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OPINION
East Oregonian
Thursday, August 17, 2017
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
OUR VIEW
A graduation
on the move
Hermiston’s senior class is
for several years now and has
fared well. But the comfort of the
busting at the seams with no relief
in sight, and for every record-setting graduates and their guests is a
concern.
class that graduates, an even larger
The other option being considered
group of freshmen comes in behind.
solves some of those problems,
This year 332 graduating seniors
but adds others. The Toyota Center
received diplomas, and each
in Kennewick has more than
was allowed to invite five family
enough space for every graduate’s
members and friends to witness the
third-cousin, great-aunt and former
occasion in the high school gym.
T-ball coach. The weather inside
In 2018, even more students are
is always perfect,
expected to walk.
and the cost will
And if the event
likely be comparable
is held at the same
Graduation
to the others once
venue, each can
should be a
transportation is
expect to distribute
finalized.
four tickets.
joyous day,
But the distance
For one of the
and we hope and timing are
biggest days in
the
these young lives,
that fact is kept problems
school district must
that’s a problem.
front of mind. address. Driving
We don’t like the
to the Tri-Cities
idea of forcing them
is no big deal for
to choose between
Hermistonians, and with some
grandparents, siblings and mentors
well-planned shuttles everyone who
when deciding who most deserves
wants to go could easily make it.
to witness the ceremony. And we
The fact that event may have to take
certainly don’t like the idea of
place on a weeknight instead of a
uncomfortably stacking these loved
Saturday morning would also hinder
ones on top of each other.
some travel plans.
Graduation should be a joyous
Maybe most importantly, the
day, and as the school board
connection of a graduating class
considers the best place to hold the
ceremony we hope they are keeping to a city should not be overlooked.
It’s one thing to hold the graduation
that front of mind.
of one of Portland’s suburban high
The two outdoor locations in
schools at a downtown venue 20
Hermiston are tempting for obvious
miles away. It’s another to ask a
reasons. Both Kennison Field and
community like Hermiston to leave
the EOTEC rodeo arena have been
the state to celebrate an implicitly
advertised as multi-use venues and
local event. That connection is
would allow a little extra elbow
important, and we understand those
room. Kennison Field, just a few
wary about such a move. Plus, the
steps from the high school gym,
community has invested heavily in
would make sense as a transitional
the aforementioned Kennison Field
location while the EOTEC arena
and EOTEC arena, and would surely
might be the long-term answer with
get an additional boost of pride to
even more seats.
see them put to such a uniquely local
Because they are both outdoors,
use.
and that’s a clear drawback. Rain is
We hope the school board listens
rarely in our forecast in early June,
to the feedback on this potential
though wind or high heat often are.
move and weighs even the intangible
The odds of a perfect day are not
certain, and the possibility of rushing community spirit and morale in the
decision.
indoors at the last moment is on the
To submit your thoughts on the
table.
graduation venue, visit the district
That’s no reason not to consider
website or www.surveymonkey.
it — Pendleton has been handing
com/r/SRW5VFV .
out diplomas at Round-Up Stadium
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.
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 211 S.E.
Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com.
OTHER VIEWS
Trump-backed immigration bill
has many critics, but voters like it
S
ome Democrats and their
percent said no and 11 percent did not
advocates in the press have been
know.
quick to denounce the RAISE
Finally, when asked if they support
Act, the new immigration reform bill
“reducing the number of legal
proposed by Republican Sens. Tom
immigrants by one-half over the next
Cotton and David Perdue and endorsed
decade,” 48 percent said yes, while 39
by President Trump.
percent said no and 14 percent did not
“The Trump, Cotton, Perdue bill
know.
is rooted in the same anti-immigrant,
“Large majorities of Americans
Byron
xenophobic, and isolationist rhetoric
have long wanted to re-orient our
York
that was a cornerstone of the Trump
immigration system toward high-
Comment
campaign,” said senior House
skilled workers, while reducing or
Democrats John Conyers and Zoe
holding steady the total number of
Lofgren.
immigrants,” Cotton said in a text exchange
“A xenophobic half-measure,” added Rep.
recently. “The RAISE Act respects this
Ed Markey.
popular consensus, unlike past efforts at
“A play to the xenophobic sentiments
immigration reform that failed in part because
that lifted Trump to the
they massively expanded
presidency,” wrote the
unskilled immigration.”
Washington Post’s Jennifer
Cotton appeared to
Rubin.
choose his words carefully
Now, though, a new
when he wrote “reducing
poll shows broad public
or holding steady the total
support for some of the bill’s
number of immigrants.” The
key provisions — support
part of the bill that would
that goes far beyond those
cut the number of legal
Americans who voted for
permanent residents from
Donald Trump.
one million to 500,000 per year is the one
The poll, from Morning Consult-Politico,
major component that doesn’t have majority
asked 1,992 registered voters about the bill’s
support in the poll, although it has more
provisions to 1) allow more high-skilled,
support than any other option. In the weeks
and fewer low-skilled, immigrants into the
and months ahead, the bill’s sponsors could
country; 2) install a points-based system
either try to build support for that provision or
by which prospective immigrants would be
compromise on the total reduction.
evaluated on the basis of English proficiency,
The Cotton-Perdue bill has of course been
level of education, and other factors; 3) cap
slammed by Democrats, but it has also been
the number of refugees allowed in the U.S.
criticized by the Republicans who wrote the
each year; and 4) reduce the total number of
Senate Gang of Eight bill in 2013, the last
immigrants given legal permanent residence
(unsuccessful) effort to pass comprehensive
in the country to 500,000 from the current one immigration reform.
million.
“I don’t want to limit legal immigration,”
The pollsters found strong majority support Gang of Eight member Marco Rubio said
for the first three, and a plurality of support for recently, predicting the new bill will not
the fourth.’
pass the Senate. Fellow Gang member
When asked if they support “placing
Lindsey Graham, from South Carolina, said
greater emphasis on an applicant’s job skills
the bill would be “devastating to our state’s
over their ties to family members in the U.S.,” economy.” John McCain, another Gang
56 percent of respondents said yes, while 31
member, opposes shifting to a high-skilled
percent said no and 13 percent did not know.
immigrant force. “I think you have to consider
When asked if they support “establishing
that we do want high-tech people, but we also
a ‘points system’ that would award points
need low-skilled people who will do what
based on criteria such as education, English-
Americans won’t do,” McCain said. And the
language ability, and prospective salary,” 61
final GOP Gang member, Jeff Flake, who
percent said yes, while 27 percent said no
describes elements of the Republican Party as
and 12 percent did not know. (Respondents
xenophobic and anti-immigrant, said the new
particularly approved an emphasis on
bill represents “the wrong direction.”
speaking English; when asked if they believe
Such opinions track those of many
an ability to speak English “should be a factor Democrats, which will make any path forward
in determining who is allowed to legally
in the Senate an uphill climb. But if the new
immigrate to the United States,” 62 percent
poll is correct — and it is in line with similar
said yes, while 29 percent said no and 10
surveys going back years — the bill’s authors
percent did not know.)
have the voters on their side.
When asked if they support “limiting
■
the number of refugees offered permanent
Byron York is chief political correspondent
residency,” 59 percent said yes, while 31
for The Washington Examiner.
Support goes far
beyond those
who voted for
Donald Trump.
OTHER VIEWS
Suggestion box needed for 2018 county fair
By TOM MARKS
I
nitially this op-ed was intended
to be titled “What do we need
to do to get our county fair
back?” Upon delivering entries to
the event center, this writer was
astonished and appalled. After
spending four days at the fair this
opinion may have been changed ...
a bit.
Regardless of the spin that
officials selling the EOTEC
project tried to throw at the public
when the site and buildings were
conceived, reality has been a
shock. We were told that the
amount of square feet lost (at the
old site) and the amount that would
be available at EOTEC would
balance out or be better at EOTEC.
On arriving at the event center,
one finds that while the floral
and land produce departments
previously enjoyed a full building,
they were now consigned to a long
narrow hall, poorly lit at best.
Formerly occupying half a
large building, children’s open
class exhibits were crammed in a
small corner of the EOTEC lobby.
Preserved foods were similarly
treated, cramped into a poorly
lit hallway instead of the roomy
display area previously enjoyed.
Open class photography and
fine arts have separate rooms, yet
the square feet available felt greatly
reduced. Fabric arts and general
open class entries share a room,
but again the space available was
cramped. Quilts, in particular,
overflowed the allotted room and
some entries ended up on racks
along the same hallway as the
preserved foods. This, even though
caretakers at the rooms and halls
freely admitted that entries were
down from previous years.
FFA and 4-H, previously
enjoying the entirety of Thompson
Hall and all its facilities, were
pushed to the back of the event
center in, at best, cramped quarters.
At least with regard to all
these departments, the promise of
EOTEC of “bigger, better, more
up-to-date” has proven hollow.
About the best that could be said
in comparison to the previous
downtown site is that the new one
is adequately air conditioned.
That is not to say that the many,
many people involved in putting
on the event didn’t do the best with
what they had to work with. They
did. The effort needed to put on
this year’s fair has to be applauded.
The department chairs, the people
sitting long hours tending exhibits,
the countless volunteers doing
multiple jobs without complaint
and for the most part without overt
recognition must
be recognized and
thanked.
Outside the
event center, things
were more in line
with what we had
been promised
at the EOTEC
site. Commercial
displays were well
plotted, accessible,
if spread to the
point that good
walking shoes were
a must. The lack of shade to relax
in was a challenge for many, but
the Hermiston Rotary Club has
committed to planting trees before
next year’s fair.
The rodeo grounds were a
pleasant surprise, with much of the
facilities from the downtown site
being moved wholesale to EOTEC.
To sit in the reserved seating or box
seats, it felt very much like the old
venue.
The Rotary Club has been
tapped with selling admission
tickets for many years. They
might wish to invest in insulation
for the ticket booths before the
tree project.
Ticket booths,
uninsulated and out
in the sun, were
unaffectionately
thought of as
“Sweatbox 1 and
2” by those who
worked within
them.
Lastly, in a
column some
years ago, this
writer wondered
about parking at
the EOTEC site. To lament the
nightmare of the parking situation
would be to beat a dead horse. It
was and probably will continue to
be a challenge. To require fairgoers
to pay to tramp through dust and
grit to even access the shuttles is
unacceptable.
Many of the
issues with the
fair this year
can be put off
to “first year
blues.”
Some cannot.
As anticipated, access and
egress were horrid. The exit road at
places felt as if it should have had
a “4-wheel drive recommended”
sign. To their credit, the fair board
“tweaked” the access and egress
beginning at Day 3 and it helped
some.
In talking to the county
commissioners and fair board, one
was met with slightly defensive
attitudes and their watchwords for
the event: “Add it to the list for
improvements next year!”
Yes, many of the needs and
issues with the fair this year can be
put off to “first year blues.” Some
cannot. The fair has not hired
a manager at this writing. The
membership of the EOTEC board
is not independent of the city and
county, causing inevitable conflicts
of interest.
As I confessed at the beginning
of this commentary, originally the
title was to be: “What can we do
to get our old fair back?” In future
years that title might soften; time
will tell.
■
Tom Marks is a resident of
Hermiston.