THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2015
FRIDAY EXCHANGE
Thanks for help
no, for your tireless and in-
spiring teaching.
NOEL AND PAT
THOMAS
Astoria
A
s we approach the hol-
idays, South County
Community Food Bank, a
food pantry, wants to thank
the many people who have
supported our efforts during
the last year.
We began the year in
rented space as we waited
for the completion of our
new building. The Daily As-
torian and Seaside Signal
have provided coverage of
the conversion of two class-
room modular structures
into a real building, and our
eventual grand opening in
October.
The biggest part of the
story should be that most of
the money to build and outfit
the building came from local
funds. Very little of the fund-
ing came from outside this
area, and most of that came
from companies that do
business in Clatsop County.
As we look into the fu-
ture, there is still need. The
generosity of the South
County community is re-
markable. During this time
of the year and into the new
year, our pantry will be serv-
ing more than a thousand
local people each month: un-
deremployed locals waiting
for spring, hungry children,
homeless people and locals
in unexpected difficulty.
The holidays are a dif-
ficult time. South County
citizens and generous part-
time residents have always
supported us. We thank you
for the past support and ask,
once more, for your help
this year. You can deliver
donations of food or cash to
our new building at 2041 N.
Roosevelt Drive, Seaside, or
mail contributions payable
to South County Commu-
nity Food Bank, P.O. Box
602, Seaside, OR 97138. We
thank you in advance.
JAMES C.
CASTERLINE
Past president, current
board member, South County
Community Food Bank
Gearhart
Veto LNG
O
pen letter to Gov. Kate
Brown: I am writing you
concerning the Warrenton
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issue. As a local resident I
would hate to see an LNG
plant located here. Not only
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the natural beauty of the area,
I do not believe there will be
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community.
As someone with a back-
ground in heavy construc-
tion, I know that only a small
portion of the jobs they are
promising will go to local
employees. While the basic
ground clearing, etc., is with-
in the local skills base, the
more specialized jobs will
come from out of area. The
fact that employees have had
to come from elsewhere just
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repair projects speaks to this
very point.
Thank the Lord
T
The same is true for the
jobs once the plant is in opera-
tion. No one here knows those
skills. Janitorial yes, security
guard yes. Major plant oper-
ations no. It sounds good on
paper, but it doesn’t pass the
smell test.
The area they want to build
on is a very marshy area that
is now used as part of our
scenic walking path area. It
is a lovely piece of land, and
giving it up for something
that will only up the pollution
level, drive tourists away and
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seems a poor choice of use for
that land.
Please use your veto pow-
er’s and tell Oregon LNG
“not in our backyard.” If the
Canadian company wishes
to ship Canadian LNG, then
they should do it through their
own ports. We’ve already vot-
ed once and gave a resound-
ing no to building a pipeline
across our county, but they
didn’t listen. It’s up to you to
be our voice.
Please don’t make my
family move away from this
beautiful place we decided to
call home.
IRA LEE GOSSETT
Hammond
Democratic farce
A
lthough the presiden-
tial election is about a
year away, the political cam-
paigns are in a full boil, at
least on the Republican side.
The Democratic “campaign”
is obviously a done-deal.
It’s entertaining to lis-
ten to Democrats ridiculing
the long list of Republican
hopefuls, however the Dem-
ocrats had better check their
own so-called candidates.
That two-person “race,” of
course, is a farce. One of
the contestants is an ancient,
self-proclaimed
socialist
who crawled out of an at-
tic apparently as a stalking
horse for the presumptive
Democrat nominee, none
other than — once again —
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band was the Lyin’ King),
Hillary Clinton.
Yes, the same woman
who has held some of the
most responsible positions
in government, and holds the
distinction of being a dismal
failure at every job she’s
ever held. Her only success
has been the agility — she
can lie very effectively — to
avoid being incarcerated.
Some say she’s managed
to stay outside prison walls
by directing an effective
program of bribery, black-
mailing and perfecting the
art of prevarication, an art at
which she’s had a lifetime of
practice. Of course, a crim-
inally partisan Justice De-
partment has helped.
I was disappointed that
9LFH3UHVLGHQW-RH)RRWLQ
the-Mouth) Biden dropped
out, because he would have
provided a load of comic re-
lief. I truly believe that the
Democrats — those who are
realistic — see this farce un-
folding, and are getting se-
riously nervous. A warning
to Democrats: Start pushing
the panic button, if you hav-
en’t already done so.
E. ROBERT NASSIKAS
Astoria
Not exceptional
I
hope I may briefly re-
spond to the criticism of
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rambling was the subject) by
Rex Amos of Cannon Beach
³.HHSEHDFKELOOVDIH´The
Daily Astorian, Oct. 30). I
have no quarrel with the Or-
egon Beach Bill, which I do
not for a moment doubt is a
fine bill, but to the aura of
exceptionalism with which
writer Matt Love bathes it ad
nauseum.
The relevance of my re-
lating my years and miles
of beach ramblings in a
half-dozen different states
was to merely point out that
every other state I know of
has beaches which are, to
use Mr. Love’s own phrase,
“for the exclusive use of the
public.”
As for the states I men-
tioned, they have many hun-
dreds of miles more public
beaches than has Oregon.
That there may be disputes
here and there about private
versus public access does
not diminish by one jot the
miles of public beach which
are actually available for
public enjoyment.
Mr. Amos concludes with
a whopper of a non sequitur
— a quotation attributed to
Abraham Lincoln, but dubi-
ously, considering no origi-
nal documentation has ever
been found. The quotation
concerned the priority to
be given human rights over
property rights.
It is pretty much agreed
that the term “human rights”
was not in widespread use
until well into the 20th cen-
tury, but even had President
Lincoln used it, he would
surely have meant the rights
to life and liberty, which
were denied the southern
slaves, whom the plantation
owners claimed were “pri-
vate property.”
To trivialize the plight of
southern slaves by compari-
son with the right to walk on
a beach cannot have been in-
tentional, but merely a lack
of judgment, and I will let it
go at that.
LOUIS SARGENT
Gearhart
Kudos to artists
O
n Saturday night, Nov.
14, at the Barbey Mar-
itime Center, we had the
great pleasure of attending
the Astoria Junior and Se-
nior High Schools’ fall art
exhibit. Our thanks to AHS
art teacher Mickey Cereghi-
no for the tremendous job of
organizing the extensive and
highly attended exhibit.
Intrepid through the
downpour, detoured from
the Ducks game and Art
Walk, the crowds turned out
to support our student art-
ists. It is indeed encouraging
to see such fine work com-
ing out of our schools, and
so much community support
for the arts.
Thank you student artists,
and thank you, Mr. Cereghi-
he American day of
thanksgiving is even
older than the nation itself.
Various dates have been sug-
gested for being the first,
but credit is usually given
to the feast of thanksgiving
celebrated by the Mayflower
Pilgrims and Wampanoag
Indians in 1621 at the Plym-
outh colony in what is now
Massachusetts.
In a sense it became a
unique American holiday
when George Washington
and Congress proclaimed a
national day of thanksgiv-
ing In 1789. Their docu-
ment of proclamation states:
“Whereas it is the duty of
all Nations to acknowledge
the providence of Almighty
God, to obey his will, to be
grateful for his benefits, and
humbly implore his protec-
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ommend to the People of the
United States a day of public
thanksgiving and prayer to
be observed by acknowledg-
ing with grateful hearts the
many signal favors of Al-
mighty God.”
President
Washington
was right. God has blessed
this nation and we should
pause and give him thanks
for his generosity and good-
ness. Thanks for this won-
derful land with its freedoms
and opportunities. Thanks
for the food and other ne-
cessities we so often take for
granted.
Thanks for our military
and military veterans who
serve and sacrifice so that
we may be free. For the po-
lice and fire personnel, and
their efforts to protect us and
our property. For the doctors
and nurses and other profes-
sionals who serve us in our
health needs.
I personally need to
thank him for my wife, fam-
ily, friends, church family,
health, and a nice house that
is warm in the winter and
cool in the summer. Also,
thanks for more material
things than I’ll ever use.
Make your own list — the
blessings are almost endless.
Thank you Lord.
“Let us come before his
presence with thanksgiving”
Psalms 95:2
KEN TIPPS
Astoria Church of Christ
Help the elderly
S
everal months ago I hap-
pened to catch a program
on community radio. The
subjects of aging and help-
ing senior citizens were be-
ing discussed, and possible
solutions given.
I was especially im-
pressed with their goal of
treating the elderly with re-
spect and dignity. There was
one all-purpose program that
5A
could be reached by dialing
only one person, and that
person would be on the other
line and would help. I wrote
that number down.
I have a friend who is
elderly. She has led a most
productive life as a mem-
ber of our community. Af-
ter living a very long time,
it has became obvious that
her age and her resources
are on a collision course.
This is certainly the case for
many seniors living in As-
toria. Things get harder to
fix, they wear out and break
down. The cost of healthy
food has skyrocketed. Util-
ities have risen. Things be-
come more and more diffi-
cult, and finally impossible.
It is the problematic life of
poverty, especially for the
elderly.
I gave my friend the
phone number, and she
called it. No one got back
to her for almost a week. I
called the social services
agency and complained
and they did finally call her
back. She did not go down
to their office, and no one
came to her home. Some pa-
pers came in the mail, and
now her name is on the list
for weatherization. That was
it. This is so not right in so
many ways.
We need to do better, and
we need to monitor our help-
ing agencies to be sure they
do what they promise.
MARY TANGUAY
WEBB
Astoria
‘Mr. Garrison’
R
oy Garrison, a great
artist and unequaled
instructor, passed away on
Sunday, Nov. 8. As a hum-
ble and generous leader, he
built the Clatsop Community
College art department into a
first-class option. In 1970 he
hired the now famed artist,
Stan Wanlass. Roy contin-
ued as head of the depart-
ment while also teaching
sculpture, pottery and art
history. Stan taught drawing
and painting. Students came
from other countries as well
as the U.S. to participate in
these top-notch classes. I
was truly fortunate to be one
of those students. Roy’s re-
tirement in 2006 was the end
of a unique and awe-inspir-
ing era. Many will miss “Mr.
Garrison.”
SHIRLEY DAHLSTEN
Astoria
Pay a dividend
T
his is not a letter to argue
pro or con for liquefied
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letter to say if the proposed
LNG deal is approved, every
citizen of every county that
is affected in the state of Or-
egon should receive a yearly
or quarterly dividend. Small
price for them to pay for any
dangers and use of Oregon
land.
STEVE CARUTHERS
Astoria
A holiday treat from the U.S. Congress
Ease pilot health exams!
“The U.S. Senate has an ex-
FUXFLDWLQJO\ GLI¿FXOW WLPH GR-
n honor of the coming ing anything, and here they’re
vacation travel season, dismantling something that’s
been working pretty well,” com-
the Senate is working on a plained Sen. Richard Blumenthal
bill that would loosen the of Connecticut. He is opposed to
requirement that pilots take the bill in question, and that puts
him in pretty select company.
medical examinations.
More than two-thirds of his col-
Yes! I know that’s been on leagues are co-sponsors.
your mind a lot, people.
We are talking here about
Next week, as you gather general aviation pilots, the men
around the Thanksgiving table, DQG ZRPHQ ZKR À\ SULYDWH
be sure to express your grati- planes. They’re currently re-
tude to Congress. If you hear a quired to get a medical exam
small plane buzzing overhead, by an FAA-approved physician
drink a toast to the future, when HYHU\¿YH\HDUVDQGWKHQHYHU\
the folks in America’s cockpits two years once they pass 40. The
may no longer be burdened with pilots hatehatehate this rule. They
repressive, old-fashioned health FODLPWKHGRFWRUVDUHKDUGWR¿QG
monitoring.
and charge too much money. But
Pop quiz: Which of the fol- the great underlying fear is that
lowing aviation issues would some stranger with a stethoscope
you like to see your elected rep- ZLOOVWULSWKHPRIWKHDELOLW\WRÀ\
resentatives resolve by the end
It’s easy to understand why
of 2015?
pilots want to stay aloft. I’ve
• Ban those laser lights that enjoyed every noncampaign-re-
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lots’ eyes.
en, including in the two-seater
• Do something about all the owned by an environmentalist
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airports.
full of pig feces that had been
• End the passenger peril of treated with chemicals that
being squashed by a reclining turned it the color of Pepto-Bis-
seat.
mol.
• Ease pilot health exams!
However, I think I speak for
By GAIL COLLINS
New York Times News Service
I
Gail
Collins
The great
underlying fear
is that some
stranger with a
stethoscope will
strip them of the
ability to fly.
most of America when I say that
we ought to continue being a lit-
tle picky about the people we let
up there.
The bill’s lead sponsor, Sen.
James Inhofe of Oklahoma, is a
very enthusiastic 81-year-old pi-
lot who starred in an exciting air-
ERUQHDGYHQWXUHDERXW¿YH\HDUV
ago, when he landed his Cessna
at an airport in Texas despite A)
The large “X” on the runway,
indicating it was closed, and B)
The construction crew working
on said runway, which ran for
their lives when he dropped in.
As a result, the senator had
to take part in a remedial train-
ing program. This irritated him
so much that he successfully
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Rights, which makes it easier to
appeal that kind of harsh, unfor-
giving judgment.
The Senate commerce
committee is now considering
Inhofe’s PBR2, which would
eliminate the current medical
exam requirement. Instead, pi-
lots would just write a note in
their log every four years saying
they’d been to a physician who
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has 69 sponsors.
Very little in the current
world of Washington is that
popular. You may be wonder-
ing why. Well, although Inhofe
is best known as the climate
change denier who once brought
a snowball into the Senate to
prove the globe isn’t warm-
ing, he’s also a very powerful
guy, the chairman of the Senate
Committee on Environment and
Public Works, an architect of
this year’s $350 billion highway
construction bill.
Plus, there are hundreds
of thousands of private pilots,
Manuel Balce Ceneta /AP Photo/File
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., questions a witness during a
hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington in September.
many of them rather wealthy.
“Most of them are single-is-
sue people, so it would be very
good to join in on this,” Inhofe
said pointedly in a recent Sen-
ate speech. Some small-minded
observers suspect he also has
personal skin in the game, what
with having had quadruple by-
pass heart surgery and all.
The bill hit a small snag on
Wednesday when Democrats on
the Senate commerce committee
proposed that the doctors who
do the new exams — who could
be anyone from a dermatologist
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government-approved checklist
of problems to look for.
They lost on a party-line
vote. “My trust is in the phy-
sician compared to the FAA,”
said one of the Republicans.
The real problem was appar-
ently resistance from a certain
snowball-making highway bill
author.
“The answer has always
come back from Sen. Inhofe’s
staff: No,” complained Bill
Nelson of Florida, the ranking
Democrat on the committee.
Nelson, you understand, was
not arguing that a dermatologist
should be off-limits as a pilot
medical examiner. He just want-
ed to increase the chances that
the patient would be asked if he
was subject to dizzy spells.
At that moment the commit-
tee suddenly discovered it was
lacking a quorum. But everyone
expects the bill to rise again in
triumph. “It would have been
laughable except it’s so serious,”
Blumenthal said.