in other words
april10
2012
Natural Path to Health: Clinical Update
By Dr. Carol McIntyre
Hello All~ I hope you are getting
ready for Spring! I know I am looking
forward to nicer weather, gardening and
bike riding! There are a few new things
‘springing’ into action at my office as
well, so I’d like to fill you in.
First, I am now an “In-network”
provider with some insurance companies.
To date, I am in-network with ASH
(American Specialty Health), BCBS
(Blue Cross Blue Shield) and DHS. This
means that if you already have coverage
for Naturopathic doctors and/or licensed
acupuncturists, the percentage of what
your insurance company pays toward
visits may be greater, ultimately leaving
you with a lesser expense. Please
understand however, that even though
I am in-network, coverage is dependent
on your individual policy. Yes, it is
confusing… but Kim and I are happy to
call your insurance company to verify
coverage details for you. (Ok, it’s really
Kim who calls! Thank her!)
I am also awaiting in-network status
for ODS and CHP (Complimentary
Health Plan through Kaiser). Once I
am accepted into Kaisers’ network,
most people with Kaiser insurance
will be able to see me as a Naturopath
and/or acupuncturist. There are also
others I will be contracting with such as
Lifewise, so if there is a company that
you would like me to be contracted with
please call the office to let me know. I
am willing to become contracted with as
many different providers I can to better
serve the community at large.
Secondly,
through
a
collaborative effort between my office
and the people at the Verdura clinic,
there will soon be a new mental health
counselor here in Vernonia! I am so
very excited to announce this news. The
counselor’s name is Andrew Lundgren.
He is in private practice for himself and
associated with Christian counseling
services. His focus is on marriage
counseling, individual counseling for
adults and youth, as well as play therapy.
Andrew will be in Vernonia beginning
in May. Exact days and location of
service are to be determined and once
established I will be sure to let you know!
This is going to be such a wonderful
service added to our community. Please
take advantage of it once he begins
practicing. Learn more about him at his
website: motifcounseling.com.
Last but not least… I would
like to thank all of those who have been
supporting my monthly health talks at
the Vernonia Community Grange. These
are being held every first Monday of the
month at 7:00 PM and usually last about
1 hour (just as a reminder). This past
Monday I had a wonderful guest speaker,
15
Dr. Scheuerman, our local dentist. He did
a wonderful demonstration measuring
out the amount of sugar that is contained
in a ‘typical’ breakfast of cereal and
milk. It was astonishing to see how
much sugar is added into our everyday
foods. Thank you to Dr. Scheuerman
for the wonderful information! If you’re
interested, start calculating out how
much sugar you’re eating… 4g of sugar
is equal to 1tsp. Go ahead! See how it
adds up!
Next lecture will be Monday
May 7th at 7:00 PM ~ ‘The skinny on
fats’... spread the word and bring a
friend. The lecture is always free and I
provide hot tea. Donations are greatly
accepted. Many thanks again to the good
doctor for his participation.
Thanks for joining me and as
always~ Be Well.
The Gun Doctor: Legal Considerations Of Self-Defense
By Wolfgang Rotbart
Disclaimer: This article not intended to be con-
strued as legal advice of any kind, but merely reflects
my understanding of the legal principles discussed.
You may have heard about the case in Florida
involving the shooting of an unarmed man by a neigh-
borhood watch volunteer.
In this case, only the most basic details are
known at this time. However, it seems clear that the
shooter initiated the contact. In general, the law does
not permit using self-defense as an argument when the
shooter initiates a conflict. This means you can’t start
a fight and then shoot your opponent when you start
losing.
This has also started a related controversy of
the “Stand Your Ground” law that is in effect in Florida
and a number of other states. Basically, this law means
that you do not have a “duty to retreat” if attacked.
“Duty to retreat” means that if attacked, you must re-
treat as far as possible, if safe to do so, before using
deadly force to halt an attack. In some states, the duty
to retreat additionally requires one to call the police be-
fore using deadly force.
The problems with duty to retreat are how far
is far enough, and the “safe to do so” and are further
complicated by the fact that it is very difficult to make
such snap judgments in an extremely stressful life-or-
death situation. The duty to retreat doctrine has been
used by overzealous, ambitious district attorneys and
police to prosecute people who apparently were only
defending themselves against unwarranted attack.
On the other hand, opponents of the “stand
your ground” laws contend it promotes a Wild West
society of shoot first and ask questions later, using fire-
arms to settle disputes, fostering vigilantes, and allow-
ing drug dealers and gang-bangers to literally get away
with murder. These are valid concerns; however they
are not covered by stand your ground laws.
Stand your ground laws are pertinent only
when a person is attacked without provocation, there
is a reasonable belief that the attack will produce death
or grave bodily injury and the person is not involved
in criminal activity at the time. The vigilante question
could perhaps be clarified better, but in general, stand
your ground laws are not intended to be used in the de-
fense of others except in special circumstances.
Also, in this case, since the shooter was armed
and the other man was not, it brings up the principle of
“disparity of force”. Generally, one is not permitted to
use a firearm in self-defense against an unarmed oppo-
nent. There are exceptions to this such as when an op-
ponent is much stronger, more aggressive, much more
physically fit, and younger or when there are multiple
Senior Stars: Ken Smejkal
and then display them along his fence,
selling them for 50 cents apiece. He also
had another sideline business, picking
up beer bottles and selling them at the
Safeway Store in Vernonia (now the
Blue House Cafe) for a penny apiece.
The butcher there took note of Ken’s
financial savvy and asked Ken to work
for him, but Ken lived too far away to
take the job and left the box boy duties
to his pal Dick Gwin.
In grade school Ken began
logging...yes logging. He had a little
toy wagon he used to haul dead trees
his father would give him from their
property.
Innovator Ken extended
the wagon with disc wheels and 2 x 4
framing and hauled the logs across the
county road to a small sawmill owned by
Joe Johnson.
Ken has memories of joy riding
as a teen—one day squirreling around
during noon hour and nice guy police
chief Ace Lolly (father of previous
Senior Star Kathleen Tiffney) stopping
him and reading him the riot act then
letting him go. Apparently that’s all it
took because Ken recalls never repeating
that performance again. “Ace was a
opponents.
This is a complicated subject and a specif-
ic case is analyzed in a free booklet available from:
http://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/images/stories/
Hickey%20Booklet.pdf
These are but two of the many legal topics a
person should know regarding armed self-defense.
There is a great website that has a very informative
brochure written in an easy to understand format on the
legalities of self-defense. It is free and can be down-
loaded from: http://www.armedcitizensnetwork.org/
images/stories/Hayes-SDLaw.pdf
I also have these brochures available in printed
form free of charge.
I welcome ideas for topics for these articles.
Please email them to: Wolfgang@WolfgangTheGun-
Doctor.com. Call me at 503-429-7342 10:00 – 5:00
M – F
Wolfgang Rotbart is an AGI-certified Master Gunsmith
and a NRA-certified Basic Pistol Course Instructor.
He works as a gunsmith and as an Oregon Concealed
Handgun Safety Course Instructor. You may visit The
Gun Doctor website for more information at: http://
www.wolfgangthegundoctor.com/.
continued from page 10
beloved Chief, caring for his town and
the kids,” says Ken.
Ken had a 1931 Model A Ford
Coupe he bought for $50 from his cousin
John Ohler at the age of fifteen. Gas
was 20 cents a gallon then. When he
was sixteen he bought a blue ‘36 Chevy
Coupe for $50.
Ken was married in 1961
to local girl Penny Plummer at the
Christian Church by Robert Sargent.
Ken and Penny worked together, driving
truck and hauling water for natural gas
exploration around Mist, mainly for
ARCO. He drove their Mack and Penny
drove their Peterbuilt. Ken had a nose
for buying, selling and trading, including
steel bridges he seemed to find around
here and there. He once purchased a
bridge for $100 in Timber and resold it
plank by wooden plank.
Penny recalls that “...life was
different in the country—we drove into
town maybe once every three or four
weeks.”
Ken and Penny have three girls,
six grandkids and two greatgrandkids.
First daughter Susan has Ryan and
Ben; daughter number two, Cindy, has
Becky and Erica;
and
headlights,
and daughter three,
starting with four new
Sharon has Travis
tires and waking up
and Tony. Becky has
with four flats!
Hayden and Erica has
Ken
retired
Haley.
last year leaving his
Ken
and
operation to others.
Penny have made
Ken
and
many trips down
Penny’s dreams and
to sunny and warm
plans for the future:
Mexico, wintering in
they own a lot at Long
Baja and Matzalan for
Beach Ocean Park
a month or more. They
with a cute little 10
have also traveled
x 12 cabin and are
to Alaska in their
building an additional
twenty foot SeaRay
cabin on wheels—
Big brother Jim Smejkal with Ken.
and have taken their
talented
daughter
twenty-five foot Bayliner to Glacier Bay Cindy is designing it for them. When
for ten years or so. Ken proudly shares it’s done it will be hauled up around
bragging rights with Penny for the forty- Oysterville—you can guess by that
six pound King Salmon she reeled in in name what they will spend their time
British Columbia. Ken says that was the doing when there!
ultimate time of their lives—sleeping on
Ken, after learning of all you and
a boat and catching fresh fish every five Penny have accomplished over the years
to six minutes.
we hope you enjoy your retirement—
In 1963 Ken and Penny took the you deserve it!
gravel roads through B.C. all the way to
Thanks for sharing your stories
the Alaska border. Penny recalls that and memories with our Vernonia’s Voice
trip with “fondness,” broken windshields readers near and far.