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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (June 21, 1984)
2 —SANDY (O r» ) POST Thur» Jun» 21, 1984 (S»c 1) The Sandy Post Editorial & Opinion Chris Hole general manager Scott Newton, editor Caroline Duff, office manager Honk Emrich, sports editor Commentary Does working class need William Shakespeare? by SCOTT NEW TON Picture this: A wheat farm er, covered with a fine dust, arrives home after a day of plowing on a monstrous tractor He plops down in the easy chair, takes a sip of iced tea, and listens to the farm market report His son is in the same room, reading a scene from — and barely understanding — “ Ham let.” Now the farm er may wonder why, ex cept perhaps for the excitement of a few sword fights, his son should be reading “ H am let.” I guess my Midwestern background is evident in offering the above example The reason it comes to mind is that I thought a lot about a former English teacher of mine this weekend when I accompanied a group of Cedar Ridge students and teachers to A s h la n d fo r a w e e k e n d a t th e Shakespearean Festival. Mel, I know, would be jealous. And I can picture not only the farm er, but also Mel, who spent more than a little of his tim e justifying the study of Shakespeare to working-class kids After all, what is the use of trying to understand all that Elizabethan English? The reason is that Shakespeare, a pro lific w riter with a large vocabulary, ad dressed nearly every question concerning our existence that could be asked. The soliloquy in "H a m let" concerning suicide — “ To be or not to be" — is the most obvious example. There were many, many examples in the plays I saw this weekend, and I would like very much to do them justice I am cons cientious about trying, though The quality of the plays, the costumes and the actors and actresses — not to men tion the atmosphere of Ashland itself — m a k e the p ro ces s of e x p la in in g Shakespeare on paper a difficult assign ment. One must try to imagine what Italy might have been like in the 15(Xls; the men with long hair and feathers in their hats, and the women in long, heavy dresses that billow at the hips. In “ The T am in g of the S h rew ,” Petruchio is a young man out seeking his fortune. He says: "Such wind as scatters young men through the world, to seek their fortunes further than at home, where small ex perience grows " Isn’t it true that most young people dream of what the world might hold in store, whether they seek it out or not? M a n y q u e s tio n s a r e ra is e d Is P e tru c h io 's physical and s p iritu a l dominance of Katherina symbolic of the woman's role in Shakespearean times, or is it simply slapstick. While "The Taming of the Shrew" was g rea t e n te rta in m e n t, S h akesp eare’s history, "Henry V I I I , " dealt with the Reformation, when England cut itself off fro m th e C a th o lic C h u rc h . I would have edited “ Henry V I I I ” with a sharp pencil, as its three and a half hour length was a bit much. Regardless, it was an education. Most people cannot imagine what those days — the early 1600s — were like To give an indication of how close that bit of history is consider that Jamestown, Virginia, was founded in 1607. In a time when music and television seems to often be designed to appeal to the so-called lowest common denominator, it is refreshing to know that the people of Ashland are striving for quality. While in Ashland I saw a film on Angus Bowmer, who founded the festival in 1935. B o w m er was going to d iffe re n t businesses seeking financial support, and stopped by a m ill. At the time an odd piece of lumber came along, and the m ill owner said that odd piece of wood was about all he would donate to the festival. Bowmer took the piece of wood, and made a sign out of it There is something about that spirit that I like. Now allow me to drift back to my original question Should Shakespeare be taught in the schools? While the basics — reading, w riting and arithmetic — should remain at the core of education, there is also a need to offer fo re ig n lan g u ag es , m u sic, d e b a te , literature and many other fields of study. The belief that the schools should teach only reading, writing and arithm etic is narrow minded. And yes, there should even be room in curriculums for a class or two on Shakespeare. Commentary Content law a concern for residents of Oregon by SENATOR BOB PACKWOOI) Just returned from a week-long swing through Oregon and thought I'd share some of the week's activities with you. When traveling from town to town, the pace is so hectic I ’m usually unable to spend the amount of time I would prefer in any one place. Since there were many events scheduled throughout the week, far more than most newspapers cover. I'd like to highlight just a few you may find in teresting One of the benefits of being Chairman of the Commerce Committee is the ability to chair Senate hearings on issues with direct impact on the state of Oregon On Tues day, May 29. I chaired just such a hearing in Portland on domestic content legisla tion This bill, the F a ir Practices in Automotive Products Act, would require that autos imported in the future contain up to 90 percent U S. parts and labor 'm deeply concerned about this bill. If we try to apply certain restrictions deman ding we build everything in the United States, those restrictions will be our demise For example, assume this legisla tion passes and becomes law A precedent will be established Other manufacturers, whether of steel, concrete and textiles, will want the same kind of treatment From Oregon's stand point, we are going to live or die by trade, especially trade with Pacific Rim coun tries Not only would this automobile domestic content legislation cost thousands of port- related jobs, but what's to stop a country from retaliatory tactics that could severe ly lim it the Northwest agricultural and tim ber exports'* These were just a couple of concerns addressed at the hearing The following day, in Eugene, I presided over yet another hearing, only this time it was through my position on the Senate Select Committee on Small Business This session was one of several Senate hearings over a two-year period on problems faced by women in business Currently about five times as many women as men now start small businesses Our discussion focused on the problems of women en trepreneurs. i e . the need for child day care facilities near work and the need for m o re s ta r t-u p fin a n c in g fo r new businesses Throughout the trip, whether in Portland or Eugene or Southern Oregon, people ask ed questions about many issues including the Columbia River Gorge and the sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia The only way we can ensure long lasting protection of the Columbia Gorge — truly a spectacular, unique natural wonder — is through legislation To do anything other than attempt to preserve and protect the Gorge, to properly manage the Gorge so that future generations benefit from it as we did, would be a grave error. I w ill con tinue to work towards passage of this vital legislation. L etters to the editor McMahan ‘cared about teenagers’ We wish to thank John M cMahan, Sandy Union High School principal, for his five years of dedication to the youth in the com munity. He really cared about the teenagers and they knew it. He helped them feel good about themselves and to be proud of SUHS We are very sorry that the high school board has voted for the reorganiza tio n p la n , w h ich has eliminated the principal's position and has left M r. McMahan without a job. A fte r h a v in g had children in Sandy for over a period of 15 years we feel the last five have been the most productive and the school has really produced some excellent young peo ple. We thank John for his part and wish to thank all the teachers, staff and other administrators for m akin g Sandy High a school of which to be proud. May it continue to keep on being the type of school the district patrons can sup port! Dwayne and Donna Vedder Sandy Tri-Met aids handicapped The O r e g o n ia n ’ s editorial on accesible tran sit service was misleading and unfair to the m ajority of transit handicapped per sons in the community. What many forget is that the vast m ajority of transit handicapped persons are not helped by lift equipped buses Sixty percent of the transit handicapped are the frail elderly who have trouble walking the block or two from their home to the bus stop. Of the 10,000 persons in this community who cannot use public tra n s p o rta tio n w ith o u t special assistance, three- fourths live too far from a bus stop or have a disabili ty so severe that they can not use even a lift-equipped bus. It is because of this re ali ty that a citizens’ advisory committee made up almost entirely of transit han dicapped supporters and advocates, has called for a m ixe d system of lif t - equipped buses and door- to-door vans. This recom mendation was reached after three months of study and two public hearings. Today, Tri-M et provides 365,000 rides per year to disabled persons with its door-to-door van service and accessible buses. That is five times as many rides as provided by Seattle’s Metro; ten times as many rid e s as p ro vid e d by Oakland’s transit system; and 600 time as many rides as provided by Sacramen to’s transit system. In point of fact, no other transit system in the country of sim ilar size to Portland provides as many rides to the elderly and disabled as Tri-M et They don’t even come close. W hat The Oregonian should have recognized in its e d it o r ia l is th a t Portland is leading the way in transportation for the elderly and handicapped While lift-equipped buses were touted as the way of the future in the 1970s, the more progressive of han- dicapped advocates now call for a mixed system. James E. Cowen General Manager Tri-M et LE TT E R S POLICY The Post asks that all letters to the e d ito r be ty p e d , double-spaced and signed. Deadline is noon, Tuesday. Let ters should be ac c u r a te , fre e of libelous remarks and in good taste. This newspaper attempts to publish all letters it receives and may edit material lightly to c o n fo rm to g u id e lin e s . M a x imum length is 280 words. Odds er vat ions Toys help prepare people for life by JAY THOMAS The shipment of Stingers to Saudi Arabia prompted a lot of questions I op posed the transfer of those shoulder-fired Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to Saudi Arabia I have real misgivings about sell ing. giving or any other way of transferr ing those missiles to the Saudis due to the fact that each Stinger weighs barely 40 pounds and can easily fall into the hands of terrorists I w ill carefully consider each arms proposal as it comes before Con gress T ru ly , the most m em o rable and touching moments of the trip were spent addressing those fine young adults graduating from high school. At com mencements in Jewell. Banks and Trout dale. I outlined the qualities of purpose, in tegrity. tolerance, discipline, imagination and zeal as elements of leadership Just as importantly though. I encourag ed each student to do their very best and hope that 75 years later somebody looks bark and says "thank you" for making life a little better All in all. it was a refreshing week on the road in Oregon Though these are thousands of miles between Oregon and Washington. D C., be assured that as the Senate continues its daily business. I will be keeping your questions and concerns uppermost in my thoughts If you’re a parent, and if you're a run-of-the-mill parent to boot, you probably associate toys with Christmas, giving them little thought during the rest of the year This may not be wise, for toys are important They do more than just empty your wallet Tim e spent playing with toys helps develop a child’s imagina tion and his ability to interact with the world A good toy should be fun to play with, but it should be realistic in order to prepare the child for adulthood A check of toys currently being marketed reveals a shift back towards realism — after E T and monster toys, almost any shift would be towards realism — but I feel that there's still a lot of room for improvement So. for the benefit of any toy manufacturers who might be reading this. I'm going to put forward some of my own ideas for super realistic toys WAR TOYS These are the hot items, and they promise to get even hotter, particularly if the current ad ministration stays in office To please both the budding w a r f monger and the budget-minded parent, I suggest a return to the plastic toy soldier sets I enjoyed as a child. This time, however, let’s get the colors right. Officers and those in support groups should be white The infantry troops should be half white and half black, while suicide squads (we have some other name for them, but I've forgotten what it is) should be 80 percent black, and 20 per cent malcontent. The enemy should be all red, preferably with horns Another great war toy is the one I call "Nuclear Strike " This toy set would feature a patch of simulated fused earth, a few twisted toy girders, a whole lot of little white crosses, and a supply of glow-in-the-dark powder N IN E -T O -F IV E TOYS How about an occupational hazards doll? A little more com plex. but talk about lifelike Just push one of several occupation selection buttons on the doll's back and it develops the ap p ro p r ia te sy m p to m . Select M IN E R and it co u gh s; C H E M IC A L H A N D L E R and it develops a rash; CO M PU TER O PERATO R and it squints and holds its head Great, huh9 And, as a final touch, the guarantee should be so vague that a malfunction can't possibly be blamed on the manufacturer. For the little doctor and nurse types, the war theme need not be abandoned A doll with inter changeable wounds sounds nifty, doesn't It? Just pull off a leg and replace it with one that's had hand grenade experience Or, pull off the head and . . well, heck, just leave it off Give the kids a good supply of non-staining fak e blood and you've got realism Of course, not every job is hazardous, so I'v e come up with a toy that's both positive and realistic. I call it "Factory Worker " It consists of a box with a crank on one side The child would turn the crank eight hours a day, five days a week After a year of cranking, a two week break would be allowed The toy is designed to last for a period of 45 years, after which it w ill be I IQSfef’r «J. » • * Not into w a r9 Well, I wouldn't say that loudly, considering the mood of the nation, but no pro blem I'v e got other ideas that have nothing to do with war, but are still plenty realistic. worn out, as will be the child. LOVE AND M A R R IA G E TOYS See what you think of this one: a relationship toy. It would work well for six months, poorly for another six months, and then it would fall apart Hm. come to think of it, they already make toys like that. Why not a video game with a domestic twist? It would be played by two (probably male and female, but you never know); and the object would be to find a path through such obstacles as layoffs, inflation, adultery and unwanted children, finally arriv* ing at a rose-covered tract home complete with three cars and a boat, carpet in every room, 32 power tools and no mortgage I call the game “ Unlikely.” A BUSINESS TOY I ’ve saved this one until Iasi b eca u se i t ’s m y p e rs o n a l favorite It's an old-fashioned board game in which the object would be to build five nuclear plants with other people's money. It's complex and could take a long time to play, but it ’s full of surprises In fact, it's so full of surprises that I think i'll call it “ Whoops." Something like that : Jay Thomas to a free-lanct w riter who lives in Sandy.
