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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (May 7, 2020)
Opinion 4A Thursday, May 7, 2020 The Observer OUR VIEW Underlying conditions make COVID-19 worse E veryone who has died in Oregon from COVID-19 has had an underlying med- ical condition. So, it was vital that the Oregon Health Authority release the data showing what those conditions have been. After the EO Media Group — the company that owns The Observer — published an editorial online last week calling on the OHA to do so, it told us it was planning to do so. The OHA made the data public Tuesday. Cardiovascular disease was the cause associ- ated the most — in nearly 59% of the deaths. That was followed by neurological conditions with 49%, a category that includes cancer and other conditions with 42%, and diabetes at 33%. There are other categories, including being a former smoker at nearly 25%. The numbers add up to more than 100% because some people have more than one underlying condition. The data is based on an analysis of 73 of the more than 100 people who have died from COVID-19 in Oregon. It is consistent with the warnings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about who is at higher risk of the disease. You can see the full chart on the OHA website. Most people do not experience severe symp- toms if they contract COVID-19. It’s not by any means pleasant, but it’s primarily fever and cough. Some people don’t have any symptoms. If an infected person is older or has an underlying medical condition, though, it can make it harder for their bodies to combat the infection. The dis- ease can trigger the immune system to over- react, leading to devastation to the lungs and other organs. The message to take away is this: The dis- ease does hit people harder who are older. But anyone who has an underlying medical condition is at more serious risk. So, if you have a family member or a friend in those categories, please do what you can to help them stay healthy. Remember, it has killed children in the United States, too. Keep them safe. Follow the precau- tions you know by heart by now. Government offi- cials in Oregon are planning cautiously to gradu- ally reopen the state. It’s up to us to work together to ensure that succeeds and people stay healthy. CONTACT YOUR PUBLIC OFFICIALS President Donald Trump: The White House, 1600 Penn- sylvania Ave., Washington, D.C. 20500; 202-456-1414; fax 202- 456-2461; to send comments, go to www.whitehouse.gov/ contact. U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley: D.C. office: 313 Hart Senate Office Building, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202- 224-3753; fax 202-228-3997. Portland office: One World Trade Center, 121 S.W. Salm- on St. Suite 1250, Portland, OR 97204; 503-326-3386; fax 503- 326-2900. Pendleton office: 310 S.E. Second St. Suite 105, Pendleton 97801; 541-278- 1129; merkley.senate.gov. U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden: D.C. office: 221 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202-224-5244; fax 202-228-2717. La Grande office: 105 Fir St., No. 210, La Grande, OR 97850; 541- 962-7691; fax, 541-963-0885; wyden.senate.gov. U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (2nd District): D.C. office: 2182 Rayburn Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20515, 202- 225-6730; fax 202-225-5774. La Grande office: 1211 Washing- ton Ave., La Grande, OR 97850; 541-624-2400, fax, 541-624- 2402; walden.house.gov. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown: 254 State Capitol, Sa- lem, OR 97310; 503-378-3111; www.governor.oregon.gov. Oregon State Treasur- er Tobias Read: oregon. treasurer@ost.state.or.us; 350 Winter St. NE, Suite 100, Salem OR 97301-3896; 503- 378-4000. Oregon Attorney Gen- eral Ellen F. Rosenblum: Justice Building, Salem, OR 97301-4096; 503-378-4400. State Sen. William S. Hansell (29th District/ Pendleton): Salem office: 900 Court St. NE., S-423, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-1729. Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/ hansell. Email: sen.billhan- sell@oregonlegislature. gov. State Rep. Greg Barreto (58th District/ Cove): Salem office: 900 Court St. NE., H-384, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986- 1458. Website: www.oregon- legislature.gov/barreto. Email: rep.gregbarreto@oregonlegis- lature.gov. OTHER VIEWS Experience with homeschooling reveals challenges D ear Ms. Beardsley, by some language in the book, but my I hope you’re doing well. I parents helped me understand that its miss seeing you and my class- painful words and thoughts remind mates at school every day, but homes- us of what people in our country did chooling is working out well for me. wrong in the past, so we can better Mommy and Daddy are doing the focus on how to do things right, now best they can to make sure my sib- and in the future. lings and I con- That makes tinue to learn perfect sense to TOM PURCELL during the me. So I was sur- SYNDICATED prised to learn covid-19 pan- COLUMNIST demic. They make that some schools sure we stick to have banned the a schedule like the one our school book because it might cause some dis- comfort. But isn’t that the point? Isn’t follows. literature supposed to open our eyes But they aren’t getting along as and make us think? well as they usually do. Every night, My siblings and I are doing really they hit the box wine harder than they well at our math, science and English ever did before. I suppose that’s because Mommy is lessons. But Mommy and Daddy say a lawyer and, since her work has been that the thing we most need to learn is the ability to think for ourselves. They impacted by the virus, she’s home a want us to use reason – not emotion lot. Daddy has a construction com- pany but his projects are on hold, so – to make sound decisions. They call he’s home a lot, too. this “critical thinking.” They worry We’ve never spent so much time that too few people are thinking in the house together, and that has its things through these days and that challenges. that is dangerous for our country. Anyhow, though they aren’t pro- So I was disappointed to learn that fessional teachers like you, they’re a Harvard law professor argues that helping me learn interesting things I homeschooling should be banned. never thought about before. Professor Elizabeth Bartholet said in Besides my regular lessons, they Harvard Magazine that it’s authori- tarian – that it allows powerful par- thought I should read classic liter- ature. The first book they assigned ents to lord over their powerless is “The Adventures of Huckleberry children. She said parents who home- school their children are overwhelm- Finn” by Mark Twain. I was shocked ingly Christian and that some are “extreme religious ideologues” who question science and promote female subservience and white supremacy. She said that children should “grow up exposed to…democratic values, ideas about nondiscrimination and tol- erance of other people’s viewpoints.” Well, I agree with her second point, but her first point is a reach. It appears she is sharing an emotional reaction to her stereotypical perception of parents who homeschool, rather than applying critical thinking. The fact is about 4% of U.S. chil- dren are homeschooled. Several studies show they score significantly better on standardized tests than their public-school peers – regardless of race or economic background. The fact is that the majority of homes- chooled kids go on to flourish in their lives. Mommy and Daddy have their flaws, but they sure are helping me learn how to reason and think. In fact, we are all thinking it is best that they continue homeschooling my siblings and me after the pandemic ends. I’ll be sure to visit you often if my schooling continues at home. I look forward to seeing you soon. About the Author Tom Purcell is a Pittsburgh Tri- bune-Review humor columnist and is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons Inc. Your views No one should be afraid to report hate crimes Response to the Q&A with sheriff candidates: Why would Boyd Rasmussen say he will especially defend the First Amendment? Sadly, this is now code to permit supremacist groups freedom to violate the rights of others. We have laws prohibiting verbal harassment and intimidation of people with less power than you. Let’s see our sheriff uphold those laws. No one should be afraid to report hate crimes. Yet I’m sure they are afraid. Anyone who wished was able to criticize our governor and post yard signs. This is what the First Amend- ment protects. It is not at risk. Mary Cooke Cove District Attorney’s move politicizes court system I read Sabrina Thompson’s recent article in The Observer (“DA moves to sideline judge,” April 25) with shock and dismay. In it, she report’s on Union County Dis- trict Attorney Kelsie McDaniel’s effort to sideline Circuit Judge Wes Williams from court proceedings. How could this be? What were her motivations? Reading over her list of com- plaints I noted a common concern — Judge Williams had failed to adhere to local standards. I was deeply perplexed. What were these local stan- dards? How did they come about? Who authorized them? Was it the members of the police force and the DA herself? As a member of the community and as a citizen of La Grande, don’t I have a right to know? Community standards are typi- cally derived from the community in which they apply. I would argue that the Union County community voted for its local legal standards when, knowing Wes’ background and rep- utation, they elected him as Union County judge. Does the district attorney have the right to seek the recusal of a duly elected judge who was elected based on the standards that he has consis- tently upheld? Knowing Wes, and being totally convinced of his integrity and fair- ness, I contest that his standards trump McDaniel’s standards, for they are the standards outlined in Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees fair trials and procedures. Let’s not politicize our local court system. Let’s uphold the rule of law and the principle that one must be presumed innocent before proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. D. Linda Garcia La Grande
