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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (June 19, 2014)
numbers concerning out-of-state athletes who receive full-ride scholarships in direct comparison to the total number of local athletes who are offered the same opportunity. Christopher Eidemiller Eugene GOVERNMENT OVERREACH A downtown smoking ban would be an example of government overreach. It would be a way of controlling and marginalizing people, a power play disguised as altruism. The fact of the matter is tobacco, in its natural state, actually has medicinal and spiritual value. But under a blanket ban, even those who use tobacco entheogenically would be discriminated against, so they’d be throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Instead of an across- the-board ban, why not designate a few select smoking areas downtown and make the rest non-smoking? Then nobody’s space would be invaded and nobody would have to be treated like a second-class citizen. In a free society, minority rights must be protected as well. Jess Nichols Eugene BIKE PATH OBSTACLES Did you know there is a serious danger lurking on bike paths? They are the strangest things. I’m still not quite sure what to make of them, and I still don’t have the pronunciation down quite right, but I think they’re called pud-dest-rianns. I think that’s how you say it; let me try it again: pud-dest-rians. Wait, I think I almost have it: pedestrians! Yes! There! That’s it! I think it’s Latin or Gaelic or something. Pedestrians are people who actually walk on the bike path. I know what you’re thinking, crazy right? I mean these “people” actually walk with their families on the bike path like they’re trying to do the same thing I’m doing and get to where they’re going or take in the fresh air and beautiful weather we’ve been having. Just what the hell are they thinking?! Don’t they know the bike path is for bikes only? Oh, wait, a quick Google search has told me that as of 2000, bike paths in the Eugene and Springfi eld area are open to runners and these pedestrians as well. Don’t these people know it’s dangerous for me for them to be out there? I only travel as fast as a slow-moving car sometimes, blindly cruising around corners and forgetting to announce my approach (“On your left!”). What? Brakes? What the hell are those? I don’t need those, or common sense; I just need these pedestrians out of my way! I mean they are a real danger! So, fellow bicyclists, be sure to watch out for these strange people on the paths. They’re all over the place and incredibly inconsiderate! Jeff Warren Eugene CAUGHT IN THE E-WEB What a tangled E-WEB they weave when they practice to deceive. EWEB has chosen to proceed with plans to install its surveillance devices on our homes and businesses in spite of “Families For Safe Meters” serving them with a legal notice and demand to stop. In the near 1984 future, these digital surveillance devices called “smart meters,” with their ability to send and receive wi- fi signals, along with the “smart electrical grid” and “smart appliances,” are the fi nal link in the chain to institute a total surveillance society infrastructure. EWEB wants us to believe that its opt- in program gives us a true choice. If your neighbor gets a “smart meter,” you have no choice; the signal will reach your home. As time goes by, people will forget that there ever was an opt-in choice, or EWEB will just change its mind. We must not sit back and permit EWEB to trespass on our right to privacy in our own homes or businesses. Most of us love our digital devices. We can buy them or use them however and whenever we want. “Smart meters” are permanent digital devices attached to your home or business that can operate 24/7 and be programmed, reprogrammed and controlled by someone else. There are other serious issues with “smart meters.” Get informed; spread the word. The word is NO. Don’t get caught in the EWEB. Check out Jerry Day smart meters on YouTube, takebackyourpower.com, familiesforsafemeters.org (and see the “notice and demand” we served on EWEB). Abraham Likwornik Eugene BABYLON IN TURMOIL Streaming to my handheld, world news shows that Babylon is yet again in turmoil. Between the lines about ISIS, the fall of Mosul, Iraqi security and Al- Qaida-linked terrorists, I hear a plea from the press for Obama to do something to stop the chaos. It is inevitable that losing political and economic control of Iraq means skyrocketing oil costs for Western civilization. President Jimmy Carter wrote doctrine stating that we would use our military to secure access to cheap petroleum. Our presidents have delivered on their promise to buy oil with Arab and American blood. As the situation in Iraq and the Middle East deteriorates again, the press and the congress call for the president to act. Our presidents have acted. Every president since Carter has meddled in Middle Eastern affairs. Bush invaded Iraq. Obama has overseen its dominion with drones, and we have been afforded another decade of relative economic stability. But the presidents can only buy us time. As this round of fi ghting begins, and pressure mounts on the presidency, I remind myself that it’s not the president who needs to act. We do. We’ve had time to prepare our mentalities and economies to be local and sustainable. At some point, through revolution in the Middle East, or when the last drop is drilled, we will be on our own. We must be ready to live locally, sustainably and bravely as the world once again becomes big and the era of cheap oil ends. Micah Olson Eugene Edewaard FRIDAY JUNE 27TH 8-11PM • NO COVER 3355 E. AMAZON EUGENE OR 541-686-5022 NEVER A COVER NPR KLCC on For Delightfully Discerning Oregonians 89.7 NPR for Oregonians eugeneweekly.com • June 19, 2014 5
