Opinion
4A
Thursday, December 10, 2020
Other Views
Let’s find reasons
to give thanks
his is the year of “for better or worse.”
And despite the human ravages of the
COVID-19 pandemic, Oregon has much to be
thankful for.
We found that essential workers come in all types,
from the
nurses, doctors
and technicians
directly caring
DICK HUGHES
for COVID-19
POLITICAL REPORTER
patients, to the
housekeepers
and custodians diligently sanitizing hospital rooms,
to the clerks keeping grocery stores humming and the
truckers keeping supplies arriving.
And many more. Never again should society take
any job for granted or consider it humbler than one’s
own.
We learned that schools are essential not only for
education but also for life-building social interactions
among students and child care for working parents.
We missed the traditional moments of graduation
season, but found joy in drive-thru ceremonies and
other such as-best-we-can substitutes.
We discovered that schools can hold online art exhi-
bitions, displaying photos of chalk art created on drive-
ways and sidewalks around town.
We unwrapped our creativity. Distilleries learned
to produce hand sanitizer that chambers of commerce
distributed for free. Dude-ranch experiences and
fire-station tours went virtual. Older youths offered
free online tutoring for younger and less tech-savvy
kids.
Government agencies developed ways to remotely
conduct some building inspections. Streetside dining
became a reality, at least temporarily, as cities closed
car lanes so restaurants could set up tables on side-
walks and in parking areas. From car dealers to
farmers markets, businesses of all types upped their
online presence and pivoted to curbside pickup and
home delivery.
We showed Willamette Valley lawmakers what it
was like to live in the rest of Oregon, where long travel
distances often make it impractical to meet in person
with state officials in Salem or testify at the Oregon
Legislature. With the Oregon Capitol and most govern-
ment offices closed to the public, everyone has had to
meet by phone or videoconference.
We learned much about public health and expanded
our vocabulary. We eventually realized that “social dis-
tancing” was not our communal goal, because humans
need connections to thrive, but “physical distancing”
could keep the coronavirus at bay while allowing oppo-
site-sides-of-the-driveway conversations with neighbors.
We witnessed the adaptability of the Oregon
National Guard. This year saw the guard being
deployed overseas, fighting wildfires in Oregon, deliv-
ering personal protective equipment and answering
phones for the Oregon Employment Department.
We set aside political differences as Oregonians
fought those wildfires, rescued neighbors and sought to
protect one another’s homes and businesses.
We shared a common sorrow at the social, eco-
nomic and educational losses from the pandemic. We
grieved the loss of loved ones to COVID-19, to depres-
sion and suicide, and to conditions that went unnoticed
or untreated.
We lost businesses and income, or knew others who
did. We found that online learning and distance edu-
cation work for some students and teachers, but not
for others, as the pandemic laid bare the inequities in
urban and rural Oregon.
Most of all, we rediscovered community.
Bus drivers delivered meals to homebound Orego-
nians. Schools converted their now-vacant buildings
into rest stops for truckers. Musicians banded together
for online concerts, and people found ways to support
these same musicians, concert workers and others out
of work due to event cancellations.
Residents sewed face masks and gave them away.
Cities, counties and the state launched loan programs
for businesses. Residents stepped up to support their
favorite restaurants via takeout and delivery, often
adding extra tips in recognition of the staff’s lost work-
days. Auto dealers purchased gift cards from local
restaurants to thank customers for taking a test drive.
Police officers and sheriff’s deputies connected with
children by reading stories to them on video. We wor-
shipped in different ways, adapting to small-group set-
tings — when they were allowed — and to online reli-
gious services.
Compelling research shows that expressing grati-
tude can boost mental and physical health. In this year
of great sorrow and profound trauma, let us also find
reasons to give thanks.
———
Dick Hughes has been covering the Oregon political
scene since 1976.
T
Other Views
Horse meat should be
considered as food for the poor
CARLISLE
HARRISON
RETIRED EDUCATOR
o watch the nightly news
showing long lines of drivers
accepting food handouts
because their families are hungry is
depressing. To know the Bureau of
Land Management is spending
$50 million of taxpayers’ money to
feed 50,000 feral horses held in cor-
rals is disgusting. In addition to
these animals, the BLM is allowing
at least 60,000 more animals to
destroy the range because they are
exceeding the Appropriate Manage-
ment Level mandated by the Wild
and Free Roaming Horse and Burro
Act. The AML has been established
to be 26,700 animals.
As a trained biologist, this
destruction of the range bothers me,
but this concern pales when com-
pared to the empathy I have as a
retired teacher who has witnessed
the learning difficulties children
experience because they lack pro-
tein in their diet. During the Great
Depression, during World War II
and during several special periods
since the war, people have found
this protein by eating horse meat.
Now is one of those times. Many
advanced countries around the world
are aware of this and don’t have to
be prompted to include horse meat
in their diets.
For years, I have advocated these
surplus animals be fed to the poor.
Everybody I have talked to seems to
think this is a good idea. But con-
T
tacting our elected officials has
proven to be a waste of my effort and
time. Their responses have ranged
from they are putting more money
into the budget to develop a pro-
gram to control the animals’ fer-
tility, step up adoption, and expand
holding facilities in other parts of the
country. They further informed me it
is against the law to slaughter horses
because their meat is unhealthy
because they get shots of medicine.
And then there was the one who said
there are no meat inspectors to cer-
tify the meat. What a cop-out.
A country that can build and
send a rocket into space should be
able to come up with a way to get
the precious protein found in these
animals into the diets of the poor.
These animals receive no shots and
would qualify as organic. I know
the “Greatest Generation” I grew up
emulating would have found a way.
I do have a plan I feel could make
this happen, and it appears to me to
be able to pay for itself. This would
involve a fleet of mobile slaughter
units. I have been told these units
cost about $100,000, the price of
feeding 100 horses for a year. These
units can butcher about seven horses
per day. That would be a savings
of about $7,000, which would cer-
tainly pay for all labor and operating
costs. From these seven animals one
might expect about 2,000 pounds of
high-protein ground meat. The value
of this meat in the diets of children
would be priceless.
With 50,000 horses in corrals and
another 60,000 exceeding the AML,
it would probably take five years for
a fleet of 20 mobile units to get the
job done. After the initial five years,
there would probably still be enough
excess horses to keep two units
taking care of the annual excesses.
Each of these units would cause
to be employed three or four full-
time workers. The need for refrig-
eration units might be met by mil-
itary surplus. The contracting of
a rendering company to remove
the offal and other waste products
must be considered. The training
of a BLM employee to be a meat
inspector could come from the ranks
of employees presently hired to feed
the animals.
Some organization like Feeding
America could be in charge of dis-
tributing the meat to the poor. To
get program commitment it might
require the BLM to grant the owner
of the mobile unit an interest-free
loan with a clause the final five years
of payments would be forgiven after
they worked five years.
As I see it, the big problem will
be finding enough votes in Con-
gress who feel the lives of children
are more valuable than the lives of
horses to make this happen. Finding
alternatives for the hay farmers
might be problematic, but knowing
farmers, I am sure they share my
empathy for the poor and they will
find a way.
———
Carlisle Harrison lives in Herm-
iston and is a retired educator.
the COVID-19 pandemic — will be
part of the legacy of President Donald
Trump, which we must now resolve.
A great deal of these issues will
be left to individual states to address
however they can. Of the numerous
issues facing the state of Oregon, a
lack of affordable housing is once
again one of the most pressing we are
facing. A survey conducted by Port-
land State University researchers
found that 36% of 460 Oregon tenants
surveyed reporting they owed back
rent, and another study reported that
between 12% and 15% of renters in
Oregon have been unable to keep up
with their rental payments during the
pandemic.
Oregon must enact a statewide
moratorium on evictions throughout
the duration of the pandemic. Foreclo-
sures should be suspended. Although
this will not be welcome news to land-
lords who have been doing their best
to support their tenants, it is what
needs to be done to save lives.
The state must also expand emer-
gency rental assistance during this
period. It’s the only humane thing to
do.
Brittany Pryce
La Grande
Editor’s Note
Do you have a point you’d
like to make or an issue you feel
strongly about? Submit a letter to
the editor or a guest column.
Letters
Helping renters is the
‘humane thing’ to do
While the COVID-19 pandemic
has literally been a challenge of a life-
time, without immediate action and
bipartisanship in D.C., our lives are
about to get a lot harder.
The moratorium on evictions and
expanded federal unemployment ben-
efits will both end this month, and
millions of Americans are already on
the verge of homelessness and finan-
cial ruin.
This historic reality — in addi-
tion to the death toll resulting from