>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

In the past, I've ignored Mary McCracken's ramblings, but her latest letter is too much to ignore. The MacLeods have a right to present any song they choose, it's called freedom of speech. But I guess that is only meant for Ms. McCracken. By the way Mary, Sen. Larry Craig is from Idaho.

Today the railroad provides access to the beauty of the Grande Ronde and Wallowa rivers to far more people, both local and tourist, than a walking trail ever would and generates some revenue. If all else fails, the sale of the rails alone will cover the debt attributed to the railroad.

The golf course is an asset to the county and will eventually carry itself financially. It is a long-term investment into the growth of Union County.

Union County has thousands of acres of land open to public access. There is no reason for the county to get financially involved with acquisition of Mount Emily. This land would provide no income to the county, unless timber was harvested. If the county owned land, it would be removed from the tax rolls.

Finally, the wind farms were coming to Union County regardless of who got involved. I am sure all the commissioners supported their development from the start. The wind farm construction provides a short-term boost to the economy, but no long-term return to the county. Unless the county taxes the utility company, the only people

making money off the wind generators are the landowners.

Jack Boyd

La Grande

_____________________________

I'm so sorry that Colleen MacLeod is leaving the commissioner job. I didn't always agree with everything she did or said, but would have supported her 100 percent where Mr. Wilkinson was concerned. John Lamoreau is a dear friend of many years and I would not have thought him to be that hard to work with.

I thought Colleen did an excellent job and hate to see her go. Her husband, Al, will no doubt be glad to see more of his dear wife.

I am no doubt in the dark, but would welcome seeing John Lamoreau run again.

I wish to bless Commissioner MacLeod and I thank her for a job I consider well done.

Roy Hills

Island City

_____________________________

The headlines on the EPA flyover of animal feeding practices in Union County from the Dec. 12 Observer sounds to me like the EPA boys have too much time on their hands.

It just burns my buns that our hard-earned taxpayer money is paying these yokels to spy on us from the air.

Why don't they go plant trees or do something else useful?

I like clean air and water just as much as the next fellow, to the point that I stopped using a burn barrel, but this EPA trick is ridiculous.

Didn't these EPA boys figure out that their aerial escapades are wasting valuable fuel and polluting the air that we have to breathe? I think they ought to stay home, where it's nice and warm, and people actually want them there.

If those EPA boys want to use those airplanes so darned bad this winter, then why don't they fly out and shoot a bunch of wolves that are preying on our wild game and livestock.

Now that would be something exceptionally useful and much appreciated!

Nick Smith

La Grande

_____________________________

We were saddened to learn Colleen MacLeod is bowing out of public service because of the ongoing attacks by Mr. Wilkinson and Mr. Lamoreau.

Studies have shown that burnout of the job comes not from long hours, not from lots of responsibility, not from low pay, but from being harassed and of having to justify and defend everything one does.

Some of us may have had a job like that ourselves and understand how this feels. In Colleen's case, it was amplified by being made public. If one responds, they are "on the defensive," if they ignore, they may be presumed guilty. It is a no win situation.

Colleen has been a little dynamo working hard for the betterment of Union County. Her shoes will be hard to fill. We speak for many when we thank Colleen for her outstanding service as Union County commissioner.

Marge and Henry Woodford

La Grande

_____________________________

I was disappointed to read letters demanding an apology for the Nov. 28 cartoon. They reminded me of the outcry over the Dutch cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammed that so many Muslims found offensive.

Our home-grown American Taliban forgets that the establishment clause of our Constitution implies that no religion has a monopoly on public discourse. Not everyone believes as you do: Most of the world's population is not Christian, and many of those people hail from faith traditions based on principles outside of the Abrahamic tradition. Your version of the truth is simply

that — your version.

While I support your right to public dialogue, your attempt to impose your beliefs on a newspaper is exactly what brave soldiers fight against in our so-called War on Terror, and you should think twice before becoming like our enemies.

Letters like these make me wonder what's happened to us. Voltaire, whose works inspired our founding fathers, allegedly said, "I may not agree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." Patrick Henry proclaimed, "Give me liberty or give me death!"

What really offends me is that while our soldiers die abroad for our freedoms, daily we hear calls to limit them at home. What's wrong with this picture? Unfortunately for all of us, myself included, part of living in a modern and free society is offending others and being offended in turn.

Tough break, but it beats the alternatives.

Matthew Wells

La Grande

_____________________________

For those who have challenged my view of socialized medicine and Canada's health care system in particular, did you know:

• Canada spends $3,165 per capita on health care, compared to $7,000 in the United States.

• The life expectancy in Canada is three years longer than in the U.S.

• The infant mortality rate in Canada is five per 1,000, compared with seven per 1,000 in the U.S.

• 24 percent of Americans did not seek medical care because of cost, compared to 5 percent in Canada.

• There are nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance, compared with none in Canada.

• The median waiting time in Canada is only three weeks for diagnostic tests and only four weeks for specialist visits and non-emergency surgery.

• 70 to 80 percent of Canadians feel their wait times are acceptable.

In response to the letter that implies that having socialized medicine would be like handing a 5-year-old keys to a Rolls Royce: does John Petersen actually believe doctors in countries that have socialized medicine don't attend medical school? Does he think that ambulance drivers in Canada or France or Cuba don't receive training?

The gentleman who had some bad experiences with Canadian health care should realize that anyone can have a bad experience. It's difficult to be objective when a loved one is involved.

There are problems with our health care system and we are paying through the nose for the privilege. The richest, most advanced country in the world allows a large percentage of its citizens to go without health care entirely as long as we don't have to pony up the tax money.

The Canadian system may not be perfect but it's proven to be much better than the American medical-care-for-only-those-who-can-pay" arrangement that we have now.

Lynn Strandberg

Union

_____________________________

I've read in the past where the Adams Avenue merchants have had a decline in business. Well, my daughter and I recently decided to make a day of lunch before our hair stylist appointments.

I parked in the parking lot in back of the restaurant and hair salon for a leisurely afternoon mother-and-daughter outing, only to come back to the car three hours later to find a ticket. I went back and asked our stylist how this could be when we spent over two hours in her salon not counting lunch time. She told me I should have gone out and moved my car before the two-hour limit was up.

So I should have gone out in the 20- degree weather with perm rods and solution in my wet hair to move my car. Well, I sure can see why Adams Avenue businesses might be struggling. I now realize that maybe the decline is due to parking limits since one can park at Wal-Mart and shop and eat, get an eye exam and even get their hair done.

Why would someone want to go and park on Adams and have to run back to the car every two hours? There goes someone's day out to lunch and a movie too. What a slam to a wonderful day.

Sandy Mendenhall

Cove

_____________________________

If you adopted a puppy or kitten in 2007, now is the time to get it spayed or neutered!

We could easily have taken 30 kittens a day all summer during "kitten season." We could not take that many kittens and we have nightmares knowing what probably happened to the ones we could not rescue.

We asked all the callers why they had kittens and there were two main reasons. "We didn't know how old she had to be," was number one. Spay or neuter pets at 6 months of age — fix at six months!

The second reason was because kind people fed a stray cat that was starving in the winter. They never thought about kittens until it was a too-late surprise. Please spay that stray!

People who have the first litters of the year feel good because their kittens place so fast — to "good homes" of course. We wish they would check back in a few months or a year and see how many of those kittens are homeless, abused or dead.

At the very least, these kittens take homes away from the other unlucky ones.

If you just have to experience baby kitties, call us. We have plenty. They are so hard to place because everyone wants to breed. Planned Pethood has always struggled and our struggles are intolerable at this time.

We are not giving up. Fix at six months. Spay that stray. Need help? We know we can help. Do the kind thing and stop breeding. Let's make 2008 a real no-kill year — no more babies to hurt and destroy. It is up to you!

Louise Goodenow

Planned Pethood, Inc.

La Grande

_____________________________

Some recent letters to The Observer have expressed sympathy for the plight of Commissioner MacLeod — that she is essentially being harassed out of office. I've seen small and large political scandals and crises in my 60 years and it is a general truth that where there's smoke there's fire.

Colleen's decision to give up the $55,400 plus per annum county commissioner's salary removes her from the deep scrutiny she would no doubt receive in another

election bid.

To be of assistance in her post-political afterlife, a very small committee has self-constituted and come up with some (I hope) helpful job options:

1. Public relations manager for Sen. Larry Craig (Idaho).

2. Conductor on the Wallowa Union Railway.

3. Caddy at Buffalo Peak.

4. Gray wolf reintroduction specialist (armed) with Defenders of Wildlife.

5. Kindergarten music teacher specializing in melodica and jew's harp.

6. Union County liaison to the post-Bali global warming conference.

7. Importer of alpaca skins from Iraq.

8. Per diem/expense analyst for the Fuller Brush Company.

Should the soon-to-be-ex find these recommendations to be of some assistance we hope she won't hesitate to request further direction from the Committee.

Michael Rosenbaum

La Grande

_____________________________

As a former three-year resident of Union County I find it interesting to peruse The Observer online. I especially find it interesting to read the letters to the editor, as this is generally the section that has the most information about the happenings in the community.

Not only do I see that a select few residents haven't given up their childish attack tactics since my departure 10 months ago, but they do not stop to check their facts. In a recent letter, a "concerned" citizen was attacking Colleen MacLeod's character because she and her husband engaged in a satire of former President Clinton. This citizen identified Sen. Larry Craig as being from Utah. I was born and lived in Idaho for 20 years and the last time I checked Sen. Craig was a representative of my home state. Not Utah.

Any points that were made in the article, whether valid or not, I subsequently ignored due to the author's inability to get a small detail correct. How can people believe the main "facts" if the person attempting to persuade can't get the small facts?

Lindsay Thompson

Redmond, Wash.

_____________________________

It's time to get our yearly dose of God and Jesus. Jesus is once again to be born to save ourselves from ourselves.

God bless America for our ignorance, our greed and our God-given right to exploit the planet to keep up our lifestyles. Do the people who believe God is constantly blessing America believe God is blessing our one- ton bombs which continue to kill women and children in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Growing up in the Roman Catholic world, I was told God is everywhere. God is the god of all peoples.

And now I would like to quote Karen Armstrong, former nun and writer of more than 10 books including "A History of God," "The authentic test of a religion is not what you believe. It's what you do, and unless your religion expresses itself in compassion for all living things it is not authentic.''

God bless the world.

Brian Cantwell

La Grande

_____________________________

In the 1700s the people on this continent freed themselves from monarchal rule, choosing to be ruled by a democracy, granting one vote to every man.

Church towers were used to send warning signals so folks would know where the enemy was lurking. Church song books were used for wadding in the soldiers rifles. Preachers, along with parishioners fought, and many died for our freedoms.

In 1860, the Civil War was fought to free the slaves. Both the pastors and men of the congregation grabbed their rifles and fought to win this conflict along with other soldiers, and 500,000 never came home, but the slaves were freed.

In my opinion we once again we are in an ideological situation of conflict, which is Muslim vs. Jew and Christian. In the 7th century, Mohamed, using the Quran as his rule book, conquered all of Western Asia, Northern Africa and on up into Spain. Violent conflicts ensued until the 15th century, when Muslimism was soundly defeated on the European Continent.

Today there are over a billion Muslims, and the riches of the world are flowing into their coffers through oil revenue. I believe the Quran teaches the same thing it always has, and that is that all followers of other religions and philosophies either conform to those doctrines or be exterminated.

As a Christian, I read Christian books, listen to Christian radio and attend a Bible-believing, Christ centered church. Since

9-1-1 almost seven years have passed, and I have only heard one Christian pastor preach on this subject, and that is Chuck Colson.

With our nation at war against radical Islam, I don't know how churches and other Christian entities can be so ignorant about a religion that teaches its followers to hate us.

John Petersen

La Grande