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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 26, 2015)
A4 Opinion wallowa.com August 26, 2015 Wallowa County Chieftain 0HJD¿UHV QRORQJHULI EXWZKHQ E astern Oregon is ablaze. Eastern Washington is ablaze. 7KH3DFL¿F1RUWKZHVWLVDEOD]H7KH$PHULFDQ:HVWLV ablaze. 7KHVHDUHVHULRXV¿UHV EDITORIAL that have destroyed homes, taken human life, wrecked The voice of the Chieftain ecosystems and destroyed livelihoods. This brutally hot and dry year will have impacts well into the future, but may QRWEHQRWDVUDUHDVZHPLJKW¿UVWWKLQN ³0HJD¿UHV´²EOD]HVWKDWGHVWUR\RUPRUH DFUHV²DUHEHFRPLQJDOPRVWFRPPRQ7KLV\HDUWKHUH were dozens across the West, including those in John Day, near Twisp, Wash. and a growing inferno in prime northeast Oregon elk country near Troy that has already destroyed multiple homes. Millions of acres have been burning for months in Alaska. $Q$XJ1DWLRQDO*HRJUDSKLFVWRU\UHSRUWVWKHVH PHJD¿UHVDUHIHDVWLQJRQDZDUPLQJFKDQJLQJFOLPDWH The end result of these colossal blazes are permanently transformed ecosystems. One scientist quoted in the story said that if he wants to continue specializing in the same type of forest, he should move hundreds of miles north. Maybe we should too, if want to continue living, farming, logging and recreating in the same environment. Still, climate change is not the only huge issue at play ZKHQZHGLVFXVV¿UHV:HDWKHUSDWWHUQVDUHKDYLQJDQ enormous effect this year, as is the culmination of decades of forest management practices, changes in wildlife and farming, habitat destruction and recreation. Yes we can all give our two cents on those massive issues, and most certainly should. But we can only be assured a real impact on the decisions that affect our lives, our family and our neighbors. At the very least, we must look at any property we own in DUXUDO¿UHGLVWULFW ² RULQQR¿UHGLVWULFW²DQGVWRSWKLQNLQJ ZKDWZRXOGKDSSHQLIDZLOG¿UHUXVKHVWKURXJK:HPXVW QRZDFWDQGSUHSDUHIRUWKH¿UHWKDWLVOLNHO\WRFRPH:H must heed the warnings we’ve heard for years about creating defensible space, about having materials and water available to defend life and property and about having escape routes ready in case of emergency. ,IZHFDQ¶WWDNHWKDWOHVVRQWRKHDUWDVÀDPHVODSDWRXU feet of cities across Eastern Oregon, we never will. That WKHODWHVW*UDQW&RXQW\¿UHLVEHOLHYHGWRKDYHEHHQKXPDQ caused is astounding. Who wouldn’t take every precaution as WKH\ORRNRIILQWRWKH¿UHVEXUQLQJLQHYHU\GLUHFWLRQLQIHUQRV that have leveled the homes of their friends and neighbors? We cannot look to the state for much help. A story in Friday’s East Oregonian noted how few people qualify for the VWDWH¶VZLOG¿UHGDPDJHSURJUDPDQGKRZVPDOOWKH¿QDQFLDO EHQH¿WLV:LWKRXWDGLVDVWHUGHVLJQDWLRQWKHUHLVOLWWOHKRSH IRUIHGHUDOKHOSWRR2IFRXUVHWKHUHDUH¿UH¿JKWHUVGRLQJ everything possible to limit the destruction and save lives. But rural residents are reminded again of our isolation and, yes, the dangers of living where we do. We must be prepared to do the work ourselves: both protect our property and rebuild it in the ever-increasing chances that our land is burned. Corrections The medal that Enterprise FCCLA members Rachel Frolander, Ri- ley Gray and Eliza Irish received in Washington, D.C., for their Chap- ter Service Project was a gold, not a silver. On Aug. 12 the Chieftain published incorrect information that had been provided. The newspa- per regrets the error. Services for Susan McKean-Collett will be held at the Wallowa Buddhist Temple on Sunday, Sept. 27, at 1 p.m. Susan McKean-Col- lett’s sister is Claire McKean-Pett. The Chieftain regrets the errors in the obituary published Aug. 19. USPS No. 665-100 P.O. Box 338 • Enterprise, OR 97828 OI¿Fe 29 1: )irst 6t., Enterprise, Ore. PKone 27 • )Dx 2392 :DOOoZD &oXnt\¶s 1eZspDper 6inFe 88 Enterprise, Oregon M EMBER O REGON N EWSPAPER P UBLISHERS A SSOCIATION P UBLISHER E DITOR R EPORTER R EPORTER N EWSROOM ASSISTANT A D S ALES CONSULTANT G RAPHIC D ESIGNER O FFICE MANAGER Marissa Williams, marissa@bmeagle.com Rob Ruth, editor@wallowa.com Stephen Tool, stool@wallowa.com Kathleen Ellyn, kellyn@wallowa.com Elliott Seyler, eseyler@wallowa.com Brooke Pace, bpace@wallowa.com Robby Day, rday@wallowa.com Cheryl Jenkins, cjenkins@wallowa.com P UBLISHED EVERY W EDNESDAY BY : (20HGLD*URXS 3HULRGLFDO3RVWDJH3DLGDW(QWHUSULVHDQGDGGLWLRQDOPDLOLQJRI¿FHV Subscription rates (includes online access) Wallowa County Out-of-County 1 Year $40.00 $57.00 6XEsFriptions PXst Ee pDiG prior to GeOiYer\ See the Wallowa County Chieftain on the Internet ZZZZDOORZDFRP facebook.com/Wallowa | twitter.com/wcchieftain POSTMASTER²6HQGDGGUHVVFKDQJHVWR Wallowa County Chieftain P.O. Box 338 Enterprise, OR 97828 Contents copyright © 2015. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Volume 133 G UEST C OMMENTARY 1DWLYLVWHPRWLRQQHYHUSUHWW\ 7KHUHZDVDWLPHZKHQIDUPHUV²D UHOLDEOH 5HSXEOLFDQ FRQVWLWXHQF\ ² could count on congressional Republi- cans. 1RW QRZ )DUPHUV UHO\ XSRQ LPPL- grant labor. Republicans in the House of Representatives have failed to act on immigration reform, which farmers GHVSHUDWHO\ QHHG (YHQ D *23 +RXVH OHDGHUOLNH*UHJ:DOGHQZKRVH(DVW- ern Oregon seat is bulletproof, won’t respond to his farmers’ need. Following the lead of Donald Trump, Republican presidential candi- dates in Iowa this week are doubling down on punishing immigrants, even children who were born in the U.S. Seeing a Republican base eat up the anti-immigrant talk, none of the pres- idential candidates will stand up to Trump and talk reality. Trump’s notion of deporting 11 million immigrants is unthinkable, but it apparently is a guaranteed applause line in Iowa. 1DWLYLVPLVQHYHUSUHWW\,QWKHHDU- ly 20th century, the hatred was direct- ed at Italians and Irish, and at Catho- OLFVLQJHQHUDO7KH.X.OX[.ODQWKDW was a force in Astoria politics in the 1920s was anti-Catholic. The cruel joke is that America has always been an immigrant nation. But many whose ancestors emigrated to the U.S. are eager to bad-mouth the latest applicants for admission. Eventually immigrant groups be- come too large for politicians to trash or ignore. That’s what the Republican Party faces in the Hispanic popula- WLRQ 7KH 1HZ <RUN 7LPHV UHSRUWHG Wednesday that, “The population of Latinos eligible to vote by 2016 is ex- pected to increase by 18 percent over 2012 to about 28 million people, more than 11 percent of voters nationwide, DFFRUGLQJ WR SURMHFWLRQV E\ WKH 1D- tional Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, a nonpartisan RUJDQL]DWLRQ´ Moreover, the larger electorate does not approve of the extremist im- migration solutions being promoted in Iowa this week. For the next 15 months, we are con- demned to the rhetoric of our too-long presidential campaign. Feeding nativ- ist anger makes some people feel good and it wins short-term gains. At some point, Congress and a president must govern. The nation can- not afford to continually postpone immi- gration reform. Farmers, among others, need a solution. 7Ke &DpitDO Press, EDseG in 6DOeP, is D sister pXEOiFDtion oI tKe :DOOoZD &oXn t\ &KieItDin. -RLQSDUW\VR\RXPLJKWUXQ The Independent Party of Oregon is now the third major political party in Or- egon, because over 5% of registered vot- ers in the state have joined it. Until now, concerned voters in Ore- gon have had only one realistic choice, when faced with ineffective or corrupt JRYHUQPHQW YRWH IRU WKH ³RWKHU´ SDUW\ But both the Democratic and Republican parties in Oregon heavily depend on huge campaign contributions from corpora- tions, unions, and wealthy individuals. The Oregonian has reported that races for the Oregon Legislature are the most expensive, per capita, than in any state RWKHUWKDQ1HZ-HUVH\,WQRZWDNHVRYHU $500,000 to win a contested race for the Oregon Legislature; sometimes over $1 million, even for just one of the 60 seats in the Oregon House. Campaign spending in Oregon state candidate races has increased from $4 million in 1996 to over $60 million in 2014. And about 80% of Oregon’s legisla- tive districts are so heavily skewed to- ward Democratic or Republican voter registration that races for the Legisla- ture are not contested. In about one- third of all races for the Legislature, the Republican candidate and the Dem- GUEST COLUMN Dan Meek ocratic candidate are the same person! The Sunlight Foundation, a liberal WKLQN WDQN MXVW JUDGHG 2UHJRQ DQ ³)´ on disclosure of lobbyist information, joining 3 other states at the bottom. The Center for Public Integrity grades Or- HJRQ DQ ³)´ LQ SROLWLFDO ILQDQFLQJ DQG in public access to information. In re- VSRQVHWRWKH.LW]KDEHU+D\HVVFDQGDO the Oregon Legislature did nothing of substance on these subjects, except to allow lobbyists to disclose even less. The Independent Party of Oregon (IPO) offers a unique opportunity to WKZDUWWKH³SDUW\V\VWHP´,32QHHGV candidates to run for local offices, for the Legislature, and for the four state- wide offices to be voted on in 2016: *RYHUQRU6HFUHWDU\RI6WDWH$WWRUQH\ *HQHUDODQG7UHDVXUHU%XW2UHJRQODZ says that no one can run for nomination in the IPO primary election who has not been a member of IPO since Sep- tember 10, 2015. The Legislature has refused to change that law, and we will challenge it in court, but it could stand and deprive IPO of all candidates who have not joined IPO at least 8 months in advance of the May 2016 primary election. IPO wants to reduce special interest influence over our government pro- cesses; increase transparency in gov- ernment, protect Oregon consumers, particularly with respect to banks, in- surance companies and private utilities; provide incentives for small businesses to thrive and for larger businesses to expand in Oregon in a way that returns PRUHEHQH¿WVWRWKHSXEOLFWKDQLWFRVWV If you might have any possible inter- HVWLQUXQQLQJIRURI¿FHDVWKHFDQGLGDWH of the Independent Party of Oregon, you should change your voter registration to ³,QGHSHQGHQW3DUW\´E\6HSWHPEHU,W takes about 2 minutes, here: https://se- cure.sos.state.or.us/orestar/vr/register.do. 2UMXVWVHDUFK³2UHJRQYRWHUUHJLVWHU´ Do it now. You need not decide wheth- HUWRUXQXQWLOWKHSULPDU\HOHFWLRQ¿OLQJ deadline, March 8, 2016. But you need to reserve opportunity now to help save Oregon’s democracy. 'Dn 0eeN is FoFKDir oI tKe ,nGepen Gent PDrt\ oI Oregon. 1DWLRQ¶VOHDGHUFKRVHQRGGO\ If you were asked to explain to an intelligent visitor from another galaxy, or even to an innocent, young Ameri- can child, how our country chooses a president, you might be hard pressed to provide any rational justification for some of our peculiar practices. Here are a few of the questions that an alien or an ingénue might ask. (Just for fun, you might want to imagine an- swering each question briefly as you read along.) Who is eligible for this prestigious, powerful job? What skills or experience are required? Why do so few people compete when an opening for a low-pay- ing job in a small town might get as many applicants? How does the selection process work? Who gets to vote for president? What is a citizen? Who makes the rules? Who counts the votes, and how are they count- ed? What is a political party? How many parties are there? If there are a lot of par- ties, why are two of them so important compared to all the others? How do the rules of each party affect the selection process for president? What is a house party? What do you mean by fund-raising? Why does it cost a lot of money to run for president? Do people buy votes? POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY John McColgan How do the voters learn about all the candidates? Who decides which candi- dates get on television or in the newspa- SHU":KDWGR\RXPHDQE\³WKHPHGLD´" Who owns it and who runs it? Do all the people vote on the same day? What do you mean by a primary election and a general election? What is a caucus? How does each state decide how and when it votes? Why do Iowa DQG 1HZ +DPSVKLUH JHW WR JR ¿UVW DQG second, and why are those two states so important? What is a convention? What do you PHDQ E\ D ³FDPSDLJQ´" ,V WKDW OLNH D battle or a war? And what is the electoral college? Does the president have to at- tend the electoral college? Huh? So only those people really get to vote? How do they get chosen? Wow! When you step back from this lit- tle exercise and take a look at how our presidential election is covered in “the PHGLD´ LW LV QR OHVV SHFXOLDU ,QGHHG at a moment when one particular candi- GDWH ZKR KDV QHYHU KHOG HOHFWLYH RI¿FH is currently gobbling up just about all the print and television coverage, the whole process seems much more like a reality television show than a forum designed to HGXFDWHYRWHUVDERXWWKHPHULWVRID¿HOG of credible candidates. Just for the record, and perhaps if only for the reason that some of these candi- dates might never see their names in print in the Chieftain or perhaps in many other newspapers again, it is worth noting that there are currently seventeen declared ³VHULRXVFDQGLGDWHV´DVGHWHUPLQHGSUL- marily by media blessing) on the Repub- OLFDQ VLGH DQG ¿YH RQ WKH 'HPRFUDWLF side. The Republicans are, in the rough or- der of their current standings in public opinion polls, and with a mention of their highest career accomplishment: billion- aire entrepreneur Donald Trump, former )ORULGD *RYHUQRU -HE %XVK QHXURVXU- JHRQ %HQ &DUVRQ :LVFRQVLQ *RYHUQRU Scott Walker, Florida Senator Marco 5XELR2KLR*RYHUQRU-RKQ.DVLFK7H[- DV 6HQDWRU 7HG &UX] .HQWXFN\ 6HQDWRU Rand Paul, former Hewlett-Packard CEO &DUO\)LRULQDIRUPHU$UNDQVDV*RYHUQRU 0LNH +XFNDEHH 1HZ -HUVH\ *RYHUQRU &KULV &KULVWLH IRUPHU 7H[DV *RYHUQRU Rick Perry, former Pennsylvania Senator 6ee 0&&O/*$1, PDge $