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OPINION
East Oregonian
Friday, January 16, 2015
Founded October 16, 1875
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Publisher
JENNINE PERKINSON
Advertising Director
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Managing Editor
TIM TRAINOR
Opinion Page Editor
OUR VIEW
The Internet is an excellent place to learn new insults. But with so many
options to go with, why do people gravitate to the same century-old barbs?
Haven’t been privy to this one yet? Check out any online message
board and you’ll see it can be brought out in just about every argument. If
you don’t like the way someone did something, you just say they have no
“class.” Burn!
It pretty much means you are a better person than that other member of
the unwashed masses because — well? — we guess it’s because you have
more money or mink coats or you drink
tea with your pinkie up.
This is America, man! This ain’t
feudal France or the caste system of
India. You’re either right or wrong, and
anything to do with it.
Now, maybe they don’t mean the
word literally. They use “class” to
denigrate someone who isn’t behaving
like a rich European with a deep
knowledge of the works of Emily Post.
And surely anyone who doesn’t agree
with those high-class mores must be some barbarian from the hinterlands
whose opinions and actions should be discarded.
Class is about acting with dignity and respect. It’s about humility and
campaign trail or any other forum in life, breaking out that epithet says more
about you than the person you’re trying to label.
If you call someone “classless,” you are really just lazy at making your
arguments or — more likely — you don’t have a good case for why you
think someone else is wrong.
Speaking of vocabulary,
In 2015 the department will operate behind the creed: “Without fear or
favor and in partnership with our diverse
community, we will create and maintain
a safe environment with the reduction
of crime through problem-oriented and
community-based policing strategies.
The quality of life for those we serve
takes precedent over our individual
needs.”
with so much mumbo jumbo and vague
promises, it’s nice to see some simple
declarative sentences. If you live in
Hermiston, you now know what your
police are trying to do. Ergo, that’s a good mission statement — even if we
word-count hawk editors think we could have whittled it down even further.
Keep it classy, Hermiston!
Since we published stories on a crackdown by Pendleton police on this
gang, we’ve found some people who
actually think these misguided felons are
a good way to clean up our streets.
Consider us not of that ilk. We agree
with law enforcement, that the stated
mission of the United Aryan Empire is
a bogus one that hides their real intent
of violence, intimidation and power.
And anyway, how could these guys have
time to chase down drug dealers when
they spend most of their day trying to
remember all the races they think they
are superior to? Classless!
Even if they were actually trying to do good, we certainly wouldn’t want
these men making judgments about who deserves punishment and who
doesn’t. That’s why we’ve got police and a justice system.
We hope the Pendleton police continue their crackdown and they cut the
legs off this nasty hate group before they get their feet under them.
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East Oregonian editorial board of Publisher
Kathryn Brown, Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, and Opinion Page Editor Tim Trainor.
Other columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not
necessarily that of the East Oregonian.
OTHER VIEWS
Can Mitch McConnell
make the Senate better?
T
o outsiders, some of the changes
But some Republicans see the
new Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell will bring to the
for the majority party than for the
Senate might seem like inside baseball.
minority. “The reason why that
But they could bring about a huge
is so important is not because of
improvement in the way the Senate
Republican versus Democrat, but
works. And that could in turn lead
because of the tension between rank
to a huge improvement in the way
Washington works.
GOP aide. “Outside the Senate,
Byron
McConnell’s restoration of what
there might be some conservatives
York
is called “regular order” will give
who say, ‘Why do you want to offer
Comment
both Republican and Democratic
Democrats amendments when for
lawmakers something they have not
years Democrats didn’t offer them
had in eight years under Harry Reid: the
to Republicans?’ But what if there’s a big
chance to have actual input into the making of immigration bill? Do you want the Republican
laws.
Reid famously used
to offer amendments?”
Senate rules and procedures
In that sense, by opening
to block most of his fellow
up the Senate, McConnell
senators from offering
could be buying himself
amendments to bills under
some headaches from his
consideration. Of course
own party. Indeed, it could
that frustrated minority
be argued that the move
Republicans, but it also
will empower some of the
frustrated a lot of majority
Republican senators —
Democrats, who didn’t get
Ted Cruz and Mike Lee
to propose changes even
come to mind — who have
though their party controlled
sometimes antagonized the
the Senate.
leadership. Some might see
Now, McConnell
that as a green light for them
promises to open up bills
to make trouble.
to proposed amendments, both in committee
“Nonsense,” says an aide to Lee. “I
wouldn’t characterize a senator exercising
that will be the Keystone pipeline, and already his or her institutional rights as ‘making
Democrats are lining up to offer amendments, trouble.’ What it will do is allow each senator
something they rarely got to do under their
the right to fully represent the interests of
own leader.
“We are going to introduce amendments
substantive debate on policy reforms.”
to make it more of a jobs bill,” Democratic
That’s all good. And Republican leaders
Sen. Charles Schumer said recently. Schumer
hope the change will have other salutary
said Democrats will offer amendments to
effects. Committees will become more
require American-made steel for the pipeline,
active, with members taking a greater part
to require that oil transported through the
in shaping legislation. The work week will
pipeline be used in America, and to add clean
lengthen. (Under Reid, senators often came in
energy jobs.
on Tuesday afternoon and left late Thursday;
Can anyone imagine Reid giving
Republicans comparable freedom on any
day week.)
bill at all, much less a controversial measure
With all that, the hope is, senators of both
like Keystone? “There are people who have
parties will actually work with each other
worked in the Senate for seven or eight years
more. “If people feel like they have the
who have never seen this happen,” says one
opportunity to make their points, the place
GOP aide.
becomes a more collegial body,” says one of
How often will it happen in the new
the aides. The hope is that “we’ll be able to
regime? The majority leader has the power to
turn this into a legislating body instead of a
allow regular order, or not, on any given piece campaign studio, which is the way it has been
of legislation.
for eight years.”
McConnell has not pledged to allow it
Of course, it might not work. But there’s no
100 percent of the time. But he told Roll Call
doubt Senate leaders need to institute reforms
that not allowing amendments should be “an
after Reid’s ugly and divisive tenure. And if
exception rather than the rule.”
things go as planned, McConnell’s restoration
McConnell has also said that after last
could become a ding-dong-the-witch-is-dead
November’s elections, he received a lot of
moment that revitalizes the Senate.
calls from Democrats wondering whether he
would really go through with his promise to
Byron York is chief political correspondent
restore their rights. The answer is yes.
for The Washington Examiner.
The majority
leader has the
power to allow
regular order —
or not —on any
given piece of
legislation.
YOUR VIEWS
Proposed Don Requa statue
More comments on whether an extra-large
statue of Pendleton High football coach Don
Requa should go up on Main Street near the
Main Street Bridge:
As others have said, a sculpture of a
with the downtown sculptures of those from
the history of Pendleton or northeast Oregon.
Other thoughts:
• The Requa statue is to be 7.5 feet
high, way larger than the bronzes already
downtown. Requa, whom I enjoyed knowing,
was not a city founder and might chuckle at a
project that suggested otherwise.
• Requa’s teams dominated the Blue
Mountain Conference, but a coach does not
have the far-reaching impact on Pendleton
of a Roy Raley or a Wallace McCrae. The
alternative idea of putting the Requa sculpture
at Pendleton High seems to me a wise one.
• Members of the Pendleton Arts
Commission make recommendations on
pieces of public art to the mayor and city
council. But no rules or guidelines exist to
help make those decisions. Seems to me
it would be helpful to draft guidelines on
from the early years of this area in comparison
with subjects from, say, after World War II.
LETTERS POLICY
One way to give more perspective on
doing a sculpture would be to require persons
considered to have died more than 40-50
years ago. That delay would give an arts
to contemporary ones. Although Don Requa
compiled a great win-loss record, he attracted
fair numbers of both fans and critics.
Roberta Lavadour, director of Pendleton
Center for the Arts, said the idea of drafting
guidelines for public art has come up recently
at Arts Commission meetings. That could be a
constructive step.
Mike Forrester
Pendleton
I am in complete agreement with Jerry
Cronin. His letter of Jan. 14 restated the
case of our dysfunctional city government.
Years ago I laughed at the “antics” of Athena
and Weston as they went through one recall
election after another. I am no longer laughing.
We need to replace our entire council and
mayor. Their repeated errors in judgment have
cost us time, money and infrastructure while
only providing cosmetic patches.
It’s time for a recall.
Dale Hilding
Pendleton
The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public issues and public policies for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper
reserves the right to withhold letters that address concerns about individual services and products or letters that infringe on the rights of private citizens. Submitted letters must
be signed by the author and include the city of residence and a daytime phone number. The phone number will not be published. Unsigned letters will not be published. Send
letters to Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com.