vernonia’s
voice letters to the editor
february
2009
05
Readers lend their voices… An Opinion: The Vernonia Blog...
I’m Disappointed In You
To the Editor
Well, we have had a busy past few weeks. I just
want to say a great big thank you to the profession-
als and volunteers that have put in countless hours
to keep our community safe. Thank You!!!
One thing that was heard over and over again
at town meetings after the flood last year was that
folks felt that we were caught short and were unpre-
pared. These last two weeks we have seen what our
town leaders have been busy putting into place.
The first evidence of these new programs was
when I received a phone call checking on my moth-
er. The CERT team had been doing welfare checks
on seniors during the power outage and when she
did not answer her door they contacted me to see if
she was well and if we had adequate source of heat.
Fabulous!!! (If you want to be on this list call the
senior center)
The next example of change was the automat-
ed reverse call back service from the 911 dispatch.
Since then, I have found out that not only will they
call landlines but cell phones as well. To register
your cell phone number call 1-800-696-7795 (the
non-emergency number for 911).
Also, the novelty of “shrink wrapping” the med-
ical clinic and WOEC.
Thank goodness we did not have a major event
again, and my heart goes out to other communities
that did not fair as well, but I feel that our com-
munity is much more prepared after experiencing
the new services being implemented and I know that
they will continue to make adjustments from what
they learned during this “dry run”.
The last few weeks have also given me an op-
portunity to fine tune my own preparedness and for
our neighborhood to work together to solve issues
facing us jointly.
So thank you; Chief Kay and Officers, Deputy
Chiefs Smith and Davis and VRFD, James Baribar,
City public works, CERT volunteers, Dr. Phyllis
Gilmore, Dr. Ken Cox and school staff, And every-
one else who through selfless acts of volunteering
makes this a great place to live.
Proud to call Vernonia my home,
Heather Lewis
To the Editor
Joining millions of optimistic, emotional and
patriotic people- from Oregon and every state of the
union and from around the world, I today had the
overwhelming pleasure of witnessing the Inaugu-
ration of our 44th President, Barack Obama, along
with the beginning of a new political era that his
Presidency signifies.
In his Inaugural Address, our new president re-
minded America that, despite the many and severe
challenges facing our country, we have, whenever
tested, never faltered.
President Obama assured the nation that the
centuries-old values that make up the fabric of our
society- honesty, hard work, courage and fair play,
tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism- have
driven America’s rise to greatness and enabled our
nation to survive all challenges, including economic
crises, war, national disasters and terrorism.
The President also reminded us that the selfless-
ness and kindness of Americans makes us friends of
all people and nations who seek peace and dignity
for humankind. He said that nations will be judged
by what they build, not what they destroy and that
by building strong international relationships and
leading by example, America will continue its role
as a world leader.
President Obama stated pointedly that each of
us has a responsibility to ourselves, to the nation
and to the world and advised us to “pick ourselves
up, dust ourselves off, and begin remaking Ameri-
ca.”
Part of this remaking will take place across our
country, throughout our State Legislatures, and in
the Oregon House, where I am committed to work-
ing for the kind of change that will make a positive
difference in the everyday lives of my constituents
and all Oregonians.
State Representative Brad Witt
House District 31
HOW TO SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Vernonia’s Voice welcomes and requests your thoughts, opinions, and
ideas. Please include your name, address, and phone number; limit your
letters to 300 words or less. Vernonia’s Voice reserves the right to edit, omit,
respond, or ask for a response to letters submitted. We will print letters,
space permitting. Deadline is the 20th of the month. Email to: news@
vernoniasvoice.com or mail to: Letters, PO Box 55, Vernonia 97064.
By Scott Laird
It’s January 29, and we’re still waiting.
It’s a great idea, a beautiful website, and a wonderful
opportunity. And I was excited to see someone put the
effort into creating a public place to discuss issues about
Vernonia. Until I read what they had to say. Or didn’t.
What am I talking about? Well, www.VernoniaBlog.
org, of course. Haven’t heard about it yet? Well, I’m
not too surprised, because after an initial series of posts
from each of the three writers on the site, and some buzz
around town-- we haven’t heard a word from them. No
replies to emails, no new posts on their website, no let-
ters to the editor-- nothing.
If you haven’t seen VernoniaBlog yet, I’ll give you a
little background. With much fanfare (cards sent in the
mail, anonymous letters dropped at City Hall), the writ-
ers of the site announced their intentions. “Vernoni-
aBlog.Org is intended to be a blog about the community.
It’s not a forum, but any contributions from the commu-
nity will be published.” And then this: “We are going to
provide...opinions, criticisms, praise; whatever we find
that is noteworthy or just makes us mad enough to write
it down...”
The website was started on January 7, and promised up-
dates by the anonymous writers at least every two weeks.
They promised to step on some toes, take notes and name
names, and that they are writing in self-defense, as peo-
ple around here who express their opinions are cut off,
shut down, or told that what they say doesn’t matter.
Here’s some people they praised: A State Trooper who
picked up an elderly gentleman walking on the side
of the road in two feet of snow. He’s a hero! Joann
Glass works hard at City Hall. Mike Kay did a great job
preparing the city for possible flooding. Here’s some
people that pissed them off: three old ladies and a city
councilor. And Vernonia’s Voice-- which is fine.
But at least base your comments on facts-- not rumors,
innuendoes and inaccuracies. You can read their com-
ments yourself, if you’re so inclined, and see what
you think.
Just a side note-- I am all for praising those in our com-
munity who do good work. City employees did work
hard and went beyond the call of duty during recent
emergencies. And they should be praised. But let’s also
look beyond the obvious every once in a while.
Here’s what I think: There are all kinds of issues, con-
cerns, complaints and problems that need to be addressed
in this town. And a live, cyber-based outlet could be a
perfect tool. These folks obviously have some skills and
talent-- their website is attractive and well put together,
and they seem to really care about this community.
But if you want to be a writer-- than write. And get your
facts straight. And don’t perpetuate rumors.
with a rival who was posting comments about them. In
the United Kingdom, a college lecturer contributed to a
blog in which she called a politician uncomplimentary
names, including referring to him as a “Nazi.” The poli-
tician found out the real name of the lecturer (she wrote
under a pseudonym) via the ISP and successfully sued
her for damages and costs.
So stop hiding behind pseudonyms and calling yourself
a blog. If you are going to attack people in the commu-
nity, at least have the courage to put your name on your
comments.
Now, I especially don’t like complainers who don’t offer
ideas, suggestions or possible solutions. I like construc-
tive criticism. So here are some ideas for some pos-
sible topics on your site: Do we really need to build new
schools, or is it OK for our students to attend class in
modular buildings? What’s happening with the money
Columbia County Flood Relief raised and why are people
still living in FEMA housing? What’s happening at the
Vernonia Community Learning Center now that Flood
Relief has moved out? What’s up with that big wall
Bill Sword built around his place across from Anderson
Park? Should the County allow expansion and industrial
development at the Vernonia Airport? The city is con-
sidering an Urban Renewal District in downtown-- what
is this, and what will it mean? Where were Columbia
County Road crews during the December snowstorms?
That’s just for starters.
Looking for some unsung heroes (who aren’t police of-
ficers)? How about the volunteers who cleared out the
Vernonia Cares Food Bank during the flood warning on
January 1? How about Deputy Fire Chiefs Ben Davis and
Dean Smith-- volunteers who worked as hard as any paid
city employee during the snow storm and flood scares?
How about Rural Fire Board President Steve Weller who
monitored the situations and gave up part of his vaca-
tion because the city was in an emergency? How about
all our youth sports coaches? School volunteers? 4-H
parents? CERT Volunteers? Don’t like the way things
are run around here? Yes--start discussions. Attend a
city meeting. Join a city committee. Volunteer with a
local organization. Run for city office. Write a letter to
the editor-- Vernonia’s Voice welcomes your opinions.
Offer an alternative solution.
There are lots of local non-profits who could use your
expertise to help design and maintain their own web-
site. There are lots of topics that need open discussion.
There are lots of volunteer groups who need passionate
and committed people to join them. Put your energy to
good use.
Another source of news, information and opinions in our
community? I welcome you with open arms. Another
bunch of complainers and Monday morning quarter-
backs-- you can keep it. Complaining just to hear your-
self talk will quickly leave you... well, talking to your-
self. Why not be part of the solution, instead of adding
to the problem?
A couple other points: Don’t be so condescending to
your readers. Don’t call us dumb, tell us how clever,
literate and funny you are,
and give us reading lists so
we can get your jokes. I’ll
choose my own reading ma-
terial-- and it won’t be the
collected works of William
Shakespeare, Stephen King
and Lemony Snicket.
Another thing. This isn’t re-
ally a blog-- it’s a website
that is about your opinions--
just wanted to get that out in
the clear. Bloggers don’t re-
main anonymous. Blogging
is about transparency, an
open airing of opinions. In
fact, according to Wikipedia
in John Doe v. Patrick Ca-
hill, the Delaware Supreme
Court found that standards
had to be met to unmask
anonymous bloggers, and the
Cahills settled in a lawsuit
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