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
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