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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 2015)
OPINION 6A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015 GUEST COLUMN 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 Chronic truancy creates social costs Not ‘mission accomplished’ for Oregon wolves L ast year, 535,000 people YLVLWHG&UDWHU/DNH These numbers were a new re- cord for Oregon’s only national park, and thanks to an advertising campaign by Travel Oregon and the exploding popularity of outdoor recreation in the state, this year’s attendance will likely set a new re- cord. While the natural beauty RI &UDWHU /DNH has long de- lighted visitors, lucky park-go- ers have only recently been hildren and their families who turn their backs on educa- treated to an encounter that tion represent a social cost and a future liability. Steve Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife/AP File Photo have At a time when mere citizen- Bigby set an important goal at would Pedery This remote camera photo taken May 3, 2014, shows the wolf OR-7 on been unthink- ship and earning a living de- Astor Elementary School, of DEOHRI¿YH the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest in southwest Oregon. mand literacy, math skills and which she was principal. At or even 50 years ago: the opportuni- critical thinking, chronic truan- parent-teacher conference time, ty to hear the howl of a wolf in the wolves in the state, and the scarci- commit to reviewing that science wilderness. ty of the animals throughout all but and incorporating it, rather than cy is a decision to play the game Bigby committed her staff to ,WZDVQ¶WVRORQJDJRWKDWZROYHV a fraction of their suitable habitat, moving ahead unilaterally despite of life without a full deck. making contact with one par- were a permanent part of Oregon’s Oregon’s Department of Fish and legitimate criticisms from indepen- Edward Stratton’s Monday ent of every child in the school. landscape. However, an aggressive, Wildlife is bowing to pressure from GHQWELRORJLVWV%\SDVVLQJVFLHQWL¿F article on truancy in Clatsop Teachers and administrators state-sponsored hunting, trapping the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association review only serves to delegitimize and poisoning campaign and other special in- ODFW and its wildlife management County schools was sobering. went to front porches and into successfully annihilated to remove them work. Oregon’s terests The saddest detail Stratton re- ¿VKSDFNLQJSODQWV The governor should also call the population, culmi- from the state’s endan- upon her wildlife commission to gered species list. ported was that nearly one- Bigby’s offensive is exactly nating in 1947 when the wolves recorded wolf boun- They are so eager allow a full public process to play fourth of kindergartners in the what smart companies do with last deserve to mollify a vocal mi- RXWEHIRUHYRWLQJRQD¿QDOGHOLVWLQJ ty was paid out. Astoria and Seaside school dis- WKHLUFXVWRPHUV,QWKHEURDGHVW And with that, nority and begin re- plan. better. Wolves are only now regaining ducing protections for tricts were chronically absent sense, they don’t let the custom- wolves were gone from gray wolves that they WKHLU ULJKWIXO SODFH DV D ¿[WXUH RI last school year. Kindergarten is er drift away. And in the same Oregon. ,W LV RQO\ UHFHQWO\ WKDW ZROYHV have bypassed incorporating any 2UHJRQ¶V ZLOGHUQHVV 1RZ LV QRW where reading and development sense, parents who participate have started to re-establish them- LQGHSHQGHQWVFLHQWL¿FIHHGEDFNLQWR the time to declare “mission accom- of social skills begin. in a child’s decision to just drift selves. Oregon’s known wolf pop- their plan, an important part of the plished” and turn our backs on their There is a bright spot in the along are doing them a disser- ulation is around 80 adults, almost delisting process and one required recovery. The success of Oregon’s wolves to this point has relied on county’s kindergartens and it vice that sets the stage for a life- HQWLUHO\ FRQ¿QHG WR WKH 1RUWKHDVW by law. corner of the state. There are, of ,Q GH¿DQFH RI 2UHJRQ¶V (QGDQ- an adherence to science, public pro- is Warrenton, which has the WLPHRI¿QDQFLDOVWUXJJOH course, a few notable exceptions. gered Species Act, the state also re- cess, and the law. We are currently second lowest rate of chron- As communities, we cannot OR-7, Oregon’s world-famous lies on wolf populations elsewhere on a course that undermines all of ic absenteeism among Oregon succumb to the lethargy that wandering wolf, established the to justify their plan. This rational- these vital aspects. ,I ZH DUH WR PDNH JRRG RQ RXU ization is akin to saying there are school districts with more than says it’s OK to blow off educa- ¿UVWSDFNLQWKH&DVFDGH0RXQWDLQV in nearly 70 years. Other wolves, plenty of coho salmon in Alaska, so sins of the past, to acknowledge 500 students. tion — especially the formative like OR-3, who recently joined his it is acceptable to let them go ex- wolves their place on the Oregon landscape and to allow future gen- You might say that Warrenton ¿UVW \HDUV /HVVRQV LQJUDLQHG EURWKHU QHDU &UDWHU /DNH RU WKH tinct here. erations the fortune to hear the howl newly discovered Shasta Pack in Moreover, Oregon’s Fish and has put its chips on making a in primary grades — the foun- California, have also successful- Wildlife Commission is scheduled of a wild wolf from the rim of Cra- JRRG ¿UVW LPSUHVVLRQ ,W GRHV dations of reading, arithmetic, ly departed from Eastern Oregon. to both announce a plan and vote on WHU/DNHZHPXVWFRPPLWRXUVHOYHV that by reaching out to pre- how to study and interact with Some, like OR-22 who was trag- it during a Monday meeting in Sa- to doing this right. Steve Pedery is the conserva- schoolers’ families and by op- others — all are vital for the ically shot by a coyote hunter in lem, circumventing important pub- tion director for Oregon Wild, a Malheur County, have not been so lic feedback and process. erating its own preschool inside next stages of life. successful. And while a great deal Oregon’s wolves deserve better, conservation organization repre- WKHHOHPHQWDU\VFKRRO,WRSHQV Woody Allen observed, of fanfare greets each new, dispers- and there is an opportunity here for senting more than 16,000 members its building early for parents’ “Showing up is 80 percent ing wolf, the fact of the matter is leadership from Gov. Kate Brown. across the state and dedicated to convenience. of life.” This starts in grade that these announcements are too She should direct Fish and Wildlife protecting and restoring Oregon’s infrequent to guarantee more than a to solicit a meaningful and indepen- wildlands, wildlife and waters as About 10 years ago, Judy school. token Oregon wolf population. GHQW VFLHQWL¿F UHYLHZ RI WKH GHOLV- an enduring legacy for future gen- Despite the tiny number of ting report. The agency must then erations. C C Blowing off education is a decision to play without a full deck Stay clear of coal exports, for now onsidering how little per- sonal experience most 3DFL¿F1RUWKZHVWUHVLGHQWVKDYH with coal, it continues to have an oversized role in regional pol- itics. This adds interest to news about an ongoing collapse of the U.S. West’s coal industry, an LPSORVLRQZLWKUDPL¿FDWLRQVIRU Columbia River communities. Corporations have been avid- ly pushing for coal-export facil- ities, largely as a way to bypass U.S. objections to burning coal by selling it instead to China and other Asian industrial na- tions. This is creating lots of po- OLWLFDO VPRNH LQ WKH /RQJYLHZ Kelso and Bellingham areas of Washington, where companies have forged alliances with some local politicians and labor lead- HUV 7KH /RQJYLHZ QHZVSDSHU recently sported a prominent front-page headline, “Courting Coal,” as coal advocates from the Powder River Basin made their most recent junket in support of the gargantuan Millennium Bulk Terminals project. As has been the case for some time, the online news source Sightline is doing a great job of digesting and explaining coal news. This Tuesday, Sightline’s Clark Williams-Derry summa- rized how environmental op- position to coal terminals has, in fact, saved coal corporations from making a destructive blunder. A coal executive told Platts — a division of the McGraw +LOO )LQDQFLDO ¿UP ² RQ 2FW 16 that delays in obtaining per- mits for the Millennium proj- ect have shielded coal produc- ers from the Asian economic downtown: ³7R VRPH GHJUHH , EHOLHYH these agencies and environ- mental groups are doing the coal producers a favor by not approving or supporting the ap- proval of these terminals,” the SURGXFHUVDLG³,IWKHWHUPLQDOV were already built and in oper- ation, few, if any, would be ex- porting coal as current pricing wouldn’t support it.” These coal companies are FOXWFKLQJDW$VLDDVD¿QDQFLDO lifeline. Arch Coal, the nation’s second-largest coal company and one of Millennium’s two developers, is on the verge of EDQNUXSWF\ ,WV FRUSRUDWH GHEW is now rated “Junk.” Another coal exporter has recently been losing $10 to $15 a ton on its $VLDQ VDOHV 6LJKWOLQH ¿JXUHV that not having the coal ter- minals on their balance sheets may have saved coal compa- nies $700 million a year. Coal’s bad business judg- ment could easily turn into D ¿QDQFLDO QLJKWPDUH IRU 1RUWKZHVWSRUWVDQGWD[SD\HUV Thank goodness coal skeptics have kept us out of this quag- mire so far. That’s my opinion! See you in sports tor for the Center for Ethics most people are not work- and Education at the Univer- ing, instead of Tuesdays, sity of Wisconsin-Madison when they are. Tuesday ² DQG , VKRXOG QRWH P\ voting, he likes to note, pinions. was originally built around That’s what we do in Op- VRQ$PDWR¶V ¿DQFpH ² UH- farmers’ schedules; today, cently suggested a different Ed: We render informed opinions that it is nothing less than a form idea: “Why don’t they spend we hope are smart and sometimes their money on infrastructure RIGLVFULPLQDWLRQ$V,TXRW- provocative, backed up by good, instead?” HG&KULV5RFNZKHQ,ZURWH old-fashioned shoe leather. about this in 2013, “They Her point is that a bro- ,¶P KHDGLQJ RII WR D QHZ DVVLJQ- ken-down school sends a GRQ¶W ZDQW \RX WR YRWH ,I Joe PHQWDQGDV,GRSOHDVHLQGXOJHPHDV powerful message to stu- they did, we wouldn’t vote Nocera ,WRVVRIIDIHZODVWRSLQLRQV on a Tuesday.” dents: “Society doesn’t care Few people are more anti-gun than about your education.” McAvoy added, Why, oh, why won’t the Metropol- Michael Bloomberg. And few people “The place where you learn matters.” itan Opera perform “Porgy and Bess”? are wealthier. According to Forbes, A new school sends the opposite $V,RQFHQRWHGLQ6XQGD\5HYLHZLWLV Bloomberg is worth around $40 bil- message: that the country does cares the greatest American opera ever writ- lion, some of which he spends backing and wants public school students to WHQZLWKDKDOIGR]HQRIWKH¿QHVWVRQJV anti-gun candidates and supporting the succeed. A new school is also a huge *HRUJH *HUVKZLQ HYHU FRPSRVHG ,WV advocacy group Everytown for Gun morale booster, for students and teach- mostly black cast would help bring in Safety. His success, though, has been HUVDOLNH³,I\RXZDQWWR¿[$PHULFDQ a more diverse audience, something the limited. education,” McAvoy told me, aiming 0HWFRXOGXVH:KHQHYHU,¶YHLQTXLUHG +RZ DERXW DQRWKHU DSSURDFK" , her remarks at education philanthro- whether Peter Gelb, the Met’s gener- propose that he buy a gun company. pists, “how about setting a goal of put- al manager, is considering “Porgy and Seriously. Smith & Wes- ting every kid into a state- %HVV´,¶PWROGWKDWKHLV²³LQWKHIX- son and Sturm, Ruger of-the-art school by the ture.” The last time the Met performed it was a quarter-century ago. How much & Co. both have market Supreme year 2025?” capitalizations hovering Two of the best ideas longer are we supposed to wait? Court The late South African psychiatrist around $1 billion. Buying ,KHDUGDVDQ2S(GFRO- 0LNH 5XVVHOO ZDV DPRQJ WKH ¿UVW WR one would barely dent umnist: justices Bloomberg’s wallet. 1RUPDQ 2UQVWHLQ RI note that smokers “smoke for nicotine, Owning a gun com- the American Enterprise but they die from the tar.” Meaning that should pany would allow him to ,QVWLWXWH EHOLHYHV WKDW while nicotine addicts smokers, it is the take a different kind of Supreme Court justices burning tobacco, with all of the carcin- serve leadership role on issues should serve one 18-year ogens the smoke produces, that kills one like improving gun safety term, and those terms WKHP ,¶YH ZULWWHQ D ORW DERXW HFLJD- and imposing universal be staggered so rettes — maybe excessively so — be- 18-year should background checks. A that one expires every FDXVH,WKLQNWKLVSRLQWLVVRLPSRUWDQW Bloomberg-owned gun other year. That way, ev- ,Q GHPRQL]LQJ HFLJDUHWWHV WKH SXEOLF term. manufacturer could make ery president would be health community has created a false a smart gun, for instance able to nominate two jus- equivalency between cigarettes and — that is, a gun that only its owner can tices during a four-year term. What dif- HFLJDUHWWHVDVWDQFH,EHOLHYHLVFRVW- use. Gun companies today won’t sell ference would this make? Few things ing lives. E-cigarettes may not be com- WKHPIRUIHDURIUHWDOLDWLRQE\WKH1D- have more poisoned our politics than pletely safe, but there is no doubt they WLRQDO5LÀH$VVRFLDWLRQ$%ORRPEHUJ battles over Supreme Court nominees, could save lives if adult smokers could owned gun company has more poten- precisely because they are lifetime ap- be encouraged to make the switch. And tial to effect change in the country’s gun pointments. With term limits, the stakes ZLWKWKDW,¶YHKDGP\ODVWZRUGRQWKH FXOWXUHWKDQDQ\WKLQJHOVH,FDQWKLQNRI would be lower when a seat is vacated, subject. ,¶YH HQMR\HG ZULWLQJ WKLV FROXPQ ,¶YH ZULWWHQ PDQ\ FROXPQV DERXW and maybe, just maybe, our political DQG,KRSH\RX¶YHHQMR\HGUHDGLQJLW education, especially the effort, spear- culture could start to heal. headed by wealthy philanthropists, to :LOOLDP :DFKWHO D 1HZ <RUN Thank you for your many thoughtful ³¿[´ SXEOLF HGXFDWLRQ E\ IXQGLQJ WKH lawyer and co-founder of the group UHVSRQVHVERWKSURDQGFRQ,¶PORRN- charter school movement. Why Tuesday?, believes that elections ing forward to engaging with you again Paula McAvoy, the program direc- should be held on the weekend, when soon … from the sports page. By JOE NOCERA New York Times News Service O