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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 3, 2021)
2 Wednesday, February 3, 2021 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon O P I N I O A bit of winter… N We cannot win ‘war against COVID’ By Wyatt Woods Guest Columnist PHOTO BY JERRY BALDOCK The Three Sisters put on their winter coat — but so far things have remained pretty mild and dry down on the flats. The forecast doesn’t hold much in the way of new snowfall. Letters to the Editor… The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer¾s name, address and phone number. Letters 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 Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned.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 10 a.m. Monday. To the Editor: Yesterday I experienced us at our best. Because of my age, I qualified for a COVID vaccination. We were given clear, explicit instructions on how to find the site (fairgrounds). When we arrived, though the line of cars was long, there was clear signage and both National Guard and volunteer aides. The lines were orderly and there was an assis- tant at each junction. The person who adminis- tered my shot appeared to be about my age but she had volunteered as <it was the right thing to do.= This is our community at its best. This could be every community. Ours is a rich country 4 rich in resources, rich because of our diversity (ethnic, sexual orientation, even our differing perspectives re: policy). But our virulent internal divisiveness will keep us from EVER being great. Janice Druian s s s To the Editor: The business community is so important to Sisters9 economy, but climate change brings extremely dry conditions extending and exac- erbating fire season, which threaten normal life and business operations here. That9s why See LETTERS on page 12 Sisters Weather Forecast Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday AM Snow Showers Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy Sunny 40/24 46/31 47/29 51/31 Sunday Monday Tuesday Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy 50/26 46/26 44/27 The Nugget Newspaper, LLC Website: www.nuggetnews.com 442 E. Main Ave., P.O. Box 698, Sisters, Oregon 97759 Tel: 541-549-9941 | Email: 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. Editor in Chief: Jim Cornelius Production Manager: Leith Easterling Creative Director: Jess Draper Community Marketing Partner: Vicki Curlett Classifieds & Circulation: Lisa May Owner: J. Louis Mullen The Nugget is mailed to residents within the Sisters School District; subscriptions are available outside delivery area. Third-class postage: one year, $55; six months (or less), $30. First-class postage: one year, $95; six months, $65. Published Weekly. ©2021 The Nugget Newspaper, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is pro- hibited. All advertising which appears in The Nugget is the property of The Nugget and may not be used without explicit permission. The Nugget Newspaper, LLC. 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 unconditionally 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. It9s perfectly OK if some people contract COVID. There, I said it. Someone needs to say it. Heck, a lot of people need to say it out loud so that the collective mentality can evolve around this disease. Hold on! Don9t get all riled up. I said that it9s OK for some people to get COVID. Not everyone. Sure, COVID poses a mortal threat to a certain percentage of our popula- tion. My 90-year-old grand- mother may not make it to her next birthday if she got food poisoning, so she should definitely avoid contracting COVID. My 68-year-old mother has Type 2 diabetes and some other health conditions that make her a pretty good tar- get for COVID as well. It9s possible that if she con- tracted COVID, then she may witness a lengthy hos- pital stay or may eventually become a victim of COVID. My grandmother and my mother are two lovely ladies who should take daily health precautions (wash- ing hands, etc.) to avoid infectious diseases, and they should certainly get a COVID vaccine as soon as possible. Once readily available, I suspect that we will treat the COVID vac- cine in the same manner that we do the flu vaccine, and those who choose to do so will get their annual shot (and yes, I realize it9s not a flu, it9s not a cold 4 but it is a virus). Unfortunately, society has drunk a strange Kool- Aid served up by policy makers who have focused on herd immunity, primarily through vaccination, as the only solution to <winning the war against COVID= and as a requirement to returning to something resembling normal daily life. Please read this next sentence very carefully and then repeat it to yourself and those around you: We cannot win a war against COVID. Herd immunity is unlikely to be achieved for even a short period of time. It is highly likely that this disease will be a part of most of our lives for the distant future because, like it9s closest viral rela- tives, the common cold, it mutates quickly. You have likely read stories by now about COVID variants pop- ping up around the globe. Today9s vaccines will prob- ably be ineffective next year and may be replaced annu- ally by new vaccines that would be effective against new variants. Now that vaccines are becoming available, I feel that we should focus our efforts and public health messaging to ensure that vulnerable people such as the elderly, immune- compromised, and people with serious pre-existing health conditions have the opportunity to become vaccinated. Afterward, there is no reason that society should not be able to return to <life as usual= before COVID. Politicians and policy- makers will cater to our collective thinking and cre- ate policies to make them- selves popular so that they can get your vote. It became popular to fight and win the war on COVID. The man- ner in which this war has been carried out is having a disastrous effect on the economy and on people9s abilities to work in order feed their families. While people stay holed up in their homes ordering their livelihoods off of Amazon, businesses close their doors daily 4 and permanently. The war on COVID sounds like valiant effort and a brave fight to win, but sadly the war is mere fic- tion. Furthermore, any fight to be won against COVID requires money, real money produced through a healthy economy and an influx of tax dollars. Let9s change our think- ing and dialogue around COVID so that we witness progressive policy change that protects the right people and witnesses the return to the <old normal= 4 except with an annual COVID shot at your local pharmacy. Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.