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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 14, 2018)
Page 4A East Oregonian Saturday, April 14, 2018 KATHRYN B. BROWN Publisher DANIEL WATTENBURGER Managing Editor TIM TRAINOR Opinion Page Editor Founded October 16, 1875 OTHER VIEWS The White Helmets and brutalized Syria U ntil chemical weapons are population to capitulate. used, we tend to forget how The White Helmets are composed much daily destruction and of 3,000 Syrian volunteers who death afflict millions of Syrian chose to stay in Syria and to save civilians as President Bashar others. They were ordinary people al-Assad pursues, with Russian from every walk of life — tailors, military help, his intense bombing blacksmiths, teachers, carpenters, campaigns against remaining rebel university students, doctors and blue areas. The White Helmets are a civil Harriet collar workers. They got their start defense team who are heroes in that in 2011 with the popular uprising Isom beleaguered country as they respond against Assad when towns were seized Comment to as many as 35 attacks a day. Via by rebel groups and the government hand-held and helmet cameras, they began the bombing attacks. also expose the atrocities, including the report From those multiple teams grew a unified recently of dozens apparently killed in a national organization called Syrian National chemical attack near Damascus. Defense or White Helmets, formed in 2014. When I think of the White Helmets of It is nonsectarian, neutral and unarmed. Syria, I see them in my mind’s eye digging Their motto is “To save a life is to save all of in the rubble of bombed out buildings, humanity.” attempting to find and rescue people still Support and training quickly came from alive in that rubble — trapped, injured, abroad, first from the Mayday Rescue bleeding, suffocating. Worse, videos from Foundation established by former British the White Helmets are showing victims from Army officer James Le Mesurier. Funding the chemical attacks in agony with foaming help followed from multiple countries, mouths. including the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and Japan. Training is done in southern Turkey. Assad and his family have ruled Syria White Helmets have rescued at least for years by striking fear into the population. Before the civil war began eight years ago, 60,000 people from danger areas. They their primary tool was the all-powerful secret have lost some 200 volunteers to the aerial police. Now the tools are bombs. The most bombardments and assassinations. Naturally, damaging bombs are the barrel bombs tossed they are very unpopular with the Assad out of helicopters or war planes and filled with regime and Russia. Russian state media nails and metal, explosives and sometimes has launched a worldwide propaganda chemicals such as chlorine or sarin. It’s not campaign to discredit the White Helmets as military positions of the rebels or of ISIS they “terrorists” or just actors “staging rescues.” go after. But rather they deliberately target True to propaganda form, the Russian Foreign civilians, homes, hospitals, markets, bakeries, Ministry called this week’s report of a shops and, of course, the White Helmets. chemical attack a “hoax” designed to protect It’s a tactic whose aim is to force the “terrorists.” Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP, File This April 8 file image released by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets, shows victims of an alleged chemical weapons attack collapsed on the floor of a building in the rebel-held town of Douma, near Damascus, Syria. On a happier note, the White Helmets have received very positive treatment. They were nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2016. And in 2017, documentaries about them won prizes at the U.S. Academy Awards and at the Sundance Film Festival. As to the war in Syrian areas where White Helmets still can operate, there was a discouraging press report in late March about Idlib near the Turkish border. It is Syria’s largest remaining rebel-held area and may prove to be the place where the revolution against Assad ends. It contains a motley mix of displaced civilians, defeated rebels, hard-line jihadists and those who accept a surrender deal the Assad government is offering to fleeing civilians from rebel areas of eastern Damascus. It has been sending tens of thousands of those Syrians on a one-way bus trip to Idlib. What a choice for them: Since hard line jihadists have the upper hand there, residents are caught between government attacks from the sky and the overbearing role of jihadists on the ground. Assad’s military, with the usual help from Russia, is expected soon to make a final effort to crush Idlib. Can Assad be made to pay a “big price” after his latest use of chemical weapons, as currently threatened by the U.S. and Western allies? We would fervently hope so. But it has never proved easy to inflict lasting damage on Assad. The Syrian air base hit by President Trump’s cruise missile attack last spring was rebuilt in just a few days. Assad might be temporarily stopped, but most analysts believe he has both the resolve and help from Russia and Iran to return to his brutal aerial assaults against civilians. In retrospect, I wish that the U.S. government had established a no-fly zone back in the Obama Administration, before the Russians dared to step into the war so prominently on Assad’s side. ■ Harriet Isom is a former U.S. ambas- sador who live on the family ranch outside Pendleton. OTHER VIEWS Tax dollars for napping D YOUR VIEWS McLeod-Skinner has campaign success, governance experience On May 15 citizens of eastern and southern Oregon will vote in our primary election to select who will run for the District 2 U.S. Congress position in November. Whoever fills this position in 2019 will help determine the affordability of your medical insurance and represent your rural values in the U.S. Congress. On the Democratic side, Jamie McLeod-Skinner stands out as a skilled and savvy campaigner, who can bring a powerful contest to bear for the current District 2 congressional seat. Jamie has campaigned before for public office, and won, and she currently has a powerful team working with her in her bid to be our next U.S. representative. Jamie McLeod-Skinner is tireless campaigner, bringing her message again and again to the people of eastern and southern Oregon. She believes in face-to-face conversation, and would like to talk with, and represent, every person in our district. While Jamie is experienced in local government, and effectively addresses rural issues, she never leaves people out of the political equation. She speaks strongly to rural values, farm and ranch values, and the health and wellbeing of the people who live in Oregon’s congressional District 2. Jamie McLeod-Skinner is the strong and skilled competitor required to secure the District 2 congressional seat, and to represent us all in the U. S. legislature. Patty Jones Pilot Rock Murdock deserves another term As mayor of Hermiston, I’m pleased endorse George Murdock in his bid for a second full term as Umatilla County commissioner. Hermiston and Umatilla County in general have benefited from his leadership and experience. He is a man of his word and delivers on his promises. Recently, he has been the key figure in creating a win-win agreement regarding EOTEC. He worked openly and cooperatively with the city to forge a long-term solution that bodes well for our community, and that simplifies the management of EOTEC while still providing the county with a beautiful new home for the fair. More recently, he was the county leader in helping frame an infrastructure project that will help solve our housing shortage by using funds from the Lamb- Weston expansion project to invest in infrastructure to create positive economic growth and development. Anyone can identify problems. The real issue is finding solutions. In my mind, George Murdock has earned our vote to a second full term as commissioner. Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East Oregonian editorial board. Other columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily that of the East Oregonian. Dave Drotzmann Hermiston ear Government: me a co-conspirator. Enclosed please find my I want to be proud of how my 2017 tax form, and a check for money is spent, not afraid that it can the amount I owe, just ahead of the and will be used against me. deadline. Can’t wait to see what you’re The biggest stuff — gazillions going to do with my contribution, for defense, massive subsidies for though I have some idea based on the agriculture conglomerates, a down $1.3 trillion spending bill passed last payment on the vanity border wall month. Timothy — just seems beyond my capacity for I realize I’m in the stubborn and targeted outrage. Egan probably stupid minority of Americans It’s the small change that rattles Comment who still do their own income tax my civic soul. Take Pruitt, the return. No doubt, I’m missing out on Environmental Protection Agency some dodges, and making mistakes as well. dismantler in chief — please. The first-class Such is the cost of duty with this citizenship travel on my dime, the $42,000 to build a super thing. secret phone booth, the attempt to drop $70,000 Also, given that I’m not happy you’re on two desks — enough! But now we find spending my money on things like protection of out he wanted to use a siren in his bulletproof, Scott Pruitt’s afternoon nap, I like to think that taxpayer-financed auto fleet to get to dinner at self-filing gives me the right to complain more his favorite French restaurant, Le Diplomat. than usual. Because of Pruitt’s paranoia, his security I see you’re still punishing me for working detail costs about $3 million a year. Do you — taxing wages and business income at a know how many trails the National Park much higher rate than the money I make doing Service could repair with that? Well, of course nothing, like holding stocks. Plus, you’re still you do, you’re The Government. And those taxing Warren Buffett at a lower rate than his millions don’t include the door — $2,460 to secretary, despite his plea for fairness. replace — that was broken down when Pruitt’s And please, no lectures about underpaying bodyguards mistook an afternoon nap for a my quarterlies. You are a world-class deadbeat. medical emergency. Which raises the question: You’re running an $800 billion deficit this fiscal Why are they guarding his naps? year, and that will swell to more than $1 trillion If Pruitt truly needed dictator-level security in coming years, thanks to the Republican and motorcades, he wouldn’t fly coach when tax cut. By 2023, it will cost more to pay the he’s traveling on his own dime. He gouges us because Trump thinks he’s doing an outstanding interest on your debt than all but a handful of job not enforcing clean air and water laws. government functions. “I hate what they do with our tax money!” So I guess you’re modeling yourself after That was Trump in 2016. Now he’s on track to President Donald Trump, who has called spend more of our money on leisure travel than himself “the king of debt.” Also, he’s expert any president, ever. In the first 13 months of at con games, stiffing contractors, and running his presidency, it cost us about $40 million in casinos into the ground. As he’s shown, those flights and security for him to go to Mar-a-Lago skills are certainly transferable. I’m supposed to feel better about the tax bill on weekends. When he golfs at his place in Bedminster, New Jersey, it’s almost a million I’ll be paying this time next year, with lower rates. But I’ll take a hit under the new deduction per trip, all costs included. The Secret Service is limits on state and local taxes. And since you’re spending $100,000 on golf cart rentals alone. What would make me feel a little better is if getting rid of the individual mandate, my health someone there in The Government would finish care premiums will go up as well. Thanks, Trump’s audit so he can release his tax return, non-Obama. as promised two years ago. When you audited All of this would be fine if I felt better me, I sat down with a nice lady and a calculator, about our shared enterprise, which is looking and we finished up before my coffee got cold. sketchier and more gangster-like by the day. If But then, I didn’t have nearly as many cryptic you could, please don’t spend my money on business expenses marked “other.” the personal vendettas, institutional lies and If any problems arise with my return, please attempts to protect the criminals associated with contact Mark Zuckerberg, as he knows more Trump. about me than I do. It’s one thing for the president’s personal Sincerely, A Taxpayer. fixer, Michael D. Cohen, to threaten to “come at ■ you, grab you by the neck” when not involving Timothy Egan worked for 18 years as a government service. But once you start using writer for The New York Times, first as the public money from the executive branch to Pacific Northwest correspondent, then as a bully law enforcement into backing off their national enterprise reporter. investigations of thug life, then you’ve made 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. 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.