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PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, MAY 15, 2015 KeizerOpinion KEIZERTIMES.COM Keizer’s best foot Keizer is celebrating all weekend long as Early Risers, the 2015 Iris Festival, kicks into gear with a vari- ety of events and activities to please every family and every budget. Saturday morning the Valley Credit Service Iris Parade gets start- ed at 10:30 a.m. at Lockhaven Drive and River Road. Parade entries will include a mix of favorites and new- bies. The grand marshal of the parade is Steve Pfaff. A Keizer resident and a past president of the Keizer Cham- ber of Commerce, Pfaff chaired the Iris Festival Parade commitee for more than 13 non-consecutive years. He has overseen the parade from the early 1990s until last year. The organizers of the Iris Fes- tival parade have a solid history of choosing the right grand marshal each year; 2015 is no different. The Iris Festival Council unanimously choose Pfaff due to his important imprint on one of Keizer’s biggest events. The festival seems to have found a good home in central Keizer at the Keizer Lions Club. Cherry Avenue is closed from the club to Walery Plaza. Parking for attendees didn’t seem to an issue last year. This year there will be a shuttle between the Keizerfest area and parking at the Sentry Insurance lot on Cherry Av- enue across from Plymouth Drive. For runners the Iris Festival is a bonanza of choices. The pre-parade 5K and 3K Kidz runs down River Road is succeeded on Sunday with a marathon, a half marathon and a 10K run on starting at Keizerfest at the Keizer Lions Club. The Sunday runs have become very popular and it’s hard to think they won’t eclipse other festival events in the coming years. Besides events this weekend there were Iris Festival events earlier this month with the Keizer Volunteer FireFighters Mother’s Day Breakfast and the Keizer Distinguished Young Woman program held at McNary High School Saturday night. Fati- ma Falcon and Cambria Rushton were co-winners. Both will repre- sent Keizer at the state program this summer. The two were chosen out of a fi eld of 21 women (all juniors) who stepped outside their comfort zones to speak before an audience and perform a talent. Beer lovers will have a grand time at the Keizerfest Tent with fi ve local breweries selling and sampling their beers. The community stage inside the Lions Club hall will be fi lled with lots of local talent including elementary school choirs, dancers and a performance of Always...Patsy Cline by the Keizer Homegrown Theatre. It’s the middle of May. The irises are blooming and Keizer is putting its best foot forward again. —LAZ Commitment to community hand experience of the Tran- sit District as a regular rider of both the Cher- riots scheduled bus service and the CherryLift service for disabled riders. Mr. Stevenson and I were origi- nal members of the Transit District’s Citizen’s Advisory Committee when it was created in 2012. Mr. Steven- son is one of the few of that origi- nal committee who is still serving, demonstrating true commitment to transit in our community. He is now the committee’s chairman. He has attended many Transit Board meet- ings since then, frequently offering comments to the board pointing out both our successes and our short- comings, as well as suggesting sen- sible improvements. He is the best-qualifi ed candi- date for this position. I believe Mr. Stevenson will serve our board and community well in the coming years; with a voice that will both support our successes and work to overcome our shortcomings. John Hammill Salem-Keizer Transit District director Salem To the Editor: Betty L. Hart is running for Keiz- er Rural Fire Protection District Board, Position 5. As the election days are coming nearer, I wish to get the community to take a closer look at Hart and why she is the best choice. Hart is a long-time volunteer in both Marion and Polk coun- ties. Hart understands public policy, local government budgeting process, and the role of a board. Hart has experience in non-profi t fi nance and has an extensive background in engaging both counties in local government activities and explain- ing issues. These are just a few of the reasons why I am supporting Betty L. Hart in her campaign for Keizer Rural Fire Protection District Board, Posi- tion 5. I hope that you will join me in backing Betty L. Hart. Janeen L. Baker Salem Support for Stevenson To the Editor: On May 19 voters in Keizer will be selecting a new board member for the Salem-Keizer Transit District (subdistrict 2). I recommend a vote for Richard Stevenson. He has many years’ fi rst- letters The Keizertimes welcomes all points of view. E-mail to: publisher@keizertimes.com by noon each Tuesday Paper’s endorsement is puzzling By GREG EGO While I support the right of the Keizertimes to endorse candidates for local elections, I believe you got it wrong for Keizer Fire District Posi- tion 4. Betty Hart is the better choice to lead the fi re district with her con- siderable knowledge of how it oper- ates. I am curious that there was no re- sponse from candidate Taylor in your article of May 8 (Fire board candidates sound off) regarding the questions pre- sented to the other four candidates. Yet you chose to endorse him “due to his call for changes in daily operations of expensive equipment.” What does that mean? Does he believe the fi re district is doing it in- correctly? What is his expertise to say how we should deploy? Is it a matter of other districts do it differently? Keizer Fire responds to medi- cal emergencies with an advanced life support medic as well as an en- gine. In many medical emergencies it requires more than two people to properly assess and treat on the scene. Additionally, moving patients from their predicament to the ambulance requires more manpower. By send- ing the on duty engine, both of these areas are addressed. As the ambulance leaves to trans- port the patient the engine is then returned to the station. In the event of an- other call, fi re or medical, the en- gine is available to respond from the current scene saving time. Mr. Taylor does not state, nor does your endorsement say, how he would change the daily operations. Since Keizer Fire is a transporting agency we have little wiggle room in what equipment we respond with. In some departments, who do not provide transport services, they have utilized rapid response vehicles such as small SUV’s. That works well if you are only stabilizing patients and then returning to the station. In the case of Keizer Fire, rapid response vehicles would require additional equipment and manpower. We could not replace cur- rent apparatus with smaller vehicles because of our mission to transport patients and be prepared to fi ght fi re. We also need to maintain the current staffi ng for our medic and engines. While we do have a strong volunteer program, Keizer Fire asks more of its (Greg Ego is president of the Keizer Fire District Board of Directors.) By MICHAEL GERSON The sign of a fi rst-rate intelligence, according to F. Scott Fitzgerald, is “the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still re- tain the ability to function.” When it comes to Islam and blasphemy, many Americans are having trouble accept- ing even consistent ones. Under the law, blasphemy is fully protected speech, precisely because there is no public orthodoxy. Elevate the crucifi x in a processional or dip it in urine—the state neither genu- fl ects nor cringes. The defense of unpopular or offensive speech plays a particularly important role in our constitutional order; it defi nes the expansive boundaries of First Amend- ment guarantees. Religious people of all backgrounds should recognize that this legal neutrality on religion has produced a society remarkably ame- nable to religion. Those who attempt to intimidate or silence the believer or the blasphemer are attacking a central tenet of the American creed. And if they resort to violence, they may end up as chalk outlines on the pavement. At the same time: Under most moral codes, setting out to demean or mock the deepest, defi ning beliefs of your neighbor is rude and cruel. While permissible in our constitutional or- der, it is ethically disordered behavior -- malicious and dehumanizing. It is a violation of the Golden Rule and all its variants across the faiths. It deserves protection but not sympathy. There is no contradiction between First Amendment absolutism and a moral commitment to the cultivation of mutual respect among the Abraha- mic faiths (and outside them). Just as there is no inconsistency between the vigorous defense of America against terrorists and a respectful en- gagement with Islam. They are, in fact, insepa- rable. I can hardly be described as a softy when it comes to the global war against ter- rorism. I participated in an adminis- tration (headed by President George W. Bush) that pursued this war aggres- sively. Precisely for this reason, I know that it can’t be won without Muslim allies—loyal American citizens who report suspicious activities; allies and proxies who fi ght against violent Is- lamism; hundreds of millions of Mus- lims around the world who repudiate Salafi sm by the peacefulness and toler- ance of their daily lives. When Americans engage in high- profi le, attention-seeking acts of blas- phemy, they are not joining American military and intelligence forces at the front line; they are complicating and undermining their work. Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State thrive on the narrative of the West vs. Islam. Ameri- ca and our Muslim allies benefi t from the narrative of civilization vs. barba- rism. Both radical Islamists and some of their most vociferous American critics share the same conviction: that the most authentic form of Is- lam is the most violent form. If this view prevails in the Muslim world, no amount of drone strikes or com- mando raids will shield America and our allies from eventual and serial ca- tastrophe. The isolation rather than el- evation of radical Islamism is essential to the successful conduct of the war against terrorism. Modern technology has made the job of ideological containment much harder by creating a forum for end- less provocation and offense taking, not to mention radicalization and re- cruitment. The alternative, however, is not to demand that religious people become less religious—a hopeless task when much of the world will become less secular in the 21st century. What is needed is “theological work,” according to the former chief rabbi of the United Kingdom, Jona- than Sacks. Speaking at a recent con- ference of the Faith Angle Forum, Sacks argued that religion remains “the most powerful creator of groups, stronger than ideology, race, nation- alism.” When monotheism is tied to dualism—the belief that history is a cosmic confl ict between the children of light and the children of dark- ness—it becomes “the most danger- ous doctrine ever invented,” allowing people to “commit evil with a clean conscience.” Both Judaism and Christianity have made progress over the centuries in weeding out dualism—reinterpreting their violent scriptural texts and fi nd- ing resources of “respect for the other.” For Christianity, this transition wasn’t easy, involving the Reformation and the Thirty Years’ War. But this bloody, chaotic process eventually produced a fl owering of powerful ideas in the 17th century: the social contract, hu- man rights and liberty of conscience. Islam is a younger faith, going through a similar internal struggle. Sacks believes that serious, sympa- thetic dialogue among the Abrahamic faiths can “speak to our better angels” and challenge the violent narrative of sibling rivalry. He may prove naive, but it is certainly a better strategy than mockery. guest opinion volunteers than most districts and adding additional response duties to them is a stretch. The current board has worked dili- gently, through the staffi ng committee process, to augment the staffi ng of the fi re district. We have utilized SAFER grants, Chemeketa student program and a solid volunteer program to provide excellent service to the com- munity. Personnel costs represent the largest share of the annual budget. My second point is where does he get his information on how we oper- ate? In my 14 years on the fi re board, I have not once seen Mr. Taylor at a board meeting or budget committee meeting. I can only surmise that his information is second-hand and ac- curacy of that information may be compromised. I believe Betty Hart is the better, and right choice, for the Keizer Fire District. She has been very involved as evidenced by her attendance at board meetings and budget meetings as well as her work on our successful levy campaigns. She has the knowl- edge base to step in and offer excel- lent guidance as the district moves forward. Seeking mutual respect amid confl ict other views (Washington Post Writers Group) Ohio’s Kasich is best candidate in 2016 Keizertimes Wheatland Publishing Corp. • 142 Chemawa Road N. • Keizer, Oregon 97303 phone: 503.390.1051 • web: www.keizertimes.com • email: kt@keizertimes.com NEWS EDITOR Craig Murphy editor@keizertimes.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR Eric A. Howald news@keizertimes.com ADVERTISING Paula Moseley advertising@keizertimes.com Lyndon Zaitz publisher@keizertimes.com One year: $25 in Marion County, $33 outside Marion County, $45 outside Oregon PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Publication No: USPS 679-430 POSTMASTER PRODUCTION MANAGER Send address changes to: BUSINESS MANAGER Keizertimes Circulation 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, OR 97303 Andrew Jackson graphics@keizertimes.com EDITOR & PUBLISHER SUBSCRIPTIONS Laurie Painter billing@keizertimes.com OFFICE INTERN Periodical postage paid at Salem, Oregon Allie Kehret LEGAL NOTICES legals@keizertimes.com facebook.com/keizertimes twitter.com/keizertimes Any natural-born citizen of the United States who has reached the age of 35 years can be president. President Obama, limited to two terms, must leave the highest political offi ce in the land with a new American taking his place in January, 2017. So far the Democrats have only two who’ve declared their intentions to run—Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders—although others have indi- cated interest, including Vice Presi- dent Joe Biden. On the Republican side, there are a large number who’ve declared them- selves as well as a number of others who are, so to speak, “waiting in the wings.” Some of the GOP hopefuls include those who seem at fi rst blush to be un- likely to succeed. Mike Huckabee may be the most well-known among the unlikely as he is a by-the-Good-Book evangelical conservative whose anti- sentiments number several issues like being against abortion, gay marriage and gambling. He staunchly criticizes mainstream media, Jay-Z, the “ick factor” in gay relationships, adoption of children by gays, and hawks quack medicine. He scolded Obama and his wife for letting their daughters listen to Beyoncé and blames gay activists for the Indiana governor’s reversal on that state’s religious freedom act that would have allowed-by-law, discrimi- nation against gays in public business establishments. Another of those who chances are slim is Ben Carson, the retired pedi- atric neurosurgeon, who has become a Obamacare scourge: he compares the health care program to slav- ery. Further, he compares the U.S. under Obama to Nazi Germany and the Internal Revenue Ser- vice to the Gestapo. However, so far, he is the only GOP black candidate. Carly Firorna ran in California for the U.S. Senate and lost and was also ousted as CEO of Hewlett-Packard after a highly questionable merger and chief-in-charge of massive layoffs at H-P. But, she is the only woman GOP candidate so far. Unannounced to date is the peren- nial-one for president, Donald Trump, aka The Donald, who reminds those of us among the senior citizens set of Harold Stassen who ran for the high- est offi ce 12 times between 1940 and 2000. Trump offers the entertainment factor and will be missed if he does not enter the race as will Newt Gingrich, who was casino billionaire Sheldon G. Adelson’s man for president. More serious, yet undeclared GOP candidates are former governors Bob Ehrlich of Maryland, Jim Gilmore of Virginia, and George Pataki of New York. Governor of Ohio, John Ka- sich, who won re-election recently with 64 percent of the votes, is con- sidered a strong prospect if he chooses to run. Less likely to make a success- ful run since Bridgegate is Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey and the governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal, who’s come across as weak and inde- gene h. mcintyre cisive. There are also the three mouseke- teers who reside now in the U.S. Sen- ate. They are Ted Cruz the bomb- thrower, Rand Paul who has diffi culty remembering what he said late week, and Marco Rubio who’s glib but rep- resents something like a Hollywood set where there’s nothing beyond the facade. They to a one lack experience at managing anything beyond their daddy’s rabblerousing, a small medical offi ce or a state commissioner’s desk. Personally, I prefer that we not elect Bush No. 3 unless we’re going to establish a U.S. royal family and give them the White House. As for the Clintons, they appear money- and power-crazed and continue at na- tional politics so they can become bil- lionaires like the exclusive set of rich bankers and corporate heads that are thought to be their friends and com- panions. Further, I shudder at the thought of Bill turned loose in the White House again to prey on young female interns. What we need is a governor who has been able to do good things for the citizens of his state. First and foremost the name of a viable occupant of the White House who has done well at serving the peo- ple of Ohio is Governor John Kasich who has also served in Congress. He’s a smart, middle-of-the-road Repub- lican who knows how to manage a large state government and works well with all people. (Gene H. McIntyre’s column ap- pears weekly in the Keizertimes.)
