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

If ever Union County had occasion to bask in the warm glow of success, this is the time.

This fall we will see the opening of not one but two new public libraries. The grand opening of the long-awaited library in La Grande will be followed by the opening of a new library in Elgin in October.

According to Oregon State Librarian Jim Scheppke this is the only time in the history of our state that a county has opened two new libraries in the same year.

Why is this important?

Perhaps it can best be summarized by the comments of a young man visiting the farmers market in La Grande this summer. He mentioned that he had been here as a contractor and liked the place so much he intended to move his family here from Portland.

His wife was initially aghast. "There was no way she would agree to moving over here," he said. "She thinks Northeast Oregon is the end of the earth." But then he told her we were building two new libraries here in Union County and it made all the difference.

I think it made her realize this place is pretty sophisticated after all.

Libraries are indicators, along with schools, hospitals, museums and parks, of a healthy community. They tell people that local people take pride in the ideas that accompany civility, that literacy is valued and that residents have an active role in the workings of local government.

Libraries are among the most used government services in the country, with Oregon having one of the highest library use rates in the United States. Here in Union County, more than half of our residents hold library cards. The public library is our most exquisitely democratic institution, where every point of view is respected and everyone regardless of age, income or status is welcome within its doors.

The opening of a new facility is cause for great celebration, but remember that this is just the beginning. It is the service provided by a public library that can truly make a difference in a community. Let's continue to show our support for this important institution by being vocal users of its service. Public libraries perform at an optimum level when the public is fully engaged in planning and evaluating the services they provide.

The Union County Library District Feasibility Project is comprised of citizens from all areas of the county who are dedicated to helping our libraries obtain the resources they need to provide exceptional service.

Once the ribbon-cutting ceremony has ended, this group will continue to explore creative options for ensuring that everyone, whether a young child in North Powder, a businessman in Elgin or a homebound senior citizen in La Grande, has access to the programs, services and library materials they need.

Recent examples of providing county-wide services include the Lollapalooza reading project for young readers and the Friendly Visitor Program for homebound adults.

It was Andrew Carnegie who said "there is no such cradle of democracy upon the earth as the free public library."

But after moving into two new facilities, we certainly know libraries are not free and democracy is not a spectator sport.

Let's celebrate our hard work and offer thanks to everyone who has helped raise two new library buildings in Union County. Then let us all remember to stay involved, committed and energized in our efforts to identify and support new library services that will continue to foster a strong, informed and literate community.

Jerry Young is chairman of the Union County Library District Feasibility Committee.

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What is a cooperative travel management area? Although most hunters understand that it is a road closure area, we encounter many others who either do not — or simply ignore the signs.

A travel management area is established through a cooperative agreement between the Oregon Fish and Wildlife commission and another land management agency, primarily the U.S. Forest Service.

Some are permanent closures, while others are closed for a specific time. There are four objectives to establishing a cooperative travel management area: protect soil and habitat, minimize harassment of wildlife, maintain adequate buck and bull escape routes and promote quality hunting.

If you are hunting in Union County, you are likely to encounter a travel management area. There are eight cooperative travel management areas spread out in the Starkey, Catherine Creek, Wenaha and Mount Emily wildlife management units. Three of the road closures are permanent:

• the Starkey Experimental Forest Enclosure

• the Dry Beaver-Ladd Canyon area in the Starkey Unit

• all gated, posted and closed roads in the Walla Walla Ranger District of the Umatilla National Forest.

The remainder are seasonal closures with varying dates.

There are two methods of posting roads in travel management areas, either a sign showing that a particular road is closed or round, green reflectors marking roads open to motorized travel.

What do you do if you encounter a travel management area? The answer is very simple — do not operate a motorized vehicle on any closed road.

This includes motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles.

Even if you have an animal down or if you hold an Oregon disabilities hunting or fishing permit, the law still does not allow you to drive a motorized vehicle on a closed road.

Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife troopers receive numerous complaints each year from hunters who have walked a long distance in on a closed road only to have a pickup or all-terrain vehicle drive past them and disturb their hunt. Those who intentionally drive on a closed road commit a Class A misdemeanor, with a potential maximum fine of $6,250 and a year in the county jail.

Although there is a law prohibiting shooting upon or across any public roadway, those who are legally hunting on closed roads may lawfully shoot from or across the road.

Information on cooperative travel management areas is readily available. The 2006 Oregon Big Game Regulations list all of these road closures on pages 102 and 103.

There are also maps available for most cooperative travel management areas at the major entry points, with a limited supply available at ODFW and Forest Service offices. These maps are updated annually. Federal land management agencies may also institute their own road closures that are not listed in the Big Game Regulations. These closures are marked, and additional information can be obtained from the appropriate agency.

The goal of law enforcement agencies is to obtain voluntary compliance with the law, not to issue citations.

Citations and warnings are only tools used to obtain compliance. Educate yourself on the rules. Comply with all road closure regulations, and if in doubt, contact your local OSP Fish and Wildlife trooper, who will be happy to answer your questions.

Be an ethical hunter and abide by the rules of fair chase. Respect private property and the landowner's decision whether or not to let you hunt his land.

Report violations of the wildlife laws by calling the OSP office in La Grande at 963-7175, the OSP dispatch Center at 963-7174, or the statewide Turn in Poachers — or TIP — number 1-800-452-7888.

Take responsibility for your actions, and above all, set a good example by practicing safe gun handling. Unnecessary injuries and deaths occur each year because someone failed to identify their target properly — or to identify what was beyond it.

Once you pull the trigger there is nothing you can do to stop the bullet or bring it back.

Have a great season, have fun and be safe.

Lt. Randy D. Scorby is with the Oregon State Police in the Baker City Fish and Wildlife Division.

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The Democrats and left wing media have made their campaign centerpiece for the upcoming 2006 and 2008 elections a claim that the invasion of Iraq is responsible for most of the world-wide Muslim uprisings against the West.

As fall elections approach it might be expedient to look at the history of radical Islam and see how true those assertion are.

After losing the 1967 war to Israel, Arab leaders, notably the Palestinians, realized they were not militarily strong enough to defeat Israel so the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine decided a terror war against innocent civilians would be the most economic and effective way to attack both Israel and the West.

The Marxists and Muslims thought they could use one another against us long before Bush came along. In 1967 George Habash, a marxist muslim, helped found the Front for The Liberation of Palestine. In 1972 he told a reporter, "Our revolution is part of the world revolution. It is not confined to the reconquest of Palestine. Palestinians are part of the Arab nation, therefore, the entire Arab nation must go to war against Europe and America. It must unleash a war against the West. And it will. America and Europe don't know that we Arabs are just at the beginning of the beginning. That the best is yet to come. That from now on there will be no peace for the West. We plan to advance step by step. Decade after decade. Determined stubborn and patient. This is our strategy. A strategy that we shall expand throughout the whole planet."

An inestimable number of radical groups are pursuing what they believe is their divine program to indoctrinate the world into the Muslim faith. Almost every nation now has one or more of these organizations.

Gary Poole, Wallowa

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At the Union City Council meeting on Sept. 11, the mayor commended the council and residents for portraying professionalism, unity and the ability to work together in recent months.

Less than an hour later, one council member besmirched this compliment. This council member happens to be the only one running for mayor. This person is not an elected official, but selected by council after the recall of the Clarks.

This councilor did not happen to approve what the mayor was saying during the discussion. Instead of discussing this problem like a grown-up, he stood up from his chair and started yelling and shaking his finger at the mayor. It was a horrible display of unprofessionalism and lack of respect for the office he holds and that of mayor.

It doesn't matter what was said. There is no excuse for this type of behavior. The people of Union put up with this throughout the reign of the Clarks. The recall said it all. Do we really need another mayor who acts the same way?

Linda Boettcher, Union

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On Sept. 14 I attended the Health and Beauty Fair sponsored by the La Grande Women's Connection. Vendors were invited to host tables with the stated purpose of connecting women to community services and products.

Not until after I arrived did I come to know that vendors were scheduled for only half an hour of an almost four-hour event, and that its primary purpose was converting attendees to Christianity.

Over half of the vendors packed up and left, and some of the community members who had been invited as well.

I am a Christian, but am saddened this was not advertised honestly. I invited clients that now I must apologize to because they feel that my intent was to trick them into attendance and convert them. This is a betrayal of trust.

I truly thought it was a women's health and beauty fair. Nowhere in the invitation or the e-mail contact was I made aware of the actual purpose.

La Grande Women's Connection is a branch of Stonecroft Ministries, who use different names and are an international, non-denominational, evangelical organization.

While there is nothing wrong with this, the events that are cropping up nation-wide have been deceiving and intentionally covering their purpose until the time of the event when a captive audience sits before them.

I extend my apologies to my clients. I wrote to La Grande Women's Connection and Stonecroft Ministeries, and the response I received was an invitation to the October event "Turning Over a New Leaf."

To the community, and to the vendors, since you are unlikely to receive an apology, I trust you know that most Christians don't behave this way. They speak openly of their faith and don't need to trick people. And for future events, perhaps you can attend with informed consent.

Cherrie Ward, La Grande

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On the fifth anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001:

Many years ago a man convicted of horse theft was sentenced to hang. He protested that it was cruel and inhuman to be hanged just for stealing a horse.

The judge said "You are not being hanged because you stole a horse. You are being hanged so that horses may not be stolen!"

The terrorist element is a proven, evil incarnate that lives to destroy. We certainly do not want to lower ourselves to the level of what we hate. We do not and must not resort to mob mentality, allow our emotions to dictate our actions. However, once an animal is identified as rabid, it is not allowed to run free, to wreak havoc and harm and infect others likewise. It is exterminated as quickly as possible in the interest of public safety.

The terrorist element must be dealt with likewise. Once identified beyond any doubt, they must be either isolated permanently or exterminated. If they don't like the treatment, they shouldn't do the crime.

Ron R. Fischer, Elgin

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Being in my 80s, I don't hunt anymore, but for years I elk hunted the Lookingglass country. Every year I found or helped hunt for lost hunters. Not one of those lost hunters had a map or a compass or dry matches or an extra coat or extra food.

Friends looking for these lost hunters always said, Oh I'm not worried about him, he's a good woodsman. To which I usually asked, then, why is he lost?

I don't mean to criticize anyone, just, if you are going, go prepared.

Roy Hills, Island City