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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 28, 2015)
Page 4A OPINION East Oregonian Saturday, November 28, 2015 Founded October 16, 1875 KATHRYN B. BROWN DANIEL WATTENBURGER Publisher Managing Editor JENNINE PERKINSON TIM TRAINOR Advertising Director Opinion Page Editor EO MEDIA GROUP East Oregonian • The Daily Astorian • Capital Press • Hermiston Herald Blue Mountain Eagle • Wallowa County Chieftain • Chinook Observer • Coast River Business Journal Oregon Coast Today • Coast Weekend • Seaside Signal • Cannon Beach Gazette Eastern Oregon Real Estate Guide • Eastern Oregon Marketplace • Coast Marketplace OnlyAg.com • FarmSeller.com • Seaside-Sun.com • NorthwestOpinions.com • DiscoverOurCoast.com MIKE FORRESTER STEVE FORRESTER KATHRYN B. BROWN Pendleton Chairman of the Board Astoria President Pendleton Secretary/Treasurer CORY BOLLINGER JEFF ROGERS Aberdeen, S.D. Director Indianapolis, Ind. Director OUR VIEW Stay patient, stay together Communities of character on water project W OTHER VIEWS in the world doesn’t mean much Winter in northeastern Oregon without a deal for the necessary is a time when our rivers swell ZDWHUULJKWVFHUWL¿HGE\WKHVWDWH and water is abundant. It’s also a Water Resources Department. time when the growing and harvest To that end, Cook and company seasons are far from top of mind. have racked up the miles driving But this winter is unique. Years and years of hard work have brought into Salem and pitching their vision across the negotiating table. Any the Umatilla Basin to the precipice water drawn out of major investment of the Columbia in the future of our If farms and must include region. It took decades politicians get PLWLJDWLRQIRU¿VK DQGULYHUÀRZV for the stars to align in Salem and impatient, the which is where environmental in the farmlands. whole effort groups — namely Gallons of sweat Food & Water and a steady trickle could come — have a of dollars have tumbling down. Watch keen interest. While been expended they will never be on engineering on-the-masthead plans and political supporters of the project, NOWA lobbying and molding together believes they have crafted the plan disparate factions into a sometimes so environmental groups will not shaky and sometimes sturdy outright oppose it. coalition. Right now, the coalition Yet everyone — even NOWA — holds. But there is still work to is walking on eggshells right now. be done. Pick your own cliché to explain it: This is a big winter for the The delicate balance could tip with a Northeast Oregon Water Association change in political will, a change in and their plan to bring more water to the climate, or a far-away rumble in WKH¿QDQFLDOPDUNHW the Umatilla Basin. Cook is optimistic everyone will NOWA’s proposal is a complex, be shaking hands soon, and one multi-phase puzzle of engineering, of three project areas could break water rights and environmental mitigation spread over three distinct ground next year. Until then, Cook said it’s imperative for growers areas from Boardman to east of Hermiston. Farmers, cities, counties to remain patient. If farms and politicians get antsy and begin to and ports have all bought into the withdraw their support now, the idea of more irrigation water from whole effort could come tumbling the Columbia River to bolster the down. Cook said that would be region’s high-value agricultural a travesty, and the star-aligning economy. J.R. Cook, founder and moment would be lost — possibly director of NOWA, has discussed a SRWHQWLDOEHQH¿WRIELOOLRQVRIGROODUV forever. Our advice: Hold steady. Stay for the region. patient but work quickly. Let’s get Funding for water projects what has been promised on paper ¿QDOO\FDPHWKURXJKLQWKH onto the land as quickly as possible. Legislature, including $11 million Once that is done, we will reap the HDUPDUNHGVSHFL¿FDOO\IRUWKH EHQH¿WVLQFRXQWOHVVIXWXUHKDUYHVWV Umatilla Basin. But all the money 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. 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. Unsigned letters will not be published. Send letters to Managing Editor 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com. e live in an individualistic each other with family, romantic and age. As Marc J. Dunkelman academic issues. documents in his book Students are given tremendous “The Vanishing Neighbor,” people responsibility, and are put in tend to have their close group of challenging social circumstances inner-ring family and friends and then that call forth compassion, judgment, a vast online outer-ring network of sensitivity and mercy. If one contacts, but they are less likely to be student writes something nasty involved in middle-ring community about another on social media, David organizations. then the two get together with two Brooks student mediators and together they But occasionally I stumble across Comment a loving, charismatic and super-tight work out a resolution. If there’s a neighborhood organization. Very often serious infraction that would merit it’s a really good school. a suspension at another school, the You’d think that schools would naturally guilty party meets with a Harm Circle, and nurture deep community bonds. But we live WKH\¿JXUHRXWVRPHSURSHUDFWRIFRQWULWLRQ in an era and under a testing regime that and restorative justice. emphasizes individual accomplishments, not One day each December the community community cohesion. Even when schools gathers outside the school and the seniors talk about values, they tend to talk about march as a unit with their college application individualistic values, like grit, resilience letters through cheering crowds and to a and executive function, not the empathy, waiting mail truck. compassion and solidarity that are good for Most classes are conducted through community and the heart. Socratic dialogue. Students learn to negotiate Researchers at the Harvard Graduate disagreements. They get academic grades, School of Education asked 10,000 middle but also leadership grades that measure and high school students if their parents cared their character. The students lead their own more about their personal achievement or parent-teacher conferences. They stand up whether they were kind. Eighty percent said before their parents, a teacher and other their parents cared more about achievement — observers and they give a presentation on individual over the group. their successes, failures and how they might But there are some schools that nurture improve. achievement precisely by building tight I was amazed by how well the students communities. had been trained at group discussion, using The Denver School of Science and a talking and listening method they call Technology has an intense values-centered “Step Up/Step Back.” “Let me build on what culture, emphasizing values like respect and Shazzarda was saying ...” one student would responsibility. Four days a week everybody say. If a member of the group had been silent gathers for a morning meeting. Those who for a few minutes, somebody would pull FRQWULEXWHWRWKHFRPPXQLW\DUHDI¿UPHG her in: “Maybe Essence is the best person to When students have strained the community, explain that ...” by being rude to cafeteria workers, for Most of all I was struck by their kindness example, the rift is recognized, discussed and toward one another. No student could healed. UHPHPEHUDQ\UDFLDORUHWKQLFFRQÀLFW0DQ\ Last week I visited the Leaders School upperclassmen serve as peer mentors to the in Brooklyn, New York, which is a glowing underclassmen. There’s a palpable sense example of community cohesion. This is a of being cared for. That’s in part because school with roughly 300 students who speak WKHVFKRROKDVDZLGHGH¿QLWLRQRIVWXGHQW EHWZHHQWKHPODQJXDJHV(LJKW\¿YH achievement. percent are on free and reduced lunch. Last Kurt Hahn, the founder of Outward year the graduation rate was an amazing 89 Bound, once wrote, “It is the foremost percent and every single graduate went to task of education to insure the survival of college. The average SAT score was 411 math these qualities: an enterprising curiosity, and 384 verbal. an undefeatable spirit, tenacity in pursuit, The school’s approach and curriculum is readiness for sensible denial, and above all, organized by Outward Bound. compassion.” When the students arrive at Leaders as All over the country there are schools and freshmen they are assigned to a crew, a group organizations trying to come up with new of 12-15 students with an adviser. Right at the ways to cultivate character. The ones I’ve seen start they go on a wilderness adventure, and that do it best, so far, are those that cultivate go through a process of “storming, norming intense, thick community. Most of the time and performing.” character is not an individual accomplishment. As they learn to cook for each other and It emerges through joined hearts and souls, GHDOZLWKRXWGRRUFKDOOHQJHV¿UVWWKH\¿JKW and in groups. then they come up with community norms, Ŷ and then they perform. The crew stays David Brooks became a New York Times together for the next four years, supporting Op-Ed columnist in September 2003. YOUR VIEWS U.S. can’t adequately vet Syrian refugees Cannot help refugees until we help our own Responding to your view, “Two Truths and a Lie,” (East Oregonian, Nov. 25) I don’t take issue with your facts regarding the process of vetting refugees wanting to enter our country. However, in the case of Syria it should be noted that all direct LQWHOOLJHQFHRI¿FLDOVLQFOXGLQJ WKH)%,KDYHVSHFL¿FDOO\QRWHG it is impossible to “vet” these refugees the White House insists on accepting because there is no structural governmental operation within Syria for us to use as a reference source. Other than the State Department interview with the individual, there is no paperwork trail, no reliable Syrian agency, no government construct within Syria that would permit intelligence vetting. Given the past history of the current administration when it comes to immigration, are we supposed to just roll over and “assume” that all is well with these refugees and they will all want to integrate into our country? I just don’t share your faith in the process. The author of “Two Truths and a Lie” missed the point. In Pendleton and Hermiston we have folks who need the refuge of the warming station on a cold night. There are also families who can’t afford the daily meals. Finally, there are veterans who need assistance in one form or another. Until we can take care of our own, why would we go looking for others to help, wherever they are from? It is wrong to ignore our own to help others. -LP6KHI¿HOG Hermiston Michael J. Mehren Hermiston Owyhee opposition PLVVHVSRWHQWLDOEHQH¿W Much of the local opposition to the proposed Owyhee Canyonlands Wilderness or National Monument is based upon the presumed negative economic impacts that land protection might engender. This is a very common reaction to any land protection proposals. When Yellowstone National Park was created in 1872, the papers in Bozeman and Helena, Montana predicted economic collapse of their economies. Of course, within a few years, Bozeman was advertising itself as the gateway to Yellowstone and today Bozeman is one of the top retirement destinations in the West — in part due to its proximity to Yellowstone National Park. When Glacier National Park was proposed, the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce opposed the idea saying the area should be left open for oil and gas development and logging. Today if you contact the Kalispell Chamber, WKH¿UVWWKLQJWKH\UHPLQG\RX about is how they are located next to Glacier National Park. When Grand Teton National Park was created, locals predicted Jackson would become a ghost town. I don’t know if you have been to Jackson lately, but some 18,000 ghosts live there today — all in one way or another there because of the park. And even more recently after President Clinton created the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah, locals predicted the demise of their communities. Indeed, there are numerous studies that show that counties with substantial protected landscapes do better economically than counties without such areas. Check out Headwaters Economics for some of these studies. Protected lands not only create new businesses that directly support tourism, but even more importantly, people like to live near protected areas. As a result what are known as “footloose” HQWUHSUHQHXUVZLOOÀRFNWR communities near parks, national monuments and the like. They bring their businesses or their savings. These people provide new economic opportunities and stability to local economies. Now if people in Malheur County are opposed to economic growth and stability, they should continue to oppose any protection for the area. However, if creating opportunities for your children to ¿QGZRUNDVZHOODVDWWUDFWLQJQHZ talent to your communities is a goal, then one should think about supporting protection efforts for the Owyhee. George Wuerthner Bend Measure 11 not being used as it was designed I am responding to Mr. Coffman’s letter about overcrowding at the prisons. I could not agree with him more. I visit my husband there and I just want to say I have never met a guard that was not polite and decent to me and my husband has no complaints. So for that I thank you guys. Mr. Coffman stated that we need to revisit Measure 11 and, as you probably know, I could not agree more. But newspapers and TV stations have refused to do articles and research on this matter. Why? It so desperately needs to be done. We have kangaroo courts where the district attorneys hang everyone out to dry. Measure 11 was for violent offenders and repeat offenders. 7KHUHDUH¿UVWWLPHRIIHQGHUV with no criminal background incarcerated at this time. The cost is $137 million per year! Oregon is No. 2 in the country for spending more on prison than education. Contact your senators, representatives, the governor; contact me and we will tell you what we are trying to do and what Measure 11 was really meant for. Thank you Mr. Coffman. Barbara Dickerson Milton-Freewater Be heard! Comment online at eastoregonian.com
