Opinion
4A
Saturday, June 5, 2021
OUR VIEW
It’s time for
government
to trust
the people
W
hen it comes to COVID, we’ve always
been in the pro-vaccine camp. But we
can’t support government eff orts to
mandate that citizens show proof of vaccination
in order to gain certain privileges.
We understand that there are those with cer-
tain conditions who can’t be vaccinated, and that
others have religious beliefs that forbid the prac-
tice. Still others have decided to forgo the vacci-
nation, betting instead that they are among the
group on which the virus has minimal eff ect.
The Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion recently changed its guidance, now holding
that fully vaccinated persons don’t need to wear
a mask in most situations. If the vaccines work
as we are told that they do, the vaccinated are
unlikely to get COVID and are unlikely to spread
it to the unvaccinated.
But the states hold the fi nal word. Oregon
Gov. Kate Brown has said that she will lift most
restrictions when 70% of eligible Oregonians
are vaccinated. According to the Oregon Health
Authority, only 52% had been fully vaccinated by
May 28.
OHA rules say businesses, employers and faith
institutions may allow vaccinated persons to go
unmasked as long as each patron is checked at the
door and those without masks can show proof of
vaccination.
We are uncomfortable with requiring citizens
to carry around a set of documents to prove their
health status. Washington allows vaccinated per-
sons to go unmasked, but does not mandate that
anyone check their papers.
Private businesses and institutions are free to
set their own rules. If a store or restaurant wants
unmasked patrons to present their CDC vacci-
nation record card before allowing entry, or con-
tinue to require all customers to be masked, that’s
their business.
And we suspect that many businesses will do
the latter rather than set up their employees to
pass judgment on the legitimacy of customer doc-
umentation and be subjected to the confl icts that
could result.
Over the course of the pandemic, the public
has been told that it must trust the government.
It seems that the government should return the
courtesy.
EDITORIALS
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opinion of The Observer editorial
board. Other columns, letters and
cartoons on this page express the
opinions of the authors and not
necessarily that of The Observer.
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Key changes shape sports coverage
ANDREW
CUTLER
FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK
A
s an editor, nothing strikes
so hard and so quick as the
notion you must make changes
to the existing product in order to
meet economic realities.
I sometimes wish being an editor
was like it was back in the day when
the man in charge of the newsroom
wore his fedora and sat with his
sleeves rolled up and dealt strictly
with the “news.”
That paradigm, if it ever existed,
is long gone from this business. Edi-
tors must wear a number of diff erent
hats in today’s shifting economic
landscape. Yet, this job, as editor, as
a journalist at a small-town paper, is
truly rewarding. If you are good at
what you do, you get to make a real
diff erence in the community nearly
every day.
And that fact overshadows almost
all of the negatives that are attached to
this particular vocation.
It’s no secret the impact
COVID-19 has had on The Observer
and our parent company, EO Media
Group. It forced our hand on a few
fronts and accelerated some timelines
into decisions that — at the time —
seemed unthinkable.
So what does all this mean, you
may ask.
Well, for one, it has meant the
way The Observer is covering
sports is starkly diff erent than it was
prepandemic.
When I arrived in La Grande at
the end of 2012, The Observer had a
two-man sports department. Through
the years, attrition and the fi nancial
woes of The Observer’s former com-
pany, Western Communications,
eventually left us with a one-man
department.
Fortunately for us that one man
was Ronald Bond. Prior to COVID-
19, Ronald worked harder than most
adequately staff ed sports depart-
ments in the state, covering games
all across Union County and fi nding
those interesting athletes with unique
stories to tell. Once the virus brought
sports in Oregon to a screeching halt,
Ronald was forced into service cov-
ering news. As The Observer navi-
gated its way through a COVID-19
world in 2020, Ronald provided sto-
ries to make sure there was a sports
presence, but then last fall, Ronald
was promoted to editor of the Chief-
tain, leaving a hole in The Observer’s
sports coverage.
Former editor Phil Wright fi lled
that hole in early May with the hiring
of Davis Carbaugh. Having Car-
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baugh on staff is good news. How-
ever, having Carbaugh on staff to
cover sports doesn’t mean the way we
report on local sports will return to
the way we reported on sports before
COVID.
Our digital news coverage is 24-7,
reported as it happens. Game updates
will be reported in real time, giving
you your local sports results in the
most timely manner. Print reporting
will focus more on features and
upcoming matches than on game
coverage. Our sports pages will be
devoted to telling unique stories on
the athletes or teams in the area and
preview some of the bigger games.
If you’re a subscriber and haven’t
yet taken advantage of activating the
digital features included in your print
subscription price, call our customer
service center at 800-781-3214 and
activate your digital access.
These changes to our sports cov-
erage matrix will take a little getting
used to for all of us, but it off ers the
best of what The Observer provides
— timely coverage and unique local
stories in print and online.
———
Andrew Cutler is the interim editor
of The Observer and the regional
editorial director for the EO Media
Group, overseeing the La Grande
Observer, East Oregonian and four
more newspapers in Eastern Oregon.
An independent newspaper founded in 1896
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The Observer,
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Regional publisher. ...................... Karrine Brogoitti
Multimedia journalist.........................Alex Wittwer
Regional circulation director .................. Kelli Craft
Home delivery advisor ............... Amanda Fredrick
Interim editor ....................................Andrew Cutler
Advertising representative ...........Juli Bloodgood
News clerk ........................................Lisa Lester Kelly
Advertising representative .................... Amy Horn
Reporter....................................................Dick Mason
National accounts coordinator ...... Devi Mathson
Reporter............................................Davis Carbaugh
Graphic design .................................. Dorothy Kautz
Intern ...................................................Carlos Fuentes
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