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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (June 12, 2020)
PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, JUNE 12, 2020 Opinion police scanner SUNDAY, MAY 31 8 a.m. - Vandalism in the 1000 block of Drexler Lane NE. 11:23 a.m. - Sudden death in the 1000 block of Shady Lane NE. 12:13 p.m. - Sudden death in the 600 block of Lockhaven Drive NE. 4 p.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 300 block of Sandy Drive N. MONDAY, JUNE 1 9 a.m. - Theft by deception in the 1000 block of Barnick Road NE. 10:23 a.m. - Shoplifting in the 5000 block of River Road N. 1:57 p.m. - Theft from motor vehicle in the 2000 block of Aldine Court NE. 8:30 p.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 4000 block of River Road N. TUESDAY, JUNE 2 Defunding cops is not a solution The call across the United States tect and serve our communities. They for defunding municipal police de- quickly respond to emergency calls day and night. partments comes after Proponents of police the killing of George defunding call for funds Floyd at the knee of a to be shifted from law en- city policeman in Min- departments to neapolis. editorial forcement areas such as social services, The resulting protests housing and job creation. across the country have All noble goals. been accented by the call In the nation, there are for total reform of po- licing in the United States, up to, and valid criticisms of law enforcement including, dismantling police depart- that include racial profi ling, brutality, ments. Some say the departments can militarization and racism. Most police be replaced with community policing. offi cers do it right—they care about A majority of the Minneapolis city their communities and its residents. council announced their intent to de- They engage with citizens, communi- fund and dismantle that city’s police cate with kids; they put forward the department. They seek to shift fund- positive face of policing. It is hearten- ing toward a new model of communi- ing to see images of offi cers across the ty-based policing, but they give scant United States march and kneel with details of what that would look like. protesters. Some Keizer police staff They, like other municipalities, are joined in solidarity with protesters in putting the cart before the horse. You Salem last weekend. Here in Keizer there have been no cannot eliminate a police department without having something ready to widespread cries of police brutality. Our recent police chiefs have provid- replace it. Abolishing a police department is ed a force the community supports. Kids are told when there is trou- against the very best interests of soci- ety as a whole. Police are on duty 24 ble run to a cop. Unfortunately, many hours a day, seven days a week. They black kids are told to steer away from patrol our neighborhoods, they pro- a cop. It is the dichotomy of how dif- ferent segments of society relate to law enforcement. There has been talk of police re- form for a long time. Protests against police brutality have ebbed and fl owed across the nation since the death in 2014 of Eric Garner at the hands of police offi cers in New York. A new paradigm in policing in America calls for culture change. Changes have to begin at the top, which means with city mayors and city councils, then with police chiefs and down through the ranks. The fi rst steps should be a deep look at the hiring process and psycological eval- uations. The following step should be the training of recruits. We can assume an overwhelming majority of appli- cants want to enter law enforcement for the right reasons: to serve and pro- tect their communities. Most serve with integrity and honor throughout their careers. That is cold comfort for citizens who feel they are treated differently and more harsh than others. Disman- tling police departments is not the answer—the answer is cities need to assure their patrol offi cers are part of the solution, not the problem. —LAZ Don’t let them go hungry COVID-19 has up-ended life as we know it. Many people have been out of work as their employers shut down at Gov. Kate Brown’s order. Those who were fortunate got their $1,200 feder- al stimulus check, or unemployment checks from the state. Those who are less fortunate have to fi gure out how to survive, especial- ly when it comes to putting food on their family dining tables. Any lifeline, especially food banks, becomes vitally important to our neighbors who need a helping hand. The pandemic has descimated the shelves at Keizer Community Food Bank and they need to be restocked. In normal times, the food bank is always in need of donations; these days it is desperate need of food and cash dona- tions. We all have our challenges now, some more than others. We shouldn’t let our neighbors go hungry. We ask the community to show its generosity again by donating food or money. Food banks are able to buy food at whole- sale prices, cheaper than the public is able to buy food on sale. Financial do- nations are going to supply more food for people in need when you donate to a food bank, and allow the food bank to buy what is needed to stock the shelves. —LAZ Library stands against racism freedom. To those ends, we support the right to peaceably assemble, or- ganize and protest for change. Many of the changes in our country have taken place because brave people have stood tall against oppression. We stand in solidarity with their voices and their efforts and we applaud individuals, organizations and leaders who are working for change. We recognize the trauma, anger and frustration that yet another trage- dy creates for all of us, in particular the Black community, indigenous peoples and other communities of color We believe the people should enjoy the privilege of being safe on their own streets and in their own home. And, we believe diverse communities are stronger when everyone feels secure and valued. We are all diminished when we are silent in the face of violence. To be silent is to be complicit. The Keiz- er Community Library commits to standing up against racism and op- pression. We also believe everyone in our community is willing to do the same. Paula Guiles Keizer letters To the Editor: The Keizer Community Library acknowledges the pain and suffering caused by the deadline impacts of institutional and systemic racism in our communities. As a culture, and as individuals, we lose something of ourselves when injustice happens to any one of us. As a community library we work to bring people together, to explore ideas, to learn and grow; and, in the process, earn the trust of our patrons. Libraries hold dear the First Amend- ment and the right of intellectual 1:10 a.m. - Driving under the infl u- ence in the 300 block of Dearborn Avenue N. 10:07 a.m. - Traffi c accident at the intersection of Lockhaven Drive N. and River Road N. 11:22 a.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 1000 block of Susan Court NE. 11:44 a.m. - Telephonic harassment in the 1000 block of Fir Cone Lane NE. 10 p.m. - Unlawful entry to vehicle in the 4000 block of Bailey Road NE. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3 6:05 a.m. - Motor vehicle theft in the 5000 block of River Road N. 2:13 p.m. - Shoplifting in the 3000 block of River Road N. 2:57 p.m. - Theft in the 900 block of Leeward Court N. 8:48 p.m. - Fleeing or attempting to elude police offi cer in the 5000 block of River Road N. THURSDAY, JUNE 4 7:53 a.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 4000 block of River Road N. 12:53 p.m. - Restraining order vi- olation in the 1000 block of River Rock Drive NE. 2:21 p.m. - Sudden death in the 700 block of Plymouth Drive NE. FRIDAY, JUNE 5 4:15 p.m. - Crime damage in the 3000 block of Cherry Avenue NE. 5:55 p.m. - Vandalism in the 5000 block of River Road N. 9:46 p.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 3000 block of River Road N. SATURDAY, JUNE 6 9:15 a.m. - Theft from motor vehicle in the 4000 block of Thorman Ave- nue NE. 9:59 a.m. - Theft in the 6000 block of Bingtree Court NE. 10:20 a.m. - Identity theft in the 5000 block of Verda Lane NE. 11:40 a.m. - Disorderly conduct in the 4000 block of River Road N. 7:10 p.m. - Criminal trespassing in the 3000 block of River Road N. 10:57 p.m. - Assault in the 4000 block of Harcourt Avenue NE. SUNDAY, JUNE 7 1 p.m. - Menacing use or display of weapons in the 4000 block of Gary Street NE. 1:25 p.m. - Parole violation in the 3000 block of Cherry Avenue NE. 1:28 p.m. - Failure to perform duties of driver when property was dam- aged in the 5000 block of 10th Av- enue NE. 8:35 p.m. - Driving under the infl u- ence of intoxicants in the 1000 block of McGee Court NE. 9:20 p.m. - Assault in the 1000 block of Orchard Court N. MONDAY, JUNE 8 12:28 a.m. - Menacing use or display of weapons in the 3000 block of Par- tridge Lane NE. 4:09 a.m. - Motor vehicle theft in the 1000 block of Willow Lake Road N. 2 Keizerites nominated to state advisory roles Two residents of Keizer were recently nominated to serve on state boards and commissions by Gov. Kate Brown. City Councilor Roland Her- rera was nominated to serve on the Committee on Judicial Fitness and Disability. The Commission reviews complaints about Ore- gon state judges and justices of the peace and investigates when the alleged conduct might violate the state’s judicial code of conduct. Herrera will serve a four-year term. Rachael DeBarmore was nom- inated to serve on the State Board of Pharmacy. The Board of Phar- macy “serves to promote and pro- tect public health, safety, and wel- fare by ensuring high standards in the practice of pharmacy and through effective regulation of the manufacture and distribution of drugs.” DeBarmore will also serve for four years. While a confi rmation hearing has not yet been scheduled, the Senate Committee on Rules—per committee rules—can consider nominations once 21 days have passed after the date of submission. “State board and commission members bring their diversity of backgrounds and life experiences to provide valuable expertise and insight into a wide range of issues facing state government,” Brown said in a press release. “Their con- tributions help lead to policies and strategies that better enable us to serve and represent all Orego- nians.” maze (The writer is the president of the Board of Directors of the Keizer Community Library.) Bravery in service of the US When interviewed, young people believe they are free of harm. That false sense of believing in their im- mortality has made them fodder for leaders since the beginning of time, who’ve used their youth to battle adversaries. Nev- ertheless, there are always a few among those facing a battle who are mature and wise enough to realize a high probability their end is nigh. A recent commemora- tion brought this subject up: D-Day, June 6, 1944. That date was when thousands of Allied troops faced the juggernaut Nazi Germany war machine mightily entrenched along the northwest coast of France. The invasion had been planned for a couple of years. While it is likely that many Allied troops knew their partic- ipation was inevitable. The bottom line is, no matter those troop numbers harboring young men with delusions of grandeur, when the troops were about to wade ashore into a virtual tsunami of bullets, they experienced fear with a desire to run away. Yet, the natural fear felt when faced with the likelihood of being hit by a high-speed projectile did not deter them from scrambling out of those landing crafts and into the surf to face the gut-wrenching Wehrmacht. Looking at the landing site from the safety of the landing craft, each had to grip-hard his bravery that morning, even though they’d been trained for months to put up a good fi ght. It was later verifi ed that 2,499 American troops died that day while many others followed the fi rst wave of attack and did so at Normandy until August, 1944. Meanwhile, opinion leads me to believe that hardly a single lead- er among those at the U.S. federal level—excepting the late Senator John McCain and perhaps a hand- ful of others—would have been able to board the landing craft much less head out into the English Channel on that fateful morning; a day that marked the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany. gene h. mcintyre Virtually all Republicans in the Senate and the House of Representa- tives, plus a number of Democrats in both houses of Congress, are so afraid of a critical tweet by President Don- ald Trump, jeopardizing their Wash- ington positions—where they were elected from the middle class but re- tire as millionaires—but are not brave enough to speak one word of dis- sent or disagreement with the White House occupant. The heart and soul of a democra- cy are its people who are honored in their right to choose. In America, we elect representatives at the national level upon whom an oath is admin- istered. There is no word in the oath that suggests or encourages any U.S. senator or representative to swear al- legiance to the head of the executive branch or the judicial branch of the government. Yet, we now have a ma- jority of U.S. senators who are loyal to President Donald J. Trump, thereby breaking their oath of offi ce, violating U.S. law, tradition, and not standing brave to protect our way of life. (Gene H. McIntyre lives in Keizer.) Maze by Jonathan Graf of Keizer sudoku Enter digits from 1-9 into the blank spac- es. Every row must contain one of each digit. So must every column, as must every 3x3 square.
