TO THE EDITOR
In the interest of truth and justice (and accu-
racy), I should point out that good reporting
would have caught that the ultimate goal of
the journalism program at UO’s Portland
Center is to include all the sequences, includ-
ing news-editorial, and that “Allen Hall” is
actually named for Eric Allen, the first dean
of the UO School of Journalism and
Communication.
John C. Mitchell
Eugene
ENDING ELITISM
Having been invited to meet a friend at the
Oregon Country Fair, I thought it a fine place
for a reunion. Entering the fair, I listened to
spoken word about ending elitism, over-
bloated conglomerates, and giving up our ad-
diction to consumerism. My heart warmed
knowing a place existed for sharing of ideas.
Wanting to contribute to the collective feel-
ing, I volunteered at a local eatery. Later,
walking through the fair, I saw a gathering of
another sort — a rally of yellow shirts getting
excited for the sweep. Their leader spoke re-
assuring words that their job was necessary to
preserve the integrity of the fair. They took
group pictures of pre-sweep smiles and shiny
plastic badges. They buzzed like excited
bees.
Heading back to my friend, word spread
that the sweepers were coming. Not having a
privileged colored armband, I knew our time
together was soon at an end. Caught up in the
sweep, I felt like a discarded
refugee, an undesirable without
connections to the OCF elite.
Some might say it would be im-
possible to let everyone stay
through the night. Others might
cry foul that outsiders would ruin
their private party.
Until the OCF accepts every-
one as equal and gives up its pol-
icy of exclusion based on elitism,
I will not return. Whatever guid-
ing principles founded the OCF,
its board of directors might want to reexam-
ine them. If it finds, it is in fact a parody of it-
self, perhaps it is time meditate on a new
path.
Jeff Lansing
Corvallis
FREE IS NOT ALONE
Douglas Newton (7/14) attempts to dis-
credit supporters of Jeff “Free” Luers by
claiming they’re young and stupid. It may
come as a surprise to Newton that a diverse
group of people — locally, nationally, and in-
ternationally — stand in solidarity with Jeff.
One of many examples of proof is the “Sign-
on Letter” of support for Jeff, which has been
endorsed by hundreds of people including
some famous authors, human rights activists,
and academics (see it for yourself at
www.freefreenow.org)
I share Newton’s doubt that “any profes-
sional firefighter will tell you that torching
vehicles ... is a harmless, nonviolent form of
political protest.” That said, by anyone’s ac-
count the fire was small and easy to extin-
guish. Jeff and his co-defendant made sure to
avoid human injury and caused none. It may
anger some firefighters and concerned citi-
zens to learn that arsonists who set fires with
the actual intent of harming people usually
receive miniscule punishment compared to
Jeff.
Newton says Luers’ supporters often fail
to mention the attempted arson at Tyree of
which Jeff was convicted. There’s reasons for
this: A) The majority of Jeff’s sentence (ap-
proximately 16 years) comes from the
Romania incident, and B) Jeff has denied any
involvement in this action from the begin-
ning. The fingerprints found at the scene of
the crime were not his or his codefendant’s,
and the conviction was based entirely on cir-
cumstantial [non] evidence (for instance,
bolt-cutters found at Jeff’s residence were
“similar” to the bolt-cutters used at Tyree!).
Jeff may not show remorse for the three
vehicles that were slightly burned (and even-
tually sold) at Romania. But he has said that,
if released, he would avoid activities that
could land him back in prison. The irony of
Jeff’s situation is that his action was only ef-
fective because he received a ridiculously un-
fair sentence that has made
him an internationally re-
spected “martyr” for the radi-
cal environmental and social
justice movements.
Steven Gider
Eugene
NOT IN THE BOX
We enjoyed reading your
cover story “Backroads”
(7/14) and would like to sug-
gest that the author, Jim Earl,
not succumb to the easy stereotyping of
Eugeneans living north of the river, as con-
servative in politics and culture. There really
are quite a number of us who don’t support
Bush, who are pro-choice, vegetarian, recy-
cling listeners of NPR and who live here for a
myriad of reasons, none of which fit neatly
into the box that Earl has constructed.
Luek Crisenden
Eugene
WITHDRAW TROOPS
The faces haunt me. They are young
faces, vibrant faces with confident smiles and
eyes bright with promise. Each night more of
these faces appear at the conclusion of the TV
news I watch. They are the faces of the latest
American soldiers killed in Iraq.
JULY 28, 2005 5