Letters to the Editor

DOING GOOD, DOING WELL
I was pleased to see John Levesques Final Analysis column in the October issue. He made a wonderful story of Cobalts conference rooms named for accomplished women. I dont think we had time to talk about our Girls Who Code program. We have formed a wonderful partnership with Holy Names Academy; 20 percent of the schools population is now taking computer science and three Cobalt employees are teaching the advanced class. Im as proud of programs like these as I am about creating 1,400 good jobs and generating almost a billion dollars in revenues. There are ways corporate America can make a difference.
John Holt
Cofounder, Cobalt
Seattle

PAYING FOR CARBON
leslie helm is absolutely right that a carbon tax is the optimal solution to addressing global warming as it is both tax neutral and job creating [Editors Note, September 2014]. He is also right that the name carbon tax is a problem. It should be called a carbon tax transfer or tax-neutral carbon reduction plan. Lets not shoot ourselves in the foot by calling it a tax when it is tax neutral.
Jack Schwager
Seattle

I was happy to see your September issue with its excellent report, Climate Patrol, by Patrick Marshall. I was also delighted to see your editorial endorsement: Easy Relief. A Carbon Tax Works And Washington Should Implement One. Pricing works. There was a time just a few years ago when the price of gasoline spiked dramatically during the summer. I saw many people who claimed they could not give up their single-occupant vehicles suddenly taking the bus or carpooling. People respond when it hits their pocketbooks. And the potential to add only 25 cents a gallon may change those behaviors again while also giving us some relief on sales taxes. A win-win if ever there was one. Thank you for contributing to the discussion of this important public policy challenge.
Kerry Kahl
Seattle