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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 9, 2015)
OPINION 4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JUNE 9, 2015 Founded in 1873 STEPHEN A. FORRESTER, Editor & Publisher LAURA SELLERS, Managing Editor BETTY SMITH, Advertising Manager CARL EARL, Systems Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN, Production Manager DEBRA BLOOM, Business Manager HEATHER RAMSDELL, Circulation Manager Fake Willy, meet Bruce the Shark F Noel Thomas — for The Daily Astorian GUEST COLUMN )RUWKHRUFD¿DVFRWKHUH ZDVDOHVVRQIURPµ-DZV¶ ake Willy, the o rca imposter, has been entertaining crowds in Astoria and media from around the world with its mistake-prone attempts to scare off sea lions. Its frequent capsizing has elicited groans and laughter from onlookers. Worse, the sea lion horde appears unmoved. Fake Willy and its handlers should take heart from another simulated sea creature. When Stev en Spielberg set out to create a movie about a 4,000-pound shark that terri- fies the tourist island of Amity, he wanted realism. Plopping a scale-model boat and rubber shark into a studio wet tank wouldn’t do. The 27-year-old director wanted a mechanical shark that could swim in ocean waters, leap into the air, and chow down on swimmers and fishermen. Spielberg hired special ef- fects guru Bob Mattey out of retirement. Mattey, known for creating the giant squid in the 1954 film “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” promised to deliver a monster fish. However, on its first day of filming, the 25-foot me- chanical shark dubbed Bruce quickly sank to the bottom of Nantucket Sound. Within days, salt water eroded the shark’s electric motor, requiring a ret- rofitting with pneumatic hos- es. And every night after film- ing, Bruce had to be drained, scrubbed and repainted. All worked out in the end, as we know. “Jaws” turned out to be one of the biggest movie blockbusters of all time, setting Spielberg up for future fortune and fame. And Bruce became one of the most terrifying vil- lains of the silver screen. We hope Fake Willy eventu- ally lives up to its star billing. Would be a whale of a tale if it did prevail. AP Photo/Patrick Semansky In this June 6, 2013 file photo, a sign stands outside the National Security Agency campus in Fort Meade, Md. A major victory for privacy rights I By RON WYDEN t is not an exaggeration to say Americans won the greatest victory for their privacy rights in nearly 30 years last week. The USA Freedom Act ends mass surveillance of ordinary Americans under the Patriot Act and introduces some long-over- due transparency into our intel- .QDSSDHDUQVVWDWHEDVHEDOOFURZQ ligence programs. And it passed Congress with overwhelming, ZLWKDODUJHPHDVXUHRIFODVV bipartisan majorities in both the riday morning there might bases in the bottom of the sev- House and the Senate. have seemed a sense of enth and it took skilled defense The National Security Agency’s inevitability about the 2A/1A and a double play to secure the program to collect the phone re- B aseball State C hampionship win. cords of millions and millions of game. What makes the achieve- U.S. citizens was hatched in secret, Knappa was due to play in ment of 27 wins in a row par- depending on a secret interpretation Keizer’s Volcanoes Stadium ticularly pleasing was that of the law that Americans were not that afternoon and, as this seniors Tyson Burnard, Justin allowed to see. I have spent nearly year’s only undefeated team in Dragoo, Andrew Miller, Chase DGHFDGH¿JKWLQJPDVVVXUYHLOODQFH OSAA high school baseball, it Rusinovich, Ryan Simpson ¿UVW ZRUNLQJ WR EULQJ WKLV VHFUHW dragnet to light and then working to might have seemed like all the and Nate Truax were to walk bring it to an end. Loggers had to do was show in their graduation ceremonies Only four years ago, I spoke on the up to collect the trophy. the following day. It was their 6HQDWH ÀRRU DQG VRXQGHG WKH DODUP That’s baloney, of course. last game together in Knappa that the Patriot Act was being inter- Coach Jeff Miller, in a pre- uniforms. As in many small preted in a way that would astonish game interview with our sports school districts, the students most Americans. Despite that warn- ing and bipartisan support from allies writer Gary Henley, was cau- played football and basketball, like U.S. Sen. Mark Udall of Colo- tious. Knappa had already de- too, and their teams had fallen rado and Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand feated No. 1-ranked defending this year at the semi- and quar- Paul, the Patriot Act was reauthorized that year by an overwhelming vote. champions Monroe/Alsea 11-5 terfinal levels. The end of this program stands as in a March non-league game, But throughout the baseball a true endorsement of the principle but everyone knew this would season, Knappa players have that Americans do not need to sacri- be different. “We feel like we shown equal measures of cool- ¿FHWKHLUOLEHUW\WRKDYHVHFXULW\(Y JKW belong here,” Miller said, but ness and consistency; coach HU\ERG\ZKRKDVVXSSRUWHGRXU¿ for surveillance reform over the last added, “they are certainly the Miller was not to be denied his two years is responsible for our vic- tory. team to beat.” 278th career win. +RZHYHU WKH ¿JKW WR SURWHFW After three scoreless in- This year’s senior mot- Americans’ constitutional rights nings, the Loggers got their to was apt: “Do not follow against government overreach is far breakthrough in the fourth, where the path leads; rather, from over. then added two runs in the go where there is no path and Plugging loophole fifth. At 3-0, the game wasn’t leave a trail.” I’m committed to plugging the over. With a KHS victory in KHS seniors’ corps has backdoor search loophole that the sight, the Dragons loaded the done just that. government misuses to review Amer- Loggers show their consistency F I’m committed to plugging the backdoor search loophole that the government misuses to review Americans’ communications without a warrant icans’ communications government, and do far too without a warrant. The little to protect that infor- mation against misuse. Director of National In- That’s why 55 securi- telligence has told me the ty experts, academics and NSA, FBI and CIA are us- technology groups wrote ing a law designed to target that the bill would do little foreign threats to scoop up to protect against hackers, and search for Americans’ while opening up a huge emails and other commu- new avenue for the govern- nications without getting ment to obtain Americans’ a warrant. This is nothing U.S. Sen. Ron private information with- less than an end-run around Wyden, D-Ore. out a warrant. the Constitution. Of course the threats to privacy I want to beat back a proposal by FBI Director James Comey to require that are already public are the easiest companies to weaken encryption and WR¿JKW0\WLPHRQWKH,QWHOOLJHQFH build security weaknesses into our Committee has taught me to always electronic devices. He proposed cre- be vigilant for secret interpretations ating magic keys that only the gov- of the law and new surveillance tech- ernment could use to get access to niques that even Congress does not know about. information with a court order. Americans were rightly outraged The problem is there are no magic keys. Weakening encryption inevita- when they learned that U.S. intelli- bly creates security holes that hackers gence agencies relied on secret law to and foreign governments can exploit. monitor millions of law-abiding U.S. That trade-off makes our information citizens. The American people are less safe and our country less secure. now on high alert for new secret inter- Along with U.S. Rep. Jason Chaf- pretations of the law, and intelligence IHW] RI 8WDK , DP ¿JKWLQJ WR PDNH agencies and the Justice Department sure the government doesn’t turn our would do well to keep that lesson in cell phones into tracking devices. Our mind. I always go back to a lesson my bill, the GPS Act, would require the government to get a warrant before father taught me: the only way to tracking Americans’ movements elec- protect our liberty is by asking tough questions. Our victory this week cer- tronically. And starting as soon as this month tainly gives me more ammunition to the Senate is expected to take up a cy- watchdog the government and intel- bersecurity bill that is really surveil- ligence agencies. Winning these bat- tles, though, requires the support of lance legislation by another name. Oregonians and Americans who are Threats to privacy ZLOOLQJWR¿JKWIRUWKRVHOLEHUWLHV I strongly support going after I want to thank everyone who hackers and taking strong steps to stood up and said that liberty and se- protect data held by companies and curity are not mutually exclusive. As the government alike. But the bill my friend Martin Heinrich said this proposed in the Senate would let week, Ben Franklin would be proud. 5RQ :\GHQ D 'HPRFUDW LV 2UH companies provide large amounts of private consumer information to the JRQ¶VVHQLRU8QLWHG6WDWHVVHQDWRU Where to write • U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D): 2338 Rayburn HOB, Washington, D.C., 20515. Phone: 202- 225-0855. Fax 202-225- 'LVWULFWRI¿FH6:0LOOLNDQ:D\6XLWH%HD verton, OR 97005. Phone: 503-326-2901. Fax 503-326-5066. Web: bonamici.house. gov/ • U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D)+DUW6HQDWH2I¿FH%XLOG ing, Washington, D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-3753. Web: www. merkley.senate.gov • U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D): 'LUNVHQ 6HQDWH 2I¿FH Building, Washington, D.C., 20510. Phone: 202-224-5244. Web: www.wyden.senate.gov • State Rep. Brad Witt (D): State Capitol, 900 Court Street 1( + 6DOHP 25 3KRQH :HE ZZZOHJVWDWHRUXVZLWW(PDLOUHSEUDGZLWW#VWDWHRUXV • State Rep. Deborah Boone (D)&RXUW6W1(+ 6DOHP 25 3KRQH (PDLO UHSGHERUDK ERRQH#VWDWHRUXV'LVWULFWRI¿FH32%R[&DQQRQ%HDFK OR 97110. Phone: 503-986-1432. Web: www.leg.state.or.us/ boone/ • State Sen. Betsy Johnson (D): State Capitol, 900 Court St. 1(66DOHP257HOHSKRQH(PDLO VHQEHWV\MRKQVRQ#VWDWHRUXV:HEZZZEHWV\MRKQVRQFRP'LV WULFW2I¿FH32%R[56FDSSRRVH253KRQH )D[$VWRULDRI¿FHSKRQH • Port of Astoria([HFXWLYH'LUHFWRU3LHU6XLWH $VWRULD253KRQH(PDLODGPLQ#SRU tofastoria.com • Clatsop County Board of Commissioners: c/o Coun- W\ 0DQDJHU ([FKDQJH 6W 6XLWH $VWRULD 25 Phone: 503-325-1000.