Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2007)
TO THE EDITOR Having so many SUVs for mainly city driv- ing makes no sense for many people. My Prius is giving me an 80 percent MPG in- crease in town, with near zero emissions. If I can change, then hopefully people on the other side will someday be able to reject violence. Lance Jacobs Springfield SAVE YOURSELF I’m responding to Jeffrey Luers’ letter (1/25), and his taking offense at being com- pared to a “right-wing pro-life” arsonist. What Luers seems to not be able to under- stand is that when the cause, however well in- tentioned, becomes sacrificed to the means, then you’ve lost public support for your ac- tions. Personally I detest SUVs and the mass consuption culture they represent. However, I can’t support the actions of “eco-saboteurs” and the like, who would burn down the world to save it. I am extremely doubtful that arson has become justifiable in the eyes of the gen- eral public even if the cause is “right.” That Luers negelected to give an example of the exception is unsurprising. Luers’ inablilty to see the difference be- tween his actions and those using non-violent methods to further the cause of environmen- tal sanity puts him squarely in the camp of terrorists, no different then those who would firebomb an abortion clinic. In fact, his ac- tions are a stain on the environmental move- ment and are no doubt welcomed by those who would paint real environmentalists as “wackos.” If he wasn’t rotting in jail (his choice), I would say he could have been a paid provo- cateur of the timber and oil industries. Mr. Luers, forget about saving the world from your jail cell. Save yourself, reconsider your mindset, and repent! Jeff Innis Eugene ROBOCOURT I know everyone’s done trying to nick- name the courthouse, but when I was chow- ing down at IHOP today I thought a good one BUILDING COMMUNITIES Franklin Corridor Study FRIDAY FEBRUARY 2, 11:50 AM EUGENE HILTON $3 admission • Free to City Club Members 485-7433 www.cityclubofeugene.org would be “RoboCourt.” Straight out of “New Detroit.” Now I’d buy that for a dollar! Steve Crowe Eugene IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST The critics of Commissioners Dwyer, Sorenson and Fleenor and their decision to not reappoint Mike Schwartz to the Fair Board need to take a closer look. The Fairgrounds belong to everyone in Lane County, and these commissioners have stepped in to remind the Fair Board of the public good. Shaking up the Fair Board and getting new members with the greater public interest in mind is just what the commissioners should be doing. Thank you Commissioners Dwyer, Sorenson and Fleenor for having the courage to take a stand. Jim Crain Eugene CRIME IN THE FOREST Clearcuts were once the new beginning of life in the forest. Now the industrial timber industry has changed all that. It is now the end of an ecological system the Earth had known for millions of years. The poisoning of the Earth after clearcutting has changed our ecosystem in a way we will not compre- hend for many years to come. It allows for only certain types of vegetation and a monocrop of trees bred for short-term eco- nomic gain. I feel that the poisoning of our Earth for any reason is a “crime against hu- manity” and it terrorizes all human beings who have any compassion for our future gen- erations. May the New Year bring compassion for our Earth to all human beings who rely on this Earth for their sustenance. Fred Mentzer Greenleaf The Eugene Waldorf School & the Eugene Public Library present the 1 th Annual Alternative Education Fair Saturday, February , 1 - pm at the Eugene Public Library, Downtown 1 West 1 th Avenue Come meet representatives of these and other alternative schools: Blue Mountain School • Eugene School District 4J • Eugene Waldorf School HomeSource • Network Charter School • Ridgeline Montessori Public Charter School The Village School • Whiteaker Montessori School E UGENE Find out about the educational alternatives available W ALDORF in the Eugene-Springfield area. For more information, call the Eugene Waldorf School, 683-6951 S CHOOL The Oregon Humanities Center in collaboration with the Department of Architecture presents the 2006–7 Colin Ruagh Thomas O’Fallon Memorial Lecture in Art and American Culture LETTERS POLICY: We welcome letters on all topics and will print as many as space allows, with priority given to timely local issues. Please limit length to 250 words, keep submissions to once a month, and include your address and phone number for our files. Email is preferred to editor@eugeneweekly.com (please put “letters” in the subject line), fax to 484-4044, or mail to 1251 Lincoln, Eugene 97401. A lecture by architect and architectural critic Michael Sorkin Wednesday February 7, 2007 7:00 p.m. 150 Columbia 1215 E. 13th Avenue University of Oregon This lecture, sponsored by Betsy Mayer and the O’Fallon family and cosponsored by the Carlton and Wilberta Ripley Savage Endowment for International Relations and Peace, is free and open to the public. Seating is limited to 500. For more information, or for disability accommodations, please call (541) 346-3934. EO/AA/ADA institution committed to cultural diversity FEBRUARY 1, 2007 7
