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THE ASTORIAN • THuRSdAy, MARcH 11, 2021
OPINION
editor@dailyastorian.com
KARI BORGEN
Publisher
DERRICK DePLEDGE
Editor
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circulation Manager
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OUR VIEW
Tsunami delivered essential lessons
M
arch 11 marks the 10th
anniversary of the his-
toric Japanese earth-
quake and tsunami, which are still
sending ripples across the Pacific
in the form of heightened aware-
ness and initiatives to improve
survivability.
Although an exact toll will never
be known, around 22,000 people
died. Other consequences — most
notably the ongoing environmen-
tal disaster at the Fukushima Daii-
chi Nuclear Power Plant — have
racked up grotesque monetary and
human costs. A rough guess of the
2011 disaster’s overall financial
total comes to half a trillion dollars.
The thought of a relentless tide-
like flood of tall rushing seawa-
ter is enough to give anyone the
jitters. We must continue transform-
ing these qualms into substantive
actions to prepare for the subduc-
tion zone earthquakes and resulting
tsunamis that inevitably impact all
Pacific Rim communities.
On the Pacific Northwest coast,
residents in low-lying areas learned
of potential approaching danger
at 2 a.m. on that awful day. Many
evacuated to higher ground. It was
scary and inconvenient, but the high
water dissipated on its way across
the ocean — news people watch-
ing from near the shoreline barely
noticed a thing.
The intervening decade has seen
substantial gains. The Washington
state coast now has a fully imple-
mented siren system to warn of tsu-
namis spawned by far-off quakes.
Seaside succeeded in winning voter
support for a tsunami-safe school
campus, part of Oregon’s ener-
getic efforts to safeguard children
and vital facilities. Aided by federal
funds, the Shoalwater Bay Indian
Tribe built a vertical evacuation
tower. Improved modeling is help-
ing residents understand the risks
and plan paths of escape.
In other ways, much remains to
be done. With only minor modifi-
cations, what we said 10 years ago
Rob Waltemate
A 10-meter fiberglass boat that washed ashore in Long Beach was marked with Japanese characters. The words on the lower left mean
‘launch a ship’ and ‘please.’ The character on the upper right is probably part of the word ‘caution.’
still applies today:
• The horrific 9.0 earthquake that
hit Japan is close to exactly what
can happen in the Pacific North-
west, minus the nuclear reactor
failure. Like theirs, ours will be a
subduction zone quake, the most
powerful seismic events on the
planet. A series of tsunamis will
begin sweeping ashore within half
an hour. There will be death and
destruction.
• We must expand our think-
ing about where and how to care
for thousands of potential evacuees
above the inundation zone. Medi-
cal supplies, food, water, blankets
and other necessities should be pre-
staged in sufficient quantities to last
two weeks.
• Efforts to move schools, hos-
pitals and other public facilities out
of the danger zone must continue.
Unlike in Oregon, they have yet to
even seriously begin in Washington
state. Additional vertical evacuation
towers could save many lives.
• Preparation and practice are
keys to limiting losses. One of the
most meaningful headlines writ-
ten about the 2011 disaster was this:
“Japan’s strict building codes saved
lives.” Having survived many such
events, Japan has been far better
than the U.S. about getting ready.
We will be fools not to copy them.
Washington and Oregon both
should be far more serious about
seismic retrofits in older buildings.
Imagine, for a moment, what a 9.0
quake would do to the old masonry
structures in downtown Astoria,
Raymond and Aberdeen. Though
it probably is impossible to make
them safe, it is at least worth con-
sidering doing things like hardening
some rooms or passageways that
could save lives within the rubble.
• Possibly the most useful les-
sons are personal ones. We all need
to think about exactly what we need
to do to make sure our families sur-
vive. This should start with serious
discussions about how to get out of
houses, where to meet afterward,
and what paths to take to high
ground. We all should have ample
canned food and bottled water on
hand. Keeping basic bundles of
supplies in our car trunks is a good
idea, possibly including a few days
of vital prescriptions, sleeping bags
and water.
• Designate a contact person out-
side the coastal zone with whom
family members can leave mes-
sages. In these days of ample free
electronic storage in the internet
cloud, store copies of vital docu-
ments and irreplaceable family pho-
tos there, where they cannot be
destroyed.
• Finally: If we experience a
strong, sustained earthquake, imme-
diately get to high ground or as far
as possible away from the shoreline
to give the tsunami time to slow —
crushing injuries sometimes pose
a bigger risk than drowning. Stay
there until authorities say it is safe
to return home. Do not wait for
an official warning. You will have
minutes to save yourself and your
family.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Laughable
L
aughable is the best word to describe
the name-calling in Don Haskell’s let-
ter, “Best word” (Feb. 27), complaining
about Erhard Gross’ letter, “Comparisons”
(Feb. 20), comparing former President
Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler.
Actually, Haskell devoted two of his
three paragraphs to excoriating The Asto-
rian for printing the letter, which he con-
sidered “unfounded.” He considered it
“amazing” that The Astorian would “inten-
tionally offend” the many people who
voted for Trump.
So now that Joe Biden is president,
should The Astorian reject letters that are
critical of him?
Haskell cannot bring himself to con-
sider the many specific facts, names and
incidents in Gross’ letter. There are no dis-
cussion points, just adjectives: disgusting,
evil, hateful, evil (again), vitriol (if you’ll
excuse a noun).
This was in pointed contrast to Gross’
letter, which read very mildly, without
flailing adjectives, and reached nuanced
conclusions. In fact, his final sentence
states that Trump never got as bad as
Hitler.
Haskell’s use of emotional adjectives
and his tactic of simply stating his con-
clusions, and expecting people to believe
them, remind me of his fallen hero.
STEWART BELL
Astoria
Strong reactions
L
etters to the editor can provoke strong
reactions from readers. I recently
received such a letter in the mail. Its writer
advised me: “Please never answer the call
to be a juror … and “please get a clue, or
don’t submit garbage for print. It makes
you look stupid.”
The letter, not without several grammat-
ical flaws, was typed, the envelope hand-
written, but without a return address. Since
the writer did not disclose his or her name,
but merely signed with “an informed per-
son,” I concluded that the writer was less
than sure of himself in a county that voted
decisively against his man.
My letter of Feb. 20 triggered a visceral
condemnation from a former member of
the legal profession. This longtime cham-
pion of the disgraced former president
minced no words in castigating me, but, at
least, the “gentleman” had the courtesy of
signing his opinion.
ERHARD GROSS
Astoria
Embracing the chaos
T
he New York Times reported recently
on the death of Vernon Jordan, who
fought vigorously for civil rights for at
least five decades. That obituary prompted
me to look at a number of obituaries
reported in the national press within the
past couple of years.
What I found can be boiled down to the
well-worn phrase “the more things change,
the more they stay the same.” In particular,
regardless of the year, as a nation we are
continuing to fight the same battles relent-
lessly, inexorably, repeatedly, with not a
lot of progress to show for it.
For example, current headlines show
that the Supreme Court is willing, more
than 150 years after the Civil War, to con-
sider adding restrictions to voting rights.
It appears that polarization among Amer-
icans is built into our form of democracy.
Some of this encoded polarization is due
to the tension between states’ rights and
the federal government’s role.
Our two-party system is supposed to
capture the essence of the polarization, but
that is clearly not happening. Intraparty
differences are too numerous and complex
to be navigated and resolved by reasonable
LETTERS WELCOME
Letters should be exclusive to The
Astorian. Letters should be fewer
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writer’s name, address and phone
number. You will be contacted to
confirm authorship. All letters are
subject to editing for space, gram-
mar and factual accuracy. Only two
letters per writer are allowed each
month. Letters written in response
dialogue and compromise.
For many years, I could not understand
why the Israeli parliament was so frac-
tious, and the government so dependent
for its functioning on coalitions of oppos-
ing factions. Now I think I understand
completely.
to other letter writers should address
the issue at hand and should refer to
the headline and date the letter was
published. Discourse should be civil.
Send via email to editor@dailyasto-
rian.com, online at bit.ly/astorianlet-
ters, in person at 949 Exchange St.
in Astoria or mail to Letters to the
Editor, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR.,
97103.
The American two-party system simply
no longer works as planned. Acknowledg-
ing and embracing the chaos of our nom-
inal polarization might be what saves our
democracy.
BARRY PLOTKIN
Astoria