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OPINION
East Oregonian
Friday, February 17, 2017
OTHER VIEWS
Founded October 16, 1875
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Publisher
DANIEL WATTENBURGER
Managing Editor
TIM TRAINOR
Opinion Page Editor
MARISSA WILLIAMS
Regional Advertising Director
MARCY ROSENBERG
Circulation Manager
JANNA HEIMGARTNER
Business Office Manager
MIKE JENSEN
Production Manager
Tip of the hat;
kick in the pants
OUR VIEW
As Thursday’s editorial “How best to spend $397,000” was being written, Umatilla
County Commissioners were meeting with members
of the Umatilla Special Transportation Advisory
Committee and citizens who were concerned with the
committee’s disbursement of funds.
The gist of yesterday’s editorial was imploring
commissioners to do just that.
In the meeting, commissioners heard public
concerns and sent the committee back to consider
alternatives, as we hoped they would. The committee
will bring back a new proposal to commissioners
March 8, and they have new guidelines for how best
to do that.
We tip of our hat to commissioners for doing the additional work necessary to
make sure a sizable sum of tax dollars are spent wisely.
A kick in the pants to reticence on the part of the Milton-Freewater City
Council to accept free money to bring clean
water to a local trailer park.
“We need to find a way not to be a gift to a
person who has made an art form of externalizing
costs,” councilor Ed Chestnut said at a meeting
last week.
Trailer park owner Nancy Shaw responded:
“As far as I’m concerned you can stay out of
my park. ... I’m just offended with your adverse
comments and adverse remarks.”
It’s clear that the disagreement between the city
and the trailer park owner has become personal,
which is inhibiting a solution that benefits all
involved.
Shaw would get clean water to her property, which is desperately needed. The city
gets significant, expensive infrastructure at little cost that can benefit Milton-Freewater
well into the future.
And while it’s clear that doing something for someone who may be undeserving
can sting, each side has something to gain from looking past some things and taking
advantage of an offer too good to refuse.
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.
YOUR VIEWS
First Amendment is
first for a reason
Recently there has been a
national trend towards limiting free
speech from the political right. This
movement manifests in a broad array of
circumstances, including national and
regional politics, state organizations,
nonprofits and personal conversations.
It seems that wherever one looks
there is evidence of the need of social
conservatives to prevent people from
expressing their minds. A few examples
would include the President’s outrage
over ‘fake news’; internet trolls attacking
factual accounts of peaceful public
protests, and local politicians threatening
to withdraw support from organizations
whose members they simply disagree
with. And of course Tuesday’s letter to
the editor in this newspaper calling for
“penalties provided on reporting in such
a biased and untrue method.”’
The authors of the United States
Constitution were students of the
enlightenment and understood that free
speech is both a bulwark against tyranny
as well as a path towards scientific
progress.
They knew that no tyrant can long
survive the bright light of the truth,
and scientific insights require open,
unfettered communication. Every person
who uses a cellular phone owes a debt
not just to the capitalist who sold it to
them but also the scientists and engineers
who built it using information and
conversations which were not limited by
the government.
And also, of course, we should note
that those governments and groups
that the United States claims to oppose
universally hold that free speech should
be limited or outright forbidden. So the
more we oppose free speech, the more
we begin to look like our sworn enemies.
Finally, here’s the first amendment as
a reminder:
“Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble, and to
petition the Government for a redress of
grievances.”
Andrew Picken
Pendleton
Bad press the response
to bad policies
In response to the Feb. 13 letter from
James Tiede:
No one is really at war with Donald
Trump. I remember back in the old days
I used to think just like you do, that the
big bad ol’ local newspaper is doing us
all a disservice by printing their own
opinions on clearly marked opinion
pages.
But I’ve learned my lesson, and I
must say thanks for not just smashing me
out of the gate East Oregonian staff.
The fact of the matter is that in the
United States there exist laws that protect
media from the government. The only
time that does not apply is in cases of
libel, but in our great state of Oregon, an
affirmative defense (the one that always
works) to charges of libel is the truth.
The office of the president has been
doing things that many of us realize
are more than a bit unconstitutional. It
doesn’t matter who you voted for, the
constitution is the bar by which we judge
government actions.
If Trump shapes up, the bad press will
cease.
James Tibbets
Pendleton
Why tie farmers’ hands
when it comes to GMOs?
Response to “Preemption of local
GMO regulations must remain”
While admitting harms from GE
contamination, the East Oregonian
wants to leave farmers’ hands tied to
prevent contamination.
GE crop contamination is undeniable.
It jeopardizes the livelihoods of farmers
whose markets reject the technology,
like organic and (not mentioned)
conventional crops for export — and
this paper’s editors admit that. They
also admit that the victimized farmers’
fears are reasonable, and that some
regulation is needed to prevent such
cross-contamination.
Why then would these same editors
not advocate for the rights of farmers and
local communities — the people who
have experienced these harms directly
— to protect themselves? Do Oregon
farmers and voters have an emotional
investment in the issue?
Absolutely, and that is precisely why
they can and should be trusted to decide
what is best for their local agricultural
economy.
Sometimes good neighbors can work
out conflicts, but multinational chemical
corporations who engineer and sell GE
crops have proven that they are not good
neighbors. It is disturbing that our editors
seem to be on their side, and want to
continue to tie hands of Oregon farmers.
Well, Trump watchers,
things could be worse
I know a lot of you were saying
couldn’t come up with a consistent
in December that this administration
cover story for why Flynn left. His
wouldn’t last a month. But I’ll bet
press secretary said Trump had
you didn’t actually have “worry about
requested Flynn’s resignation due to a
collapse of the government” written
“trust issue.” But when Trump showed
down on your schedule for February.
up in person, he seemed to believe
Americans who went into a state
the whole thing was orchestrated by
of shock after the election are now
“the fake media” and a different chief
floating in new, hitherto-uncharted
executive from another planet.
Gail
“It’s really a sad thing that he was
realms of worry. We’ve learned that
Collins
treated so badly,” the president told the
Donald Trump’s national security
Comment
press conference. “People are trying
adviser, Michael Flynn, talked with
to cover up for a terrible loss that the
the Russians before the inauguration.
Democrats had under Hillary Clinton.”
And, sources told The New York Times, other
Being stuck with a loony, unqualified
Trump associates also talked with Russian
president seemed less threatening when
intelligence officers during the campaign.
we were under the assumption that he’d be
What about Trump himself? Any chance
that he encouraged Flynn to chat with the
surrounded by at least some people who knew
Russian ambassador about policy before he
what they were doing. Now, the more of them
was president? Wouldn’t that
we meet, the less secure we
be, um, super-illegal?
feel. Trump has a senior
Wow. If you thought
policy adviser, Stephen
a successful President
Miller, who sounds like a
Trump was the worst
really unpopular college
possible scenario, imagine
sophomore complaining
an egomaniac who feels
about his grades. He had a
national security adviser who
threatened with being a
said he couldn’t remember
“loser,” back to the wall.
for sure whether he talked
In the interest of public
with the Russian ambassador
tranquility we will not dwell
about American sanctions
on the nuclear codes in his
before the inauguration.
office.
Well, at least the National
From the start, the Trump
Security Council still has Steve Bannon.
administration was a dark combination of
So how do we keep our cool when our
mean and inept. But it was, on occasion, at
world is overheating? Try reminding yourself
least sort of mesmerizing. For instance, on
Wednesday the nominee for secretary of labor that there are things in this world that are not
Donald Trump’s fault:
went down the drain. Because somebody
A) Beyoncé losing the Grammys.
thought it was a good plan to go for a
B) Collapse of Chipotle stock.
Cabinet member with a history that includes
C) Playboy half brother of North Korean
employing an unauthorized immigrant
dictator murdered in possible assassination
housekeeper and an ex-wife who once went
by poison-needle-wielding women.
on “Oprah” to talk about spousal abuse.
Life could always be worse. You could be
Things are so dire, people are feeling
sympathy for Kellyanne Conway. Did you see related to supreme leader Kim Jong Un. And
you can’t pin North Koreans on the Trump
that poor woman trying to answer questions
administration yet. Except for the part where
about Flynn on the “Today” show? She
looked as though she’d been hit over the head our president dealt with the crisis over their
new ballistic missile while dining at Mar-a-
with a skillet.
Lago in front of throngs of resort guests and
Back in the good old days last week,
Kellyanne was in trouble for violating the rule their Facebook friends.
It is true that Trump and Kim Jong Un
against federal officials giving endorsements.
both share an affinity for peculiar haircuts
(“I’m going to give a free commercial here:
and public shows of adoration. And if
Go buy it today, everybody. You can find it
the North Korean press were allowed to
online.”) It was a pretty good crisis, actually.
actually report stuff, the people there would
The kind of thing we could have complained
undoubtedly also be holding their heads in
about at dinner parties for a month without
their hands and moaning, “Oh God, what
losing our appetites.
next????”
The majority of American voters who
But let’s dwell on the positive. At least
didn’t support Donald Trump used to watch
him on TV with a kind of cynical amusement Trump doesn’t have any half brothers. And
did you hear the German shepherd won the
as he bragged about fake election results and
Westminster dog show? How about that “La
crowd sizes. Now every time it happens you
La Land”?
can’t help thinking — wow, is this guy really
No fair mentioning there are only three
unhinged? On Wednesday, in the middle of a
years and 44 weeks to go.
news conference with the prime minister of
■
Israel, Trump responded to a question about
Gail Collins joined The New York Times
anti-Semitism in America by immediately
in 1995 as a member of the editorial board
pointing out he had won 306 Electoral
and later as an Op-Ed columnist. In 2001 she
College votes. (“We were not supposed to
became the first woman ever appointed editor
crack 220.”)
of the Times’s editorial page.
And the president was so out to sea he
Life could
be worse.
You could
be related to
supreme leader
Kim Jong Un.
Amy van Saun
Portland
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. 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.