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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (July 17, 2014)
LET TERS VIOLATION OF POLICY As anyone following my campaign for West Lane County commissioner knows, I am deeply concerned about lack of transparency at the county. It was a central tenet of my campaign, and one of the main reasons I spent nearly a year and a half working for change on the board. However, I take issue with Commissioner Pete Sorenson’s focus in the last EW on the county’s handling of the “challenged ballot” process. While indeed the decision to open the Elections Offi ce on Saturday to give Commissioner Jay Bozievich access to the challenged ballot list could give the “perception” of a problem, I do believe the administrator’s assurances that this access would have been extended to my campaign, had the roles been reversed. We should remember that this was the fi rst time the county was dealing with a new process, the county’s handling of that new process may not have been exactly graceful, but here’s what is more important — the way it was handled did not affect the outcome in any way. What did, however, presents a serious breach of Lane County policy (and possibly represents a statutory violation) and did impact potentially many, many actual votes was the misuse of the county logo and county-issued equipment to promote my opponent. I am referring specifi cally to Sheriff Tom Turner’s appearances in uniform on Bozievich’s paid direct mail and television advertisements. While it is Turner’s right to endorse candidates, it is my understanding that publicly funded equipment including logos and uniforms are not available for promotion of a political candidate. In contrast, when the Lane Professional Firefi ghters Association IAFF Local 851 endorsed me, they were careful and ethical to ensure that no fi re engine or any uniforms were visible in any photos they took with me. In any election, I expect better from the sheriff and the county commissioners. The use of publicly funded county property to promote the incumbent was a breach of ethics, a violation of the public trust and may indeed have been a violation of the law. In an election won by 74 votes, with a runoff avoided by only 19 votes, voters have a right to wonder whether the outcome would have been different if Bozievich had actually complied with county policy in his campaign. Sorenson is correct to raise questions about ethics, but his focus with these questions seems signifi cantly misplaced. To my knowledge, neither he nor any of the other sitting commissioners have expressed objections to this clear violation of county policy by two high-level county elected offi cials. Dawn Lesley Eugene THE FINAL MATCH To Killian Doherty: What a remarkable article you wrote this week [Whutsupworldcup, 7/10] in EW. I’m from Argentina, and I moved a few years ago to Oregon because my family is here and you know how we are about family. Your point of view about my culture and SWING INTO SUMMER TENNIS FUN Adult Tennis Lessons (Ages 18+) Come learn to play this lifelong sport! Youth Tennis Lessons (Ages 4 - 18) For all levels of skill, beginner to advanced! Youth Tennis Summer Camp (Ages 8-12) A great way to spend the summer days! Youth Pickleball Camp (Ages 8-14) A great game with a funny name! Fore more details call 541-683-3410, or visit www.eugeneymca.org 4 July 17, 2014 • eugeneweekly.com how other cultures are seeing Argentina made a great impression on me. I always knew all that but to have the chance to read it is a plus. I completely agree with you, and as you wrote, “Messi is the greatest soccer player of my generation,” certainly he is. Sunday I will be transpirando la camiseta as a #12 player, and even we don’t have the biggest reward at the World Cup, I’ll be so, so proud of my team because I know for a fact they’ll do everything and more in that fi nal match. Thank you so much for your article, you made me feel not that foreign in your country. Andrea Lara Lake Oswego & Eugene NOT ALL ARE EVOLVED In the ongoing discussion about sexual assault on college campuses (and elsewhere), one thread has focused on the importance of avoiding blaming the victim. As a staunch feminist, I agree with Kristin Teigen [Letters, 7/10] when she writes that “women should not be asked to change their lives to prevent men from sexually assaulting them” — with one signifi cant caveat. I believe that all young people, especially young women, should be educated in certain basic safety precautions as they’re preparing to enter the adult world. Among the guidelines I would pass along to my nieces (I’m not a parent) and others are the following: 1) Don’t get so drunk that you lose touch with what’s going on around you, especially in a large group that includes a bunch of strangers. 2) At a party or a bar, don’t accept a drink, alcoholic or otherwise, from someone you don’t know. There’s a tiny chance it could be spiked with a date-rape drug. Pour your own beer from the keg. If a stranger offers to buy you a drink and you want to accept, accompany him to the bar to get it. I am not coming from a mentality of “boys will be boys,” nor from a place of fear. I’m coming from the practical realization that until we’ve all evolved to Buddhahood, there are a very few dangerous folks out there who will take advantage of someone who’s under the infl uence of an intoxicant. My advice is in line with don’t leave valuables in your car, and lock your doors when you go to bed at night. Kelley Blewster Springfi eld BLAMING VS. REALITY While the sexual assault awareness project at the UO is great for those who are really victims, it is really too late by college age to change behavior patterns. The last paragraph of Camilla Mortensen’s news story [7/10] proves that. Such truisms such as actions have consequences, nonverbal language is more powerful than verbal, and the Golden Rule are all taught by example by parents starting when a child is 18 months, not 18 years. Men and women both bear the responsibility to act civilly toward each other. Also, there is a big difference between a victim — who is put upon physically or emotionally without their consent, and a player — who chooses to put themselves into
