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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 9, 2015)
Page 8A OFF PAGE ONE East Oregonian TECH: Took Stock Exchange over 3 hours to resume trading wake-up call to companies and engineers to program and communication and for their networks to protect UHPRWHFRQWURORIIDUÀXQJ them against inevitable operations. Until it fails. glitches and malicious And technology problems attacks by outsiders. OLNH :HGQHVGD\¶V WKDW “Instead of just letting temporarily knock out vital the technology rush ahead services and conveniences of us and then trying to of modern life are likely to catch up in terms of privacy become more common as and security, we should be computers and other elec- baking those things into tronic devices increasingly WKHV\VWHPVIURPWKHVWDUW´ connect together over the she said. “We need to be Internet. a little smarter on how we For United, it was the DUHFRGLQJWKLQJV´ second major technical The length of Wednes- issue in two months. On GD\¶V RXWDJHV DOVR LV June 2 the airline had to GLVFRQFHUWLQJ *DUWQHU¶V halt all takeoffs in the Litan said. U.S. because of what it ,W WRRN WKH 1HZ <RUN described as computer Stock Exchange until 3:10 automation issues. p.m. — just over three It may be that we are and a half hours — to rushing to push technology resume trading. “I think into business operations everyone needs to assume and our daily lives before technology is going to go it is fully ready, experts down sometimes, but you caution. Lillian Ablon, a should be resilient enough technology researcher for to quickly recover from the the Rand Corp. says the outage within a half hour, FRQÀXHQFH RI EUHDNGRZQV LIQRWDIHZPLQXWHV´/LWDQ should be interpreted as a said. Continued from 1A Hydro projects key part of Idaho Power’s plan By KEITH RIDLER Associated Press %2,6( ² ,GDKR 3RZHU RI¿FLDOV ha YH SXW IRUZDUG WKH FRPSDQ\¶V SODQ to keep air conditioners humming and computer screens from going dark in southern Idaho and Eastern Oregon over the next two decades as energy demands rise. The company in its 144-page Inte- grated Resource Plan submitted last week to the public utility commissions in both states predicts an increase from 516,000 customers to 711,000 in 20 years. The company says its 17 hydroelec- tric projects on the Snake River and its tributaries will remain a key ingredient to meeting greater demand. In 2014 the company generated 77 percent of its own power, with 36 percent coming from hydropower. But high demand during low water years causes the company some concern. “We saw that a little bit last week ZKHUH ZH KDG UHDOO\ KLJK GHPDQG´ Bowlin said, noting a time-span where temperatures in southern Idaho soared DERYHGHJUHHV³:HKDYHQ¶WKDGD great water year. Last week we had to UXQK\GURDWDKLJKOHYHO´ Besides the hydroelectric projects, the company has three natural gas plants, a diesel-powered plant and VKDUHV RZQHUVKLS LQ WKUHH FRDO¿UHG plants. The company in 2014 got 34 percent of its power from its coal plants, and 7 percent from its natural gas plants. But one of the coal plants is sched- uled to shut down in 2020, and the future of another is unclear with poten- tial tougher federal pollution regula- tions set to be released in August. That PDNHV,GDKR3RZHU¶VSODQQLQJSURFHVV more complex. ³7KHUH DUH D ORW RI PRYLQJ SDUWV´ Bowlin said. The company purchased 23 percent of its power from outside entities in 2014. Thirteen percent of that came from energy sources under the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act, or PURPA, which is intended to promote alternative resources such as wind and solar. Idaho Power in January asked the Idaho Public Utilities Commission to shorten the length of contracts for wind and solar projects under PURPA, which the company said will make planning less uncertain. Power companies under the act are required to buy electricity at a state commission-approved rate from qualifying small power production facilities. The commission previously reduced FLAG: :DO0DUW$PD]RQSXOOHGDOO&RQIHGHUDWHÀDJPHUFKDQGLVH “If you have one in your yard, great. It lets me know who you are.” Continued from 1A historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina. After photos of the alleged killer wearing the Confed- HUDWH ÀDJ VXUIDFHG RQOLQH people across the country FDOOHGIRUWKHÀDJWREHWDNHQ down from the South Caro- lina capitol building, calling it a symbol of racism. The South Carolina Senate voted to do so this week. Johnson said none of her customers have ever told her they were buying the ÀDJIRUUDFLVWUHDVRQV6RPH people tell her they see the ÀDJDVDV\PERORIUHEHOOLRQ of thinking for themselves or thinking outside the box. Others grew up in the south or had ancestors who fought for the Confederacy. “One guy said, ‘I was UDLVHG XQGHU WKDW ÀDJ ,W¶V QRW DERXW KDWH LW¶V DERXW KHULWDJH¶´VKHVDLG $V IDU DV XVLQJ WKH ÀDJ for racist reasons, she sees that as more of a problem in the southern states than in Oregon. ³8S KHUH ZH GRQ¶W KDYH the same feelings they do in WKH6RXWK´VKHVDLG To Johnson, the Civil War is an important part of history that shaped the United States DV D FRXQWU\ 6KH GRHVQ¶W think people should just SUHWHQG LW GLGQ¶W KDSSHQ E\ wiping out all traces of the &RQIHGHUDWHÀDJ As a result, the only reason she has stopped selling the ÀDJ LV QRW RXW RI SROLWLFDO correctness but because all the vendors she has — John Carbage, president of Hermiston’s Black International Awareness Club Staff photo by E.J. Harris The Confederate battle flag flies from a two-by-four on a fence outside of the home of Bobby Woods off of Southwest Marshall Avenue in Pendleton. contacted either told her they have stopped carrying the &RQIHGHUDWH ÀDJ RU WKH\¶UH sold out. People searching IRUWKHÀDJVVKRXOGQ¶WERWKHU to try Wal-Mart, either — the corporation announced two weeks ago it was SXOOLQJ DOO &RQIHGHUDWH ÀDJ merchandise from its shelves nationwide. Online retailers including eBay and Amazon soon followed suit. John Carbage, president RI +HUPLVWRQ¶V %ODFN ,QWHU- national Awareness Club, can see why. His experiences as a black man living in Arkansas in the 1970s and 1980s have OHIWWKH&RQIHGHUDWHÀDJDQG racism inescapably entwined in his mind. Carbage said segregation laws may have been off the books at that point but every black resident in the region knew not to enter a business GLVSOD\LQJD&RQIHGHUDWHÀDJ out front unless they wanted a visit from the Klu Klux Klan. “If a vehicle passed you and it had a Confederate Flag on it, you were not to look at LW´KHVDLG³<RXZHUHWRWXUQ \RXUKHDGXQWLOLWSDVVHGE\´ He said he absolutely supports the idea that a taxpayer-funded institution like the South Carolina statehouse should remove the &RQIHGHUDWH ÀDJ +RZHYHU KH ZRXOGQ¶W ZDQW WR WDNH DZD\ DQ LQGLYLGXDO¶V FKRLFH WRGLVSOD\DSHUVRQDOÀDJRQ their private property. “If you have one in your \DUG JUHDW´ KH VDLG ³,W OHWV PHNQRZZKR\RXDUH´ Not everyone grew up with the same experiences ZLWK WKH &RQIHGHUDWH ÀDJ as Carbage, however. For people who grew up in Oregon, away from a perva- sive Klu Klux Klan presence, WKH ÀDJ KDV RIWHQ EHHQ XVHG as a symbol of individualism or pride in Southern roots. Joy Castleton, of Hermiston, has ancestors from South Carolina and Mississippi who fought in the Civil War on the side of the Confederacy. ³7KH ÀDJ IRU PH GRHV QRWUHSUHVHQWKDWH´VKHVDLG ³,W UHSUHVHQWV GH¿DQFH WR D tyrannical government that OHGWRWKH&LYLO:DU´ Recently she decided to KRQRU WKDW GH¿DQW KHULWDJH ZLWKD&RQIHGHUDWHÀDJFDNH emblazoned with the words ³:HWKH3HRSOH´ When she asked Wal-Mart to bake one for her, however, she was told it was against company policy. “Out of curiosity I asked if they would make a rainbow cake in honor of gay pride DQGWKH\VDLG\HV´VKHVDLG Castleton said she was ³LUULWDWHG´ E\ WKH FRPSDQ\¶V bowing to political correct- ness. She eventually purchased D&RQIHGHUDWHÀDJFDNHIURP Safeway and served it on the Fourth of July. ——— Contact Jade McDowell at jmcdowell@eastorego- nian.com or 541-564-4536. WORLD BRIEFLY Greece asks for 3-year aid, races to submit suitable reforms proposal Boko Haram asks Nigeria to swap detainees for kidnapped girls ATHENS (AP) — With a deadline just hours away to come up with a detailed economic reform plan, Greece requested a new three- year rescue from its European partners Wednesday as signs grew its economy was sliding toward free-fall without an urgently needed bailout. As its banking system teetered near the edge, the government extended bank closures into next week, while international creditors were in open disagreement over whether to award the country debt relief . Without a deal, Greece faces an almost inevitable collapse of the banking system, which would be the ¿UVWVWHSIRUWKHFRXQWU\WR fall out of the euro. $V7KXUVGD\¶VGHDGOLQH loomed, the government sought to reassure its European creditors that it would enact tax and pension reforms quickly in exchange IRUORDQVIURP(XURSH¶V bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism. In a formal request WKDWZDV¿OOHGZLWKYDJXH promises but short on details, the Greek government pledged to “immediately implement a set of measures as early as the beginning of QH[WZHHN´²EXWGLGQRW specify what these were. LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) ²1LJHULD¶V%RNR+DUDP extremists are offering to free more than 200 young women and girls kidnapped from a boarding school in the town of Chibok in exchange for the release of militant leaders held by the government, a human rights activist has told The Associated Press. The activist said Boko +DUDP¶VFXUUHQWRIIHULV limited to the girls from the school in northeastern Nigeria whose mass abduction in April 2014 ignited worldwide outrage and a campaign to ³%ULQJ%DFN2XU*LUOV´WKDW stretched to the White House. The new initiative reopens an offer made last year to the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan to release the 219 students in exchange for 16 Boko Haram detainees, the activist said. The man, who was involved in negotiations with Boko Haram last year and is close to current negotiators, spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters on this sensitive issue. Fred Eno, an apolitical Nigerian who has been negotiating with Boko Haram for more than a year, told the AP that “another window of RSSRUWXQLW\RSHQHG´LQWKH last few days. Thursday, July 9, 2015 He said the recent slew of Boko Haram bloodletting — some 350 people killed in the past nine days — is consistent with past ratcheting up of violence as the militants seek a stronger negotiating position. Bipartisan Senate aims to overhaul corporate taxes on foreign pro¿ts WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators unveiled a bipartisan framework Wednesday aimed at making business taxes more competitive while generating much-needed IXQGLQJWRUHSDLUWKHQDWLRQ¶V roads and bridges. The plan focuses on the WD[HV86¿UPVSD\RQWKHLU IRUHLJQSUR¿WV,WZDVZULWWHQ by Sen. Chuck Schumer, '1<DQG6HQ5RE Portman, R-Ohio. The framework would require U.S.-based corporations to pay a one-time tax on up to $2 WULOOLRQLQIRUHLJQSUR¿WV WKDW86¿UPVKDYHSDUNHG overseas. The tax rate has not been determined, but it would be considerably less than the 35 percent corporate income tax rate currently in effect, according to the plan. The tax would generate money for infrastructure improvements — how much would depend on the tax rate. Funding for highways is scheduled to run out at the end of the month. San Fran murder defendant’s in-and- out immigration history is common SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Long before he was arrested in the shooting death of a woman at one of San )UDQFLVFR¶VPRVWSRSXODU tourist sites, Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez was using the U.S.-Mexican border like a revolving door. He was arrested while in the U.S. illegally and deported to his native Mexico ¿YHWLPHVIURP-XQHWR June 2009, only to slip back into the country within days, weeks or months. Last week, he was arrested and accused of killing 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle as she strolled on a popular San Francisco pier with her father. It turned out that Sanchez, 45, was out on the streets EHFDXVHRI6DQ)UDQFLVFR¶V ³VDQFWXDU\´SROLF\RIPLQLPDO cooperation with federal immigration authorities. The slaying has brought heavy criticism down on the city from politicians of both parties and become the ODWHVWÀDVKSRLQWLQWKHGHEDWH over how to deal with illegal immigration. Sale In Progress Saager’s Shoe Shop Up to 50% Off Milton-Freewater, OR IURP\HDUVWR¿YH\HDUVWKHOHQJWK of contracts, and is now considering cutting that to two years. Solar compa- nies said shorter contracts could put them out of business. The commission is expected to make a decision by early August. +LJKRQ,GDKR3RZHU¶VWRGROLVWLV completing a 500-kilovolt transmission line by 2025 from Melba in southwest Idaho to Boardman. That will give the company greater access to the Mid-Columbia market where Idaho Power can purchase energy when needed and sell access energy. The line will also provide reli- ability, the company said, and create ÀH[LELOLW\ WKDW¶V QHHGHG ZLWK YDULDEOH energy producers such as solar and wind. The company itself is proposing a pilot project involving solar panels to boost voltage at the end of long distri- bution feeder lines. A second pilot project the company wants to try is using electricity to create ice at night when power demand is low. The ice would be used to cool buildings at day when energy demand picks up. A review process for the Integrated Resource Plan is now underway and includes public meetings planned for this fall. FUNDING: Would add electronic signs that change speed limit for road conditions Continued from 1A The safety project would add electronic signs that would change the speed limit when road conditions are poor, aiming to curtail accidents in snow zones. For the redevelopment RI 0HDFKDP¶V FXUUHQW maintenance station, $7.5 million would be allocated to “provide adequate sewage management and additional space for new EXLOGLQJV RI VXI¿FLHQW VL]H WRKDQGOHWKHÀHHWQHHGHGWR PDLQWDLQPRXQWDLQSDVVHV´ according to the bill. ODOT also has an inter- active map on its website of proposed, current and completed projects, including a multi-year, almost $47 million project around the I-84 Kamela interchange near La Grande, which was started in 2013 and was estimated to cost $43 million, according to a news release from ODOT. ——— Contact Jonathan Bach at jbach@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0809. PARKS: Olney Cemetery has sprinklers running 24 hours a day VSULQNOHUV\VWHPLVQ¶WSURS- erly built for the contours The city waters most of of the lawn, creating both its parks during the evening, water runoff and brown starting typically around 10 patches across the property. or 11 p.m. ³,Q P\ RSLQLRQ LW¶V Larger parks require WHUULEOH´KHVDLG longer watering times. :KHQ KH ¿UVW VWDUWHG Encompassing 50 acres, working on the cemetery, WKH2OQH\&HPHWHU\¶VODUJH Cook gave its watering size ensures that at least V\VWHPDQ³)´ one section of its sprinkler Due to minor improve- system is running 24 hours ments, Cook now rates a day. the cemetery at a B-, The cemetery is also one DOWKRXJKWKHUH¶VOLWWOHURRP RI WKH SDUNV GHSDUWPHQW¶V for improvement without biggest source of headaches. replacing the whole system &RRNVDLGWKHFHPHWHU\¶V at a cost of $1 million. Continued from 1A