Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 26, 2021)
PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, FEBRUARY 26, 2021 Public Square Public Square weclomes all points of view. Published submissions do not necessarily refl ect the views of the Keizertimes. Submit a guest opinion, column or letter to the editor to publisher@keizertimes.com. Is there a future for birds? Preparing for the unthinkable Icy roads are a nuisance. Losing them. We need not worry about an electricity for a few hours is an an- ice storm in August or a heat wave noyance. Losing electricty and com- in January. Yet every day of the year munication for days on end is tragic we all live under the threat of an big and dangerous, as we have seen in the earthquake. That is the disaster every household needs to be prepared for. past weeks. An earthquake that destroys ev- The spirit and generosity of Keize- rites was evident everywhere you erything will affect those that tra- turned after the city was hit by an ditionally respond: fi re and police. ice storm. Neighbor assisted neigh- Households need to take the steps to look after themselves. bors residents jumped in to The recent ice help clear the community. storm and power out- In times of trouble Ameri- ages demonstrate the can society doesn’t ask how it can help, it digs in for the editorial importance of having the items needed in a benefi t of their fellow man. major event. We have to wonder what Any fi re district or would happen if everybody fi re department can was in the same boat in a lifechanging disaster? Some say that provide vital information about pre- our region is overdue for a major paring for an emergency. What should every house have earthquake but predicting an earth- quake is nigh impossible. Experts can stocked in its emergency kit? Start speculate, but nature doesn’t check in with water, several gallons per per- with humanity before an earthquake. son. Non-perishable food items and Modern weather forecasting can a manual can opener. Batteries of all almost pinpoint windstorms, snow sizes, battery-operate radio, blankets, and ice storms and heat waves, al- fi rst aid kit, a whistle (to signal for lowing each of us to prepare for help), face maskes to help fi lter con- taminated air, plastic sheeting and duct tape, tools such as a wrench or pliers, warm clothing and footwear, candles and matches. It is a long list but it will help peo- ple to survive on their own in case help is not immediately on the way. An emergency kit is a necessity along with a plan for one’s family. Some families hold fi re drills in their house; families can also design and hold earthquake drills. The fi re district is a source of information for these kinds of drills. We do not want to live in fear for what may not happen in our life- times. Being prepared is being smart. One thing that can make a disaster worse is not knowing what to do. Learning what needs to be done if a catastrophe strikes should be a top priority for every household. Neigh- boring households can team up to stock kits and have a plan to look af- ter each other. A power outage can be fi xed; de- stroyed infrastruture is a challenge most of us are unprepaed for. —LAZ oil spills, exposure to toxins at waste By JIM PARR Since the mid-1970s, approximate- treatment and storage basins and la- ly 3 billion or roughly 29% of the goons, habitat destruction, etc. (May- North American bird population has be this provision of the treaty will be disappeared. More recently the 2019 restored by the Biden administration.) What are some suggested large national annual bird survey counted scale actions that can be about 6 million fewer birds taken to slow and hope- than was expected. There fully stop the loss of bird are numerous suspected guest populations? During fall and known reasons for this column and spring migration decline. times, reduce night time It is known that indus- lighting of tall buildings. trial operations kill mil- Reduce or stop some lions of birds each year. Add to that, the unexpected losses of wind turbine operation during the birds. For example, over several days dark hours. Many birds fl y at night this past September, approximately and can be disoriented by lights and 200,000 migrating birds mysteriously sounds leading to fatal crashes. A re- dropped dead from the air over New duction in large scale insecticide use Mexico. Examinations by federal can help. Most song birds are insect wildlife laboratories found the birds eaters and require insects in their diet to be in very poor condition, as if to maintain condition and to feed starved. Like they just ran out of en- their young. Minimizing the popula- ergy and fell from the sky. There are tion of feral cats will reduce bird kills. What can a homeowner do? other suggested causes that may have contributed to the die off but it ap- Create and maintain a bird friendly pears that starvation is the main cause. backyard. Make your yard a refuge These migrating birds just simply ran for birds by planting shrubs for cov- out of energy and died during their er. Provide food during the winter fl ight south. Birds are also killed by months and water for drinking and crashes into tall buildings and wind bathing during the summer. In gen- eral, creating and maintaining quality turbines and cell towers. In another blow to birds, in the bird habitat, along with a good mea- last days of the Trump administration, sure of interest and a caring attitude, is rules that required industry to min- a great long term strategy. These are tough and challenging imize or eliminate accidental and/or incidental harm to birds as a result of times. We need the simple joys that their operations were removed. In- birds bring to our daily life. Imagine a dustry of course does not set out to day or evening without the songs and kill birds. Before the rule change, pro- chatter of your favorite birds. Modern visions of the North America Migra- life and our modern world is hard on tory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, required birds. Their populations are plummet- industry to minimize or prevent inci- ing. When was the last time you saw dental harm to birds as a result of their a Rufus-Sided (aka Spotted) Towhee operations. Examples of accidental or scratching around under your shrubs? (Jim Parr lives in Keizer.) incidental harm include such things as Rush Limbaugh’s success Rush Limbaugh would not have before Limbaugh. By DEBRA J. SAUNDERS Republicans credited the bom- become a GOP deity. I met Rush Limbaugh before he Pundits have commented on bastic host for their victorious take- became a god. It was the mid-1980s. Our ca- back of the House in 1994, which Limbaugh’s ties to former President reers had begun but had not tak- had been under Democratic con- Donald Trump, who awarded Lim- en off. Rush had a radio talk show trol since 1952. That shift of power baugh with the Medal of Freedom on Sacramento station KFBK-AM was followed by then-President Bill during the State of the Union ad- 1530. I worked in the California Clinton’s decision to sign a GOP dress in 2020. Trump was not the fi rst Repub- welfare reform bill with a work re- legislature. lican president to honor the college Later he moved to New York quirement. Since those heady days, the left dropout. President George H.W. for the syndicated talk show that has complained that Bush invited Limbaugh for dinner put him in car radios, as Limbaugh—one man and an overnight stay in the Lincoln he would say, “across the —had outsize infl uence Bedroom. Rush was tickled that the fruited plain.” in the news media. Lib- patrician president carried his lug- More than once, Rush other erals spoke as if Rush gage. told me that his show Former President George W. owned all of talk radio, would never fall out of voices against which TV news Bush, who released a statement favor, as so many other networks and newspa- Wednesday calling Limbaugh a shows did, and that he ex- pers couldn’t possibly friend, phoned Rush for his 20th pected to broadcast until compete. It just wasn’t fair, they ar- anniversary show in 2008—and the end. Turns out, he was right. George H.W. Bush called in as well. You can’t defy gravity, I respond- gued. Few realized that Rush was able So, it’s a mistake to see Limbaugh as ed at the time, TV and radio shows rise and fall. Rush believed that he to amass that kind of power precise- a GOP disrupter. As Trey Bohn, White House di- ly because he offered something big would be different. And he was. Rush, 70, never lost his audience. media could not provide—balance. rector of radio media under the He put a premium on being en- No, not in his show, which was un- junior Bush, noted: Limbaugh was tertaining and it paid off. Limbaugh apologetically conservative, but by buoyed by “an unwavering belief in ditched the standard talk show for- presenting arguments that were not American Exceptionalism.” Rush didn’t bristle at disagree- mula of hosts talking to a series of treated as credible by the media es- ment. I took him to task more than tap-dancing guests. Limbaugh made tablishment. “Dittoheads” often thank Rush once and found that he enjoyed the the show about himself, his shtick, his pet issues and conservative ideas. for giving them the ingredients to give-and-take. Of course he did, he We remained friends over the make arguments that were missing was at the center of the action. (Creators Syndicate) years. After his syndication, we’d get from their pre-Rush news diet. If together for an adult beverage or a big media had been more balanced, meal if we happened to be in the same town. Later we’d communi- cate over the phone or by email. We disagreed on a number of is- Submit a letter to the editor (300 words), sues and his language choices, but this is not the time to rake up dead or a guest column (600 words) by noon Tuesday . leaves. Email to: publisher@keizertimes.com Now it’s hard to imagine politics 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. maze Share your opinion Keizertimes Wheatland Publishing Corp. 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, Oregon 97303 Phone: 503.390.1051 www.keizertimes.com SUBSCRIPTIONS POSTMASTER One year: $35 in Marion County, $43 outside Marion County, $55 outside Oregon Send address changes to: Keizertimes Circulation 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, OR 97303 PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Periodical postage paid at Salem, Oregon Publication No: USPS 679-430 PUBLISHER/ EDITOR Lyndon Zaitz publisher@keizertimes.com facebook.com/keizertimes twitter.com/keizertimes Maze by Jonathan Graf of Keizer
