Wednesday, May 9, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
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Letters to the Editor…
Kicking a bad habit
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 Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned.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:
In several articles in The Nugget they
have stated the current owner as the founder
of Village Interiors. She is actually the third
owner.
My husband, Bill, and I opened Maggie’s
Interiors in August of 1981. I changed the
name to Village Interiors in 1983. Because
of ill health, we sold in 1990 to Teddy Heck.
Approximately a year later she sold to Pat.
This may not seem important to anyone
else, but it is very important to me. I was very
proud of that little store and still am. Pat has
made it into much more than just a service
store.
Maggie Bull
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To the Editor:
National Day of Prayer is a great thing that
I love to do. You get to sing songs and pray to
God. When I think of National Day of Prayer,
I think of a day with God. Just with Him.
I love National Day of Prayer. It’s the day
that makes me feel so happy during the day.
I feel like the spirit of God is in me today
more than ever!
One day I will remember this day and pray
that all the people that went and prayed to God
will remember it, too.
Pia Grummer
Third Grade, Sisters Christian Academy
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To the Editor:
On behalf of the Board of Directors of the
Sisters Trails Alliance (STA), I would like to
register our strong support of the proposed
Local Option Levy for SPRD. For years, our
organization has partnered with SPRD to
improve and use recreational trail facilities
in Sisters Country — from guiding hikes and
mountain bike rides, to helping with the Crest
the Cascades ride on the McKenzie Scenic
Bikeway, and contributing to Bike Park 242.
This levy will help strengthen SPRD, with
improved and expanded adult and youth rec-
reational programs, more stable staffing to
ensure program continuity, and better capacity
for long-term planning. A stronger SPRD will
mean a stronger partner for community orga-
nizations like STA, and these deeper partner-
ships will multiply the effectiveness of every-
one involved.
For STA, a closer partnership with a stron-
ger SPRD will mean increased volunteer sup-
port for trails work and, most importantly,
better recreational programs for all ages that
utilize our trail network. Working in partner-
ship with a stronger SPRD will help STA be an
even more effective volunteer organization to
improve the trails network in Sisters Country.
Because a stronger SPRD makes sense for
our community, this levy makes sense. It is a
small contribution that will have large payoffs
for us all — young, old, volunteers, and com-
munity organizations. Please vote to support
it.
Catherine Hayden, Chair
Board of Directors, Sisters Trails Alliance
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To the Editor:
Sisters Park & Recreation District is a
unique agency unlike any other. I know this
because I was privileged to serve as its execu-
tive director from 2013 until earlier this year.
In that time I was able to learn about the agen-
cy’s rich history of service to the Sisters com-
munity, and its constant financial challenges.
SPRD’s tax funding covers just over one
quarter of the funds the agency needs to oper-
ate for the year. That means that the staff go
into each fiscal year knowing they need to
raise 75 percent of the funds they need to serve
the community that year. Also, each year the
staff knows there are many other things the
community would like to see them do, that
they simply cannot because there is no funding
available. The passage of the proposed local
option would give SPRD staff the ability to
See LETTERS on page 21
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By T. Lee Brown
Guest Columnist
I recently had occasion
to chat with a local col-
league about the tone of
political discussion these
days. Progressives are
often too hostile, he sug-
gested, and make too many
assumptions based on
(ironically enough) the race
and gender of other folks—
especially if those other
folks happen to be white
and male. I’d say there’s
been plenty of hostility
on all sides, but he’s got a
good point. If progressives
want to make real progress
in the world? Rather than
licking our wounds in the
corner, we need to check
more than our privilege. We
need to check our outrage,
self-righteousness, and
dismissiveness of others.
And we need to vote for
candidates who will do the
same.
It ain’t easy. I’ve been
whackin’ away at this prob-
lem for two years, trying
to open my mind. Pushing
past my horrified shock
when a Bernie Sanders-
lovin’ friend switched
his vote over to Trump, I
really listened to his rea-
soning. Looking out over
the ponderosas, I talked
without rancor with a rela-
tive who believes another
family member is wrong
and sinful for “choosing
homosexuality.” I’ve genu-
inely tried to open up and
understand. And I searched
within myself, separating
my core values from party-
line policies.
Why bother being open-
minded? Why go through
the deep pain of question-
ing long-held beliefs of
oneself and one’s tribe?
Well, it’s the decent thing
to do, especially in a polar-
ized and extreme political
climate. If we won’t listen
to others—even people
who dress, speak, eat, or
w o r s h i p d i ff e r e n t l y —
we deserve the chaotic
White House we’ve got.
Progressives claim to fight
for equality for all, yet we
often won’t listen to 43.8%
of our local residents (that’s
how many Sisters-area vot-
ers leaned Trump). Just
to avoid being complete
hypocrites, we need to chill
out and open up. Bonus:
interrogating one’s assump-
tions brings intellectual,
emotional, and spiritual
rewards.
Strategically, isolating
ourselves in a self-congrat-
ulatory bubble where we
don’t have to shake hands
or exchange Facebook
likes with neighbors who—
gasp—vote Republican, has
clearly resulted in failure.
Our frothing-at-the-mouth
self-righteousness was
so predictable, we were
even manipulated by the
Russians! Letting go of our
snooty attitudes could help
reverse the damage done in
2016. If we stop condemn-
ing our neighbors and start
listening to them, maybe
some will join us fighting
for shared causes, regard-
less of party.
Long-term, we need to
show that progressives can
engage in real conversation
without name-calling and
shutting-down. We need to
elect candidates who can
listen to their entire con-
stituency and reach across
the aisle… even if the Tea
Partiers have set the oppo-
site example. “But they
did it first!” is not a good
enough excuse for kids
on the playground and
it’s not good enough for
alleged grownups in civic
life.
So what’s a thoughtful
Democrat to do? Start off
by truly listening; it’s way
harder than it sounds. Then
vote for a candidate who
already knows how to listen
and respond with respect
and consideration. Vote for
someone who has a track
record of public service,
who’s got experience in
local government. Someone
who is “a big advocate of
local wisdom,” while also
using hard data to inform
policy. A rural Democrat
who knows what it’s like to
be discriminated against but
who’s now legally married
to a wife with deep Eastern
Oregon ranching roots.
Vote for a leader who will
positively impact the image
and reach of progressives
in rural Oregon—whether
or not she defeats Walden
next November. Vote for
Jamie McLeod-Skinner.
Closed-minded lefty-
lib er al b eh av io r is a
habit, deeply entrenched.
But heck—I quit smok-
ing, drinking, and plenty
of other vices over the
years. Surely I can kick
this, too. And I’ll vote
for Jamie in the District 2
primary.
Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and
are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.