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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (June 16, 2005)
TO THE EDITOR TOOLS OF COMPASSION I am a home care provider for seniors and people with disabilities. My clients are poor — in body, mind and need. Caring for one of my clients includes taking wire cutters to her box springs and mattress regularly, so the springs don’t poke through and hurt her. The state will not buy her a new bed, or take care of her des- perate needs. So, we make do with what we have and save the state money. I have reason to believe that all caregivers use their tools of compassion. But because we do not have material resources to make our clients comfortable, it doesn’t mean we don’t do our best to serve our clients and keep them in their homes. Cutting services would cause our clients to suffer even more. Please urge your legislators to protect fund- ing for the In-Home Care Program. It costs the taxpayers less than putting thousands of clients in nursing homes! Angie Hazelton Blue River SLICK OIL It is no comfort to read that the president has asked the Saudis to control the price of oil, or that the oil companies are making record profits. No matter what you drive, if it con- sumes petroleum, you are at the bottom of the energy hierarchy. Even if you don’t drive, your taxes pay the environmental and health costs, plus a subsidy to the oil industry and the mili- tary who protect the oil supplies. The International Center for Technology Assessment estimates the true unsubsidized cost of gasoline at between $5.60 and $15.14 per gallon, and the price will only go up. However, 80 percent of our gasoline is ex- pended on round trips of less than 80 miles from our house, a situation ideally suited to electric vehicles (EV). An EV is a way you can creatively drop out of the brittle, top-heavy, death-oriented system. The big oil and car companies do not want you to know that EVs are low-tech, available, and cheap. Plans and supplies for building your own EV, converting your car to electric or even purchasing an EV are available on the Internet now. The infrastructure for delivering the fuel (electricity) already exists, and it is far cheaper per unit of energy than gasoline. Electric cars are so efficient, we could eliminate 40 percent of our gasoline usage just with existing off-peak electric capacity. At a fraction of the cost of the war in Iraq, a national subsidy for EVs could end the need for over- seas oil imports. David Hazen Eugene I Can’t Believe it’s MADE in EUGENE! We Have HUNDREDS of LOCALPRODUCTS Made by your Friends and Neighbors! SPP Clothing & Cards E Dirtline Hoodies & Shirts E Merry Hempsters E Blessed Botanicals Body Care E Dyed Hemp Twine & Hats E Bottlecap Baubles & Jewels E Glass from over 40 artists E Hemp, Linen, Wire and Beaded Jewelry E Tie Dyes E Stickers & Cards E Art Prints E Political T’s E Crocheted & Knitted Hats E Kids Clothes E Fused Glass E Wallets & Purses E E NIXON REVISITED The “Downing Street Memo” is the minutes of a meeting of Prime Minister Tony Blair and top British government officials. Please refer to www.downingstreetmemo.com The memo tracks the actions of the Bush administration that lead up to the Iraq war. With more than 1,682 U.S. servicemen and women killed in Iraq, the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, 12,762 injured, and over $200 billion in taxpayer funds going to this war effort, we cannot afford to stand by any longer. Eighty-nine members of Congress, led by Rep. John Conyers, Jr., submitted a request for a hearing regarding this memo on May 5. More than a month later, no response. Conyers is now looking to gather 100,000 signatures from U.S. citizens to request a hearing. A historical reminder: Watergate started with hearings and forced then- President Nixon to choose be- tween resigning or facing impeachment. There is clear evidence that Bush public re- sponses were in absolute conflict with the war planning going on behind the scenes. Will the citizens of the U.S. stand by and allow a war and occupation based on lies to continue? Since when does America tolerate intentional and deliberate manipulation of in- telligence by the president and his administra- tion to justify going to war? How about ac- countability under oath? This makes Watergate seem like a walk in the park. This war was pre- determined even before it was a preemptive strike. Please sign the petition and demand ac- countability. Fran Gillespie Eugene Mon-Sat 10-8 / Sun 12-6 ❤ 11th & Willamette Sweetgrass is in! You should be too! EX\VHOOWUDGH real wars. We are all being scratched by the prickly Bushies, Saddams and bin Ladens who start real wars (in the descending order of the casualties they have caused). None of them value human life at all, just money and their own kooky spawn. And on the related item, the interview of Michael Ruppert (5/26) by Kera Abraham, “Stuck on Oil”: His theories and conclusions on 9/11 and peak oil would have seemed kooky some years ago but events and whistleblowers since 9/11 are proving him right in both theory and fact. The immoral slaughterhouse created by Petroleum Man is such a waste because peak oil will dictate negative gain from numer- ous human sacrifices. Bob Saxton Eugene FD K IRU IDVKLRQ (WK$YH EHWZHHQ2DN 3HDUO %8))$/2(;&+$1*( &20 TRADING DISEASES The lawmakers of this land have become so money hungry that the results have devastated many households by way of forcing them to buy their medicines from the big drug compa- nies. The side effects of many prescribed med- icines have dulled the debilitating conditions in many Americans. Diabetes is a side effect from taking arthritis medications. Is that really what we want, to be stricken with a more serious disease just to be able to move around without pain? The Rev. Michael Clements Eugene JUNE 16, 2005 5
