The following Letters to the Editor appeared in the August 19, 2026 edition of the Star Valley Independent.

 

Good People at Accidents

Dear Editor

On Saturday evening, the 15th, someone hit a dog on Allred Rd. I heard the impact, but no car was in sight when I got to the front door to look. The dog was old, she moved slowly, as I had seen her before. I thought of the kids who walk or ride scooters on this road sometimes, this could have been much worse.

I thought the dog might belong to a neighbor, so I went to ask them, both neighbors said “no.” I returned to my house in time to see a pickup turn around and return to where the dog was laying in the roadway. This was a girl named Morgan, it was good to see that angels still stop to help accident victims. Morgan called the Sheriff’s Department and they dispatched an officer. Soon another deputy arrived and the two of them tracked down the owner of the dog with Morgan’s help. They worked to help the injured animal and return it to the home where it lived. There was also a local Police Officer involved in this effort.

I have often said, “you meet some good people at accidents.” This is still true, and we who live here are fortunate to have these people in our valley.

Paul J. Turner

 

Library Censorship

Dear Editor

As someone well outside the dominant political bent around here, the current panic over publicly accessible library books just looks entirely backwards.

First, the intense focus on public libraries completely ignores the reality of how young people actually encounter explicit material. They are not flocking to libraries to seek out controversial books. The reality is that anyone with a smartphone or tablet can access unregulated, highly explicit content instantly on the digital devices they carry with them every day. Spending public time and tax dollars attempting to censor local bookshelves does absolutely nothing to address the unrestricted digital world. It is a misguided, ineffective distraction.

Furthermore, access to information is a matter of personal autonomy. If individuals want to avoid a specific book, they have every right to do so. However, someone else’s right to read that book does not violate their right to avoid it. A specific group’s values should not limit public access for everyone else.

True freedom and community respect mean honoring the diverse choices of our neighbors rather than demanding top-down censorship.

Sincerely,

Erik O. Johnson