KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
WYATT HAUPT JR.
News Editor
JADE McDOWELL
Hermiston Editor
THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2021
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
$15 minimum
wage would
hit rural
economy hard
ulfilling a campaign promise, Joe
Biden wants to boost the federal
minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Farmers, whose livelihoods and prop-
erty are on the line, are right to be wary
of the possibilities.
Proponents suggest that employers
are able either to absorb increased labor
costs, or increase prices to offset costs
without negative impacts to employees.
It’s political claptrap.
Advocates say boosting the minimum
wage will give millions of Americans
a much-needed raise — or, at least, the
ones lucky enough to keep their jobs.
Politicians and proponents somehow miss
the fact that hard-pressed employers will
scour their operations for ways to reduce
their payrolls to offset the increase. In
addition to layoffs, many will switch to
part-time and on-call employees as ways
to save money.
Mechanization and automation, which
eliminate jobs, will also become more
attractive.
This wage hike would hurt small busi-
nesses the most. Big chains can absorb
the increase, safe in the knowledge that
their smaller competitors won’t be able to
keep up. Those smaller ag operations and
processors in labor-intensive sectors will
be forced to sell out to larger competitors.
And it’s not only businesses that will
feel the pinch. Local governments and
school districts will also have to raise
wages, or cut staff.
President Biden put his proposal to
increase the minimum wage into his $2
billion COVID relief package. He most
likely believes reluctant lawmakers —
even many moderate Democrats have
balked at the $15 figure — will have a
tougher time saying “no” if it’s wrapped
in the flag of pandemic aid.
But Congress needs to be cautious.
The result will be fewer jobs, fewer
businesses and a weaker rural econ-
omy. Putting the thousands of businesses
battered by government reaction to the
virus on a better footing makes more
sense than increasing their costs.
Those seeking higher minimum wages
want to use other people’s money to make
political points with their supporters.
Proponents of higher minimum wages
may be disappointed to find out that a
robust economy, not governmental fiat,
benefits workers most.
F
EDITORIALS
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.
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The birth of a snowflake
MARY
WISTER
EYE IN THE SKY
henever the National Weather
Service issues a winter
weather advisory or a winter
storm warning due to snow, we get
mixed reactions from the public. Some
love snow, some hate it.
No matter how a person feels about
winter weather, there is a unani-
mous fascination with
snow. Watching tril-
lions upon trillions of
snowflakes fall to the
ground and accumulate
to form piles of snow is
like watching a miracle
unfold. There is power
in numbers. A snowflake
weighs approximately
one millionth of a gram. A cubic foot
of snow contains around a billion snow
crystals. Multiply that by thousands of
square miles from a snowstorm, and the
number of snowflakes increases expo-
nentially.
To think, it all begins with a speck
of dust. As dust or other particles in a
cloud encounter freezing temperatures,
the water vapor in the cloud freezes to
the particle. The particle may get lofted
into the cloud where it could grow and
experience different temperature and
W
moisture conditions to form various
branches of the ice crystal.
Eventually, the crystal becomes
heavy enough to fall to the ground. You
may have heard the saying, “No two
snowflakes are alike.” That is scientifi-
cally true, as it’s impossible for two ice
crystals to form under the exact same
temperature and moisture conditions.
However, scientists have discovered that
many snowflakes are almost identical,
even examined under a strong micro-
scope.
All snowflakes have a six-sided
structure, which is another mesmerizing
the weather conditions to determine if
the size of snowflakes and their mois-
ture content are dependent on the air
temperature, humidity and wind (the
answer is yes).
Examine individual snowflakes on
black construction paper using a magni-
fying glass. Find the moisture content
of snow by taking a core sample of the
snow depth, then melt the snow and
pour the liquid into a rain gage. Typi-
cally, the ratio is 10:1 (that is, 0.10 inch
of liquid for every inch of snow). For the
true scientist, determine the pH levels
of snow using pH test strips. For kids of
all ages, there is a world
out there waiting to be
explored.
There are miracles
every day that we take for
granted. As you watch
snow fall from the sky,
think how one snowflake
that weighs one millionth
of a gram combine with
other tiny snowflakes and forms a
massive amount of snow in a matter of
hours.
It’s truly fascinating.
———
Mary Wister is a meteorologist and
fire weather program manager at the
National Weather Service in Pendleton.
Wister serves as an incident meteorolo-
gist when large wildfires or other natural
hazards necessitate an Incident Manage-
ment Team’s quick response to protect life
and property.
“IF WINTER MAKES YOU WANT TO
CRAWL UNDER THE COVERS AND
WAIT UNTIL SPRING, THERE ARE
WAYS TO MAKE WINTER FUN.”
fact about snow. Water vapor molecules
collected together to form ice always
form in hexagons. Depending on its life
inside the cloud, snowflakes can fall
as various six-sided shapes including
dendrites, columns and needles.
If winter makes you want to crawl
under the covers and wait until spring,
there are ways to make winter fun.
Play with snow. I’m not talking about
making snow angels (although nobody
is too old for snow angels). Be your own
scientist and research snow. Monitor
YOUR VIEWS
It’s up to all of us to make
our world better
I am an Episcopalian and a member
of Lions Club International. We believe
in peace and respect of all peoples.
It behooves all to behave in an
honorable way and respect laws. If any
of us do not, then this causes harm-
ful outcomes. So, I am expecting all
persons whom I address above and all
citizens of United States of America to
behave in this way.
Every human is a child of God and
deserves our honor.
There is entirely too much rancor,
disrespect and anger among many many
citizens in our country. If all lead-
ers, Christians (including other reli-
gions), Lions and citizens who strive
for a peaceful, strong country to be a
respected leader in the world, all of us
need to work toward this. I include all
Republicans, Democrats and any other
political persuasion to work together.
From this day forward, we all must
respect and work together. This defi-
nitely includes our White House,
Congress, Senate, Department of
Justice, Supreme Court (and all courts),
Department of Defense, etc. This defi-
nitely includes all states, their legisla-
tures, courts and etc. This includes all
past persons of any of the aforesaid in
the early part of this paragraph!
Yes, this may be hard, as we are all
fallible human beings. However, if we
are not very careful, actions taken may
(very likely) make things worse in our
wonderful country.
I sincerely believe most Ameri-
cans wish to have a country that allows
and encourages all to follow the Bill
of Rights and the Constitution of the
United States of America.
Bill Taylor
Pendleton
Rivoli story a walk down
memory lane
So pleased to hear that the Rivoli will
have a new life. The recent story brought
back many childhood memories.
When I was 10, every Saturday was
spent at a matinee at the Alta or Rivoli
theater, usually watching the “good
guys” Roy Rogers or Gene Autry, two
cartoons and newsreels that were the
window to the outside world before
television. You could stay and watch the
films as many times as you wanted. My
weekly 50-cent allowance that I worked
so hard for got me a ticket, popcorn, a
small drink and candy. Today that would
cost me about $27.
Later as a teen, one of my first jobs
was selling tickets, ushering and work-
ing the candy counter at both theaters. I
think those times were the origin of my
lifetime appreciation of films.
The Matlock family owned the
theaters then, and one year Mrs.
Matlock took a trip to New York City.
She brought back a lace handkerchief
for me from Sak’s Fifth Avenue and,
being from a small town in the West, it
was the most sophisticated thing I ever
owned then. I still have it, even though
I have made a few trips to NYC myself
since then.
Patricia Hansen Ahern
Oakly, California