Two simple questions as this is an emergency.

1.) The svg output file is a wee bit blurry. How do I correct this?
2.) I open a file that is 2000 pixels wide and 3000 pixels in height. I input a width reduction to 500 pixels wide but the height doesn't change to
keep things in ratio. Is there a better way to do this?

Based on your other topic it seems you have a bitmap you want to work with.
Inkscape works at 90 dpi resolution.
This is lethal with raster images, if you want to export the result to png.
Svg itself won't be blurred, but still we don't know what format you use for printing.
I have to assume you are using the export function -or worse, the save as png option.
The save as cairo png will use a fixed dpi for the saving, which is at 72 dpi if I remember right.
You can get a non-blurred export out of embedded raster images only if all it's pixels are aligned on the program's 90 dpi pixel grid.
That means, if you scale your embedded image by any percent, or not position it to even pixel numbers,
and don't use an even placing for the exporting area, it wil all get blurred because of the anti-aliasing.

So we still don't know why are you using inkscape, is there a vector element you added?
If there are no vector elements -paths in first place- for such you probably could edit the original image in a much better way with gimp.

For the second part of the question, you can lock the ration between the with and height
at the boxes where you can type in the dimensions at the top.
But if you scale down the image to it's 25%, it won't turn any exported part to be non-blurred.
Actually you will get a very blurred one by doing that.

If you want to adjust the raster image's size to the document, better reverse the setting:
at file>document's properties panel you can set the page size onto the selected raster image.