FRIDAY, AUGUST 18, 2017
4 — THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS
Opinion
— Letters to the Editor —
Economic development director
needs to explain himself
To the Editor:
What is up with Baker County renew-
ing its contract with Greg Smith and his
economic development snake oil? How
does this guy keep getting funded for
hundreds of thousands of dollars to peddle
something he seems hard-pressed to even
define?
When asked what the County’s return
on investment for the $96,000 tax dollars
he was paid last year, his answer was am-
biguous at best. More disturbing was that
the County board and County commis-
sioners thought it was a wise idea to not
only renew his contract for another year,
but to increase it by $12,000! In business,
you should be able to articulate the return
on investment to the investors of a given
enterprise. Why haven’t we been able to
get straight answers since 2011 when he
was hired?
Whenever we have funding short falls
(roads, education, law enforcement, etc)
the answer is to just keep taxing us. Hit
us for a sidewalk tax, tax us for another
police officer whether we feel the need
or not, up the sewer and water rates … It
just keeps going. And for what? Do you
know what our County Commissioners
make each year? Any idea what the City
Manager makes each year? Any idea of
what these jobs are worth in the private
sector? Seems like government folks
like to reward themselves far beyond the
actual value they bring. But they have the
power to tax.
Greg Smith’s contract appears to be
regular PR contract worth about a $45,000
per year (at best) in any other place in the
free market.
Did that contract even go out for bid to
anyone else? Should it have?
I think some answers should be forth-
coming, otherwise, the County needs to
opt out of this before the opt out clause
expires. It’s our money.
Jake Brown
Halfway
Councilor not a victim
To the Editor:
In regard to City Councilor Adam Nils-
— Editorial —
Nervous
about eclipse
visitor influx
Like most residents of Baker
County, right now, as this issue
goes to press, we’re a little ner-
vous about the predicted influx of
eclipse-seeking tourists coming
into our area.
We wish we could just be excited
and welcoming in the shadow of
this incredibly cool celestial event,
but right now the unknown for first
responders, business owners and
law enforcement obscures that.
The weather forecast along the
Oregon Coast came out this week,
and with that came news of can-
celled reservations west of here
and plans for visitors to come this
way where the skies are predicted
to be clear during the eclipse.
The problem is, without places to
stay, we’re hearing from travelers
who just plan to pitch a tent or sit
in their vehicles on BLM or Forest
Service-managed lands in rural ar-
eas with no real preparation for, or
experience in, that sort of camping.
Those public areas bump up
Letter to the Editor Policy: The Baker
County Press reserves the right not to pub-
lish letters containing factual falsehoods or
incoherent narrative. Letters promoting or
detracting from specific for-profit business-
es will not be published. Word limit is 375
words per letter. Letters are limited to one
every other week per author. Letters should
be submitted to Editor@TheBakerCounty-
Press.com.
Advertising and Opinion Page Dis-
claimer: Opinions submitted as Guest
son’s letter/rant/ramble, published in an-
other newspaper on August 9, please stop!
You were caught red-handed in the act
of spray painting (vandalizing) property
you don’t own. The fact that some other
vandal had applied a previous coat doesn’t
make it better or okay, and trespassing
will always be trespassing.
If you had just admitted your obvious
guilt, taken your lumps and kept your
mouth shut this whole thing would have
been a non-issue. You would have possi-
bly had some public sympathy or cred-
ibility had you not, in your own words,
admitted that you were in fact painting on
a building you didn’t own or have permis-
sion to paint on.
Now I fully admit I did not witness
deputy Maldonado’s behavior at the scene
of the crime, but any deficits in his behav-
ior will never be an excuse for yours.
I live in the city and don’t have many
interactions with sheriff’s deputies or any
other law enforcement. However, on the
two occasions I can think of in the last 10
years, both were actually good experienc-
es, including being stopped for speeding
out by Phillips Reservoir.
Considering the last election results, the
majority of Baker County residents would
disagree with your calling the Sheriff’s
Office “poorly led, ill-equipped or under-
trained.”
You are not being persecuted. You are
being prosecuted. There is a big differ-
ence.
A lone officer, in a remote area with poor
communication comes upon two people
engaged in the act of committing a crime,
and it turns out one of them is armed.
Were you expecting a hug?
Or did you think the officer would
recognize your status as a city council-
man and say oh, sorry, Mr. Nilsson, please
paint away and feel fee to trespass any
time you want?
You are not the victim.
I don’t know if Maldonado is, as you
stated, “not qualified” to work in the ca-
pacity he was hired for, but I can think of
one city councilor for which those words
certainly apply.
Kevin Luckini
Baker City
against privately owned lands in
much of our county, and are filled
with tall, ungrazed dry grass. If
a car or ATV ventures off these
gravel roads into that grass, which
they surely will, the potential for
wildfires becomes a near certainty
in many rural areas. We hope
people will use common sense.
Gas station managers are already
talking about the possibility they
won’t be able to keep up with
demand.
ODOT warns about traffic, road
rage, patience and accidents during
a time when our first responders
are going to be spread thin.
If the freeway stays open both
directions all weekend long, we’ll
consider it a miracle. And if it
remains closed or clogged for too
long, with tens of thousands of
people instantly quadrupling the
population of our little town, food
supplies are going to run slim in
short order.
We think about the potential im-
pact on our emergency room.
We think outside of accidents—
what about an increase in crime?
If ever there was an example
for the necessity of preparedness,
this would be it! But maybe, just
maybe, we won’t have a thing to
worry about.
We’ll see how this plays out—
hopefully, profitably and safely.
—The Baker County Press Editorial Board
Opinions or Letters to the Editor express
the opinions of their authors, and have not
been authored by and are not necessarily
the opinions of The Baker County Press, any
of our staff, management, independent
contractors or affiliates. Advertisements
placed by political groups, candidates,
businesses, etc., are printed as a paid
service, which does not constitute an
endorsement of or fulfillment obligation
by this newspaper for the products or
services advertised.
— Special Column —
So I was
thinking ...
The curse of
four-letter
words
Submitted Photo
By Jimmy Ingram
Special to The Baker County Press
Jimmy Ingram is a local farmer and
father of two who enjoys people
watching within our wonderful
community and beyond.
Cussing, cursing, swearing,
profanity, letting the expletives fly
... Call it what you want but we’ve
all done it.
Its roots undoubtedly go back
many years. You can’t convince
me that the pyramids were built
without a cuss word or two being
spoken:
“Man, are we ever going to be
done moving these *bleeping*
things?” had to be uttered at least a
couple times.
I come from a long line of in-
telligent, yet occasionally foul-
mouthed men.
As a result cussing seeped its
way into my brain as a way of
expressing myself at times.
In fact, if cursing at broken-down
heavy machinery was an Olympic
event, Michael Phelps would have
nothing on me.
If creating new, more descriptive
versions of traditional cuss words
in a sequence was art, Vincent Van
Gogh has nothing on my father.
No mortal man should be expect-
ed to work around farm machin-
ery without a curse word or two.
Drunken sailors have nothing on
blue collar workers when it comes
to bad language.
So does periodic cussing make
you seem less intelligent? Maybe.
On the other hand some situations
in life just call for a four-letter
word.
The two- second delay between
when you stub your toe and when
the pain hits calls for a far more
expressive phrase than “oh good-
ness.”
When your dog digs a crater
in your yard the size of a small
automobile, calling him by his real
name seems far too passive.
Bad words exist for a reason.
Use them on occasion to express
yourself and behold their stress
relieving effects.
Now don’t get me wrong—im-
pressionable little ears shouldn’t
hear such words ... at least from
adults.
But remember that there’s always
the one kid at school who will be
able to trick your kid into saying
something that will get them in
trouble with you or with a teacher.
Casual conversation should also
be more or less devoid of cussing.
Dinner party guests who manage
to slip fout-letter words into stories
are typically seen as uncouth, al-
though among certain groups they
may actually welcome you as kin.
Your mileage may vary.
Best to let someone else drop the
first F-bomb to take the pressure
off.
Much to the surprise of many of
us, there are people out there who
have never cussed.
While this is certainly an admi-
rable trait, their frustrated expres-
sions like “gosh darn it” and “for
Pete’s sake” sound like a song sung
out of key—recognizable, but it
just doesn’t sound the same to your
ears.
I suspect there is a study some-
where linking people who say they
have never cussed with belief in
unicorns.
So while I certainly don’t advo-
cate the use of foul language, I’m
not above using it myself. If you’re
one of those who find it offensive,
then I apologize.
If so, I urge you to wear earplugs
around heavy machinery ... not
necessarily because of the loud
machinery, but the cussing you’ll
undoubtedly hear from its operator
if/it breaks down.
— Contact Us —
YOUR ELECTED
OFFICIALS
The Baker County Press
President Donald Trump
PO Box 567
Baker City, Ore. 97814
202.456.2461 fax
Open Monday-Thursday for calls
9 AM - 4 PM
Open 24/7 for emails
202.456.1414
Whitehouse.gov/contact
US Sen. Jeff Merkley
503.326.3386
503.326.2900 fax
Merkley.Senate.gov
Phone: 541.519.0572
TheBakerCountyPress.com
US Sen. Ron Wyden
541.962.7691
Wyden.Senate.gov
Kerry McQuisten, Publisher
Editor@TheBakerCountyPress.com
US Rep. Greg Walden
Wendee Morrissey, Advertising and Sales
Wendee@TheBakerCountyPress.com
541.624.2402 fax
David Conn, Advertising and Sales
David@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Published weekly every Friday.
Subscription rates per year are $29.95 all areas,
e-mail delivery. $39.95 print issue, home delivery,
Baker City city limits only. $49.95 print issue,
mail delivery, outside Baker City city limits only.
Payment in advance.
A division of
Black Lyon Publishing, LLC
541.624.2400
Walden.House.gov
Oregon Gov. Kate
Brown
503.378.3111
Governor.Oregon.gov
State Rep. Cliff Bentz
503.986.1460
State Sen. Ted Ferrioli
541.490.6528
Baker County
Commissioners Bill Harvey;
Mark Bennett; Bruce Nichols
541.523.8200
Copyright © 2014 -2017
541.523.8201