Wednesday, January 25, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
LETTERS
Continued from page 2
To the Editor:
What is a roundabout’s main purpose? It is to
slow down traffic! Sisters already has a slow down
problem. The solution is to speed up traffic! During
the quilt festival, I saw traffic backed up past Indian
Ford on Highway 20. Also, east of Sisters, traffic
was backed up to the rodeo grounds. You ODOT
people think a roundabout on a major highway will
improve this problem? No way, that backup traffic
will be the new normal a lot more days of the year.
It will only back up traffic more often and cause
more accidents as the public is not used to bottle-
necks like that on major highways in any state.
The Associated Press last July 2015 reported in
the Bend Bulletin that stoplight installation nation-
wide was about $200,000. This Sisters roundabout
project is reported at $3,600,000 plus $200,000 for
an “artsy” centerpiece, is a horrible waste of public
money. ODOT needs an oversight commission that
understands basic mathematics and only approves
state projects that are cost-effective. After all, this is
the people’s tax money that is being wasted here on
only one intersection. Do we really have that kind
of money to waste anywhere?
Eighteen other intersections in the state could
have stoplights installed to improve safety with
the amount of money wasted on our intersection
in Sisters! ODOT could start with the Highway 20
— Tumalo intersection. That spot has been a major
problem for years and years.
The city council could have paid for the stop-
lights themselves with their $300,000 commit-
ment and had $100,000 left over! Sisters needs a
city council and planning commission that has the
best interests of the city and its citizens at heart.
How could any intelligent group not understand the
stupidity of wasting $3,800,000 with no positive
results but more negative results?
Where are all the common-sense people that
don’t want to waste public tax money? I think they
passed on with the greatest generation!
Sadly, we could have had a much safer intersec-
tion over a year ago if ODOT had left the tempo-
rary stoplights in place permanently. The people of
Sisters loved them!
Governor Kate Brown needs to get a little back-
bone and hold ODOT accountable now. Right here
is $3,600,000 that could be better used in fixing
Oregon’s decaying roads!
C. Childrey
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To the Editor:
Kudos to the STA for their very timely and
much-appreciated snow-plowing efforts. (“STA
invites Sisters to get plowed, The Nugget, January
11).
It’s unfortunate that the otherwise good-deed
fundraiser was soiled by one of the group’s mem-
bers taking the opportunity to throw an ice ball at
those within the community that openly express
concerns about some, but not all, of the STA’s ini-
tiatives. Additionally, to dredge up Alan Unger and
the toxic Sisters-to-BBR asphalt path is just kicking
rock-salt on a community wound that, at this rate,
will never be allowed to heal.
It would seem, at the very least, incongruous and
counterproductive to strike out at members of the
community while simultaneously working hard to
(re)-build goodwill and do good things within the
very same community.
Greg Werts
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To the Editor:
In the January 18 Nugget, I started reading
the article by liberal columnist Robert Reich that
opened with “Tyrants don’t allow open question-
ing, and they hate the free press. They want total
control.”
Wow! I thought this was going to be commen-
tary on the last eight years’ administration. Of
course, my exuberance was short-lived when Mr.
Reich began blasting Trump — referring to him as
King Trump, making up factless accusations, and
claiming Trump’s intent is to neuter the press corps.
Well, maybe the press does need to be “fixed.”
A Gallup Poll done in September 2016 showed
Americans’ trust in mass media sank to a new low
with only 32 percent saying they have a “great deal”
or “a fair amount of trust” in the media.
Three fundamental principles listed in the
MEAA Journalist Code of Ethics include honesty,
fairness and independence. An objective review
of the behavior exhibited in reporting from NBC,
CBS, ABC, MSNBC, New York Times, etc. in this
last election cycle clearly provide evidence why 68
percent of Americans have utter disdain and dis-
trust of the mainstream press. Maybe if President
Trump shakes things up by confronting their fake
and extremely biased reporting, and allowing more
members to attend press conferences, the “elite”
press will begin do their job with some semblance
of integrity, honoring the right given to them under
the Constitution.
Jeff Mackey
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To the Editor:
In a (late) response to a letter of January 11
regarding services in snowy weather, I have some
suggestions:
First, take a winter driving class.
Second, shovel your vehicle every four inches
to lessen the difficulty. Reach out to friends or
acquaintances who might be able to help.
In addition, if you want to have 24-hour services
you will find them in a big city. They have urgent-
care centers, 24-hour pharmacies, and public trans-
portation. Sisters is a wonderful place to live, but
one must accept that there are different challenges
to living in a small town. The pharmacies and the
clinic would not be able to survive financially if
they had extended hours.
This is a rare winter event—according to folks
with long memories, we last had this sort of winter
25 years ago. It is different than planning for natu-
ral disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis that
could affect hundreds of thousands of folks.
Best of luck to all in these winter conditions!
Karen Sweigert
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To the Editor:
Wild Wood Ranch was having a difficult time,
just like everybody in Deschutes County, with an
overabundance of snow. With only two of us try-
ing to keep the half-mile of private road open, areas
around the barn clear, roads between the hay barn
and the areas where the horses were stabled open
with a snow blower and shovels was an impossible
task.
After paying several hundred dollars to have
a person use a tractor for a first pass through and
getting a bid of $700 for the next time, our neigh-
bor called to say that some volunteers working on
behalf of Sisters Trails Alliance (STA) had a big
truck with a hefty plow that were enthusiastically
helping people that were in need of plow work for a
donation to STA.
I know this community group does an amaz-
ing job building and maintaining more than 100
miles of trails near town, but I never thought
they would be heading a plow angel task
force.
Thank you, STA. You cleared our road so friends
could get to us to help shovel the load off our col-
lapsing barn. Your generosity of time and costly
equipment will be forever remembered.
Tracy Stout
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