ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
PHIL WRIGHT
News Editor
JADE McDOWELL
Hermiston Editor
SATURDAY, JUNE 26, 2021
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Tip of
the hat,
kick in
the pants
A
tip of the hat to anyone trying to
help everyone stay healthy through
the intense heat wave that started
this weekend.
Temperatures in Umatilla County could
reach as high as 115 degrees next week,
depending on what forecast you’re reading.
That level of heat can be deadly, particu-
larly for the elderly, children, animals and
those with underlying medical conditions.
Now would be a good time to familiar-
ize yourself with the available information
on hot weather preparation, including signs
of heat stroke and ways to prevent your air
conditioner from working harder than it
needs to. Check on your neighbors, home-
less residents, people without air-condi-
tioned transportation and those who work
outdoors. See if they need a bottle of water
or a cool place to sit down.
Kudos to air conditioning repair employ-
ees, utility workers, emergency medi-
cal personnel and others working to keep
everyone at a safe temperature this week.
A kick in the pants to Umatilla County
for being one of the last counties in the state
still considered high risk for contracting
COVID-19.
We know, thanks to scientists all over
the world who have studied this virus
intensely over the past year and a half, how
to stop the spread of COVID-19. Too many
people in this county are refusing to do
those things. The result is continued restric-
tions on local businesses and additional
danger for local residents, who don’t always
have the choice to stay home.
A tip of the hat to Blue Mountain
Community College for its energy-saving
efforts.
The college was one of the earli-
est participants to join Energy Trust of
Oregon’s Strategic Energy Management
program, which provides free help to busi-
nesses and other organizations in keeping
their energy consumption down.
BMCC has reported saving tens of thou-
sands of dollars since joining the program,
through innovations that include schedul-
ing heating, air conditioning and lighting
down to the room, making sure the college
isn’t paying to make empty spaces comfort-
able for people who aren’t actually there.
As businesses bring more people back to
the office, we encourage them to consider
similar measures, or at least simple steps
like turning off the light when a room is not
in use.
A tip of the hat to blood donors. The
Red Cross is stating the country is in a
“severe” blood shortage at the moment, and
is encouraging everyone to donate if they
can.
Donating blood saves lives. If you’re
able, make plans to do so soon.
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.
LETTERS
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:
editor@eastoregonian.com,
or via mail to Andrew Cutler,
211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801
YOUR VIEWS
Anti-animal ag initiative
is a very bad idea
I read an article a few weeks ago
about Initiative Petition 13 (“Anti-an-
imal ag initiative raises alarm among
Oregon farm groups,” May 20, 2021).
I couldn’t believe our state would even
consider such a move. This would
destroy any activities that involve
animals.
Ranching of any kind could become
a thing of the past. Animal control
in regards to hunting, fishing would
end, leading to an overabundance of
crop-destroying animals.
This initiative would affect the
production of meat and poultry (includ-
ing eggs) and pork, which this bill says
can only be used for consumption after
the animal has died a natural death,
meaning old unsafe meat. It also affects
the safety of people in their homes. If
this bill passes no one will be allowed
to kill a rat or for that matter a bug in
their home without breaking the law.
The organizations like FFA and 4-H,
which train ranchers and farmers, could
become a thing of the past.
In the letters to the editor also on
May 20, Duane Berry stated, “For way
too long rural Oregonians have lived
under the thumb of a Democratic gover-
nor and Legislature that design the rules
and laws to fit the metropolitan scene,
totally ignoring the lifestyle of ranchers,
logger and citizens in rural Northeast-
ern Oregon.” This quote was in regards
to Northeastern Oregon becoming part
of Idaho, but it fits with Initiative 13.
This idea of meat production and
ranching was brought up by our vice
president as part of their new idea of a
“Green New Deal,” which so far has
proven to be harmful for our country as
gas prices are way up due to the shut-
down of oil and natural gas production.
Mr. David Michelson, the chief peti-
tioner of the bill and an animal rights
activist, has presented this bill and has
reached one hurdle of receiving 1,000
sponsorship signatures. The next step
will be to collect 112,020 signatures to
have it placed on the November ballot.
This initiative is bad for our state as
well as our nation, and must be stopped
here in Oregon. We still have time to
stop this. It is the worst thing that could
happen.
Gail Baker
La Grande
American capitalism
should work for
employees, as well
The American capitalistic system
is based on supply and demand. When
there is not enough product to supply
the number of people who want and can
afford it, the prices increase. When there
is more product than people want or can
afford, prices go down.
Supposedly, this creates a balance
that benefits both consumers and
producers. According to the theory,
there is no need for the government to
be involved in this system.
Because of a global pandemic,
production has been low. Workers
were furloughed, laid off or unable to
work because of disease. The econ-
omy tanked and not enough goods were
produced to keep businesses going.
The government, in order to
prevent a serious economic depres-
sion, provided subsidies for furloughed,
laid off or disabled workers to keep the
people from doing without their basic
needs. While receiving assistance to
meet their needs, families survived and
the economy began to show the possi-
bility of improving.
To the surprise of many capitalists,
unemployed workers are not eager to
return to work for the low-wage salaries
they were barely surviving on before
the pandemic. Apparently, the potential
employees are reluctant to go back to
the low-paying jobs. They are unwill-
ing to accept jobs producing goods they
cannot afford to buy.
Now our American capital-
ists conclude that government must
become involved. Because they are not
getting their workers back, employers
are demanding that the government
stop paying subsidies to help families
survive. CEOs and business owners
want the government to force workers
back to work for less than sustaining
wages.
So my question is, if capitalism
works for pricing goods, why is it not
useful for paying workers to produce the
goods? Couldn’t the theory of supply
and demand apply here?
Evelyn Swart
Joseph
Biden should
honor his faith
When anyone states that they are
“devout” and then willfully acts to
disrespect the central tenets of that
devotion, the focus should be on the
person who lacks honesty — and not
those who are qualified and duty bound
to uphold the integrity of the devotion.
Simple.
President Joe Biden insults this
truism. He “knows the drill” as a
self-described “devout Catholic,” yet he
stands against the Catholic doctrine that
all life is sacred. Further, he pushes for
our government (our taxes) to pay for
the continued assault on the sacredness
of life — on his purported faith.
In 2006, the U.S. Catholic bishops
convened and issued this statement:
“If a Catholic in his or her personal
or professional life were knowingly
and obstinately to reject the defined
doctrines of the Church, or knowingly
and obstinately to repudiate her defini-
tive teaching on moral issues, however,
he or she would seriously diminish his
or her communion with the Church.
Reception of the Holy Communion in
such a situation would not accord with
the nature of the Eucharistic celebra-
tion, so that he or she should refrain.”
Biden should “own up” and honor
his faith rather than insulting it. Yet in
this day of envy/identity politics, Biden
bows to those who protest that their
group rights supersede our Constitution
and the rights it is designed to protect.
Odd, for someone duty bound to uphold
the Constitution.
The solution for Biden is simple: Just
keep your mouth shut.
Keith Gallagher
Condon