TO THE EDITOR
NON-VOTERS
The travesty of this recent vote
against the city income tax is not that
approximately 27,000 people voted
against it. Anybody that has been to a
Duck football game recently knows there
are at least 27,000 assholes in Eugene,
so no surprise there. The truly shameful
thing is, that 47,441 souls in our fair city
were either too busy, too lazy, too stoned,
or simply too uninterested to even bother
to vote. People in other parts of the world
are dying in the streets for the right to vote
— 47,000 Eugeneans, not so much. I’m
fi ling this one under “W” for “we get what
we deserve.”
Kevin O’Brien
Eugene
CLOSING, TESTING SCHOOLS
COURTESY CAN KILL
This is a plea to all drivers out there who
stop in random places to allow pedestrians
and bicyclists to cross the street. Please
stop doing this. Traffi c laws, while often
worthy of a few curse words, are intended
to create predictability and safety.
As a pedestrian (frequently pushing
a stroller) and as a bicyclist, I often have
cars stop in the middle of the block or at
an intersection with no crosswalk to allow
me to cross on streets where there are two
lanes going in the same direction. These
well-intentioned drivers do not realize
that cars in the next lane continue to zip
by, having no clue why they are stopped.
Perhaps without intending to do so, the
stopped car creates pressure to cross
quickly exacerbating an extremely unsafe
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I had always hoped that one day if I had
children, I’d want them to attend a public
school just like Springfi eld Middle School
(SMS). That, unfortunately, will be a
dream unfulfi lled, as SMS is closing along
with a few other schools in Springfi eld
— and even more in Eugene are on the
chopping block because of budget woes.
Presently, our schools are funded
through property taxes. Since wealthy
corporations pay little in taxes due to
the loopholes that are hidden in the tax
structure, we the taxpayers must demand
that our elected local, state and federal
offi cials close these loopholes. Wealthy
individuals and corporations need to pay
their fair share of taxes, too. If they did, our
public schools and other public services
would not be in the dire circumstances
they fi nd themselves in today.
I believe in public education, even
though I know the system is fl awed.
Public school teachers have numerous
constraints placed on them because of the
bureaucracy in Washington. Regrettably,
the government seems more interested in
testing, testing, testing our students so that
the United States can prove to the world
that our students test well. But the staff at
SMS and other public schools deserve to
be recognized for the tremendous effort
they put forth to help students fi nd and
nourish their passions while offering hope
in these ridiculous days of testing.
I wish to express my gratitude and
admiration to each member of the staff
of SMS for providing a loving, supportive
and fun-fi lled educational environment
for the children of Springfi eld. I am
honored to have worked as a substitute
teacher there for the past few years where
I have been treated with warmth and
kindness. The talented enthusiastic public
school teachers treat the students with
respect and love, supporting them both
academically and emotionally. There is a
palpable feeling of intimacy that exists at
SMS, and I believe this is possible because
of the small class sizes and the dedication
of the staff.
My fear is that if we don’t collectively
wake up and speak out about the inane
way we fund our schools and assess our
students, the public education that many
hard-working Americans depend on, along
with the personal attention and devotion
that I witnessed in my time at Springfi eld
Middle School, will soon become a thing
of the past for every district everywhere.
Laura Farrelly
Eugene
SUMMER SOIREE
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EUGENE WEEKLY JUNE 2, 2011 5