2 Wednesday, November 16, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon O P I N I O N People not partisans By Sheryl Rudolph Correspondent Letters to the Editor… The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer’s name, address and phone number. Let- ters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not necessarily 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 Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned.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: We have been blessed by a community that honors and remembers America’s veterans. And yesterday, we were doubly blessed by one young man from the high school who took it upon himself to show respect, honor and love to veterans in the community. Yesterday, I answered the door to find an impressive young person who desired to do something, all on his own, for veterans. He stated that Coach (Steve) Hodges had told him a veteran lived here and he came to bring us a pie. He said he had every kind of pie and we could choose. I had the misunderstanding that this was a team event, never dreaming that Daniel Stroemple had taken this on, out of his own heart of respect, as a personal “thank-you” to veterans he had never met. I can’t find enough words of gratefulness to Daniel for the act of honor and kindness he brought us. And HOPE! As we have been watching rioting and anger around the country, Daniel was a ray of light for the future. I am so thank- ful for you, Daniel. You embody the goodness that America needs. God bless you! Marilyn Kinsey s s s To the Editor: The morning after the election my 21-year- old son posted this. Not all millennials are devoid of what is happening. His permission has been given to share this. “I am not one to post statuses to … but in the wake of last night’s election there are a few things I am compelled to say. First of See LETTERS on page 25 Sisters Weather Forecast Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Chance rain/snow Mostly sunny Partly sunny Chance rain Chance rain Chance rain 41/23 43/24 43/29 44/33 46/32 46/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: Karen Kassy 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, $45; six months (or less), $25. First-class postage: one year, $85; six months, $55. Published Weekly. ©2016 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. This election cycle has deeply divided our country. I find this truly disturbing and completely counterpro- ductive. There are serious divisions not only between the two major parties, but within them as well. Half the country is elated with giving Washington a candidate perceived as a change agent. The other half is in disbelief, shock and pain. Many people of color and religions outside of white Anglo-Saxons and Christianity are afraid; our economy sputters; our bridges and roads crumble; our challenges — physi- cally and emotionally — mount exponentially. As a caring citizen, I don’t want to see our lead- ers fight. I want to see them FIX our deep divide and socio-economic problems. I am appalled when I see our representatives refuse to deal with an issue or adjourn for months without solving the main problems of the day. As a former small business owner, I did not go home when the going got tough. I had to compromise, work through differences and come up with the best possible solu- tion. In short, I had to do my job. Government has to have this same attitude. Our elected officials must be held accountable to work together and find compro- mise across the aisle to end the government gridlock. My desire to see prob- lems solved is why I am exploring ways to make my voice heard in Washington. This is why I am inter- ested in www.nolabels.org. This group is composed of Republicans, Democrats, Independents — affiliates of all parties are welcome. No Labels calls for fix- ing over fighting and for solving problems through a process that starts with shared goals. Agreeing to a goal (job creation, Social Security solvency, address- ing climate change, health coverage for all to name a few); then negotiating the details necessary to achieve the goal is a smart pro- cess that works. America’s leaders need to adopt this approach. They must not be allowed to hold smart solu- tions hostage for partisan purposes any longer. What is No Labels? I quote from their website: “In December of 2010 over 1,000 citizens from each of the 50 states gath- ered in New York to launch a movement — No Labels was founded that day as a way of channeling the nation’s frustration with the Beltway’s idea of busi- ness as usual into a produc- tive effort to change D.C.’s way of doing things, while offering dozens of con- structive solutions to the nation’s problems along the way. Since then, No Labels has been working to bring a new politics of goals- focused problem solving to our government. While many outside political groups are working to push our leaders apart, No Labels was the first organization to call on our leaders to come together to focus on fix- ing America’s most press- ing problems. No Labels has never called for people to entirely shed their party affiliations. “As long as they are intellectually honest, we respect conservatives, liber- als, and anyone in between who has a sincere desire to address the nation’s prob- lems. No Labels supports a diversity of viewpoints; we think it’s one of America’s strengths.” No Labels has researched consensus goals that are important to the majority of Americans and compiled them into a National Strategic Agenda. Now our leaders need to acknowledge these areas of agreement and commit to the hard work of negotiating the policy details needed for action to reach these goals. Leaders in Congress from both parties must be held accountable by we the people who put them in their jobs, to work together and with our President toward achieving our shared goals for America. I urge every American to step forward and be part of the solution for our country. Demand our representa- tives in government work together and find compro- mise and solutions to better the lives of all Americans and the world. Make your voice heard be it through No Labels or another ave- nue. Make our government do its job. Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.