Page 2
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, January 7, 2009
After having our daughter and two “great” granddaugh-
ters with us for two weeks, including Christmas and Hanuk-
kah -- and dealing with bitingly cold weather, the editor is
weary. So I’m taking a break until I can flex my fingers
once the weather gets warmer.
Meanwhile, here is my offering for this week’s Corner.
It’s titled, Great Literary Taunts, otherwise known as “Why
didn’t I think of that?!”
* * *
*I feel so miserable without you, it’s almost like having
you here. -- Stephen Bishop
*A modest little person, with much to be modest about.
-- Winston Churchill (about Clement Atlee)
*I’ve just learned about his illness. Let’s hope it’s noth-
ing trivial. -- Irvin S. Cobb
*I have never killed a man, but I have read many obitu-
aries with great pleasure. -- Clarence Darrow
*He has never been known to use a word that might
send a reader to the dictionary. -- William Faulkner (about
Ernest Hemingway)
*He is not only dull himself, he is the cause of dullness
in others. -- Samuel Johnson
*He had delusions of adequacy. -- Walter Kerr
*I’ve had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn’t
it. -- Groucho Marx
*They never open their mouths without subtracting
from the sum of human knowledge. -- Thomas Brackett
Reed
*He loves Nature in spite of what it did to him. --Forrest
Tucker
*I didn’t attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter
saying I approved of it. -- Mark Twain
*His mother should have thrown him away and kept
the stork. -- Mae West
*Some cause happiness wherever they go; others
whenever they go. -- Oscar Wilde
*He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his
friends. -- Oscar Wilde
*He has Van Gogh’s ear for music. -- Billy Wilder
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Irene Guerrero-Acevedo
Agency Name
103 N. Agent
Redwood
Hwy. #A
Address
541-592-3404
Agent Phone Number
Next
Century
Agent to
Web
Address 21
Representing
GO AHEAD.
TAKE FOREMOST HOME.
(Editor’s Note: Views
and commentary, including
statements made as fact, are
strictly those of the letter-
writers.)
* * *
Typed, double-spaced
letters are considered for
publication. Hand-written
letters that are double-
spaced and legible also can
be considered. “Thank you”
submissions are not ac-
cepted as letters.
Funding services
From Roy Lindsay
Grants Pass
Josephine County covers
1,624 square miles of mostly
rural and sparsely populated
areas.
Grants Pass, the most
densely populated part of the
county, covers only about 11
square miles with its sepa-
rately funded police services.
The sheriff’s office currently
covers the rest with just 14
patrol deputies, enough to
provide only 12 hours of pa-
trol per day.
Even during these lim-
ited hours of operation, there
are frequently no more than
two deputies on patrol, and
life-saving backup may be
more than 40 minutes away.
Of the 78 total employ-
ees in the sheriff’s office (as
of December 2008), approxi-
mately half work to operate
the county jail, which is the
only jail in the county. Eight
years ago, when the county’s
population was significantly
smaller, the sheriff’s office
had 28 patrol deputies and
121 total employees provid-
ing the same services.
The sheriff has requested
that the commissioners au-
thorize an additional 17 depu-
ties to allow expanding rural
patrol to 20 hours per day.
This expansion would also
increase demand for county
district attorney and juvenile
justice services and resources.
The federal bailout funds
that currently pay for the bulk
of Josephine County’s non-
road related services will be
reduced each remaining year,
and will not be sufficient to
cover even the current mini-
mal service level in the third
year. Any hope of a success-
ful transition to the post-O&C
period depends on immediate
action by the Josephine
County Board of County
Commissioners to develop
and implement alternatives to
fund all county services.
TM
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IVHS Activities Calendar
Brought to you by the folks at
592-3556
Cave Jct.
773-7487
Medford
~ H. L. Mencken ~
Illinois Valley News
www.illinois-valley-news.com
An Independent Weekly Newspaper
Co-publishers: Bob & Jan Rodriguez
Editor-in-Chief: Michelle Binker
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
P.O. Box 1370 USPS 258-820
Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330
Email: newsroom1@frontiernet.net or newsdesk@illinois-valley-news.com
Volume 71, No. 43
Staff: Zina Booth, Brenda Encinas, Scott Jorgensen and Millie Watkins
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News, Classified & Display Ads, Announcements & Letters
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(Classified ads & uncomplicated display ads can be
accepted until noon Fridays with an additional charge.)
POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ welcomes letters to the editor provided they
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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. Gener-
ally, one letter per person per month at publisher’s discretion. 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 publisher’s opinion.
POLICY ON “HERE, THERE & EVERYWHERE,” DISPLAY & CLASSIFIED ADS &
NOTICES: All submissions must be hand-delivered, faxed or e-mailed to us for publication.
Submissions must be resubmitted weekly if the item is to run more than one week.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
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One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state - $36
POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to
P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction OR 97523
Why can’t Jim Polk make a
decision about returning
deposits held more than a
year and a half because he
has to send it to the mayor
for approval?
It’s no wonder we can’t
get relief for our conserva-
tion efforts. This organiza-
tion can’t even write a
check for $100 for a long
overdue return of my de-
posit. How are we going to
manage the water supplies
to support the growth in our
community with leadership
like Polk and the mayor?
Holiday thief
From Sharon Hopper
O’Brien
My father and his part-
ner spent Christmas Eve
with us. We had a wonder-
ful day with a good dinner.
When they went home to
my father’s house Christmas
day, they found it had been
broken into.
The thieves trashed the
house, emptied drawers all
over the floors. They stole
my deceased mother’s jew-
elry, rolls of wheat pennies,
and a big bottle of VO.
Maybe nobody caught
them in the act, but God saw
them, and they’ll have to
pay to Him. They not only
stole from my father, but us,
his children. They’ve taken
away what my mother
passed on to us. At least
they’ve saved us the task of
dividing her belongings.
What do they think
they’re going to do with that
big, old video camera? And
what about that out-dated
car phone? Looks like it
should belong in one of
those Get Smart shows. And
that's what the thieves
should do: Get smart and
Water precious
From Fran Spellman
Cave Junction
Is the Cave Junction
water supply being man-
aged? Not if we leave it up
to Jim Polk and the mayor.
I pay for city water usage at
a cost of $59 a month. I use
a third of the allotted
amount. I believe we
should all conserve our pre-
cious water supplies, and I
also believe we should be
compensated for our efforts.
Why doesn’t Cave
Junction pro rate our water
bills by usage? Is it an ac-
counting problem? Too
much work? Or just poor
government management?
return the things stolen be-
fore it’s too late. We forgive
them, can they forgive
themselves?
KWD engineering
From Chris Courville
Kerby
I moved to Kerby in
June 2006 from N. Nevada
to provide a safe and
corruption-free environment
to raise my family.
I have enjoyed every
minute I have been here
until last month, when I
found that I was being taxed
and billed by the newly
formed Kerby Water Dis-
trict (KWD) that has only
one thing in mind: money.
Money and how to obtain as
much possible for personal
interest.
I purchased my prop-
erty from a couple who pur-
chased it from a board
member of KWD. This
property had a shallow well
in moderate condition that
with filtration had enough
water to allow the original
owner of the property
(before our board member
purchased the property) to
grow a beautiful garden and
supply their household, plus
an additional cabin on the
property, with water.
The person purchased
this property; became a
member on the KWD board;
and then participated in
some activities to assist
KWD in obtaining its goal.
This activity included re-
plumbing and routing gray
water run-off from the resi-
dence to the ground and
back into the well. This was
done to contaminate the
well beyond the level of
humane consumption.
(Continued on page 3)
The Valley’s Tax Experts
Has Joined Forces With...
The Nation’s Tax Experts
Same Great Preparers & Same Great Service!
204 W. Lister St.
Cave Junction, OR
541-592-3667
469-7545
Brookings
471-7487
Grants Pass
Every decent man is ashamed
of the government he lives under.
Upset mother
From Tia Tibbits
Selma
I am angry that this val-
ley has programs for Christ-
mas that mislead a family
and break a child’s heart. I
spoke with CJ Cares pro-
gram, and was reassured
that Santa would bring my
son a present on Christmas
morning.
My son was so excited
and impatient to see Santa,
but as the day progressed,
no Santa. I realize that due
to snow that it might have
been impossible to travel.
But I also know that people
are a phone call away.
This busted my son’s
bubble, and as a parent try-
ing to keep my son believ-
ing in the magic and spirit
of Christmas, this really put
a damper on things.
I phoned CJ Cares
Christmas night to ask, and
it was again promised that
Santa would come the fol-
lowing morning. Again it
was a no show. Do these
people realize how hard it is
for parents to try and ex-
plain this mishap to their
child or children? I realize
there are a lot of children
that CJ Cares has to care
for, but for the kids that
don't have a visit from Santa
when expected, the people
who promise such a wish
for a child, completely make
a child wonder if Santa is
really true and give a parent
no choice in having to break
a family tradition.
I will never reach out
for help, even though I have
low income, and be misled
or bring disappointment to
my family, by some people
who do not realize the effect
this has. This program
is useless if innocent chil-
dren are misled and their
beliefs changed.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 7
* 21st Century 3:30 p.m.: yoga,
drama club, researching your
family history
* Wrestling vs. North Valley
@ 5:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, JAN. 8
* Wrestling at Redmond
Classic @ 2 p.m.
* 21st Century 3:30 p.m.:
scrap-booking
FRIDAY, JAN. 9
* Wrestling at Redmond
Classic @ TBA
SATURDAY, JAN. 10
* Wrestling at Redmond
Classic @ TBA
MONDAY, JAN. 12
* 21st Century 3:30 p.m.: yoga,
drama club, welding
TUESDAY, JAN. 13
* 21st Century 3:30 p.m.: brain
bowl, sewing, theater/improv
* Basketball at Henley
JV boys @ 5:30 p.m.
Varsity boys @ 7 p.m.
* Basketball vs. Henley
JV girls @ 5:30 p.m.
Varsity girls @ 7 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 14
* 21st Century 3:30 p.m.: yoga,
drama club, researching your
family history
* Wrestling at Phoenix
@ 5:30 p.m.
(All 21st Century events are open to
parents of students at any I.V. school.
Also open to homeschoolers.)
illinois-valley-news.com
SPONSORS NEEDED!
Support Valley Youth with Positive Results
Become a Sponsor of Little League Baseball
2009 Levels of Sponsorship
$350
$400
$100
$50
$25
$10
$____
Regular season BASEBALL team sponsor (name on game jerseys and banner)
ALL STAR season team sponsor (banner recognition)
League VIP sponsor – Help purchase upgrades to meet safety requirements
League CHILD sponsor – Pays registration fees for children unable to afford them
League FIELD sponsor – Pays for disposable materials needed (i.e. chalk)
FRIEND of the league – Helps replace balls lost during games
Any contribution helps our valley league to continue producing champions
2009 Illinois Valley Little League Sponsor Form
All donations are tax deductible.
Please become a sponsor with Illinois Valley Little League and help us provide training,
equipment, and competition for the 150+ junior athletes in the valley. Please be as
generous as possible. Thank you!
Enclosed is my donation of:
$400
$350
$100
$50
$25
$10
$__________
Contact name_______________________________________ Phone_________________
Company name____________________________________________________________
Mailing address____________________________________________________________
City_______________________________________ State________ Zip_______________
Email_________________________________ @ _________________________________
Enclose with your check & send to: I.V. Little League, P.O. Box 86, Cave Junction OR 97523