According to Keith Heath, who is running
the program, there are about 69 people on his
list for legal camping. Although there currently
only 25 legal camp sites, they hope to expand
soon. This is a great opportunity for the local
citizens who live out of their cars to save for
real housing, focus on jobs and worry about
their families instead of stressing about where
they can park for the night, while keeping our
environment safe and clean.
I fully support the idea and hope every-
thing goes as planned to keep Eugene green!
Dominic Ambriz
Eugene
SO GOOD TOGETHER
Five days ago [9/27] you were stolen
from me. I was shocked that even a U-lock
wasn’t strong enough to keep us together.
This is a goodbye I was not expecting to
have to say, but I suppose when things are
going well, the loss is always blindsiding.
Bicycle, I understand that this was not a
betrayal on your part, but an unfortunate fact
of the community I choose to live in. Even if
you are now in pieces, or squirreled away in
some tweaker’s garage, I fi led a police report
and have my eyes peeled, for what it’s worth.
I will say we looked damn good together.
When I met you a year and half ago, it was
transformative. A road bike! Speedy! Elegant!
A frame that fi t these long legs! I was a goner.
Together, we realized joy and freedom of
motion. You shaped me — not only my ass and
my calves, but my outlook on transportation and
personal mobility. We had some memorable
times. How about that fabulously ill-planned
coast ride that was our fi rst tour-date? Or just
you and I, cruising out Lorane for a quickie in
the afternoon? At certain speeds, moving with
you was heart-pounding.
I know I will fi nd another, but bicycle,
you were the catalyst of this particular
education. I learned from being with you,
and what we had will be the foundation for
future love affairs. Now I know to be more
attentive to high-theft areas, the condition
of my U-lock, and note serial numbers.
It was good while it lasted.
Nicole Gautier
Eugene
BLIND PROGRESS
STICKING TO NETFLIX
NONE OF THE ABOVE
An open letter to EPUD board member
Chappel: Would you kill your grandmoth-
er? This is what EPUD plans on doing: Our
electric company wants to cut down Grand-
mother Oak, a tree perhaps 200 years old,
and one of the oldest trees in Veneta.
And the reason? “It might fall on the new
fi ber optic line.” Why not bury the new fi ber
optic line? Underground lines are not only saf-
er, but require less maintenance than above-
ground lines. Certainly, there must be an alter-
native to destroying this stately old oak.
Very few of the original old oaks remain
in Lane County, precisely because of this
attitude: “Why save it? It’s only a tree.”
True, it is “only” a tree — a tree which
stood when the pioneers arrived, and
witnessed the birth of the town, watching
silently as generations of residents have
lived and died, a tree that has seen much of
the history of this county.
Ms. Chappel, I am asking that you
oppose the destruction of Grandmother Oak,
because it is not merely a tree, but a symbol
of our shared history, culture, and respect
for all that is ancient and beautiful. To cut
down this historic and ancient tree would
be akin to destroying the Sistine Chapel or
the Mona Lisa, icons that have value to all
people, and they are all irreplaceable, as part
of our history and our children’s heritage.
I am not against fi ber optic lines or
progress. I am opposed to ignorance and the
mindless destruction of our natural heritage.
As John Muir once said, “God has cared
for these trees, saved them from drought,
disease, avalanches, and a thousand
tempests and fl oods. But he cannot save
them from fools ... Not blind opposition to
progress, but opposition to blind progress.”
I am hoping that EPUD is guided by
men and women who are not fools, and who
can see the value of preserving this mighty
giant, rather than pursuing “blind progress.”
Or as Thoreau once wisely intoned, “A man
is rich in proportion to the number of things
which he can afford to let alone.”
Jeffrey Zekas
Veneta
Who’s unbrilliant idea was it to
announce Bijou’s coming to downtown
with that utterly ridiculous cover shot
[9/27] of movie theater seating with idiots’
legs and feet up over the backs of the rows
in front of them? Juvenile? In the extreme.
I was looking forward to Bijou’s plan;
a movie theater close to my downtown
dwelling. After seeing that cover I am
staying with Netfl ix and its streaming
entertainment at my fi ngertips.
Doug Brinkman
Eugene
The Peter DeFazio campaign owes an
apology to Art Robinson for claiming in
2010 that only Robinson would bring us
more clearcuts and nukes.
DeFazio’s so-called forest “trust”
would privatize much of our BLM federal
forests, a gift to timber barons who turned
their forests into tree farms. Privatization
of public resources used to be solely a
Republican goal; now, it’s bipartisan.
Last year, DeFazio praised the NuScale
company in Corvallis which is seeking
an Obama administration grant to build
prototype modular nuclear power reactors
(45 megawatts). Future generations won’t
care about Democrats and Republicans,
but they will curse us for the nuclear waste
we leave for them. See http://wkly.ws/1d4
for DeFazio’s promotion of NuScale.
I gave up on DeFazio years ago when
he told a town hall meeting that the U.S.
invasion of Iraq was “legal” because
Congress endorsed it. I guess he never
heard of the Nuremberg trials. DeFazio is a
reason I support term limits.
I’m disappointed that Corvallis City
Councilor Mike Beilstein won’t be on our
ballot this time as the Green candidate for
Congress. From his website newmenu.org/
mikebeilstein: “Resource limits will not
allow us to return to the economy we knew
before 2008. ... the earth cannot continue
giving resources at an ever increasing rate.
The work of national leaders should be to
start imagining how we can meet human
needs in an era of diminishing resources.”
My vote will be “none of the above,” an
honorable choice.
Mark Robinowitz
SustainEugene.org
FOUL FIELD BURNING
Your article about air quality problems
in west Eugene [9/20] was a sad comment
on the treatment of people who live in that
area. Your list of polluters is incomplete,
however. Where is the outrage over the
fi eld burning that continues inside Eugene
city limits? Field burning is a luxury
bought by the few who cannot be bothered
to use modern methods to manage our
environment.
The state of Oregon fi nally said
“enough” and outlawed the foul, outdated
practice. But the city of Eugene continues
to allow unnecessary fi eld burning — and
the fi res continue to foul our air and kill
every creature in its path. After reading
your article, it is interesting to note such
fi eld burning occurs in west Eugene.
F. Verrijt
Eugene
EMBRACE THE DUST
While I am opposed to transporting
coal through Eugene (or anywhere else for
that matter), I think we should make some
proverbial lemonade. The city of Eugene
has been burning large swaths of wetlands
in west Eugene. Consider how much more
effi ciently the vegetation will burn if it is
covered with a patina of coal dust.
Tom Arnold
Eugene
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eugeneweekly.com • October 11, 2012
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