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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 10, 2000)
Editor in chief: Laura Cadiz Editorial Editors: Bret Jacobson, Laura Lucas Newsroom: (541)346-5511 Room 300, Erb Memorial Union P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403 E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu Wednesday May 10,2000 Volume 101, Issue 149 Erfiierakl Candidates (primary elections) This is to determine who will go onto the ballot in November Republican: President: Alan Keyes—This man is by far the most eloquent speaker in either presidential race, and his views are heartfelt and provoca tive. He and George W. Bush seem to have similar views on most is sues (with the notable exception of abortion), so we go for the most genuine of the two. 4th District Representative to Con gress: John Lindsey—This man has much more government expe rience than his opponent, Wendell Robinson. Secretary of Sate: Lynn Lundquist —This man (not to be confused with Lynn Snodgrass, his female opponent) has many more en dorsements from fellow Republi cans than does Snodgrass. State Treasurer: Jon Kvistad—Un opposed. Attorney General: Kevin L Mannix —Unopposed. 39th District State Representative: Christopher D. Bevans—Unop posed. Democrat: President: A! Gore—There is no other nationally-electable demo cratic candidate. 4th District Representative to Con gress: Peter A. DeFazio—Unop posed. Secretary of State: Bill Bradbury— Unopposed. State Treasurer: Gary Bruebaker— He is a University alumnus and is the current Oregon Deputy State Treasurer. Attorney General: Hardy Myers Unopposed. 39th District State Representative: Robert L Ackerman—Unop posed. 40th District State Representative: Phil Barnhart—Unopposed. 41st District State Representative: Vicki L Walker—Unopposed. 42nd District Representative: Bill Morrisette— He is the former mayor of Springfield and a current state legislator. Judges: Judge of the Supreme Court, Posi tion 2: PaulJ. DeMuniz—He has current experience on the Oregon Court of Appeals. judge of the Supreme Court, Posi tions: Robert D. (Skip) Durham— Unopposed. Judge of the Supreme Court, Posi tion 6: Wallace P. Carson Jr.—Un opposed. Judge of the Court of Appeals, Posi tion 3: Rives Kistler— Unopposed. J udge of the Court of Appeals, Posi tion 5: Rick Haselton — Unop posed. Judge of the Court of Appeals, Posi tion 8: Jack L Landau—U nop posed. Judge of the Court of Appeals, Posi tion 10: Rex Armstrong— Unop posed. Judge of the Circuit Court, 2nd Dis trict Position 1: Karsten H. Ras mussen—Unopposed. J udge of the Circuit Court, 2nd Dis trict Position 10: Douglas S. Mitchell—Unopposed. These endorsements represent the opinion of the Emerald editorial board. Responses may be sent to ode@oregon.uoregon.edu. The Emerald’s endorsements Oregon’s primary election ballots are due May 16. The following are the Emerald editorial board’s endorsements for national candidates and state positions and ballot measures. Measure 77: Should the constitution be amended to make certain local taxing districts’ temporary property tax authority permanent7 — Measure 50 in 1997 was approved by voters to provide property tax relief, but three coun ties were left out because of the way the measure was written. This new measure would fix that problem and treat these three counties (Deschutes, Linn and the City of Sweet Home) the same as the rest of the state. Measure 78: Should the constitution be amended to lengthen the period of time for verifying signatures on ini tiative and referendum petitions? —The Secretary of State’s office only has 15 days to verify the signatures on a ballot measure; this would increase that amount of time to 30 days and lessen the burden on the Secretary of State’s office. Measure 79: Should the constitution be amended to increase the amount of signatures required to place con stitution-amending initiatives on the ballot? — This was a tough call. One one hand, Oregon seems to have a preponderance of ballot measures, and as we can see from Measure 77 above, sometimes we even have to have meas ures to fix other measures. Increasing the amount of signatures would require more Oregoni ans to be in favor of a measure before it comes to ballot and would bring down the overall number of measures. That said, it is easier for a measure backed by big money to get the re quired number of signatures because it can pay for signature gatherers. We believe the former concern outweighs the latter. Measure 80: Should the constitution be amended to authorize using fuel tax and vehicle fees for increasing highway policing? This measure would allow towns that want to use some of their highway road repair money for extra police help. It seem reasonable to allow local areas the choice to use the money for what they identify as the most needed road-related issue. Measure 81: Should the constitution be amended to allow the legislature to limit recovery of damages in civil actions7 —Some lawsuits are out of control, but putting the limit of damages in the hands of the legis lature isn’t the answer. The courts must be free to determine the limits themselves on a case by-case basis. Measure 82: Should we repeal the truck weight-mile tax and establish and increase fuel taxes instead? —This measure would stop charging truckers for their damage to Oregon roadways via the weighing stations. Right now, the weight the truck is carrying determines its fees. This measure would exchange that system for a new tax on diesel fuel (which would still make truckers pay) but would also increase all other fuel taxes. Regular drivers should not be forced to pay for damage that truckers do. The current system is fine. These endorsements represent the opinion of the Emerald editorial board. Responses may be sent to ode@oregon.uoregon.edu. Letters to the editor Let juries help brain injuries I am a graduate student in speech-language pathology at the University and am writing to ex press my concern with Ballot Measure 81. This amendment would favor wrongdoers and big companies who deliver poor qual ity products, while hurting vic tims of injustices. As a graduate clinician, I see first hand the devastating effects of traumatic brain injuries, many of which are caused by dangerous products or someone else’s wrong doing. People with serious trau matic brain injuries must concen trate on relearning old skills, addressing new attention and memory problems, and learning to cope with the emotional issues as sociated with this sudden life change. Time off from work, in ability to return to work, the need for assisted living and therapy to regain old skills are all huge finan cial burdens caused by brain in jury. Juries should maintain their ability to consider facts such as these on a case by case basis when dispensing justice to victims. Please join me in voting no on Measure 81 in order to preserve the right of juries to help the vic tims of brain injuries caused by careless big companies and wrongdoers. Christine Miller graduate student Olsen is committed to future I am writing to add my voice to what others are saying about Tra cy Olsen. He is definitely the right choice for City Council for Ward 3. I have personally heard all of the candidates speak, and Olsen continually impresses me as the candidate who will best represent the citizens of downtown Eugene. His ideas and thoughts are clear, his demeanor is calm and wel coming, and his vision for Eugene is right on the mark. He wants to do what’s right for the majority of citizens, not just the vocal minori ty. The City Council needs bal ance, and electing Olsen to the council would be a breath of fresh air for all of us. Olsen is committed to a healthy, livable future for the core of our city and has great concerns for the people in our community. Olsen’s extensive community service ex perience, focusing on kids, has given him a first-hand look at how vital it is to give children every op portunity to grow up in a great en vironment. The fact that he is a business owner also gives Olsen the unique experience of balanc ing community programs with fis cal responsibility. He’s smart, and it shows. Eugene is a very livable city with many positive attributes. Electing Olsen would be another great step in the right direction. Heidi Albertson Eugene resident I
