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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 9, 2018)
6A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2018 editor@dailyastorian.com KARI BORGEN Publisher JIM VAN NOSTRAND Editor Founded in 1873 JEREMY FELDMAN Circulation Manager DEBRA BLOOM Business Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN Production Manager CARL EARL Systems Manager OUR VIEW Offshore drilling here? Absolutely not I n view of all the other environmental rollbacks of the past year, it is unsurprising and yet still somehow shocking that the Trump administration would move toward opening the West Coast to petroleum exploration. Perhaps best viewed as a middle-fin- ger salute by the president to the three mainland Pacific states that voted for his opponent, the immediate conse- quences of the oil-leasing plan are likely to be few — at least off Washington and Oregon. Not only will the administra- tion’s action be tied up in political wran- gling and lawsuits for years, there is substantial room to doubt whether there actually is an economic quantity of fos- sil fuel to be found here. Past onshore drilling on the Pacific Northwest coast hasn’t proven successful and there is reason to suspect that eons of subduc- tion zone earthquakes have rendered our geology unconducive to the formation of hydrocarbon deposits. No matter what the prospects for future exploration and exploitation of oil may be in our waters, the governors of Washington, Oregon and California are absolutely right to mount a unified front of opposition to the very notion of drill- ing. They deserve our ongoing encour- agement and support in blocking this blockheaded proposal. Time after time we have seen hor- rific environmental costs from oil devel- opment and transportation. From the Associated Press The oil drilling rig Polar Pioneer is towed toward a dock in Elliott Bay in Seattle in 2015. Work- ing to dismantle his predecessor’s environmental legacy, President Donald Trump is hoping to open the entire West Coast and other offshore waters to oil exploration and exploitation. Exxon Valdez disaster to the BP blow- out in the Gulf of Mexico, the giant cor- porations that run this industry and the undermanned agencies that police it have shown themselves incapable of guaran- teeing there will not be horrific, negli- gent incidents for which they are loath to take responsibility. Any such “accident” here would have the distinct potential of killing several crucial industries — tour- ism, oystering, crabbing and fishing. As the governors asserted last week in a joint statement, the administration has “chosen to forget the utter devasta- tion of past offshore oil spills to wildlife and to the fishing, recreation and tour- ism industries in our states. They’ve cho- sen to ignore the science that tells us our climate is changing and we must reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. But we won’t forget history or ignore science. “For more than 30 years, our shared coastline has been protected from fur- ther federal drilling and we’ll do what- ever it takes to stop this reckless, short- sighted action.” Even the somewhat more modest exploratory activities associated with identifying oil deposits in the first place have the potential of harming rockfish habitat, interfering with whale migra- tions and feeding, and increasing ves- sel traffic and noise in areas essential to endangered species from Chinook salmon to orcas. Those who oppose offshore oil and gas exploration in Pacific Northwest and Alaskan waters have been painted as obstructionist worrywarts, more con- cerned with sea otters and kelp than with energy independence. In fact, few Americans of any political persuasion dispute that, for now, we continue to need fossil fuels to power our vehicles and help warm our homes. But there currently is no shortage of oil that could possibly justify placing the West Coast at risk. Gasoline prices remain stable. Adjusted for inflation, they are about what they were 90 years ago and are less than they were 10 years ago. Opening the West Coast to drilling is about greed and politics, not about need for energy. It should be stopped dead in its tracks. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Why wouldn’t you vote ‘yes’ on Measure 101? hy wouldn’t you vote “yes” on Mea- sure 101? I can think of many valid and important reasons to do so, but, quite frankly, I have yet to find one good reason to vote “no.” CAROLYN EADY Astoria W Vote ‘no’ on Measure 101 ote ‘no’ on Measure 101. Health care is a benefit we all need however, exempting corporations, unions, and insurance compa- nies themselves from having to shoulder any of the burden of a basic need like health care is just appalling. This leaves only individuals and fami- lies who private pay for their insurance, who have struggled most with rising premiums and eye-popping deductibles, with the responsibil- ity of funding the health care services of our most vulnerable populations. Highly unfair, egregious and inequitable. Gov. Kate Brown made sure that health care special interests and big corporations don’t pay this tax. She also carved out unions and the insurance companies. Private pay individuals have already realized double digit rate increases in their insurance costs. Oregon’s middle and lower class can no longer shoulder the additional cost so corpo- rations, unions and insurance companies can get a free pass. Doctors, nurses, hospitals and other health care special interests will just pass their burden onto ratepayers, so no sur- prise they’re endorsing this measure. The governor and legislature can fix this without a bailout. A billion health care dol- lars already blown through by the state — the Cover Oregon website, Medicaid overpay- ments, etc. — and rather than correct their wasteful spending pattern, they give them- selves a pass and provide a massive bailout to special interest. Unacceptable. Legislators need to go back to the table and create appropriate funding to ensure the needs of students, poor and elderly are met. If we truly believe in equity, then everyone should have skin in the game. STEPHEN MALKOWSKI Seaside V Health care is a basic human right am a physician, and I believe everyone should have access to health care as a basic human right. Unfortunately, unlike the rest of the developed world, the U.S. has relied on insurance as the way to finance health care, and traditionally, that insurance is provided by employers. Children, seniors, people with disabilities, and many adults in low wage jobs don’t get health insurance through an employer, so we I have Medicaid to provide them with the cov- erage they need. Medicaid is under threat, and Measure 101 is needed to continue to provide Medicaid to those who need it, and to stabilize the insurance market for individuals who pur- chase their own insurance. Physicians like me, our fellow health care providers, and the hospitals we work in, all support Measure 101, even though it taxes us directly. Opponents object to Measure 101 because it will raise taxes, but the costs are even more for all of us if we don’t pass it. Taxes are what we pay to live in a just society, and providing health care for all our citizens is part of how we “promote the gen- eral welfare, and secure the blessings of lib- erty to ourselves and our posterity” (U.S. Constitution Preamble). For some vulnerable citizens, the cost of not passing Measure 101 will be paid for with their health, and possibly even their lives. Please join me in voting for Measure 101. LAURA GORDON, M.D. Seaside No health care sales tax regon voters beware. The Measure 101 sales tax on health care will not lower health insurance, nor will it improve health care for Oregon families. However, it is expected that pro-tax bureaucrats in Salem will keep raising this tax, just as most sales taxes around the nation are continually raised. These are some of those who will be hard- est hit: 1. Medicaid providers themselves will be taxed under this new plan, potentially reduc- ing payments to doctors and nurses who already work at cost to help Oregon’s neediest citizens. 2. Thousands of college students attending Oregon’s universities and community colleges will be forced to pay higher tuition because of the schools’ having to pay the health care sales tax. 3. Oregon school districts in the large group market will be hit, causing an expected $25 million to be sucked out of our local schools. 4. The Public Employee Benefit Board (PEBB) plan will be taxed, pulling $12 mil- lion from our General Fund. 5. Patients in hospitals whose net reve- nue will have a hard sales tax imposed, and will pass in on to the patients’ health insur- ance costs. 6. Small businesses (under 50 employees) who cover their employees’ health care will pay the sales tax. Large corporations, unions, and the insur- ance companies themselves are exempt from the law. Oregon is already the sixth biggest tax and spend state in the nation, at $9,070 per person. Please vote “no” on Measure 101 by Jan. 23. It is bad policy for all Oregon families. CHRIS BRIDGENS Warrenton O Measure 101 is good for all e have an opportunity to do something good for our community by voting “yes” on Measure 101. It will continue health care funding for the working families, chil- dren, seniors and disabled who count on Med- icaid. That is coverage for about 25 percent of our state — perhaps including you, your rela- tives or your friends. The illness of an adult or child can cost someone their job because of time away from work. If that is one of your coworkers or employees, it can possibly jeopardize your own business or job security. The health care providers in Oregon have endorsed Measure 101 because they know a doctor visit to pre- vent sickness is more effective for a stable society than an emergency room visit after an illness has taken hold. But there is a minority opposed to Measure 101 because they don’t like how our state has addressed Medicaid funding. Is the Oregon budget an example of perfection? Of course not, but to punish 25 percent of our citizens just to prove a point is not good government either. It is cruel. One in four Oregonians need the health care coverage that will come from passing Measure 101. And you need them to have it, too. I encourage you to vote “yes” on Mea- sure 101. BRYAN KIDDER Astoria W Clarification on voters’ pamphlet n response to a letter to the editor from Diane Amos, “Special election concerns,” printed in the Cannon Beach Gazette, please I see the below quote taken from a message posted by Secretary of State Dennis Richard- son to our website on Dec. 27. It addresses Ms. Amos’ concern. “As you read your Oregon Voters’ Pam- phlet, you will see arguments submitted in favor and in opposition of the measure to be voted on. Sometimes authors purposely sub- mit ‘Yes’ arguments in the ‘No’ column and ‘No’ arguments in the ‘Yes’ column. Oregon law requires the Elections Division to place arguments as submitted. If you notice argu- ments that seem to be in the wrong column, please be aware that this was not an error; it was the desire of the author who submitted the argument.” Secretary Richardson’s entire message and attached a letter from the office of Oregon’s Attorney General with statutes, and a legal opinion regarding this matter, can be found at bit.ly/2COTpl4 I hope you will print this information for the benefit of Ms. Amos and your other readers. DEBRA ROYAL Chief of Staff, Oregon Secretary of State Salem Measure 101 protects health care for families ’m voting “yes” on Measure 101. I’m voting yes to ensure that the most vulnerable Ore- gonians — children and seniors — continue to get the health care they need. I’m voting yes to ensure that the health care markets remain sta- ble and viable to those who need to buy their own insurance. Measure 101 protects access to health care for Oregon families. Taking health care away from children and seniors is cruel. BEATRICE “BEBE” MICHEL Gearhart I
