ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
PHIL WRIGHT
News Editor
ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Editor/Senior Reporter
TUESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2021
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Virus isn’t a
political entity
Y
ou can only see them with a micro-
scope.
Viruses are essentially an
assortment of genetic code encased inside a
coat of protein. Viruses infect cells, hijack
the machinery of the cell and make more
copies of themselves.
A virus can’t vote. Viruses — as far as
we know — don’t belong to any American
political party. They can’t use Twitter or
Facebook or Snapchat.
A decade ago — even two years ago —
the concept that a collection of genetic code
could become politicized and used by any
number of different special interest groups
would have seemed, if not impossible, then
certainly absurd.
Yet, here we are.
During the past week a string of county
sheriffs across the state have issued
missives regarding how they will not
enforce mandates from Gov. Kate Brown
regarding some aspect of her COVID-19
restrictions. The assorted epistles were
issued even though Brown, as far as we
know, never directed any county sheriff to
enforce any type of COVID-19 mandate.
But the communiques from the sher-
iff’s continue an ongoing, deep distrust of
authority by many Americans and Orego-
nians that is as American as baseball and
apple pie.
Part of the American ethos revolves
around distrusting government — in
any form — and just as important to our
national collective consciousness is the
concept of individual rights.
Those two elements to our nature —
coupled with false information — have
combined to create a situation where a
microscopic virus has become a politicized
issue, not much different than health care,
the economy and foreign policy.
Perhaps it was inevitable. Hard to say.
The nation, the state, the community
have spent a large amount of time focusing
on the political aspects of the virus, and it
is time to start asking different questions
and do a focus check.
The task at hand is a COVID-19
pandemic that is, in many cases, deadly
and spreads easily and rapidly. The second
issue is the capability of our entire medical
system to respond to a pandemic, whether
it is COVID-19 or some other pathogen.
Hospitals are, indeed, becoming packed
with COVID-19 cases. They are running
out of room. The key question should be —
and until now hasn’t been — why?
It will seem at first glance to have an
easy answer — because there are not
enough beds. Why?
If one does not want to be vaccinated
then that is their choice, but the emphasis
now must be on how to stop the pandemic,
not politicizing it. It’s a virus. Not a politi-
cal entity.
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
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of 400 words or less on public issues and public
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to withhold letters that address concerns about
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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
State legislators see bipartisan path on climate
ELIZABETH
GRASER-LINDSEY
OTHER VIEWS
A
s the Oregon Legislature ended
its 2021 session, an epic heat
wave hit the Pacific Northwest,
punctuating the importance of a biparti-
san breakthrough for climate.
A substantial number of Oregon
Republican legislators joined major-
ity Democratic support for a carbon
fee and dividend policy at the national
level. Senate Joint Memorial 5, asking
Congress to pass the Energy Innovation
and Carbon Dividend Act (currently HR
2307), passed the Oregon Senate in April
with a majority of Republicans joining
all Democratic senators.
In the House, over half of the repre-
sentatives co-sponsored it, including
two-thirds of Democrats and a third
of Republicans. An additional 10%
had already endorsed the federal act.
(The bill didn’t come to a vote in the
Oregon House despite the clear majority
support.)
The epic June 26-28 heat wave
brought home how agriculture and
natural resource operations are facing
increasing, severe effects from climate
change in the Pacific Northwest. On my
fossil fuels is applied at the well, mine or
farm near Oregon City the heat wave
border to provide the financial incentive
killed chickens, stressed the goats and
to nudge the economy toward non-emit-
killed some of the blueberry and rasp-
ting practices with this clear and predict-
berry crops, causing a personal “red
able market signal. The dividend evenly
alert.” My husband and I are wondering
returns the money to all Americans as
how our farm can remain productive
a monthly payment without growing
with continued heat waves and drought.
government, thereby protecting poor and
Our experience mirrored United
middle income Ameri-
Nations Secretary-Gen-
eral Antonio Guterres’
cans from the increased
EDITOR’S NOTE
assessment of the recently
cost.
Do you have a point
released Intergovernmental
Agricultural diesel is
Panel on Climate Change
exempt from the fee. The
you’d like to make
report, calling it “a code red
border adjustment keeps
or an issue you feel
for humanity.”
the fee from disadvantag-
strongly about?
ing American industry in
The magnitude of the
Submit a letter to
the face of international
challenges to agriculture
the editor or a guest
competition. And many
and natural resources in
column.
economists and computer
the past year highlights
models see the fee being
the urgent need for climate
solutions that protect the agricultural and the single most important step getting
us to being carbon neutral by 2050, as
natural resource industry in the Pacific
science says is necessary.
Northwest. Because solutions can be
A strong and bipartisan majority of
slow to implement and to achieve reduc-
tions of carbon dioxide and other green-
Oregon’s legislators recognize carbon fee
house gas emissions, quickly initiated
and dividend as a fair and needed way
and quick-acting solutions are needed.
to solve the climate impacts on us. They
Bipartisan solutions are needed to bypass join a growing, bipartisan, nationwide
the partisan infighting and to allow stable recognition. It’s time for Congress to
solutions continued when either party is
take note and take urgent action.
in power.
———
Elizabeth Graser-Lindsey is a Citi-
The carbon fee with border adjust-
ment and dividend approach is simple
zens’ Climate Lobby volunteer and with
and effective.
her husband owns and operates a small
farm in Beavercreek.
The gradually increasing fee on
YOUR VIEWS
Pendleton’s shining stars
deserve recognition
Let’s clean up Main Street and deco-
rate each empty window with pictures
of the amazing and wonderful people
who have grown up in Pendleton and
became famous, and the amazing
people who stayed in Pendleton and
made it an even better place to live.
1. Use the fire department to get the
outside of downtown business property
real clean.
2. Rip off those filthy black cover-
ings because now these windows makes
Pendleton look like a town that has been
abandoned and left behind. Those of us
who call this home, and love living here,
know that is just not true.
3. I have suggested four old-fashioned
on-the-building billboards so every-
one in town will see them — some-
thing like the old circus billboards in
1920 and later — to let the locals know
the purpose of Pendleton Underground
Comes To Life. You can put your flyers
up all over town, but I am telling you,
the people who live in Pendleton are not
coming out. They do not know what is
going on; I know because I have asked
about 75 of them since June.
4. Fill each window with photo-
graphs, posters and anything else to
show what people who were raised in
Pendleton can really do.
I have been tooling around town
(quietly) in my Veterans Affairs-pro-
vided cherry red hot rod, as a friendly
disabled Vietnam-era woman Marine.
What I noticed was how filthy the fronts
of the Main Street business are, most
now closed. The filthy windows, hastily
covered with black paper, are a disgrace
to our hometown, known far and wide
as a real friendly place to visit. Entering
Pendleton from any direction provides a
breathtaking view of the perfect village
setting in the valley. Now we need to
show our visitors why they might just
consider moving their family to live in
“the real West.”
All that tourism money is being
spent, and they do not even know that
what brings the city folks back to Pend-
leton for Round-Up each year. It is the
connections they have made with people
who live in Pendleton. While the Pendle-
ton Underground is great, it is relatively
new to Pendleton, and what has been
bringing folks back to Pendleton is the
friendships that have developed between
Pendletonians and the city folk.
My husband, the late Art Merriman,
had sometimes up to 10 people that
came year after year and stayed with
us. I would tease him that those women
were his girlfriends — some were damn
cute buckle bunnies. The men were
real men, who cleaned up real well and
smelled good. Eye candy for the ladies.
I am narrowing in on my windows.
My window will have my internation-
ally famous music maestro daughter,
Jacie Sites, then my Professional Rodeo
Cowboys Association cowboy brother
Dave Murphey and goat roping Bobbi
Beers, who, with a couple in California
started the Western States Ranch Rodeo
Association. All Pendleton High School
graduates.
I challenge some of these fami-
lies to jump on board, and clean and
decorate a window: the Melton family
(Tom Melton/Marla Royal, Emil and
Betty Holdman) Butch Knowles, Cindy
Newtson Severe, Dean Fouquette, Dick
Keizer, Peter Willis, Dan and Andy
Emert, Emily Mueller-Cary, Morgan
Matteson and our own sweet sunshine,
Sandy Mayberry, who always brings
in light when she sings “You Are My
Sunshine.”
Let’s shine our lights, and show our
real Pendleton stars.
Rose Murphey
Pendleton