A4 Wednesday, January 22, 2020
HOOD RIVER NEWS | Hood River, Ore.
hoodrivernews.com
OPINION
Our Readers Write
‘Cooperate,
negotiate’
Winnie the Pooh at Disneyland
for the first time. Since that
“historic” nuclear summit, the
master negotiator has failed to
produce one shred of positive
In small towns and rural negotiations with North Korea
areas, depending on your regarding nuclear arms. In his
neighbors is a way of life. We defense, he did make some
pride ourselves in taking care beautiful memories.
Steve Kaplan
of each other when needed,
Hood River
regardless of the things that
separate us, like politics or
religion.
It would be good for our
state senators to take a clue
from this cooperative style, so
they can work together effec-
tively on legislation that affects
It looks like Australia is
all of us. There are important showing us the shape of things
items on Oregon’s 2020 legis- to come, but the collateral
lative agenda, like funding for damage of our collective future
police and wildfire protection, is a small price to pay for over
that are important to all of us 200 years of glorious capital-
and that need to be dealt with ism.
conscientiously, not be thrown
Think of all the wonderful
under the bus by partisan billionaires we’ve made.
politics.
David Warnock
This year, our state senators
Hood River
need to stay in Salem and
negotiate all legislation before
them in good faith, instead
of sowing seeds of mistrust
among us and taking off for the
hills as they did last year.
Mr. Nybroten should know
Pamela Starling that I do not feel safer now.
Mosier And I suspect neither do
the families of passengers of
Ukraine flight 752, mistakenly
shot down by an Iranian mil-
itary on a heightened state of
alert, in the midst of a military
Mr. Nybroten’s Jan 18 letter response to the Trump ordered
“Dance in the Streets” is a killing of their top general.
great example of what happens
Our troops are not safer; 11
when a small part of any argu- suffering blast concussions in
ment is dissected. He wants us the aftermath of Iran’s retali-
to dance and rejoice that our ation. Trump claimed no one
president unilaterally assassi- was injured as he deliberate-
nated a known bad guy for rea- ly ratcheted up tensions via
sons no one but the president Tweet.
openly supports.
Safe at the White House or at
If Trump is truly a world Mar a Lago, does he even think
savior, when can I expect the about our troops in harm’s
assassination of North Kore- way? Does Mr. Nybroten think
an dictator Kim Jung-un? My that there aren’t any other
research says he is ruthless, al- Iranian generals who may feel
ready possesses nuclear weap- the need to avenge the death of
ons and has concentration one of their own?
Because I believe that
camps where he imprisons his
own people. It is pretty hard to Trump’s actions were reckless
listen to North Korean refugee and needlessly added tinder
stories because so few make it to the powder keg that is our
out alive. Certainly, he is as bad involvement in the Middle East
does not make me a hater. The
a guy as Soleimani?
I doubt has Trump has any pejoratives used to defend this
plans to take out Kim Jung-un. president are tired, and only
In their June 2019 photo-op, continue to stoke a danger-
the president is grinning from ous divide in this country, as
ear to ear as if he was meeting Trump himself often does.
‘Glorious
capitalism’
Poisonous
‘Memories’
Lastly, I am not blind. I
see now. When Trump said
he could shoot someone on
the street and not lose voters,
I laughed. After reading the
many defenses of his recent
behavior, I see that he was
right. May we as a people find a
way to end this poisonous state
of affairs, and soon.
Jennifer Ouzounian
Hood River
Extinguish
war flames’
It’s heartening to see grow-
ing support in the Senate for
limiting Trump’s use of war
powers.
Last week the House passed
a resolution to limit his war
powers against Iran. The mea-
sure, although it doesn’t carry
the force of law, said Trump
with children in need this past
holiday season.
Because of the generosity
of donors in Hood River and
across the United States, Op-
eration Christmas Child, a
project of Samaritan’s Purse,
collected more than 8.9 mil-
lion shoebox gifts in 2019.
Combined with those collected
from partnering countries in
2019, the ministry is now send-
ing 10,569,405 shoebox gifts to
children worldwide.
Through shoeboxes —
packed with fun toys, school
supplies and hygiene items —
Hood River volunteers brought
joy to children in need around
the world.
Each gift-filled shoebox is a
tangible expression of God’s
love, and it is often the first
gift these children have ever
received. Thanks to the gen-
I am writing to thank Hood erosity of donors, Operation
River residents for sharing the Christmas Child has collected
true meaning of Christmas and delivered more than 178
should withdraw U.S. forces
from conflict with Iran within
30 days if he does not get con-
gressional approval.
Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen.
Jeff Merkley should push for
the same, or even a stronger
version, in the Senate. We do
not want war with Iran, and
we most definitely do not want
this rogue impulsive president
to create or fan any more war
flames.
Vicki Nunenkamp
Hood River
Operation
Christmas
Child
million gift-filled shoeboxes
to children in more than 160
countries and territories since
1993.
It’s not too late for people
to make a difference. Though
drop-off locations serving
Hood River are closed until
Nov. 16-23, 2020, informa-
tion about year-round volun-
teer opportunities can also be
found at samaritanspurse.org/
occ or by calling 253-572-1155.
Thank you again to everyone
who participated in this global
project — many who do so
year after year. These simple
gifts, packed with love, send a
message to children worldwide
that they are loved and not
forgotten.
Dana Williams
Operation Christmas
Child; Boone, N.C.
GOP women mark 100th anniversary of 19th Amendment ratification
On Jan. 14, 1920, Oregon
became the 25th state to ratify
the 19th Amendment, extend-
ing equal suffrage to women
across the nation.
Tennessee was the final state
to ratify the 19th Amendment
on Aug. 19, 1920.
Though Oregon granted suf-
frage to women in 1912, the
ratification of the 19th Amend-
ment is a monumental event in
the history of the United States,
Oregon Republicans said in a
statement issued Tuesday.
Members of Oregon House
Republican Caucus share their
thoughts on what Oregon’s
ratification of the 19th Amend-
ment means to them:
House Republican Leader
Christine Drazan (R-Canby):
“A few years ago I chose to be a
stay at home mom, now I am a
state representative — normal
stuff for an increasing number
of women and their families.
My life has been a gift to be
able to choose service and pos-
sibility, but this normal life was
not normal for my grandma or
great-grandma.”
“Celebrating the ratification
of the 19th Amendment is an
opportunity to recognize the
herculean effort that others
undertook, which has allowed
me to approach my life with
optimism and confidence.
“Commemorating this day
like so many other milestones
in our nation’s history gives us
the opportunity to be thankful
for those who worked for prog-
ress while acknowledging the
areas in which that progress
was incomplete.
“I am grateful that I have the
right to vote on matters which
impact my family, communi-
ty, state and nation. With this
right to vote has come increas-
ing opportunity through the
years. But this opportunity,
which has had a hundred
years to develop for me and
my daughter, is not celebrating
its first century of progress for
others.
“Women’s suffrage was not
in fact a victory for all women,
as women of color continued
to face obstacles to voting and
were not guaranteed the right
to vote until the Voting Rights
Act of 1965. This fact is stun-
ning in its immediacy. When
I think of women’s suffrage I
picture black and white photos
of generations long since past,
but for women of color this
achievement is vivid still, lived
in full color, just a generation
prior.
“As I commemorate the day
that for me and many women
is so meaningful, I recognize
those whose citizenship was
not granted full voice with
mine, and because of this, as-
sured access to opportunity is
not yet fully realized.”
Representative Raquel
Moore-Green (R-Salem): “As
a child I was taught that the
single most important civic
involvement is that of voting.
A privilege obtained through
the ultimate sacrifice of human
life. What could be more pre-
cious? This centennial helps
remind us of the unique priv-
ilege ALL Americans have to
vote, and that a determined
group of women and men
can make a lasting impact on
history.”
Representative Sherrie
Sprenger (R-Scio): “Bringing
more voices to the table is
never a bad thing, especially
when it comes to politics.
More perspectives, ideas, and
backgrounds lead to better
laws and a stronger society.
100 years ago, the Oregon
Legislature — which included
only one woman — voted to
extend voting rights to women
nationwide. While we cele-
brate women today, we cannot
forget the men who agreed that
the state and nation would be
better with more voices at the
table.”
Representative Vikki Bre-
ese-Iverson (R-Prineville): “As
we reflect on the last 100 years
in Oregon, there are many im-
provements we have made as a
society. One of the greatest is
ratifying the 19th Amendment,
which today allows every
woman who is an American
citizen to vote in our elections.
Since that small step, we have
witnessed great woman par-
ticipate in elections, serving
as elected officials and making
changes to our great state. La-
dies like Secretary of State Bev
Clarno have inspired me along
Ratification talk starts history series
With “From Radical Idea to Ratification: Women’s Voting Rights,” the
Old Courthouse Regional History Forum Series for 2020 starts Feb. 1
at the 1859 Courthouse Building, 410 W. Second Place, The Dalles. Pro-
grams begin at 1:30 p.m. in the upstairs courtroom. The old courthouse
is behind the Chamber of Commerce and Visitors’ Center at the west
side of downtown.
Speaker Janice Dilg is principal of a historical consulting firm. She
is state coordinator for an online resource for the 2020 centennial of
the 19th Amendment that extended voting rights to women. She will
tell the story of Sylvia Thompson (D-The Dalles) who introduced the bill
ratifying the amendment in the 1920 special session.
my path, and I am excited to be
serving as an elected official in
Oregon alongside many intel-
ligent and dedicated women.”
Representative Cheri Helt
(R-Bend): “As a daughter, wife,
business owner, mother of two
daughters and state repre-
sentative, I take seriously the
duty to vote in elections and to
represent the community that
elected me on the House Floor.
I am proud to stand on the
shoulders of the brave women
who fought to ensure that our
voices and votes are heard and
counted.”
R e p re s e n t a t i v e S h e l l y
Boshart Davis (R-Albany):
“Rural America has always val-
ued women as important and
equal. In fact, Montana voters
had elected the first woman to
Congress before congressional
approval of a national suffrage
amendment to the Constitu-
tion. I’m proud to have grown
up on a family farm and com-
munity that valued me, regard-
less of me being female. As a
mother of three daughters, I
will continue to be grateful for
the strong women that came
before me and endeavor to
continue that legacy.”