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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2011)
Applegater Winter 2011 17 OPINION Time to tone down the rhetoric BY LAUREL SUTHERLIN To hear some tell it, environmentalists want to steal your property, close every road in the forest, and turn the Siskiyou Crest into an eco-preserve where people aren’t allowed. Such hogwash may help sell bumper stick- ers and newspapers, but it’s not remotely true. Nearly everyone can agree that the Siskiyou Crest is a special landscape that we are fortunate to have in our collective backyard. But passions run high when discussion turns to the future management of federal lands surrounding the Crest. Recently, this important dialog has been stymied by a small but vocal opposition who are using fear and violent rhetoric to advance wild conspiracy theories and anti-government militancy. It is time for everyone to take a deep breath and take an honest look at what is on the table. KS Wild has sought meaningful protections for the amazing wildlands of the Siskiyou Crest for over a decade. A little over a year ago a national monument designation was proposed as one possible vehicle to improve fi re management, recreational opportunities and road maintenance on this often overlooked landscape. We welcome suggestions on how to achieve these goals. Our current proposal puts forward a management vision that strengthens protections for the most pristine and ecologically important parts of the landscape, creates a robust restoration plan that would involve small diam- eter thinning and calls for a comprehensive fi re manage- ment strategy that protects communities and restores forest resiliency. Th is plan also calls for the continuation of hunting, fi rewood gathering, motorized recreation and access to all main destinations and private in-holdings. Nothing in the proposal involves the acquisition of any private property or any changes in what a landowner is allowed to do with their property. It is worth noting that there is, in fact, a major proposal very much alive in Southern Oregon that does propose the use of eminent domain to seize private property against the will of its owners: the Jordan Cove SCHOOL with soothing colors, harmonious sounds, delightful smells, live plants, and natural light. While exploring the outdoors and celebrating festivals, students learn to love and respect nature and the rhythm of the seasons. Waldorf education aspires to instill in children a passion for education and values that will inspire and sustain them throughout their lives. Th e school’s unique physi- cal and social atmosphere develops each child’s sense of truth, beauty and goodness, while preparing them to lead successful, fulfi lling lives in our ever-changing world. Why a Charter School? Th e Woodland Charter School will fi ll a long-standing need in our community for an alternative to traditional public school. Many lo- cal families have home-schooled, cooperatively educated, hired a private teacher, driven to schools of their choice in town, or opted for some blend of these approaches for years. Our goal is to open the Woodland Charter School in the Fall 2011, beginning with grades K-6 and eventually growing to a K-8 school. Charter schools are tuition-free and run independently within the spon- soring school district while receiving federal funding. Th e Woodland Charter School will be sited within the Williams-Applegate Valley and any child in Oregon will be able to attend without an inter-district transfer. Currently, we have incorporated in the state of Oregon as a non-profi t organization and have formed a Charter Council. We anticipate gaining tax-exempt status as a federally recognized non-profi t organization by the winter. Simultaneous to the process of organizing as a non-profi t, we have met with folks at the Th ree Rivers Liquifi ed Natural Gas Pipeline project. KS Wild and our friends have been working closely with landowners to protect homes and farms from seizure by the pipeline company since this project was announced. Ironically, the ‘property rights’ activists in such an uproar about our proposal for the public lands on the Siskiyou Crest are nowhere to be found. Th ere are important discussions and legitimate concerns about the future of the Crest that are being voiced by people with widely varying political per- spectives. KS Wild welcomes those conversations and indeed, our proposal is meant to provoke them. But the aggression, threatening language and intentionally misleading claims coming from the loudest voices are not helping anyone. At a meeting recently in the Applegate, organized by anti-conservation activists, the fi nal speaker ended the event by yelling at the audience “I want you all to leave here mad! If you don’t get up and fi ght right now your children will end up slaves or they will be dead!” Th is kind of bombastic overstatement would be humorous if there were not a long history of violent threats from these same elements of our community. We believe that current management of the Siskiyou Crest lacks a coordinated fi re management, restoration or recreational vision. Th e three National Forests that manage the Crest across two states are often working at odds with one another. KS Wild’s goal is to see the natural beauty, biological diversity and ecological health of this little known natural treasure receive the protections it deserves. Th is is a long-term conversation, and we encourage those who share our love for this place to take part. Our proposal for future management of the Siskiyou Crest may be viewed at:www.siskiyoucrest.org. Laurel Sutherlin Grassroots Organizer for the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild) 541-488-5789 FROM PAGE 1 School District to discuss our project, and have applied for and received the Oregon Charter School Incentive Grant from the Oregon Department of Education for $56,000. An additional $225,000 will be awarded to the Woodland Charter School once the school is sponsored. In November we submitted our charter school proposal to the Th ree Rivers School District and they have deemed it complete. Th e next step is a public hearing, where a great show of community support will assist in the approval of the Woodland Charter School as an educational choice for families in our community. Th e Public Hearing is scheduled for January 5 2011 at 6:30 pm in the Th ree Rivers School District Offi ces in Murphy. Please show support by attending the public hear- ing and visiting woodlandcharterschool.org to print and sign a Letter of Support. If you are interested in pre- enrolling your child at the Woodland Charter School for the 2011-2012 or 2012-2013 school year, please fi ll out a Pre-Enrollment Form. Class sizes will be limited. For more information please visit our website, call 846-4246, or write P.O. Box 185, Williams, OR 97544. For more information about Waldorf education explore whywaldorfworks.org. Shauna Kenealey • 541-846-6158 Photos top and bottom by Teena Jo—www.teenajo.com WANTED: Salesperson Th e Applegater is looking for a person to sell ads in Grants Pass Commissions are a high 25% to 30% per sale. Contact JD Rogers at 541-846.7736.
