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OPINION
East Oregonian
Tuesday, November 14, 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
OUR VIEW
Pie in the sky,
costs on the ground
Governor’s energy orders set unrealistic construction standards
Gov. Kate Brown issued two
Construction Code requirements.
By October 2023, new residences
executive orders last week that
would have to consume no more
she said would reduce greenhouse
emissions while supporting Oregon’s energy than they generate.
By October 2025, new
economy.
commercial structures would have to
The environmental aspects were
obvious. The economic ones? Not
safely reuse water for irrigation.
so much. The Governor’s Office has
Those changes, and others,
yet to release any analysis of how
during the next two to eight years
her fiats would affect the economy,
sound good in theory. Brown
especially construction costs.
says Oregonians will save money
That should concern Oregonians. on utility costs and — with the
emphasis on electric
So too should
vehicles — on
the governor’s
The Governor’s
fuel. There also are
decision to bypass
that some
the Legislature in
Office has yet to provisions
requirements could
revising the state
be temporarily
building code.
release any
delayed if the costs
As head of the
analysis of how her are “significant,”
executive branch,
although that term is
Brown certainly was
fiats would
left undefined.
within her rights to
expand purchases
affect the economy, But in
practicality, this
of electric vehicles
especially
seems like a classic
for state use and to
of putting the
require increased
construction costs. case
cart — in this case,
energy efficiency
an electric one —
when the state
before the horse. Brown provided
builds or remodels its government
buildings. The Legislature ultimately no evidence that her executive
orders involved give-and-take
will decide whether to fund those
discussions with the construction
decisions.
industry, private property owners
But in her 17 pages of executive
and other Oregonians throughout
orders, Brown also demanded
the state.
changes to building regulations that
If state government wants to place
affect all construction in Oregon,
unfunded mandates on itself, that’s
including requiring that new
one thing. But it’s quite different to
buildings be ready for installation
of solar panels. That mandate would put those mandates on the private
sector without first understanding the
take effect in October 2020 for
resulting financial and social costs.
residences and October 2022 for
Running a business, especially
commercial buildings.
By January 2020, high-efficiency a small business, is tough enough
in Oregon. So is getting a housing
water fixtures would be required in
development to break ground in
new buildings.
Eastern Oregon. Every government
By October 2022, new
mandate increases both the cost and
commercial buildings would have
uncertainty of doing business.
to exceed International Green
Roy Moore should face
defamation suit from God
F
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.
or decades, one of the most
Looking back, some of the grossest
sanctimonious moralizers in U.S.
immorality of the late 20th century had
politics has been Roy Moore, the
nothing to do with gay bath houses, as
longtime Bible-thumper in Alabama
preachers sometimes suggested, but
who crusaded against gays, transgender
rather with the blowhard televangelists
people, Islam and “sexual perversion.”
who suggested that AIDS was God’s
Moore suggested just this year that
punishment of gay men. This smirking
the 9/11 terror attacks were God’s
moralizing slowed the response to
punishment because “we legitimize
Nicholas AIDS and arguably resulted in millions
sodomy.” He has said homosexuality
Kristof dying unnecessarily all over the world.
is “the same thing” as sex with a cow
In my columns, I’ve repeatedly
Comment
and should be criminalized, and argued
defended evangelical Christians and
that Rep. Keith Ellison should not be
protested that they are one of the few
allowed to serve in Congress because he is a
groups that it’s socially acceptable for liberals
Muslim.
to mock, stereotype and discriminate against.
All the while, Moore seems to have been
Some liberals still haven’t forgiven me for my
the king of hypocrisy. The Washington Post
“Hug an Evangelical” column 13 years ago.
published a devastating account of how he
But I find it infuriating to see some evangelicals
initiated a sexual encounter with a 14-year-old
now downplaying child molestation or our
schoolgirl.
president’s boasts of sexual assault.
The victim said that Moore, then a
We all make compromises — I supported
32-year-old assistant district attorney, drove
Bill Clinton in 1992 over George H.W.
the girl to his house, removed her clothes and
Bush, whom I thought was personally more
touched her sexually. Under Alabama law,
moral — but that doesn’t require downplaying
that apparently constitutes sexual abuse in the
the inexcusable. I used to complain that
second degree. If you want an example of a
conservatives believe that morality is about
politician who lost support and was arrested
only personal behavior, while liberals believe
for less egregious behavior, consider Anthony
it is only about policy positions, while actually
Weiner, the former Democratic member of
it’s about both. Sadly, some of the “family
Congress, who is now in prison for sexting a
values” conservatives now don’t seem to care
15-year-old girl.
about either private or public morality.
The Post found three other women who said
If evangelical Christians want to engage
that Moore pursued them when he was in his
in activism, they needn’t support hypocrites
30s and they were teenagers. The women did
and bigots; they can support lifesaving
not contact The Post and were initially reluctant organizations like World Vision or African
to speak.
Mission Healthcare Foundation, or fight human
Moore denies the accusations as
trafficking by supporting International Justice
“completely false” — and promptly tried to
Mission, or reduce abortions by backing
use them for fundraising. My reaction was that
the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and
Moore should have spent less time thundering
Unplanned Pregnancy.
about the Ten Commandments and more time
As it happened, just before the revelations
reading them.
about Moore became public, I visited leaders
This is of course a larger pattern in
of an inspiring tri-faith project in Omaha,
American life. As one reader put it on my
Nebraska, where a church, a synagogue and a
Facebook page: “Those who moralize most, sin mosque are partnering on a shared site to build
most.”
empathy and understanding. I asked the pastor
That’s not always true, and sanctimonious
involved, the Rev. Eric Elnes, for his reaction
hypocrites inhabit the left as well as the right:
to Moore.
Harvey Weinstein participated in a “women’s
“Blazing with self-righteous indignation
march.” But we’re at a watershed moment in
toward others is often what people use to hide
the aftermath of the Weinstein case, trying to
their own sins in the shadows,” Elnes said.
end impunity for sexual assault, and allegations “This is probably why Jesus’ biggest problem
against our leaders are even more serious than
— by far — was with the self-righteous. When
those against our entertainers. And, frankly,
it came to those whom society cast away as
it’s just staggering to see “family values”
‘sinners,’ Jesus was repeatedly gentle, gracious,
conservatives making excuses for child
encouraging and forgiving, but he continually
molestation.
castigated the self-righteous.”
The Alabama state auditor, a Republican
Elnes added: “I’ve never understood why
named Jim Ziegler, defended Moore as “clean
certain Christians are so eager to turn the
as a hound’s tooth” and offered a bizarre
United States into a Christian country when
defense of child abuse: He asserted that the
their time would be so much better spent
Virgin Mary was a teenager when Joseph
turning their churches into Christian churches.”
married her (in fact, the Bible does not indicate
Roy Moore today is a challenge for those
her age), adding: “They became parents of
who see themselves as good and decent
Jesus.”
people of faith: If you find yourself excusing
Sigh. When Christians cite the Bible to
child molestation, then you are driven not by
defend child molestation, Jesus should sue for
morality or faith, but simply by the emptiest
defamation.
kind of tribalism.
Meanwhile, an Alabama Republican
■
legislator, Ed Henry, went even further: He
Nicholas D. Kristof, a columnist for The
said that the women accusing Moore should
Times since 2001, is a two-time Pulitzer
be prosecuted for waiting to make their
Prize winner who grew up on a sheep farm in
allegations.
Yamhill, Oregon.
YOUR VIEWS
Westland needs a farmer
like Jack Bellinger
Much can be said for Jack Bellinger’s
experience and impact as a director on the
Westland Board. However, I would also like
to highlight his excellent contributions as a
member of the local community.
A skilled and hardworking farmer, Jack
has expanded his second generation farm
from small scale to a thriving 900-acre
operation. Watermelons are among Bellinger
Farms’ most familiar offerings, and the
Bellinger shop just outside of Hermiston is
another familiar marker in the community.
In recent years, Jack and his wife expanded
the shop further to include the Gathering
Place restaurant.
Jack runs a successful farm and business
with the community in mind. This is
exactly the type of individual Westland
needs on its board of directors. He is a great
communicator and willing listener who
welcomes patron feedback and comments.
This is illustrated through his offer to
meet with groups of district patrons to
discuss concerns and answer questions.
Jack understands the local region and the
importance of water to it.
Jack approaches his position on the
Westland board of directors the same way
he approaches his business and farming
endeavors: with a strong work ethic,
well-informed insights, and a continued
willingness to improve and succeed. I
encourage patrons of Westland Irrigation
District to cast their vote next Tuesday to
re-elect Jack Bellinger.
Jake Madison
Echo
Movers, shakers and my friends
Recently, I was approached by a local
citizen who was plenty upset after reading a
recent letter I had written that was published
in the East Oregonian. Apparently he feels
that I’m too sarcastic in my criticism of some
actions taken by our City Hall. I explained
that I was just expressing not only my views,
but also those of friends and acquaintances.
That was when he set me straight, letting me
know that I was hanging around with the
wrong people and making comments that
were dividing the city. His parting remarks
were, grow up, get with it, and support
the local “movers and shakers” of the
community because they know what’s best
for everyone.
My self-confidence was shaken to learn
that since childhood, I had been associating
with the wrong people. It turns out that
the education I received in the Pendleton
public school system regarding democratic
principles was nothing but hogwash, and that
real world experience, mostly military duty
overseas, meant nothing. Evidently, what I
needed was his strong dose of reality to set
me on the right path.
Actually, after the last election I was
somewhat optimistic that politics as usual
was in for a change. Goals were established
to correct the neglect of city buildings
and infrastructure. Goals that made sense.
Activities such as Pendleton Bike Week,
the summer concert series, Oktoberfest and
Cattle Barons Weekend were maturing on
the tourism front, and the UAV program
began to produce results at the airport.
However, with all this new prosperity, I
fear City Hall is losing its focus and drifting
away from their established goals, shifting
its support to expensive private or special
interest projects that benefit few.
We’ve taken on a lot of debt with
the infrastructure updates and airport
construction projects. Projects at the airport,
financed partially with a large state grant that
the governor presented with great fanfare,
which will most likely turn in to a loan
that must be repaid for the failure to create
the required number of jobs. Infrastructure
loans that we, you and I, must repay directly
through increased utility rates and fees.
Consequently, it’s time for City Hall to
refocus on those agreed-upon goals and
start by saying “no” to those nonprofits and
committees asking for funding of projects
that have little public support.
As for those “movers and shakers?” I
think I’d rather keep with the friends and
acquaintances I’ve made growing up here.
Rick Rohde
Pendleton
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 newspa-
per reserves the right to withhold letters that address concerns about individual ser-
vices 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.