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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 6, 2002)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, November 6, 2002 Page 2 Wandering thoughts from a wandering editor: * Why do medical offices have Patient Registration, but not Impatient Registration? *Why do so many people constantly drive on the left lanes of two-lane divided roadways when they don’t plan to pass or make a left turn for another 450 miles? *Why does the U.S. government send bazillions of dol- lars to countries that don’t have to repay the money and have no inclination to demonstrate that the money is being put to good use? *Why have I lost most of the hair on my head? Why is the hair in my ears growing out? *How come everything I really like is illegal, immoral or fattening? *Has anyone else had the privilege of seeing fall leaves being blown across a road like a herd of small animals? *If mankind evolved from monkeys and apes, why do we still have monkeys and apes? *Why are some relatives called inlaws instead of out- laws? *How come we say that people are insane? Shouldn’t we say that they are outsane? *Why don’t our children telephone us more often? *Has anyone else out there had the exciting experience of living with six cats and two dogs, not to mention two cat litter boxes? *Why does my wife enjoy rearranging the living room furniture when I’m not looking? *When will the abrasions on my shins heal from our luggage falling from the rear of our daughter’s car after she picked us up at San Diego International Airport/Lindberg Field? Why did I let that happen? *Are we alone in the universe? *May I please have another burrito made of non-fat fri- joles and a low-fat tortilla? And what about another bottle of non-alcoholic beer? *Will I ever conquer the world of computers? *Why do I find certain aspects of life amusing, while my wife thinks I’m outsane? RAMCELL NOW AVAILABLE AT DARN NEAR EVERYTHING 136 South Redwood Hwy. 592-5255 Current Ramcell customers FREE upgrades, phones & promos! Free phone with charger - Free activation Affordable packages to suit you No roaming charges - 10 states Support the merchants who advertise in ‘Illinois Valley News’ “Keep it in the valley!” Illinois Valley News An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523 Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523 Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820 Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330 Volume 65, No. 33 STAFF: Virginia Gilliam, Cindy Newton, Chris Robertson, Sharon Silva & Becky Loudon Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association DEADLINES: News, Classified Ads NOON MONDAYS POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ welcomes letters to the editor provided they are of general interest, in good taste, legible and not libelous. All letters must be signed, using complete name, and contain the writer’s address and telephone number. The latter need not be published, but will be used to verify authenticity. The ‘News’ reserves the right to edit letters. One letter per person per month. Letters are used at the discretion of the publisher. Unpublished letters are neither acknowledged nor returned. A prepaid charge may be levied if a letter is inordinately long in the editor's opinion. SUBSCRIPTION RATES One year in Josephine County - $20.80 One year in Jackson and Douglas Counties - $24.40 One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state -$28 POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523 Editor’s Note: Views and commentary expressed in letters to the editor are strictly those of the letter- writers. * * * Typed, double-spaced letters are acceptable for consideration. Hand- written letters that are double-spaced and highly legible also can be con- sidered for publication. Cards of thanks are not accepted as letters.) Crematorium mation misinfor- From Dan and Sue Fiske, Mountain View Pet Services Cave Junction As owners of the cremato- rium mentioned in Jim Eni- mal’s letter (“Illinois Valley News” Oct. 23), we feel it is important that he and the com- munity have the answers to questions he posed. We also wanted to correct misinforma- tion in the letter. We contacted Jay Rasku, director of the Toxic Actions Center referenced by Enimal. Our unit not only meets, but exceeds all its recommenda- tions, and the center has no further concerns. We researched the phone directory, and checked Jose- phine County Assessor’s Of- An Oct. 23 story about the efforts of the Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance (IVSHA) incorrectly reported that the U.S. Forest Service gave the organization $150,000 toward its construction of the home. The story should have read the money was given to IVSHA by USDA Rural De- velopment. The story also should have said that the glass walls of the children’s playroom were so that mothers and their children could see each other, not mom and dad, and that the organization has not yet de- cided on what materials to use to list the names of partici- pants on the courtyard walls. The story noted that tiles would be used. Lastly, the One Thousand Friends for Safety Campaign will continue until April 2004. The article stated that Oct. 26 was the last day to participate, but it was the last day that vol- unteers were available in the community for Domestic Vio- lence Awareness Month. Peace vigil, Iraq talk set Friday in CJ “War on Iraq: Weapons of Mass Distraction,” a talk by Sonali Kolhatkar, co-producer of KPFK’s Morning Show on Pacifica Radio, will be given at the county building in Cave Junction on Friday, Nov. 8. The event will begin with a peace vigil at 6 p.m.; the talk will begin at 7:30. Kolhatkar is from the United Arab Emirates and is vice president of the Afghan Women’s Mission, a group that works in solidarity with Afghan women to help im- prove health and educational facilities for Afghan refugees in Pakistan. The Afghan Women’s Mission recently helped open a free hospital in Pakistan for Afghan women and children refugees. The peace vigil and pres- entation are co-sponsored by The Social Justice Alliance & World Peace Vigil. fice in search of a way to con- tact Enimal with this informa- tion. We were unable to con- tact him, as he is not listed in the phone book; and, as best we can determine, does not own property in Josephine County. As a result, we have pur- chased space in this issue of the valley newspaper to an- swer the questions in detail. We are proud of our facility and services. We invite Enimal or any other interested member of the community to phone Moun- tain View Pet Services at 592- 2164 to view the facility or have any questions answered. vs. 10 years ago. Oregon has a 16 percent unemployment rate in the manufacturing sector because their employers cannot afford to live here. Oregon and Washington state have the two worst economies in America. We are the only two states with statewide land-use plan- ning laws. Ted Kulongoski wants to keep what we have and raise taxes. Kevin Mannix wants to return land-use planning to the local level and cut taxes. I hope that Kevin Mannix won the election to grow Oregon out of these problems. ‘Soap’ opera Housing affordability From Kalvin B. Garton President of the Oregon Realtors Land Institute Portland Ten years ago Oregon had a 67 percent housing afforda- bility index. In 10 years Ore- gon’s index has fallen to 45 percent. The affordability index measures the average house- hold income against the aver- age house price. The national average in the last 10 years has actually risen from 54 percent to 65 percent. In other words, 51 percent fewer people can af- ford to live in Oregon today From Sue Lily Cave Junction Having followed the pre- vious two installments in “I.V. News” about “Soap,” the so- called starving thoroughbred gelding interned in a dirt en- closure in the old White School House area; I drove by to see for myself. Anyone familiar with live- stock knows that they spend time dozing, swiping flies and redolently meandering, but this large, gaunt horse had his head down, continuously lick- ing the dirt. There was no sign of hay anywhere; which to me is a sign of underfeeding. Yesterday, I offered $800 cash noted in “I.V. News” (“the first $800 takes him”), and it was announced laughingly that the price is now $1,200 because of all the “harassment.” Claiming to love her horses, “Soap’s” owner to my mind demonstrates ignorance of animal husbandry and a lack of compassion for them, and for everyone who wants to help. The opportunity was to learn from skillful people how to keep a healthy pleas- ure horse, but the attention has been twisted. It is overwhelmingly evi- dent that we need the Humane Society in Illinois Valley. Overall, we have a gigantic iceberg: people who under- feed and abuse their livestock, and dump unwanted dogs and cats. We have people who don’t neuter their pets; people who allow their dogs and cats to roam and prey on the native wildlife; people who allow dogs to bark all night, and who maintain untrustworthy animals that attack poultry and kill sheep, goats and calves. Animals are innocent. People are powerful. It is our responsibility to behave well toward them. They need dry shelter with clean bedding, fresh water, good feed, proper containment, training and at- tention. Loving them is not enough. A letter from Mountain View Pet Services Dan & Sue Fiske (co-owners) (541) 592-2164 Mountain View Pet Services would like to take this opportunity to answer the questions and clear the misinformation in the letter from Jim Enimal regarding the animal cremato- rium. It is owned and operated by Dan and Sue Fiske doing business under the name Mountain View Pet Services. Jim first asks if the citizens of our city know this facility is be- ing installed. We began the process in May of this year. Josephine County, the City of Cave Junction, the Illinois Valley Fire District, the state fire marshal and the DEQ were all notified and had the chance to review the plans and inspect the facility. We have dis- cussed it with many citizens of the community during the last five months, with very posi- tive response. It has become common enough knowledge that when we are around town, we are often approached by people asking how the process is going and when we will be starting services. Jim further questions if there has been public notice, public input, permits or EP stud- ies. Yes. During the permitting process the DEQ oversees all of these concerns. It is fully permitted. Our machine has had a 36 page source evaluation report of the testing con- ducted by Horizon Engineering of Portland. Jim expresses concerns about dioxin and mercury put out by medical waste incinera- tors and quotes the Toxic Action Center on the internet as his source. As our unit is a cre- matorium, and will not be used to incinerate medical waste, this is irrelevant. I did, how- ever, contact their office, stating we were installing a crematorium that would be used for animal bodies only and asked if they had any concerns or suggestions to ensure a safe facility. I received a response from Jay Rasku, Director of the Massachusetts Toxic Action Center. He stated, “I don’t have examples of where crematories have had detrimental im- pacts on public health here in Massachusetts.” He also included several recommendations to ensure a safe facility, all of which we not only have met, but have exceeded. Our fuel source, though more expensive, is even cleaner than those he recommended as being acceptable commonly used fuels for crematory units. He sent me acceptable levels of emissions, The testing on our machine shows it puts out less than half of what the Toxic Actions Center considers acceptable. We significantly exceed their expectations and they have no concerns about our facility. Regarding Jim’s concerns about residential housing, the facility is on property zoned commercial. There are houses behind the unit, though not within 30 feet as Jim states. A neighbor was contacted and asked about access through his property during the construc- tion process. Consent was given. It was later withdrawn due to concerns about possible damage to his property by the tractor, but no concern about the crematorium was ex- pressed by this neighbor, who is the closest to the unit. Jim’s next concern appears to be odor. Our machine is odorless and smokeless. We own a hospital right next door to the machine. No business would be more affected by odor than our own. We would not install anything that would hurt our own business. The unit was installed professionally. We invested $10,000 to bring a technician from Florida to make sure it was installed and functioning properly and to make sure we were properly trained in its use. It is interesting to note that when the technician was operating it for the first time and fine tuning the mechanics, a neighboring business owner came and spoke with us about concerns of smoke and odor affecting his business. We pointed out that the unit was operating at the present time and asked if he saw or smelled anything offensive. His reply was, “Of course not, this is a test burn, there is nothing in the machine.” At the time, not only was the machine in the process of cremating our own deceased pet, it was in the process of being fine tuned, so it is now running even more efficiently and putting out less than what this neighbor already considered not to be a problem. Jim’s final question, “Is there a fishy smell?” We don’t predict many requests for the cremation of fish, but if there is, this is one time where even a fish would not smell fishy!! We obtained a few interesting statistics about our machine when it was installed. A car, when started cold, puts out more hazardous emissions in the first 5 to 10 seconds running than our unit puts out in its entire cycle. Its emissions are significantly less than even a wood stove. It will not pollute our community. Having participated in discussions with many organizations in our valley, it is very ap- parent that as residents, we are looking for businesses that bring money and jobs into our valley without polluting or destroying our natural resources. As the vast majority of our business so far has been from outside of the valley, Mountain View Pet Services is proud to have contributed to this goal. We are proud of our new facility and services. We invite Jim, or any other interested citizen to phone at 592-2164 to have any further questions an- swered and to schedule a tour of the facility as soon as final inspection of the building is done. Dan and Sue Fiske