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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 12, 2016)
Page 4A OPINION East Oregonian Saturday, March 12, 2016 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 Crying wolf on bad science for Wildlife Diversity are trying to Wolves have recovered do. These litigants are undercutting dramatically in Oregon, their the work that ODFW has done to numbers growing into the triple revive wolf numbers and the science digits and their populations that has fueled it. expanding west and south across a “The place where (the delisting large swath of the state. decision) needs to be determined is The Oregon Wolf Plan in a court of law,” Amaroq Weiss, shepherded the success of that Center of Biological Diversity, told re-introduction. And because the next step in the plan called for taking Oregon Public Broadcasting. But a courtroom gray wolves off the is not where science state’s endangered happens, and it is species list, that’s Wolf the wrong place exactly what management for management happened. In a staff report decisions should decisions to be released in October be made in the made. The place where 2015, scientists wolf management from ODFW ield and the decisions should be recommended laboratory, not made is in the ¿eld. the Oregon Fish in the laboratory. and Wildlife the courtroom. It’s It’s in the reams of Commission delist data in the hands gray wolves. In November, OFWC of a wolf biologist. agreed with that assessment. And It’s by the decisions of an apolitical, just last month both houses of the informed commission who studies state legislature voted to af¿rm the the science. OFWC’s decision. That af¿rmation That work has been done, now sits at the desk of Governor yet it has been disregarded by Kate Brown. environmental groups who don’t If Brown vetoes the bill, it would agree with the conclusion. be just another slap in the face of That’s not the way science works. rural Oregon. It’s a shame that some of the state’s Out here in wolf country, we’ve most well-funded and powerful lived by the rules of the Oregon environmental groups don’t believe Wolf Plan since the wily animals in science that is not their own. swam across the Snake River and Those groups are putting pressure made this country their home. And on the governor to veto a bill that many of us are happy about that. passed, somewhat miraculously, Wolves belong in Oregon, and their through a Democratically controlled existence must be protected. Legislature to land on her desk. But with existence now It’s not a one-sided trick, either. reasonably secured, species There are many who point to the management is needed. And we scientist they paid for who has found should make those management the climate isn’t changing, smoking decisions using unbiased science, doesn’t cause cancer, that coal is not science paid for by special clean and Arctic drilling is good for interests. And we should de¿nitely the polar bear. not make those decisions by It’s a disreputable group to be discarding science altogether and part of, and one that hurts your substituting emotion, or the highest credibility in the eyes of people who paid lawyer. just want what is best for our state But that’s what environmental and its wildlife. You cry wolf too groups such as Oregon Wild, many times and there might not be Cascadia Wildlands and the Center any wolves left to hear you. 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 Dogs, cats and leadership W East but simply to make a dangerous hen he was in the middle country less dangerous. of his Syrian peace deal Do you think out loud in tandem negotiations, Secretary of with a community, or do you process State John Kerry would go to President LQWHUQDOO\" Barack Obama with a request: Could Throughout the Goldberg article, the U.S. quietly send a few cruise Obama is seen thinking deeply and missiles to hit Assad regime targets, just subtly, but apart from the group around to send a message and maybe move the him. In catlike fashion, he is a man Syrian president toward a deal. David “Kerry’s looking like a chump Brooks who knows his own mind and trusts his own judgment. His decision not to with the Russians, because he has Comment bomb Syria after it crossed the chemical no leverage,” a senior administration weapons red line was made almost of¿cial told Jeffrey Goldberg of The entirely alone. His senior advisers were shocked Atlantic. when he announced it. The secretaries of state Obama continually said no and eventually and defense were not in the room. grew impatient. Goldberg asked Kerry if he More generally, Obama expresses disdain thought he had more of a bias toward action than Obama. “I do probably,” Kerry responded. with the foreign policy community. He is “I’d say that I think we’ve had a very symbiotic, critical of most of his fellow world leaders — impatient with most European ones, fed up with synergistic, whatever you call it, relationship which works very effectively. Because I’ll come most Middle Eastern ones. When seeking a description of a situation, in with a bias toward ‘Let’s try to do this, let’s does your mind leap for the clarifying single try to do that, let’s get this done.’” truth or do you step back to see the complex The new Goldberg essay is a profound and ZHERIIDFWRUV" comprehensive look at Obama’s foreign policy Ronald Reagan typi¿ed the single clarifying thinking, and especially his steadfast desire to truth habit of mind, both when he was reduce U.S. involvement in the Middle East. describing an enemy (Evil But it’s also fascinating Empire) and when he was to read in the midst of a calling for change (tear down presidential campaign. It this wall). In his interviews shows how insanely far with Goldberg, Obama leans to removed campaign bloviation the other side of the spectrum. is from the reality of actually He is continually stepping governing. back, starting with analyses It also reveals that the of human nature, how people performance of presidents, behave when social order especially on foreign policy, breaks down, the roots and nature of tribalism. is shaped by how leaders attach to problems. Do you see international affairs as a Some leaders are like dogs: They want to bound SDVVLRQDWHVWUXJJOHRUDFRQYHUVDWLRQDQG right in and make things happen. Some are QHJRWLDWLRQ" more like cats: They want to detach and maybe Obama shows a continual distrust of look for a pressure point here or there. passion. He doesn’t see much value in If we want to understand the dog or catlike macho bluf¿ng or chest-thumping, or in lofty qualities in candidates, we should be asking Churchillian rhetoric, or in bombings done in them a different set of questions: the name of “credibility.” He may be critical, How much do you think a president can but he is not a hater. He doesn’t even let FKDQJHWKHÀRZRIZRUOGHYHQWV" anger interfere with his appraisal of Vladimir Obama, for example, has a limited or, if Putin, praising him for being courteous and you want to put it that way, realistic view of businesslike. Because fear distorts judgment, the extent of U.S. inÀuence. He subscribes to a he seeks to place the threat of terrorism in its series of propositions that frequently push him proper perspective: More Americans die from toward nonintervention: The world “is a tough, falling in bathtubs. complicated, messy, mean place and full of Personally, I don’t think there is one correct hardship and tragedy,” he told Goldberg. You answer to whether we want a dog or a cat as can’t ¿x everything. Sometimes you can only leader. Depends on the situation; there are shine a spotlight. successful examples of both types. But I’m Furthermore, Obama argues, because of struck by how catlike Obama is. And it’s our history, U.S. military efforts are looked at striking how many Americans have responded with suspicion. Allies are unreliable. Ukraine by going for Donald Trump and Bernie is always going to be in Russia’s sphere of Sanders, who are bad versions of the bounding inÀuence, so its efforts there will always trump ours. The Middle East is a morass and no longer in/we-can-change-everything doggy type. Ŷ that important to U.S. interests. David Brooks became a New York Times Even the Iran nuclear deal is seen as a Op-Ed columnist in 2003. limited endeavor — not to reshape the Middle Does President Obama think like a cat or a dog? YOUR VIEWS Pendleton needs jobs, not more housing I am responding to Betty Brunette’s letter to the editor and the city of Pendleton’s spending $10,000 on yet another un-needed housing study. I agree with Betty. My husband and I own 128 apartment units in Pendleton. We have never had much vacancy in the approximately 11 years that we have operated in Pendleton, until this last year. The population of Pendleton is declining. People are moving out of Pendleton to jobs elsewhere. Pendleton needs more jobs, not more housing. There is no shortage of housing in Pendleton. There is currently plenty of housing for rent in Pendleton. There are numerous houses available as foreclosures in Pendleton right now. There are numerous houses for sale in Pendleton right now. The tax assessor increases our taxes every year; the water, sewer, power and insurance goes up and the garbage keeps asking for more increases; wages are headed up, thanks to the governor; supplies and materials, carpet, appliances, Àooring, paint, are all up signi¿cantly; and yet rents are stagnant in Pendleton. Who is supposed to pay for all of the increase in operating expenses if no new good jobs are coming to Pendleton? We desperately need higher rents to keep up with higher operating costs, but it is dif¿cult to raise rents when people don’t have higher paying jobs. The city of Pendleton needs to do a better job attracting employers and the city needs to spend money attracting jobs to Pendleton, and not spend money on yet another silly housing study. I can tell you as one of the largest landlords in Pendleton that is losing money as a landlord in Pendleton, because of rising costs and stagnant rents, we have no housing shortage — we have a declining population and we have a lack of jobs. Kristy Neubo Pendleton Parks help make Pendleton a great city Pendleton has amazing parks, and a great parks department that oversees and manages these wonderful assets. Some recent letters to the East Oregonian have thrown a few stones at these places, and I am sure I am in complete disagreement with their sentiments. First of all, one detractor says we spend more on our parks and manage more acreage than most towns of similar size. If his fanciful accounting is true, I think it is in fact a tremendous bragging point and recruitment piece for Pendleton. I see it as a huge positive and leaves little to enjoy for someone who would rather see a fresh coat of asphalt around town. And even if you are a fan of new blacktop, that budget needs to be addressed separately. Cutting our parks budget would not solve the infrastructure crisis, but would do a great deal in killing the livability of Pendleton. In a town that has lost numerous local physicians and professional workers as well as business interests across the board, we need to offer as many family-friendly and attractive city assets as we can to bring them back. The curb appeal of a city is a major factor in the relocation of tax-paying citizens, especially those planning to raise young families here. And yes, statues on Main Street do improve the aesthetics of our downtown area. Buses full of tourists love to park on Main and visit our restaurants and take pictures of our statues, like it or not. And the statue grants would not have ¿xed the many years of ignoring our bridges, roads and cement stairways either. In a town where businesses are closing their doors at an alarming rate and our new commerce involves mostly marijuana pipes and glassware, I would love to support the parks that I have enjoyed in every neighborhood here since I was a child growing up on the North Hill. If you haven’t been to a dog park, check out the ones on the banks of the Deschutes in Bend or in the Dry Canyon in Redmond. Just excellent examples of people enjoying the outdoors with their animal friends. Pendleton is great. Make it a point to set foot on as many parks as you can this spring and you will be a believer too. Scott McClendon Pendleton Country has maxed out its debt limit Congress four years ago passed a $2.4 trillion debt ceiling increase. It was the largest in history at the time, with the promise of future spending cuts in the coming years. The national debt since then has increased by $4 trillion, rising from $15 trillion to over $19 trillion today. The national debt credit card is nearly maxed out. This current budget cycle affords the House with an opportunity to ful¿ll their promise to spend within the previously agreed budget caps passed in the Budget Control Act of 2011. A truly responsible budget should stay within those caps, plan for the repeal of Obamacare and balance within the next ten years. At the present time, it looks like the House Republicans are preparing to cave in without even trying to pass a responsible budget. As taxpayers, we need to demand Congress to pass a responsible budget continually and not kick the can down the road. Call your representatives and encourage them to stop the spending, balance the budget, and repeal Obamacare. Donald Crawford Klamath Falls 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. Submitted letters must be signed by the author and include the city of residence and a daytime phone number. Send letters to 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastorego- nian.com.
