Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 26, 2016)
THE DAILY ASTORIAN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2016 FRIDAY EXCHANGE 5A A straight face he presidential sweepstakes that have been so prominent over the nation’s TV programs for so long, have produced some rather humorous incidents as the candidates of both parties are subjected to a seemingly inter- minable list of questions from news reporters. So far, the most humorous interview, in my opinion, was held recently when CBS news reporter Scott Pelley asked Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, whose reputation as a serial liar has been well-es- tablished over the years, if she had always told the truth. Her answer: “I’ve always tried to. Always. Always.” Coming from a person with her reputation, that answer was funny enough. But even funnier was the fact that she managed to keep a straight face ... and it takes an enormous amount of practice to possess that ability. E. ROBERT NASSIKAS Astoria T 7KHJRVSHOGH¿QHG his past week’s smorgasbord of current events included a dish with hot ingredients, the pope and leading presidential contender, Donald Trump. The taste of it was the pope’s questioning Mr. Trump’s Christi- anity by commenting, “A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Chris- tian. This is not the Gospel.” The pope’s comments were alluding to Mr. Trump’s campaign pledge to build a wall on the southern border of the U.S. in an effort to stem the inÀu[ of illegal immi- grants into the country. We can all appreciate the pope’s clarity and bold declara- tion of what the Gospel is not. But the story does uncover an unanswered question. Namely, while we are told what the Gos- pel is not, we are not told what the Gospel is. We learn from the pope that building walls is not the Gospel and building bridges has, according to the conte[t, something to do with being Christian. OK, ¿ne. But what’s Gospel? Turns out there is a “te[t- book” de¿nition of the Gospel found in the book which is the authority on the subject, the Holy Bible. In I Corinthians, Chap- ter 15 starting in verse 1, the Bible says: “Moreover, breth- ren, I declare unto you the gos- pel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in mem- ory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. )or I delivered unto you ¿rst of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day accord- ing to the scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above ¿ve hundred brethren at once.” Remarkable. And more than a de¿nition, a declaration as in “I declare unto you”) in sim- ple, plain English, no word more than three syllables. Key point: there are answers, but like with a manual of any sort, you have to read the book to get them. GARY MAURO Warrenton T $YDLODEOHODQG" oncerned Seaside residents: There have been some deci- sions made during the last seven months that will impact all res- idents, some much more than others. In any event, we will all be impacted. BrieÀy, there is a contingent of people, public and private, who insist we the city of Sea- side) need more land in order to have suf¿cient land available to cover the needs of the bur- geoning population of Seaside. The issue being referenced is “The Urban Growth Boundary” also known as the UGB. I have attended the Planning Commis- sion meetings regarding this since last summer. I have yet to hear one Seaside resident stand up for this; the only proponent is Weyerhaeuser. At issue here is how the numbers various statistics) developed as they did, in order to qualify this endeavor. It’s really quite simple: Does Sea- side have enough vacancies and other land to meet the inÀu[ of people to Seaside in the coming years? We have to ask: Whose idea C Support plan to build up MERTS fter a year’s search for living wage employment in 2002, I enrolled in the merchant maritime program at Clat- sop Community College, the Maritime and Environmental Research and Train- ing Station. Within a month I had a U.S. Coast Guard commercial mariner’s license and began to look for jobs. After nine months I found one with lucrative pay and good healthcare — body, den- tal and eye. As a mariner for si[ plus years with Crowley Maritime Services, I cooked on the old tug and barge system vessels, set and broke bridles, hauled lines, and operated cranes. As crews evolved to the modern Articulated Tug and Barge, I moved there, too. A was this, who is ¿nancing this, who stands to gain? You know, interesting questions like that. Weyerhaeuser is the sole stake holder in this venture. The city of Seaside is using the ser- vices of a consultant, who is paid for by Weyerhaeuser. Wey- erhaeuser owns appro[imately 140 acres of the proposed 200 acres needed “to cover the needs of the inÀu[ of people to Sea- side.” The city of Seaside is under no directive to do this. The city is being led by the con- sultant who is — that’s right, paid by Weyerhaeuser. The current proposal being considered has an unmet hous- ing need of 833 units, whereas reasonable statistics show as few as 41 housing units needed. While the Planning Commis- sion and the consultant are seek- ing another 200 acres to be included in the UGB, there is no mention of the 100 acres Sea- side has in inventory already. The real kicker to all this is the buried agenda in all this UGB garbage. They have the intension of e[tending South Wahanna through the wetlands to the south in order to hook up with Beerman Creek. Whether you have a stake in this or not, this undertaking solves nothing for anyone. I’m at a loss as to whom this would bene¿t. Why would it even be considered? There are details ad in¿ni- tum, I encourage you to come to the ne[t Planning Commission meeting, held at Seaside City Hall at 7 p.m. March 1. Your attendance is crucial. BUZ OTTEM Seaside Tobacco 21 want to thank The Daily Asto- rian editors for the editorial in support of raising the state’s age of tobacco sales to 21 “Raise smoking age from 18 to 21,” Feb. 18). Recently, the American Can- cer Society Cancer Action Net- work, and more than 20 other organizations, held a news con- ference in Salem to announce our “tobacco 21” campaign, and I was lucky to be one of about 40 volunteers at the capital urg- ing our state legislators to sup- port these efforts. We hope this will culminate in legislation ne[t session to raise the age of tobacco sales in Oregon to 21. Every day, seven Oregon kids start smoking and 95 per- cent of lifelong smokers begin smoking before the age of 21. Just think of the number of lives that can be saved if this legisla- tion passes. If we don’t take steps to curb smoking rates, 68,000 Oregon kids alive today will die prematurely from tobacco. Thank you again for taking such a strong position on raising the age of sale to 21. It’s won- derful to have your support. LOIS FITZPATRICK Seaside I :DJHFRQVHTXHQFHV he article claiming that Ore- gon is “trailblazing” with the highest minimum wage in the nation overlooks the conse- quences of embarking on such a path “Oregon lawmakers approve landmark minimum wage increase,” The Daily Asto- rian, Feb. 19). Oregon has long had one of the highest state minimum wages in the country, and its least-skilled job seekers have suffered as a result. In 2015, for instance, the state’s youth unem- ployment rate of 22.2 percent was over 5 percentage points higher than the national number; during the worst of the reces- sion, the state’s teens faced an unemployment rate above 30 percent. T The Paci¿c Ocean was my play- ground. For $800 tuition and a month of classes, I obtained a union maritime job starting me off at $50,000 a year. A schedule of 28 days on and 28 off gave me almost si[ months vacation per year. When I left, I was making con- siderably more money and had a pen- sion with the Inland Boatman’s Union. During my time at sea, we were required to take safety training, refresh our maritime skills, and pass hazardous materials courses to keep our certifications. These trainings were held for groups of us in Seattle, sometimes California. Often these trainings were in muddy waterside mobile homes withport-a-potties and The empirical data support the harm suggested by these top-line ¿gures. For instance, in a study in Economic Inquiry, economists from the Univer- sity of Oregon in Eugene found that Oregon’s higher minimum wage generated “consistently negative” effects on employ- ment in the restaurant industry. Raising the state’s mandated wage Àoor further, whether in a three-tiered approach or all at once, will only compound this damage. The takeaway from Oregon’s past e[periments with the minimum wage is clear: Trailblazing on minimum wage levels is a dangerous venture. MICHAEL SALTSMAN Washington, D.C. Protect medical pot pen letter to Oregon sena- tors: Please protect medical marijuana. Marijuana, or cannabis, is a medicine. Edibles, tinctures, creams and oils are potent med- icines and should be recom- mended by a physician who understands their properties and side effects. Allowing a person to get anything they want at a dispensary is the same as allow- ing them to go to a pharmacy and get medicine without seeing a doctor or a pharmacist. Our bodies, just like the can- nabis plant, make cannabinoids major ingredients) and we have receptors for them everywhere including the brain, blood sys- tem, liver, lungs, ovaries, kid- neys, etc. The cannabinoids in marijuana are very therapeutic. Getting high is a side effect of cannabis. Historically it was used by the plant to protect itself from animals that liked to eat its leaves but would go to sleep when into[icated. Most of my patients do not like to get high and have learned to adjust the dose so that the psychoactive effects are mini- mal. They use marijuana because of its remarkable medicinal prop- erties — research-based for pain, nausea, appetite issues, seizures, an[iety, depression, Alzhei- mer’s diagnosis, neuropathies, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD) and cancer. Like all medicines, mar- ijuana can be dangerous for patients who have not been edu- cated in its appropriate use and have not seen a physician. What are the risks, particu- larly high for seniors and mid-lif- ers? They include: Suffering a heart attack from tachycardia or rapid heart rate; a stroke from increased blood pressure; los- ing consciousness from lowered blood pressure; fractures sec- ondary to falls from poor motor control; bleeding internally, as marijuana may interfere with blood thinners; psychotic epi- sodes, either predisposed or from using a large amount of oil; and children becoming into[- icated with edibles, as the con- centration is unreliable. You have a moral and legal obligation to protect the citizens of Oregon. Please use your God-given privilege of serving others to promote what is right and hon- orable. Keep medical marijuana as a separate entity, and do not legalize the purchase of edibles, tinctures, creams, and oils with- out a doctor’s recommendation. Do not cater to those who think that money is more important than human lives. Also, please save our small farmers. JUDY EMANUEL, D.O. board certi¿ed physician Ashland O ‘Beggars belief’ egarding “Respite center commits to secure rooms” The Daily Astorian, Feb. 18): R other substandard facilities. Not only will an improved maritime education center train students for liv- ing wage work but also could attract crews from many maritime areas for the annual trainings and recerti¿cation of licenses. Sailors wanting to “move up the hawsepipe” would be able to complete coursework to move into higher levels of seamanship. Adding e[panded curriculums in ship-building skills, diesel mechanics and maritime engineering would open doors to even more living wage jobs. Please support the college plan to build up the offerings at MERTS. P. MATTSON MCDONALD Astoria Secure rooms? That means, if I read it correctly, that “patients” — and who called these folks patients anyway — are going to be locked in. If they are locked in, then who locks them in? A judge? How can one be deprived of lib- erty without due process? As I understand it, the “residents” of the “respite center” are most likely to be homeless people who are picked up for allegedly committing some crime or pub- lic nuisance, but not run-of-the- mlll homeless — whether men- tally ill or not. Are they going to be referred from the jail? Or from the policeman on the beat? Or the Emergency Department? Or can anyone just call up and say, “My wife is nuts. Come and lock her up.” If “patients” are not “free to walk away” — and presum- ably, most of those “patients” will have been free probably homeless) before they were placed in the “respite center” — are they then being held against their will, and effectively pris- oners? If they aren’t prisoners, why couldn’t they “just walk away”? Who is going to keep the keys? Who is going to supervise these “secure rooms’? Is there to be a sheriff deputy or Warrenton policeman on duty 24/7? What if they do go violent or ber- serk? Will they be taken to jail? Is someone going to medicate the psychotic residents? Who? Clatsop Behavioral Health can’t manage what they are doing right now. It beggars belief that they could supervise 16 “inpa- tients” — four of whom might be “violent”. I really don’t understand what is going on, and I hope there will be some more in-depth reporting. Mental ill- ness is a comple[ problem that governments worldwide just hope will go away, but it won’t. And it costs a lot of money to even begin to deal effectively with that problem. I’m not con- vinced that Clatsop County has really thought this through. I applaud the various agen- cies involved for their concern and effort, but there seem to be too many loose ends and too lit- tle transparency about goals, required resources and detailed operating systems at the pres- ent time. Easy to build buildings. Much more dif¿cult and e[pen- sive) to create a functional orga- nization. This has the makings of an embarrassing ¿asco. TOM DUNCAN Astoria Key climate bills ho knows what spark can turn the tide of climate change and its costs to us and, more painfully, to our grand- children? This spark may come from our North Coast legisla- tors in Salem in these ne[t two weeks. Two well-considered bills W begin to tackle the shift from fossil fuels to an alternative energy economy sit poised for a vote. Rep. Deborah Boone, D-Cannon Beach, has led the advancement of the coal tran- sition bill HB4036 through the House, now cleared for a Sen- ate vote. The Healthy Climate Bill, SB1574, which sets a cap and price on carbon, was initi- ated in the Senate. It sits in the Joint Ways and Means Com- mittee, co-chaired by our Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose. The future may be riding on our districts to move the inertia of democracy — all by March 6. It tears me apart watching this lumbering process while facing what science, and now our own e[perience, say is an increasingly challenged future for our grandchildren. The Healthy Climate Bill, generates huge bene¿ts seem- ingly tailored for the North Coast. It targets early effects of climate change, storms, drought; helps build a 21st century alter- native energy economy, jobs, job training; helps rethink our forests looking to carbon off- sets as a powerful new reve- nue source for the region; rein- forces the resiliency efforts led by Rep. Boone, looking to the risks of earthquake, tsunami and climate change; and, in this new low carbon economy, reduces the pressures for risky transpor- tation and infrastructure for fos- sil fuels. This bill hits close to home. Then, beyond us, it joins a snowball already rolling in our region, nationally and globally that just might begin to reverse the accelerating drought, Àood- ing, erosion, storm damage, ocean acidi¿cation and warm- ing around the world. Maybe our sinkholes here can energize a global change. Gratefully, a huge part of that democratic process is us, our letters, calls, art, marches, cof- fees, meetings with our legisla- tors. I speak for a group here in the Nehalem Bay communities who have joined this powerful statewide movement for these bills. Your added voice may be the one that pushes them over the top. Go to www.reneworegon. org/healthy_climate_bill for more information. MIKE COOK Nehalem G u ess w h a t d a y it is! “I started placing a weekly coupon in The Daily Astorian in April of 2015 to see if advertising in the paper works, and it does!” I have received literally thousands of the coupons back, and get many customers from the Astoria area! - Ro b Cam e ro n O w n e r o f Hu m p s Re stau ran t, Clatskan ie T HE D AILY A STORIAN Ads that work. Contact Lisa Cadonau or your sales representative today about all your advertising needs 503-325-3211 G u ess w h a t d a y it is! It’s Hump’s Day!!! No reservations, please AT HUMP’S RESTAURANT EV ERY W ED N ESD AY 4 -8 PM $9.95 14 OUN CE N EW Y ORK M ust present co upo n to server. N o t va lid w ith o ther o ffers. STEAK & BAK ED POTATO All You Can Eat Chicken & Dumplings- Thursdays 4-8 pm $6.95 Prime Rib Fridays- starts at 5pm $9.95 • BBQ Baby Back Ribs- Saturdays Just 15 m in. fro m the Lew is & Cla rk Bridge o n H w y. 30 Hump’s Restaurant- 50 W. Columbia River Highway Clatskanie, OR. 503.728.2626 N O W O PEN Frida y & Sa turda y 6a m -10 pm Video
