance of robust, effective mental health services in Alaska isn’t yet apparent to you given those numbers, it should be.

The state budget crisis has exacerbated Alaska’s issues, as legislators have looked for places to cut back spending for three straight years. More state funds to expand facilities that would help address unmet mental health needs have not been forthcoming, and the budget discussion has also had the deleterious effect of consuming time and energy that might otherwise have been spent helping craft legislative solutions to problems the state has identified with its existing facilities.

Even though there remains a $700 million budget shortfall as next year’s legislative session draws near, legislators must learn, in a manner of speaking, to walk and chew gum at the same time. The problems and capacity issues with Alaska’s mental health services can’t wait another year to be addressed while lawmakers bicker about how to achieve a balanced budget.

At the municipal level, faith in state government’s ability and willingness to solve the issue is low. “We can’t wait on the state to get its act together,” Mayor Ethan Berkowitz said in a meeting with the ADN editorial board this summer. The municipality’s plans for addressing community mental health needs have yet to take shape, but the mayor is wise in seeking solutions to augment any state action - or at least to help mitigate the problem in the face of state inaction.

But the will to act at a local level doesn’t relieve the state of its responsibility to improve mental health services statewide. The state has greater authority and resources to deal with the problem, and any community solutions developed in Anchorage at a municipal level won’t address the needs of communities beyond Southcentral.

Unmet mental health needs in Alaska are endangering health workers and community members. They are increasing costs for emergency services ill-equipped to handle them. And they leave thousands of Alaskans suffering from serious mental illness vulnerable due to inadequate capacity. The state must take immediate action to make sure its existing facilities are serving Alaskans well, and it’s time for legislators to take a hard look at how mental health services can be improved and expanded. Little progress can be made in dealing with the state’s other social problems unless more robust mental health services are part of the solution.

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Sept. 13, 2018

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Time to re-evaluate approach to suicice

The mysterious case of longtime Fairbanksan Paul Pasika, who died alone of an apparent suicide in his home - where he remained for years - brings the issue of suicide and mental health back into focus.

Another recent high-profile suicide was that of Horizon Airlines employee Richard Russell, who hijacked an airplane at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and crashed it into the Ketron Island in Puget Sound.

“I got a lot of people that care about me and it’s gonna disappoint them to hear that I did this,” Mr. Russell told air traffic controllers. “I would like to apologize to each and every one of them. Just a broken guy, got a few screws loose I guess. Never really knew it until now.”

It would not be stretch to say there are many Alaskans who are suffering as Mr. Russell suffered. According to the American Association of Suicidology, 90 percent of the people who die as a result of suicide have a treatable mental health disorder such as depression or a substance abuse problem. Alaskans are no strangers to suicide. If you live in Fairbanks - or any Alaska community - for a couple years, there is good chance you have a friend, family member or acquaintance who has died by suicide or attempted it.

Alaska has failed to provide adequate mental health resources for its residents. Too many Alaskans are turning to drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism. Too many people are slipping through the cracks. Too many people are attempting suicide. Too many are successful.

Perhaps it’s time to do some soul searching.

We are in the middle of an election season. What do the candidates - at the state level - think should be done to address mental health issues and suicide in Alaska? The future of the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend and the economy have hogged most of the spotlight this election season. But the dividend, or the lack thereof, isn’t killing people.

Do we place too much stigma on depression, bipolar disorder, drug abuse and other mental health issues? Do we shame people for seeking mental health treatment?

Are we serious about combating suicide and treating mental health? Should it move up on our priority list?

Alaska Natives suffer a higher rate of suicide per capita than non-Native Alaskans. What can we do to better serve Native communities?

Resources may be scant at the moment. We can watch out for each other, though. If you are concerned someone you know may be contemplating suicide, watch for some of the following signs:

. Withdrawing from family and friends.

. Self-harm.

. Quitting activities, or disengagement from things that were once meaningful.

. Giving away possessions, especially precious possessions.

. Talking about attempting suicide.

. Alcohol and drug abuse.

. Past attempts at suicide.

. A decline in hygiene habits.

If you do become worried about someone, reach out to them. Take them out for coffee or tea. Ask if there is anything you can do to help them.

If you or a friend is contemplating suicide, call the Fairbanks Careline Crisis Intervention Line at 452-4357 or the national Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.