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Opinion Letters Letters and comments for the week ending February 2, 2008
Letters and comments for the week ending February 2, 2008
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Rynearson, Gross, Alexis, Cimon, McCracken, Ballard, Shaffer, Thompson
As an adjacent property owner to the proposed acquisition of 3,000-plus acres by a coalition north of La Grande (the Mount Emily fringe area), I have several questions: Who would own the property? Union County? They would be applying for the state parks funds. Is the appraised price at today’s market or the value at the time the appraisal was done? Who will administer use of the area? In Morrow County, it is a county employee. Will the property be taken off the tax rolls or be taxed as recreational use? Is the public aware that this is some of the most productive timber growing sites in the county for future wood? Will a special interest group be able to agree on management? Will they take the advice of a real forester? The terrain does not lend itself to wholesale development for housing. There is a lack of water, wells are 450 feet deep and the approximate 16 homes on Mount Emily acres are on one spring. The size of the rocks limits excavation. At the current zoning only 10 to 12 private sites would be available. Colter Ridge Properties has only three parcels proposed to sell. Is this a way of the county getting La Grande Ranger District off the hook on implementing a recreational off road/on road management plan? The Forest Service should be responsible for developing the Spring Creek area. It is much flatter, four to five times the area and wouldn’t be as much of a tax burden on the public. I haven’t seen too many bikers on 40 percent to 60 percent slopes, and most people lead their horses on slopes like this.
La Grande ___________________________ Mr. Summer’s Jan. 17 letter consisted of very sharp criticism and name calling such as “one-eyed queen” and “her cronies.” He states that La Grande will require “visionary inclusive leadership.” If he intends to pursue a city council position, please spare us from such derogatory statements. La Grande’s city politics do not need this type of campaign. La Grande and its neighbors have seen numerous large and small beneficial projects without a property tax increase. I may not agree with some projects, but I do appreciate the effort and time donated by the city employees that create these improvements. To imply that their efforts are “ludicrous and insulting” is simply very insulting. Stating that “La Grande hasn’t really changed at all in the last 10 years” is in my opinion a very “shallow perspective” considering what has actually transpired during these years because of the efforts of so many, including Mayor Johnson and “her cronies.” With this letter I may have, as many people do, just violated this wise advice: Sometimes it is better to keep your mouth shut and have people think you a fool, then to open it and remove all doubt. Ron Gross La Grande ___________________________ The term “pass the buck” is still in use in the education and political fields. Contrary to that, the term “the buck stops here” seems to have been trashed in both areas of employment education and politics. The recent article in The Observer regarding the ex-president of EOU (Khosrow Fatemi) is a good example of the application or absence of the previous two phrases. How was it that Fatemi made it this far? The same question applies to George Pernsteiner. How did these two incompetents make it as far as they have? I saw this coming two years ago. I know exactly how it happened, and it is very simple and repeated frequently in education and politics. It happens because of false evaluations by those with the power to say, “The buck stops here!” I was employed by a high school district that now has 35,000 students and 28 schools. (There were 15 high schools when I was teaching there.) I observed teachers and administrators of poor performance being kicked out of the district but with good recommendations in their hands to the next place of employment. A thorough check of these two people will probably show poor performances in their pasts. To keep Fatemi on the payroll is like throwing bull manure in all taxpayers’ faces. Too bad “tarring and feathering” techniques are lost in history. My motto is: titles, degrees and/or money only mean as much as the people in your presence place on them. Fred Alexis La Grande ___________________________ I have a lot of respect for Joe Garlitz, but I’m disappointed with his letter targeting the environmental community. He should be thanking them. Here’s why: In a 2005 study, the U.S. Forest Service found the air funneling down the gorge was more acidic than that of big cities in the east — enough to kill plants and change the ecology. The rain was 10 to 30 times more acidic than typical rain. The culprit: sulfur dioxide. Damage to forests from acid rain is well known in the east. The effect on lakes and waterways is to kill fish and leave barren ecosystems. The health impacts of sulfur dioxide include destabilized heart rhythms, low birth weight, increased risk of infant death and difficulty breathing even at low emissions. It’s also implicated in respiratory infections and bronchitis. In 2001, PGE Boardman released 17,821 tons of sulfur dioxide or about 35 million pounds. There were 8,000 tons of nitrous oxides, tons of particulates and more than 100 pounds of poisonous mercury as well. This is before we get to the 4 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2000. Let’s not talk about the entire U.S., either, let’s talk about the people who get their power from Boardman. It can provide electricity to about 275,000 households. Assume three people per household and that’s 14 tons per household per year, to go along with the one ton they exhale. Economists understand that the price of goods and services should reflect the true cost of production, yet none of the costs for forest destruction, water pollution or health care have been included in the power produced by the Boardman plant. If we are unwilling to allocate the cost of climate change — a carbon tax would be the best way — litigation is the only recourse. The state should never have permitted the plant without controls. Even now it’s running to catch up. We owe a big thanks to HCPC for taking on this issue. Norm Cimon La Grande ___________________________ George Bruce’s Jan. 22 letter, “State dictates land use,” claims that private ownership of property provides a society with liberty, justice, peace and prosperity. No examples were cited. I believe that private property rights engender wars, unsettle economies, the polarization of wealth and extreme injustices worldwide. Sustainability requires land and resource regulations based on more than short-term profit. Yet that’s what’s behind most property rights proponents. Corporations have found ways to privatize America’s federal lands. Loggers supported unsustainable harvesting in the name of jobs. Local governments let tax dollars keep them from supporting economically sustainable policies. The scalping activities created more Forest Service jobs too, so it disregarded the obvious destruction. Thus we sacrificed sustainable employment and economic stability to timber barons amassing family fortunes. Now local governments beg for/demand federal funds to offset the timber money. What? If someone inherits a fortune and squanders it, does that entitle him to continue the spending spree on welfare? The property rights mentality “justifies” ruthless, unjust practices. Wars are primarily fought over the resources that constitute property values. Corporations, the real profiteers under unfettered property rights, continue war mongering, murdering, starving and dislocating people in their frenzied usurpation of global resources. Sustainability, social justice and peace should guide us in making land use policies.Yet leaders who attempt to govern for the best interest of society are either murdered or defeated through lies and exclusion. A current example is the silencing of Kucinich for advocating the reining in of monopolized media, international corporations and our defense department — the forces currently ruling America. The demand for unfettered property rights is one symptom of our diseased economy, society and government.
La Grande ___________________________ As president of the (Salem) Capitol Chapter Oregon Hunters Association, I have been monitoring many issues regarding wildlife in Oregon. Two of the most intriguing are, of course, wolves and our new resident moose, estimated to be approximately 40 in number. It is important to note that it was not just OHA chapters in Baker and Union counties that donated to the moose-collaring project. I know our chapter donated $550. Not that it is a lot, but your story does nothing to dispel the common misperception that those of us on the west side of the state don’t care about what happens east of the Cascades. This is especially true of the organization I belong to as we donate many man-hours volunteering for wildlife and habitat improvement projects as well as thousands of dollars annually in materials donated to habitat improvement projects. In fact, this chapter spends more on eastside projects than it does for areas much closer to the Willamette Valley. Dale Ballard, president Capitol Chapter OHA ___________________________ Does Steve McClure sincerely feel it is effective use of taxpayer dollars to satisfy the “wants” of a few citizens to enjoy a select area of Union County? If there were only a few recreation areas available, this ordeal may have more warrant, but it is no secret that Union County is surrounded by several outdoor areas for public use. Yes, some of these areas may be out of immediate walking or driving distance, but is it a crime to support our local gas stations? (Don’t try to fool me. This Mount Emily purchase will not meet the needs of the poor common man.) It is quite apparent that the business attempts of the golf course and railroad are well above the county government capabilities. Does the county business plan for Mount Emily state the true costs of hiring foresters, real estate agents, land managers, etc.? How will grazing rights be fairly allocated? Mr. McClure can gloat all he wants about “free grants.” There is no such thing as free money. Yes, they may receive some start-up funds, but how long will that sustain their business plan? It’s frustrating when I think of the time and money wasted on unsuccessful business attempts by Union County commissioners. What happened to local government focusing their skills on government-related programs, such as roads, human services and schools? The “majority” of taxpayers use these services. The commissioners may also marvel at the fact that there are free grants available for these programs as well. Let Mr. Barlow and his coalition manage Mount Emily. Mr. McClure, consider revising the job descriptions of the county commissioners. It is about time that the common citizen’s needs be represented by our local government. Derek Shaffer Summerville ___________________________ Increasing downtown business is a focus of the city and parking is considered a barrier. Many who go downtown also grocery shop before going home. It might benefit both downtown and Safeway, for example, to have a shuttle going back and forth between their large parking lot and downtown. No side trips, just back and forth, say, every few minutes rather than the one that makes a loop around the whole town. People could use the large Safeway parking lot, take the shuttle to downtown, do whatever, take it back to Safeway, do their grocery shopping and go home. Less traffic, cleaner air, probably less time on the street in hot or cold weather, maybe even less time driving around looking for a spot — a free two hour spot supported by the city, downtown businesses and maybe even Safeway since it would bring customers to their door rather than their competitors. A colorful, eye-catching jitney could add to the attractiveness making it an adventure as well.
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