2
Wednesday, June 3, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
O
P
I N I O
Letters to the Editor…
The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer’s name, address and phone
number. Letters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not neces-
sarily shared by the Editor. The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters
submitted to the Editor. Letters should be no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or
returned. The deadline for all letters is noon Monday.
To the Editor:
My idea of a trail in the woods is walking
on dirt and pine needles, not an asphalt trail.
Sheryl McLaughlin
s
s
s
To the Editor:
We are Black Butte Ranch homeowners
who support the development of a bike trail
between BBR and Sisters. Current owners
and registered guests use and enjoy the exist-
ing bike trails at the Ranch. The development
of the trail to Sisters would extend safe biking
opportunities beyond the Ranch and in gen-
eral add to the recreational options available.
We know our guests, children, grandchildren
would appreciate such an amenity and use it
for both biking and walking
We have no concerns about increased
crime or trespassing as a result of such a trail.
As far as we know, there is no factual data
from the police department or board that sug-
gest the existence of such a bike bath would
significantly increase any of these undesirable
outcomes. Even if trespassing were to become
an issue, we are confident that Ranch man-
agement could institute appropriate access
controls.
For two decades one of us has closely
observed the Row River Bike Trail, a 15-mile
paved trail that is used by hikers, bikers and
equestrians. It starts in Cottage Grove and
runs along the shores of the Row River and
Dorena Reservoir. The initial widespread
fears of homeowners regarding increased
vandalism, trespassing and crime have proven
totally unfounded. Property and other crimes
have not increased in the area even as trail
usage has increased. Locals as well as visitors
now view the trail as a major area attraction
and amenity. The second signer of this letter
has had a similar experience at her home in
Stinson Beach, California.
A survey of Ranch homeowners completed
last spring suggests that a significant major-
ity of owners support the existence of such
a trail. After thinking about the proposal and
weighing pros and cons, we, too, believe the
potential benefits far outweigh any hypotheti-
cal negative outcomes.
Sue Wickizer
Diane Wara
s
s
s
To the Editor:
Last weekend I had the honor and the priv-
ilege to attend and speak at the Memorial Day
Ceremony at Village Green Park.
As a family man and a business owner I
have found it only too easy to forget what this
three-day weekend is really about. This cere-
mony helped me to remember the importance
of this weekend, and for that I am extremely
grateful.
I was encouraged to see so many people
turn out to honor those who are serving, who
have served, and those no longer with us. So
thank you to all of those who had anything to
do with putting this event together, and giving
people in Sisters the chance to celebrate those
who have given everything for our country.
Chris Frye
s
s
s
To the Editor:
Oregon Adaptive Sports would like to go
on record as being fully in favor of the pro-
posed paved trail from Sisters to Black Butte
Ranch. Such a trail would clearly support our
mission which is “to provide life-changing
outdoor recreation experiences to individuals
with disabilities. Participants gain confidence,
build self-esteem and strive for indepen-
dence leading to an enhanced quality of life.”
Ultimately, we envision a day when every-
one has the opportunity to experience the
benefits of outdoor recreation, regardless of
ability.
This asset to the Sisters community would
See letteRS on page 20
Sisters Weather Forecast
Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon
Wednesday
thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Mostly cloudy
Mostly sunny
Sunny
Sunny
Sunny
Sunny
61/39
69/41
78/43
81/45
83/48
82/na
The Nugget Newspaper, Inc.
Website: www.nuggetnews.com
442 E. Main Ave., P.O. Box 698, Sisters, Oregon 97759
Tel: 541-549-9941 | Fax: 541-549-9940 | editor@nuggetnews.com
Postmaster: Send address changes to
The Nugget Newspaper,
P.O. Box 698, Sisters, OR 97759.
Third Class Postage Paid at Sisters, Oregon.
Publisher - Editor: Kiki Dolson
News Editor: Jim Cornelius
Production Manager: Leith Williver
Classifieds & Circulation: Teresa Mahnken
Advertising: Lisa Buckley
Graphic Design: Jess Draper
Proofreader: Pete Rathbun
Accounting: Erin Bordonaro
The Nugget is mailed to residents within the Sisters School District; subscriptions are available outside delivery area.
Third-class postage: one year, $40; six months (or less), $25. First-class postage: one year, $85; six months, $55.
Published Weekly. ©2014 The Nugget Newspaper, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. All advertising which
appears in The Nugget is the property of The Nugget and may not be used without explicit permission. The Nugget Newspaper, Inc. assumes no liability or responsibility for
information contained in advertisements, articles, stories, lists, calendar etc. within this publication. All submissions to The Nugget Newspaper will be treated as uncondition-
ally assigned for publication and copyrighting purposes and subject to The Nugget Newspaper’s unrestricted right to edit and comment editorially, that all rights are currently
available, and that the material in no way infringes upon the rights of any person. The publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of artwork, photos, or manuscripts.
N
Rachel
Marsden
American Voices
PARIS — The fight
against the Islamic State
is making for some odd
bedfellows — namely, the
U.S. and Iran. Perhaps that
isn’t a bad thing, as average
Americans could be the ulti-
mate beneficiaries.
U.S. military action
against the Islamic State has
already cost $2.44 billion,
according to the Pentagon.
For that price, the terrorist
group has actually GAINED
ground. As much as it might
make other regional players
nervous, America’s best bet
to wipe out the Islamic State
is the Iranian army.
The U.S. and Iran appear
to have come to an under-
standing on military coop-
eration, with America focus-
ing on airstrikes while Iran
leverages its field intelli-
gence to strike at the Islamic
State on the ground. Iran is
currently helping old foe
Iraq and its beleaguered
military reclaim a major oil
refinery from the Islamic
State, and the Iranians also
helped win back Saddam
Hussein’s birth city of Tikrit.
When asked about the
nature of Iranian-U.S. coop-
eration, anonymous U.S.
officials were mum, citing
operational security. Iran
is playing it equally coy. I
asked my own anonymous
Iranian official sources this
week, “You guys aren’t
cooperating with the U.S.
against the Islamic State, are
you?” The response: “Oh,
really? We aren’t?” Get
these guys a room already.
It wouldn’t be surprising
if the Iranian military soon
decided to sweep through
Syria and Iraq to wipe the
Islamic State off the face of
the Earth. Syria is a critical
Iranian ally, and you’ve got
to figure that Iran views Iraq
as a highly attractive power
vacuum.
Who else in that region
is going to get rid of the
Islamic State? Not the U.S.
alone, apparently. And not
Saudi Arabia, which pro-
vided the seed funding for
the Islamic State back when
it was part of the Syrian
rebel movement. Besides,
the Saudis really aren’t
ready for prime time. They
haven’t done much militar-
ily since the first Gulf War in
the early 1990s, and they’ve
recently demonstrated their
lack of might by getting
their rarely used warplanes
bogged down in squab-
bling with Houthi insurgents
(Iranian allies) right on the
Saudis’ own border. As for
Israel, it already raises ire in
the Middle East by virtue of
its mere existence and likely
isn’t keen on creating more
trouble for itself.
Iran has the military
power and the intelligence
capabilities to wipe out the
Islamic State. And Iran has
been quietly playing foot-
sie under the table with the
U.S. for longer than many
Americans are probably
aware — much to the frus-
tration of the French, who
consider it to be two-faced
behavior by their ally.
In 2010, the New York
Times pointed out that
the U.S. government had
granted special licenses to
bypass Iranian sanctions
under the guise of humani-
tarianism to scores of
American companies.
And yet the U.S. has
imposed fines on foreign
companies for violating
sanctions against Iran — like
France’s largest bank, BNP
Paribas, which was recently
ordered to pay a $8.9 billion
penalty.
If Iranian sanctions are
dropped, other American
companies will have a shot
at the Iranian market, rather
than just the select few cho-
sen by the U.S. government.
Will all of this mean that
Iran won’t have a nuclear
weapon someday? Maybe
not. Thus far, Iran has largely
ignored attempts to thwart
its nuclear program any-
way. At least if it’s heading
toward joining the nuclear
club, economic cooperation
will likely mean that we’ll
learn about it faster.
The West simply can’t
afford to sacrifice real eco-
nomic benefit to fight pre-
emptive ideological wars
in the Middle East or else-
where. The U.S. is best
served by having a construc-
tive economic presence in
the Middle East, creating
new jobs and opportunities
for Americans and foster-
ing joint interests instead of
parking troops there indefi-
nitely and throwing more
money down the well.
© 2015 Tribune Content
Agency, LLC.
Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and
are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.