Page 4A
OPINION
East Oregonian
Thursday, February 25, 2016
OTHER VIEWS
Founded October 16, 1875
KATHRYN B. BROWN
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Publisher
Managing Editor
JENNINE PERKINSON
TIM TRAINOR
Advertising Director
Opinion Page Editor
OUR VIEW
Roundabout way
to a decision
In Hermiston, city government is
transportation plan would have
going in circles about roundabouts.
added “or a roundabout” to the
In Pendleton, they had their own
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colorful debate on Main Street
signals to eventually be installed at
statues.
multiple spots along
Nothing
Highway 395.
like some local
It may not sound
Instead
of
just
infrastructure and
like a lot — just
complaining,
transportation
three little words —
issues to get the vox
the feedback was
many went the but
populi to rise a few
strong enough that
decibels.
those words may be
required step
And that increase
stricken from the
further to put
in civic discussion
plan, crashing any
sure bubbled over
their name and possible roundabout
in Hermiston
sites.
concerns on the at those
earlier this week,
Whether or not
though much of
that is a good thing
record.
the response to a
is kind of beside
proposal to amend
the point. The
the city’s transportation plan was
people of Hermiston felt strongly
one-sided. Message boards were
about an issue, told their elected
lighting up with takedowns of
representatives about how they felt,
roundabouts, the European-created
and those representatives took that
intersection invention. There
to heart.
were a few defenders, but the vast
The decision is now the Oregon
majority wanted them nowhere near Department of Transportation’s, and
Hermiston’s busy highway that is
they will not make it without having
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local voices ringing in their ears.
To their credit, instead of just
So, in a roundabout way, we get
complaining about the issue, many
back to the point: If you have an
went the required step further to
opinion about something, make sure
put their name and concerns on the
the people making the decisions
record, set some time aside to attend know it, not just the people on your
a city council meeting, and have
Facebook feed or within shouting
their voices heard.
distance. Your voice can make a
Nearly a half dozen people spoke difference, and can make your town
out against an amendment to the
a more straightforward place.
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
Minimum wage increase
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The (Coos Bay) World
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we think any adjustment to Oregon’s
minimum wage should be made by
the people we elect
to make law. That
happened this week as
the House approved
the Senate’s bill and
it now moves to Gov.
Kate Brown’s desk.
There has been the
expected gnashing
of teeth over the
issue, mostly by
special interest groups representing
businesses that pay wages. The subject
was raised here earlier this week when
state economist Guy Tauer spoke to the
Bay Area Chamber of Commerce. He
was asked what he predicted the impact
would be on rural communities like ours.
Mr. Tauer’s educated response was
that it’s anyone’s guess.
“It’s almost like this grand
experiment that we’re all kind of guinea
pigs ...”
We like Mr. Tauer because he always
speaks English, not economist-ese. If the
answer is a fuzzy unknown, we need to
hear that — in plain English.
What he made clear was that a wage
increase impacts a lot of moving parts
in any economy. Yes, it increases costs
on businesses, and those businesses
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absorb those costs, pass them along to
customers or hire fewer employees.
But a wage increase also puts more
money in the hands of employees, who
then spend more on
goods and services. A
wage increase at the
bottom of the scale
could also have what
he called a “trickle-up”
effect, by putting
pressure to increase
wages in the tiers
above the minimum.
As we said — lots
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thoughtful action.
We believe that some kind of wage
increase was inevitable. So, we applaud
the legislature’s action to pass the tiered
minimum wage structure that recognizes
the differences between urban and rural
economies. The initiatives that may still
appear on the November ballot will ask
voters to approve the same minimum
wage increase for everyone across the
state. That, in our opinion, would go too
far.
Oregon will be national trailblazers in
creating a tiered system, as stated in an
Associated Press story earlier this week.
With the alternative, we will simply be
at the mercy of majority votes out of the
I-5 corridor, and we can imagine what
those voters will do to us.
Oregon will be
trailblazers in
creating a tiered
minimum wage.
Why Trump voters accept
the good with the bad
W
ALTERBORO, South
crowd.
Carolina — In a recent
The Trump who took the stage — it
interview with Donald
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Trump, Fox News’ Greta van Susteren
cloth and bales of hay — spoke as if
posed a simple question from a
he might have heard the advice. In a
viewer: “Why don’t you act more
stump speech cut down to about half
presidential?”
an hour because of a tight schedule,
“I will be changing very rapidly,”
Trump said everything he normally
answered Trump, fresh from his
says, but he appeared to have dialed
Byron
smashing victory in the New
back the intensity just a little. At the
York
Hampshire primary. “I’m very capable
end, some people wished he had
Comment
of changing to anything I want to
spoken longer, which rarely happens
when Trump delivers his usual
change to.”
one-hour-plus performance.
In South Carolina, where he won another
Here’s a theory. Trump’s supporters believe
important primary contest, Trump drew
the United States is at such a precarious point
remarkable crowds; when a group called
in its history that they want to elect a leader
Lowcountry Sportsmen for Trump held an
who will take an entirely different approach
event for him early Wednesday evening at a
to government, not just from Barack Obama
remote and sprawling hunting area known as
Dove Field, about an hour outside Charleston, but also from the Bushes who monopolized
Republican presidential politics for more than
2,500 people turned out to see him, many
a generation.
driving an hour or more to a place that looked
They’re willing to put up
a little like the middle of
with some excess because
nowhere.
Trump seems to be the only
Nearly everyone I talked to
man who might truly be able
had decided to vote for Trump.
to break out of the old mold.
Some had already voted. They
Yes, they would like to see
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him polish things up a little.
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But even in his roughest state,
performance in last Saturday’s
he’s worth it, given what’s at
contentious Republican debate
stake.
in Greenville, many, like van
— Drake Donahue,
On the other hand, Trump’s
Susteren’s viewer, would like
to see Trump act just a little
South Carolina GOP voter manner has prevented him
from taking advantage of
more presidential.
the huge opportunity that
Take, for example, Larry
South Carolina presents to expand his base of
and Sherri Hoover, two newly retired State
support. When a candidate does something
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When I asked why they chose Trump over the like win the New Hampshire primary by 20
points, people who aren’t his supporters take
other candidates, Larry said, “I feel like he
another look at him. That moment is a chance
tells the truth. He just tells it like it is.” Sherri
to draw in new voters. After New Hampshire,
agreed.
Trump had that chance — big time — and the
I noted that some critics thought Trump
best opportunity for him to bring in those new
went a little over the top at the debate. What
voters was the Greenville debate. He didn’t do
did they think?
it. It was another missed opportunity, like the
“I agreed with the premises of what he
debate he skipped in Des Moines.
said, but he probably didn’t need to say
One way to see that is not at Trump rallies,
everything he said, to be honest with you,”
but at other candidates’ events, where there
Larry answered.
“I thought that was a little bit much,” Sherri are South Carolinians who have seriously
considered supporting Trump but are now
added, mentioning Trump’s comments about
*HRUJH:%XVK³%XWKHKDVQR¿OWHU+HWHOOV leaning elsewhere.
“Trump says what’s in my heart,” said one
it like it is. That’s what we like about him.”
voter at a Ted Cruz event in Columbia last
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Tuesday. But after the debate, the man said,
winner,” said Bernie Bell, a retired Chamber
“My head says no.” Off the record, casual
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talks with other Republican voters around
“Here’s what I thought about the debate:
South Carolina suggest that he is not alone.
Trump was getting shot at from everywhere.
They appreciate Trump and are glad someone
I didn’t agree with him on the part about
is saying what he is saying about immigration
George W. Bush, but I can understand why
and other issues — but they just can’t bring
Trump did that. I’d like for him to be more
themselves to support him.
presidential, I’d like for him to talk more
Back at Dove Field, though, voters were
about the issues. But when you’re getting shot
willing to take the bad with the good in the
at from everywhere, you’ve got to respond.”
hope that Trump will bring real change to
“I wish he would be a little more southern
American politics.
in his genteel manner,” Kathy Randall, a
“That’s Trump,” said Tim Fensch, of
lawyer from Summerville who said she’s
Walterboro. “He’s like everybody I’ve ever
likely to vote for Trump, said with a smile.
met from New York City. They’re all like that.
“He needs some gentility, for sure — a
They get in your face, they’re blunt, if you
big dose,” added Randall’s friend Hugh
come at them, they double down on you. I
Merriman, an oncologist, who also intends to
mean, that’s him.”
vote for Trump. “What is there to gain from
“I want to make a statement,” said Charles
bashing the Bushes? Jeb’s done, I think. I
Perkins Dubee II, of Savannah, Georgia. “I
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like what he has to say.”
Even Trump’s host and introducer, Ellie
“I think we need a stick of dynamite in
Thomas, a Mount Pleasant CPA who’s with
Washington,” said Drake Donahue, of Goose
Lowcountry Sportsmen for Trump, took note
Creek. “I think he’s it.”
of Trump’s habit of taking things to the limit,
Ŷ
and then a little beyond. “We say, ‘You know,
Byron York is chief political correspondent
I don’t know that I would have said that,
for The Washington Examiner.
but I’m sure glad he did,’” Thomas told the
“I think we
need a stick
of dynamite in
Washington.”
YOUR VIEWS
Oregon politicians should
support medical marijuana
LETTERS POLICY
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. Send letters to 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or
email editor@eastoregonian.com.
Marijuana (cannabis) is a medicine.
Edibles, tinctures, creams and oils are potent
medicines and should be recommended by a
physician who understands their properties and
side effects.
Allowing a person to get anything they
want at a dispensary is the same as allowing
them to go to a pharmacy and get medicine
without seeing a doctor or a pharmacist.
Our bodies, just like the cannabis plant,
make cannabinoids (major ingredients) and we
have receptors for them everywhere including
the brain, blood system, liver, lungs, ovaries,
kidneys, etc. The cannabinoids in marijuana
are very therapeutic.
Getting high is a side effect of cannabis.
Historically it was used by the plant to protect
itself from animals that liked to eat its leaves
but would go to sleep when intoxicated.
Most of my patients do not like to get high
and have learned to adjust the dose so that
the psychoactive effects are minimal. They
use marijuana because of its remarkable
medicinal properties (research-based — pain,
nausea, appetite, seizures, anxiety, depression,
Alzheimer’s DX, neuropathies, PTSD, cancer).
Like all medicines marijuana can be
dangerous for patients who have not been
educated in its appropriate use and have not
seen a physician.
Politicians have a moral and legal
obligation to protect the citizens of Oregon.
Please use your God-given privilege of
serving others to promote what is right and
honorable. Keep medical marijuana as a
separate entity and do not legalize the purchase
of edibles, tinctures, creams, and oils without a
doctor’s recommendation.
Do not cater to those who think that money
is more important than human lives.
Also, please save our small farmers.
Judy Emanuel
Ashland