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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 22, 1990)
EDITORIAL Trojan record poor, Yes on Measure 4 Ballot Measure 4 would shut down the Trojan nu clear power plant on Dec. 6 until a permanent waste site is found, it’s deemed cost-effective, and proved it can withstand major earthquakes without harm to the public. We endorse Measure 4. Like ell nuclear power plants, Trojan produces ra dioactive nuclear waste. The toxic substances currently wallow in a pool of water on the Trojan site, just yards from the Columbia River. The nuclear waste remains deadly for 20.000 years, ft won’t take that long for it to seep into the ground and eventually into the Columbia. Portland General Electric said in 1986 that the waste would be removed by 1998. Now Trojan's waste is scheduled to remain on site until 2011. Measure 4 requires a waate disposal site for the deadly poisons and prohibits producing more until there is a place to put it. Trojan is for from bring a cost-effective plant. It runs for an average of seven months a year and its op erating and maintenance budget rose 85 percent over the past six years. Only about 3 percent of the total power generated in the Northwest is produced by Trojan. Conservation and energy efficiency would easily make up what Tro jan produces. But PGE wants to increase electricity rates by 11 percent, starting in 1991. mostly due to Trojan costs. The nuclear plant continues to be costly to ratepayers, not cost-effective. Oregon exports more electricity than Trojan pro duces. List California get its power elsewhere until Ore gon has safe and inexpensive energy. Also, Trojan is for from earthquake proof. The plant has closed down numerous times because of con struction faults. PGE sued Bechtel Carp.. Trojan's builders, to get earthquake data. Though Bechtel re fused. PGE themselves will not initiate their own stud ies. V In 1976. ft was learned that walls end infrastaic turns were built at haltatieagth. Independent consult- ' ing firms called the designate “either naively ignorant or intellectually dishonest." Hie Pacific Northwest faces the probability of a major earthquake. Yet the Oregon Department of Ener gy simply save Trojan is safe. It refuses to allow open hearings on the question. Vote "Yes" on Measure 4 and make PGE and ODE responsible to Oregon and its citizens. mrwo THINGS SHOUU) BE HSKEED OF » m VIONT BE DBMBED TOTIOENlBff m? Mm* Smdm Am* WASTt THEKEYTOS&LFRBIDEMr (MB KEATINGS OIL Eugene’s homeless ‘solution’ not enough Eugene wants a day access center for homeless people. But neither proposed site. Washington Park, the favorite, or near Franklin Boulevard, in the middle of Glen wood, is adequate. The idea is a good one, but not well thought out. The city plans to spend $58,000 to pro vide food, phones, laundry facilities, mail service and showers for homeless people during the day between 7:30 a m. and 5:30 p.m. The homeless still need a place to sleep. Local churches have tentatively volunteered to accommodate 10 families a night if the city provides daytime services. However, there are more than 10 home less families that need help. Solutions should provide accommodations for all those in need of them. Shuffling the homeless between facili ties poses other problems such as transporta tion between places. It increases the frustra tions of the homeless to be transferred from here to there. A day access center must also be close to other government services. There are no provisions in the proposal to provide child care for homeless mothers who seek employment. A main goal of the city must be to make it as easy as possible for the homeless to help themselves. The program is scheduled to run from mid-November to mid-June. Homeless peo ple still need help the other five months. Any final proposal should include provi sions for a 24-hour, 12-month facility. Residents of ftffi area are concerned the proposal will encourage local transients to hang out and sleep in Washington Park. Overnight camping is not allowed in city parks. The plan was put together without any input from local neighbors in the Washing ton Park area. They will get their chance to night when the Eugene City Council consid ers proposals at City Hall. LETTERS Maleophobia To the women on campus living in fear: There is a premise on which we can all agree: Nobody makes anyone feel anything. Here we are, "open-minded” college students barreling down the path to enlighten ment. Idealistically, we all Ih‘ gan down this path because we wanted to ttetter ourselves Why? Something inside said we deserve the ltest Self-confi dence and self-respect have ev erything to do with working for our ideals. 1 quote. "I make myself look good for myself, not you." So why is it devastating when someone tosses a cat-call our way? What do "meat looks" have against high self worth? The bottom line is. who cares? If a gawker matters so tremendously, our self-respect comes into question Why < an't we handle a few admirers with out feeling violated? If you can't, get back to square one. The real world is no place for you. Finding raped every time someone looks at you sideways means eeking out a very para noid existence. I have some words of advice; ignore it If you can't, you're weak. Go home. I don't understand this man hating trend going around Kv ery day 1 hear some woman blaming men for her problems So ladies, when do we take re sponsibility for ourselves? The rape situation here is frightening. However, general izing and severe ''male-pho bia" is futile. Graffiti, like "stop rape — smash frals" makes feminism a fallacy. Open your eyes, ladies and gentlemen. Each individual must take responsibility for their own lives and problems. Erin Shafer Pre-engineering Can Van I am w'riting to express my displeasure with the comic strip "Hudson Van Curen" that recently liegan running in the Emerald. While the amateurish nature of the strip may be sufficient grounds for criticism. (his is not the source of my upset. I would, in fait, commend the Emerald for providing (he op portunity for exposure to an as piring artist I am offended by the subject matter that Michael Russell has chosen to print. The triviali/a tion and glorific ation of gratui tous violence and infantile ma chismo is indicative of of the deepest ills suffered in our so ciety. With the world desperate for models of peacefulness and ra tionality, it seems at minimum inappropriate for the Emerald to present such material in guise of entertainment. While 1 am certain the strip is authored and presented in a spirit of fun. accountability for the acceptance of such behavior as represented cannot be avoid ed. I would urge Michael Russell and the Emerald to examine the implicit message conveyed by this strip and question if it tru ly represents the position they wish to take on this issue. |im McEver Graduate. Business Go away In response to the letter of Knna M. Dole ( ODE, Oct. lti): How can she say "Don't walk close to me ...?”This campus is alive with people. 1 suggest that if she is this fearful, per haps she should leave and live alune someplace. Ron Williams Staff Don't bother In response to J. Taylor's let ter "Not elite” [ODE, Oct 17): First of all. you are one of the typical bandwagon fans that are behind us when we win and laughing at us when we lose. I have one question. Where was that letter when we were winning? You sure didn't sub mit that after we beat No. 4 HYU (who, by the way. is still No. 12 in the nation with their only loss coming from the hands of Oregon — thank you very much). Secondly, as for the Universi ty of Washington "putting us in our place," what does that mean? If you look in your history book you will see that" all mighty Washington" had back to-back losses to us in the 1987-88 seasons. But as a team we never rest on what we have done but focus on the next op ponent. Right now we are 4-2 with control of our own desti ny. As for your comment about average Hill, he has broken most of Dan Fouls and Chris Miller's passing records. Does this mean that Dan and Chris are bottoin-of-the-bucket quar terbacks? I think not. lastly, we have no need for fans like yourself who give us charity cheers. If you're not be hind us 110 percent, you should stay at home on Satur days. Personally, the only true fans we have are the fans that stand behind us win or lose. You, however, don't fall into this category, so don't bother to show up on Saturday. Shane Kessler Graphic Design/ American Studies