Wednesday, February 28, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
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Jonah
Goldberg
Letters to the Editor…
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To the Editor:
I have recently been the beneficiary of
an outstanding program for the removal of
barbed wire where the barbed-wire fencing is
no longer in use. The program is a partnership
between Wild Wings Raptor Rehabilitation
of Sisters and the Deschutes County Juvenile
Department. I was aware of the risks to deer,
especially fawns, but didn’t realize how many
raptors are injured by the wire.
A neighbor brought the removal program
to my attention. I made contact with the pro-
gram and the next weekend a crew of young
people with two adult supervisors arrived at
my farm and went to work. The crew was
well-organized, well-supervised and hard-
working. On the second day they were here
they discovered a great horned owl caught
in the barbed wire. A supervisor called Gary
Landers of Wild Wings, who came and freed
the owl and took her to the rehabilitation cen-
ter, where she is now doing well.
For the youngsters it was a graphic illus-
tration of the value of their community ser-
vice. I believe the participants went home at
the end of the weekend proud of what they
had accomplished.
This program is free. If you have, or know
someone who has, barbed-wire fencing that is
not in use you can call either Kellie Landers
of Wild Wings, 541-213-4411; or Jim Smith,
Deschutes County Juvenile Department,
See LETTERS on page 15
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In the wake of the hor-
rific slaughter in Parkland,
Florida, a cadre of ener-
gized and understandably
traumatized teenagers has
flooded Washington and
the airwaves to say remark-
ably passionate, occasion-
ally extreme things about
guns and the need for gun
control.
Because these teens are
politically effective, a bunch
of goons, buffoons and trolls
have floated conspiracy the-
ories aimed at discrediting
them. I won’t be more spe-
cific than that because it’s
all reprehensible bilge.
At the same time, quite a
few advocates of gun con-
trol, including many who
claim the mantle of “objec-
tive” journalism, have taken
the view that these kids can-
not be criticized or gainsaid
in any way. Apparently, it’s
fine to push kids suffering
from post-traumatic stress
— or the still-grieving par-
ents of murdered children —
in front of cameras in order
to drive public policy, but
it’s an affront to decency to
disagree with what they say
or question the practice of
using victims this way. (No,
it’s not morally equivalent
to some of the horrendous
things the swamp-dwellers
have said about these kids,
but that is a low bar.)
New York Times colum-
nist Maureen Dowd spoke
for so much of the liberal
establishment when she
lionized Cindy Sheehan, the
mother of a soldier killed
in the Iraq war. “The moral
authority of parents who
bury children killed in Iraq
is absolute,” Dowd insisted.
NBC News turned Sheehan
into a national folk hero. It
didn’t matter that she hardly
spoke for all parents of the
fallen and was politically
radical. She was too useful
as a cudgel against George
W. Bush.
Sheehan’s utility, like her
“absolute moral authority,”
had a sell-buy date, though.
When she became a thorn in
the side of Barack Obama,
the media downgraded her
to a crank and gadfly.
And that’s what I find so
tawdry and mercenary about
all of this. I can scarcely
imagine that the same peo-
ple touting the unimpeach-
able wisdom of children
would have the same posi-
tion if the children of terror
attack victims called for,
say, a ban on Muslims enter-
ing the country.
Of course, the response
from many people to this
counterfactual would
be, “But that’s a bad
idea,” or, “That would be
unconstitutional.”
And that’s my point
exactly.
In an enlightenment-
based democracy, the valid-
ity of an argument is sup-
posed to stand independent
of the person — or people
— making it. Two plus two
equals four whether a child
says so or a demagogue
denies it.
Of course, in real life it
doesn’t always work that
way. Sometimes, credibil-
ity or moral authority car-
ries more weight than argu-
ments. And perhaps more
often, passion and emotion
sways. For instance, the
NRA, not content with its
public-policy and consti-
tutional victories over the
last decade, has taken to
fomenting rage and resent-
ment against “elites” and
the media with all the pre-
cision of an unmanned fire
hose. As best as I can glean
from some of the ads, the
point seems to be that you
should keep paying your
dues because the NRA is
the only thing that will keep
gun owners from being trig-
gered (so to speak) by the
New York Times.
The introduction of child
combatants in this political
war seems only fitting in
the never-ending cycles of
exaggeration. So now we
can hear children shout, “If
you’re not with us, you’re
against us!” Or, “If you’re
against us, you’re in favor
of murdering children!”
Of course I feel sorry
for the victims, and I sup-
port their right to parrot the
extreme rhetoric of their
elders. I don’t feel sorry for
the NRA. When you turn the
volume to 10 on everything,
you shouldn’t be surprised
when your opponents invent
an even louder 11. But I am
disgusted by the entire spec-
tacle, and I feel sorry for a
country that thinks any of
this remotely normal.
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Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and
are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.