Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 2012)
letters Are you in pain from an auto or work injury? TO THE EDITOR speech” at public meetings and another is the seven projected rate increases over the next 10 years. I decided to run for the Board of Directors again. At the Sept. 11 meeting I was told that the yard signs I used 20 years ago need to be changed or the management, with approval of the majority of the board, will take legal action. The issue is the EPUD logo. It does not have a copyright, but is protected by something called common law if they chose to take legal action. The EPUD web site says we are customer owners. We need to take back this utility. In November we still have the right to elect and change the management and majority of the board. Vote “smart” and please don’t let our freedoms slip away! Smart would be [voting] for both Laurie Smart and current board member Katherine Schacht. Ron “Angelo” Davis Cottage Grove JUSTIFIED KILLING? Absent a coherent rationale for the necessity of killing animals for protein, your cover story “Local Chicks” [8/16] panders to affl uent people who are willing to pay extra to keep chickens happy until/while their (the chickens’) necks are being slit. Humans can thrive without meat as a protein source. We eat meat because we like how it tastes. Is this justifi cation enough for killing animals who, like us, want to live? Bill Hampton Eugene are not people. Mayor Piercy announced that the National Conference of Mayors has endorsed a resolution to urge our government to reduce our stockpile of nuclear armaments. Expressing our concerns and acting together in a community effort can make a difference. Vincenza Scarpaci Eugene BUSH’S HIDDEN DEBT Another of the popular lies of our day: It has been repeatedly and incorrectly asserted in the media that President Obama tripled the budget defi cit. President Obama has indeed added to the budget defi cit through stimulus that resuscitated our economy from the brink of collapse. This did not, however, come anywhere close to “tripling” the defi cit. The fact is that Obama also stepped up to make sure that our national budget refl ected multiple enormous expenditures that the George W. Bush administration had chosen to hide, keeping them “off the books.” These hidden costs had included the massive expenses of the War in Afghanistan, the War of Choice in Iraq, and the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Program. When he provided transparency about these actual costs, Obama did not increase the defi cit; instead, the public record of the defi cit increased to refl ect reality. Petir Weerlig Eugene Ajay Mohabeer, M.D. Occupational Physician and Pain Management Specialist Call today for an appointment: 541-344-8469 Willamette Medical Center 2401 River Road (Santa Clara Plaza) www.oregonpainmanagement.com Shedd Theatricals 2012 The Gershwins’ 1924 musical comedy Lady, Be Good! October 4, 5, 6 & 7 - The Shedd Concert production - 541-434-7000 - theshedd.org OUR LUNATIC FRINGE ACTING TOGETHER Most of us say “think globally, act locally,” but we don’t really apply it. We are troubled when Congress won’t sunset the tax breaks given by the Bush administration to the very wealthy and the kickbacks for huge corporate farms, oil companies and drug companies. Many of us are not aware that some of the nation’s largest manufacturers are sitting on billions in cash reserves. None of the outfl ow or reduced fl ow from the treasury has impacted the economy in any meaningful way. Where are the jobs these corporations and wealthy individuals were going to trickle down to the millions of underemployed and unemployed? Where does America’s innovation and creativity hide while other nations take the lead in green energy, effi cient mass transportation and effective health care? We were buoyed when Congress voted to cut the Pentagon’s budget; however, some members of Congress plan to repeal this action. It’s humorous to hear the sunset of tax breaks for the rich called “tax increases,” when it is not raising taxes; it is returning to the rates all Americans were obligated to pay in the pre-Bush decade. Oregon is stepping up to the plate. A panel of Oregon voters decided to support Measure 85 in the November election, which will steer any future corporate tax kicker into the K-12 state education budget. Eugene’s City Council voted to place a resolution on the November ballot endorsing the concept that corporations VOTE NOW! BESTOFEUGENE.COM Why wouldn’t we want to believe that climate change is a hoax? After all, this morning, like yesterday morning, is pristine and fresh and clear. The television footage of droughts and famine are happening too far away to “hit home.” We’re busy focusing on smartphone screens and shopping lists. Reality is what has become the inconvenient distraction. Why would we ever be interested that our democracy has been slipping away, our government degenerating into corporatocracy right under our noses? The shrill Chicken Littles around us are all off- kilter kooks and should just go back to their platforms in the treetops. At least get a haircut and a shower. Homelessness isn’t my problem. Quit sticking it in my face! These “threats” and “issues” like global warming, government corruption and Wall Street fraud haven’t touched most Americans personally. We are quite content in our cluelessness, thank you very much. Consumerism is our religion. We get all the news and manufactured controversy we need on network television. Our near future is perfectly rosy. No families in my immediate circle have become homeless because of medical bills or layoffs. Street people are all druggies. Remove them from my sight — them and their lunatic fringe Occupy advocates! My grandkids’ futures are already in serious jeopardy? Give me a break! It’s a beautiful day out there! I’m going shopping and then meeting friends for drinks at a sports bar. Graham Hoyt Lewis Eugene EUGENE WEEKLY SEPTEMBER 20, 2012 5
