AUGUST 3, 2018, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A3
KeizerOpinion
KEIZERTIMES.COM
Rumor vs. news
By LYNDON ZAITZ
There are friends and colleagues
I know who do not watch TV news
nor read any newspapers. Media has
been so dominated by negative, di-
visive news that some people have
turned a blind eye to anything re-
sembling news.
Some non-news people get their
information from internet sites such
as Facebook, Yahoo and
others. Or, they ask their
friends about some big
story they have heard
about.
The concern with
that is the real possibil-
ity—especially with lo-
cal events—of getting
incorrect facts and then
spreading errorenous news. There
are thousands of outlets and profes-
sional journalists across this coun-
try who gather news and present it
with fairness, honesty and integrity.
Unfortunately there are those few
with big megaphones that spout
off conspiracies and untruths (i.e.,
the massacre at Sandy Hook was a
hoax).
Our president says that the news
media is a enemy of the people.
Unfortunately there are many peo-
ple who agree with that view. It is
important to remember that state-
ments like that from the president
are little more than politics. If a pub-
lic offi cial thought the press was the
enemy of the people wouldn’t that
offi cer avoid the “enemy”? That’s
not the case with this president.
Neither publishers of newspapers
nor producers of broadcast and ca-
ble news wake in the morning and
decide to disseminate falsehoods
and wrong news just to play with
the American people. The people
who choose to make news gather-
ing their careers are dedicated to
their profession; they work diligent-
ly to cover the news and informa-
tion the public wants. At times the
news is upsetting but that is no rea-
son to question the integrity of all
journalists.
This is especially true at small,
community-based newspapers. As
publisher of the Keizertimes it is my
responsbility to assure that the news
is provided without favor or foul,
just the facts. As at most newspapers,
our job is to report the news as it
happened as well as do investigative
reporting on subjects concerning
Keizer. Our peers in other states
have bestowed on our paper many
fi rst place awards over the years in
competition with other Oregon
newspapers. Last month the Keizer-
times was honored with 13 awards
including fi rst place for
enterprise
reporting,
educational
coverage,
lifestyle and government
coverage.
The president uses a
term for news he doesn’t
like (a term I fi nd offen-
sive and will never use).
As some say, you can pick
your opinions but you can’t pick
your facts. There is no such thing as
an alternative fact—2+2=4 is a fact;
2+2 =5 is not an alternative fact, it
is just fl at out wrong.
In an earlier time the people who
didn’t pay attention to news cited
the bad news such as war abroad
and crime at home. Then, as today,
there are four or fi ve positive ar-
ticles for every ‘bad’ piece of news.
News is in the eye of the beholder,
some see it as all bad, some see it
as all untruthful and some see it as
indispensable.
I am with the latter. Though I
must admit that the daily barrage
of news coming from the nation’s
capital is wearying. Even a politi-
cal news junkie such as myself can
feel overburdened with yet another
story about an embattled offi cial or
policy. But I will remain resolute, I
have to. If we all turned away from
the news it could lead to some un-
expected consequences. It is the
press that must hold governments
to task and assure that the public is
informed about what their public
offi cials are doing in their name.
Journalists separate rumor from
fact. As some wise sage once said, a
rumor zips around the globe before
the truth gets its boots on. News is
what is, rumor is what people think
it is.
We in the press know the differ-
ence.
on my
mind
(Lyndon Zaitz ig publigher of the
Keizertimeg.)
Move Over law in spotlight
The very professionals who earn
a living from highway accidents are
now taking to the streets to promote
highway safety and help safeguard the
lives of fellow fi rst responders. The
American Towman Spirit Ride is
continuing on its journey, relaying a
colorful, ceremonial casket from tow
truck to tow truck across the nation.
The casket honors fi rst re-
sponders who have been
killed on the roadside and
carries the message: Slow
Down, Move Over.
About 300 towing
companies across the
country are relaying the
casket to promote their
state’s Move Over law with proces-
sions involving 10,000 tow trucks and
emergency service vehicles.
The Ride, which began in June
2017, will pass through Salem with
the Spirit casket being relayed to Af-
fordable Towing. A ceremony will take
place at 2 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 3 in the
Pavilion at the Oregon State Fair-
grounds and Expo Center. Follow-
ing the ceremony a procession of tow
trucks and emergency service vehicles
will drive through Salem
The Move Over law is unknown
to many motorists. According to the
National Safety Commission, 70 per-
cent of American motorists do not
know the law exists. The law is on the
books in all states and requires pass-
ing vehicles to move over one lane
when approaching an incident where
emergency lights are fl ashing and tow
operators, police, fi re fi ghters and
emergency-medical technicians are
working.The ceremonial
casket, named Spirit, was
custom painted by artist
Cecil Burrowes, who spe-
cializes in painting intri-
cate designs on trucks and
wreckers. Painted on Spir-
it are a dozen scenarios
depicting fi rst-responders
at the scenes of highways incidents.
Among fi rst responders killed, 60
percent were tow operators.Accord-
ing to American Towman Magazine
President Steve Calitri, the Ride is the
greatest towing project since the fi rst
tow truck was built in 1916.
“The Ride,” says Calitri, “is gen-
erating public awareness of the perils
fi rst responders face and galvanizing
police resolve for enforcing the Move
Over law.”
For undecided
voters in Keizer
your friend said was true,
and things are going re-
ally poorly for everyone
that invested.
The same Oregonians
that spent their vote in
November 2016 on Don-
ald Trump are now urging
you to spend your vote in
November 2018 on Knute Buehler.
Please don’t invest your vote this
fall based on advice from people who
gave us Trump.
Think about that when you fi ll
your ballot this fall.
Andrew Hickey
Keizer
guegt
(Submitted by Janna Rogg for
American Towman Magazine.)
letterg
To the Editor:
Imagine a friend comes
to you with an opportu-
nity to go in on an invest-
ment together. Your friend
gives you the background
information and makes a convincing,
passionate pitch. It’s a bit risky and
would require a big commitment,
but your friend urges you to invest.
So you do.
It turns out to be the worst in-
vestment possible. You’ve sunk your
resources into something that was
completely misrepresented. Nothing
Keizertimes
Wheatland Publighing Corp. • 142 Chemawa Road N. • Keizer, Oregon 97303
phone: 503.390.1051 • web: www.keizertimeg.com • email: kt@keizertimeg.com
Lyndon A. Zaitz, Editor & Publisher
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The human side of JROTC
By TED SPINK
I want to talk about the AFJROTC
unit at McNary High School.
AFJROTC stands for Air Force Ju-
nior Offi cer Training Corps.
Currently our JROTC
unit is getting ready for
the new year and this is
the time to become part
of our outstanding pro-
gram. I am writing to tell
you why you should join
JROTC, my experiences
with joining, informing
you about the program,
and some common mis-
conceptions about the class.
When I was in 8th grade, decid-
ing what my classes would be, I knew
right away that I wanted to be in the
JROTC program. At the time I did
not know much about it but I saw
the color guard and drill team at the
assemblies at Claggett Creek Mid-
dle School and there was something
about tossing a rifl e up in the air and
managing to catch it which appealed
to me and seemed like fun.
I was having a hard time decid-
ing whether or not I wanted to join
though because I thought it might be
too hard for me, or too strict. To be
honest I was scared of what it might
be like. During summer I went to Ba-
sic Cadet Training (BCT), which is a
quick introduction hosted by the AF-
JROTC unit. I thought that it would
be a daunting task but it wasn’t. It was
actually a lot of fun and the connec-
tions I made with others in the pro-
gram made transitioning from middle
to high school much easier.
Along with that, participat-
ing in BCT gave me a rib-
bon to put on my uniform.
As the year progressed I
began to get closer to the
people within my JROTC
unit. I don’t know if it was
intended, but I began to see
JROTC less as a class and
more like a family. As my
second year of high school
came on I decided I would try to
join one of our fi ve teams, Unarmed/
Armed Drill, Color Guard, Physical
Training, and Precision Air Rifl e. Drill
would defi nitely seem like a challenge
for me, but I was up for it. While I was
practicing Drill Major Robert Gracia
saw me and recommended I do Color
Guard. I was hesitant at fi rst, but then
I fi nally decided to join which was a
great decision. Because of this I had
the privilege to march in the Color
Guard for the 2018 Iris Parade.
Now that I have shared my expe-
rience with you I hope this has in-
spired you to join JROTC. If not, let
me clear up a few misconceptions that
you might still have. First, and one of
the most common misconceptions, is
that JROTC recruits for the military,
this is not true in any way. JROTC
guegt
column
will not pressure or hold you to any
obligation of any military service no
matter how long you stay with us. The
second misconception is harsh treat-
ment, in all of my time within the
corps I have never been put down by
an instructor or fellow cadet. I have
never been screamed at or treated un-
fairly, the cadets in JROTC are some
of the nicest people I have ever met.
A third JROTC stereotype is that the
JROTC program is boring. This is not
true, JROTC is fun and educational,
and challenges you to be your best.
Give it a try for a year, you’ll be glad
you did.
In conclusion, we ask any parents
or guardians to talk to their kids about
joining JROTC at McNary High
School. Our unit is currently in need
of cadets to keep our corps running
strong so we can benefi t both Mc-
Nary High Schools students and our
community. Because of this please
consider puting JROTC in heavy
consideration, not only does it teach
you and prepare you for the future but
it also looks great when applying for
a job.
If you have any questions you can
contact Major Garcia through Mc-
Nary High school or Email him at
garcia_robert@salkeiz.k12.or.us Also
be sure to check out our Facebook
page at MAF Cadet Page. I look for-
ward to seeing you.
(Ted Spinkg ig a junior at McNary
High School.)
Women can change the world
Some of the fi nest, most helpful
and brightest people I have known
are women. As a rule, for me, women
tend to be more thoughtful, generous
and caring than so many of the ma-
cho-burdened guys I’ve known. This
bias of mine began with my mother
who I could depend on for anything
and everything no matter
what, while my wife of
45 years is my best friend,
confi dant, love interest
and mother to our chil-
dren.
In the history of our
planet, the length of my
life has been nothing more
than an innocuous hiccup.
However, when I was in
high school, a mere fi ve decades ago,
the women in my class were mainly
relegated to motherhood, librarian,
nurse or teacher. Then, too, teachers
were often required lifelong spinster
status. A few women actually held
public offi ce but usually got there
when a famous husband passed and
sentimentality demanded it.
Having kids and trying for public
offi ce was not only considered an im-
pediment throughout the America of
yesteryear but comparable to women
as blacksmith or street car conduc-
tor. Like it or not, and there remain
many who don’t like it, several wom-
en are running for offi ce and claiming
active motherhood as a political asset.
For example, in Maryland, a candidate
there for governor, Krish Vignarajah,
made her case for the job in a 30-sec-
ond ad showing her breastfeeding her
baby daughter with photos of her
family and select moments from her
political career.
Many female candidates are do-
ing something similar or the same.
Vignarajah has been joined by Kelda
Roys who is running for governor
of Wisconsin and has openly breast-
fed her child as well as made efforts
to ban a potentially harmful chemical
in children’s products. M. J. Hegar, a
congressional candidate in Texas, has
displayed her own take on mother-
hood when she announced, “I’m
an Air Force combat veteran and a
mom.” Hegar wants her constituents
to know that she has opened several
formerly closed doors to women by
building a career while being a mom.
Others who’ve written on this
subject argue that we’ve
moved into a new out-
sider role after the 2016
political election. They
say that the mothers in
the public offi ce move-
ment is the result of an
abnormal political era
where more voters prefer
people who’ve not been
long-serving in offi ce, the
kind of offi ce holder who repeats the
same tired refrains and stands pat on
the status quo, no matter the breadth
and depth of problems screaming for
attention.
What’s been a typical point of view
was in the double standard category
where men running for offi ce could
have a wife and children while seen as
wholesome and normal. Wives were
expected to serve as primary child-
care providers for their families and
thereby not suited to hold public of-
fi ce. In the past, women were directed
to assume major responsibility for the
children while a common comment
on those who dared was: “Well! She’s
not looking after the kids (in Salem,
Washington,
D.C. or wher-
ever), when
she should be
doing so!”
Men can
do
more
about
rais-
ing
fami-
lies. When my
wife and I re-
turned from
years work-
ing overseas
we brought
a newborn
gene
h.
mcintyre
home with us. We had no jobs to re-
turn to and my wife had always want-
ed to try her hand at a line of work
of considerable interest to her. I took
care of our infant daughter and our
other child from dawn to dusk every
day and thereby acquired a personal
appreciation for the amount of time,
effort and patience involved. Bot-
tom line was I succeeded as Mr. Mom
while my wife and I learned we were
“diaper-brigade” interchangeable in
raising our children.
More power to those women in
Oregon who chose to run for pubic
offi ce. I’ve noticed over the years of
my life that women often do bet-
ter than the guys because so many
of them have a knack and talent for
effective communication and prob-
lem-solving cooperation, resulting
in getting along with other people
and compromising at middle ground
points to get things done. There have
been many a trail blazer at all levels
of government and the gate’s wide
open so expect more young mothers
to run for offi ce while some will be
pregnant and some will be breastfeed-
ing. May we encourage them and ap-
plaud their efforts and achievements
in a new social order where no one is
held back by outmoded and unneces-
sary restraints.
(Gene H. McIntyre ghareg hig opin-
ion each week in the Keizertimeg.)