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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 2015)
A4 Opinion wallowa.com October 28, 2015 Wallowa County Chieftain A new chapter begins A s the annual pageant of autumn colors hits its stride and we head into the season of thanks and giving, we’d like to pause for a moment and thank you, our loyal readers, for allowing the Wallowa County Chieftain into your Voice of the Chieftain lives and homes. We’re working hard every day to serve you, but that’s only possible if you allow us to do so and, in many cases, give us a helping hand along the way. This week brings a new chapter in your local newspaper’s history as a new editor takes the helm. We can say with certainty that new editorial leadership will lead to a variety of changes in how, when and where your local news is presented. And we can say with equal certainty that such changes will require time to implement. Regardless, our most crucial priorities remain: • To deliver essential information about our county and region in as objective and timely a manner as possible. • To show as best we can the way the world works • To discern the truth of what your government tells you • To inform about pending laws and policies as well as the ef¿cacy of those that already exist In doing so, we will strive to include as many relevant voices as possible and to serve all members of our community equally. We take these responsibilities seriously and will work each day to improve our ability to ful¿ll them. But we think you’ll agree that we bring so much more to the table. We also promote community interaction and facilitate our coming together. We frequently shine a light on interesting sides of our fellow citizens we might not otherwise see. We promote local commerce and charitable activity. We bring attention to the accomplishments of our youngest generation, who will shape the future of Wallowa County, and we often provide a glimpse back in time to illuminate how we arrived where we are today. If you feel that you’ve been wronged by the Chieftain in the past — whether it’s six weeks ago or 16 years — or have been turned away by our past coverage, we ask that you give us another chance as we embark on this new chapter (Even if you don’t admit to your friends and family that you’re doing so). If you’ve stuck by us through thick and thin, please know that we greatly appreciate your loyalty. We vow to reward that loyalty by ¿nding ways to better serve your needs. The Chieftain does not operate in a vacuum. We rely on constant public interaction, and we have made it another of our priorities to vastly improve that interaction. We encourage you to tell us what’s going on, to point out stories we’re missing, to tell us when you think we’ve done something wrong and occasionally to offer us a pat on the back when you think it’s warranted. At its best a newspaper is a tool for fostering robust communities. At the same time, a dedicated, involved community is essential in the production of quality journalism. Arm in arm, we step forward together. EDITORIAL Correction An Oct. 21 article about Wallowa Lake Lodge reported an incorrect date for the upcoming Almost Thanksgiving Dinner, which is scheduled for Nov. 21. USPS No. 665-100 P.O. Box 338 • Enterprise, OR 97828 2I¿FH1:)LUVW6W(QWHUSULVH2UH 3KRQH)D[ :DOORZD&RXQW\¶V1HZVSDSHU6LQFH 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 Scot Heisel, editor@wallowa.com Stephen Tool, stool@wallowa.com Kathleen Ellyn, kellyn@wallowa.com editor@wallowa.com Jennifer Powell, jpowell@wallowa.com Robby Day, rday@wallowa.com Cheryl Jenkins, cjenkins@wallowa.com P UBLISHED EVERY W EDNESDAY BY : EO Media Group 3erioGical 3oVtaJe 3aiG at (nterSriVe anG aGGitional mailinJ of¿ceV Subscription rates (includes online access) Wallowa County Out-of-County 1 Year $40.00 $57.00 6XEVFULSWLRQVPXVWEHSDLGSULRUWRGHOLYHU\ See the Wallowa County Chieftain on the Internet www.wallowa.com facebook.com/Wallowa | twitter.com/wcchieftain POSTMASTER — Send address changes to Wallowa County Chieftain P.O. Box 338 Enterprise, OR 97828 Contents copyright © 2015. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Pope reveals needed path If I have said it once, I must have said it a thousand times: I love Pope )rancis. You might say he had me at “hello.” I love that he has broken the mold from the beginning, as the ¿rst nonEuropean pope in more than 1,200 years, the ¿rst pope from South America, the ¿rst Jesuit and the ¿rst to choose the name )rancis. Like )rancis of Assisi, this )rancis has been an advocate and a servant of the poor, a man with enormous popular appeal and one who has not been afraid to take on the powers entrenched within the Vatican and the rest of the Catholic hierarchy. Even as some of Pope )rancis’ earli est decisions enchanted the public, they probably rufÀed a few feathers inside Vat ican City. He chose to remain in a modest hostel immediately after his election, and he paid his bill just like any other guest would have been expected to do. He pur chased and has driven around Rome in a secondhand car. He has preferred sim ple, white vestments, dressing in a color more typical of Dominicans than Jesuits or )ranciscans. Yet even while he was establishing an unassuming tone, )rancis began challeng ing church insiders from the start of his papacy. He has instituted reforms to in POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY John McColgan crease transparency within the Curia, the very powerful and secretive inner circle that runs the Vatican. He also has demand ed long overdue changes to the Vatican Bank, which has operated for decades and probably even centuries without many of the safeguards that other banking institu tions typically require. Prior to his recent visit to the United States, the pope made a stop in Cuba, a communist nation whose diplomatic rela tions with the U.S. recently were restored partly due to negotiations that Pope )ran cis helped to broker. )rancis has chosen a less confrontational approach toward the Cuban authorities than Pope John Paul II, perhaps further encouraging the great er religious freedom that has developed during the term of Raul Castro. Upon his arrival in the United States, Pope )rancis remained true to character by riding in a )iat and dining at a homeless shelter instead of with political dignitar ies. When he spoke to Congress, he chose not to emphasize the church’s continued opposition to abortion, but rather high lighted the need for more compassionate immigration policies and better longterm environmental practices. He pointed to Dorothy Day, the founder of the Catholic Worker movement, and Thomas Merton, the ascetic Trappist monk who lived in a monastery in Kentucky, as shining lights of American spirituality. Shortly after the pope’s trip, some consternation was caused when Kim Davis the Kentucky county clerk who refused to grant licenses for samesex marriages claimed that she had “met” with the pope. While Vatican spokesmen initially appeared to have been perhaps naively ignorant that Davis had even been among two dozen guests at one of the pope’s audiences, clearly someone in side the American Vatican embassy must have given their blessing for her inclu sion. However, church of¿cials in Rome were obviously discomforted that Davis had used the occasion as a portrayal of papal approval of her position. 6HH0&&2/*$13DJH$ Justice not served in arson case By any measure, the ¿veyear sen tence given to Eastern Oregon rancher Dwight Hammond and his son Steven was excessive. That’s probably the one point on which all sides of the case can agree. Beyond that, opinions vary on what level of punishment would have been fair in a case that illustrates the shortcomings of a skewed legal system and a federal agency whose employees — at least one of them — use government resources to reveal their biases and criticize the Ham monds. The case grew out of an ongoing dis pute between the Hammonds and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Let’s back up a few years, to 2001, to be exact. That’s when the 139acre blaze called the HardieHammond )ire was set on the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Area, ac cording to court documents. In 2006, the .rumbo Butte )ire was set, burning 1 acre of public land, accord ing to court documents. In each case, the Hammonds had leased the land to graze their cattle. )ire is an oftused tool to clear land of weeds, juniper and other invasive plants, but the Hammonds had no permission to set ¿res on public land. In 2012, the Hammonds were taken to court. After a twoweek trial, Dwight Hammond was convicted of setting the ¿rst ¿re and sentenced to three months in prison. His son Steven was convicted of setting the second ¿re and sentenced GUEST COLUMN From the Capital Press to one year in prison. Both also received three years of supervised release. The Pendleton, Ore., jury acquitted the father and son of setting two other ¿res and the government dismissed those charges. At the sentencing, U.S. District Judge Michael Hogan opted for the lighter sen tences, but the prosecutor appealed to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which agreed with him that a mandatory sen tence can’t be ignored. Two weeks ago, U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken resentenced the Hammonds to ¿ve years in prison. Though legally correct, the sentence is patently unfair. The Hammonds were charged with vi olating a federal law that carried with it a minimum sentence of ¿ve years in prison. The law is aimed at crimes in which ter rorists or others destroy federal property through bomb blasts or arson. Though exercising extraordinari ly poor judgment in starting ¿eld burns on federal land without permission, the Hammonds are not terrorists. Other federal laws that carry ¿veyear minimum sentences address treason, child pornography, using a gun while commit ting a violent crime or importing drugs. Burning 140 acres of back country hardly compares with any of those crimes. That’s the danger when Congress de cides to tell judges how to do their jobs. Judges must have latitude to use their judgment in deciding sentences that ¿t the crimes. That’s the whole point of having judges. When he originally sentenced the Hammonds, Hogan described ¿ve years in prison as cruel and unusual and said such sentences would “shock the con science.” He was correct. When people such as the Hammonds are caught in a net that was set for terror ists, justice is not wellserved. A sideshow to this frustrating and un fair case involves a BLM employee who used a government computer while on the taxpayers’ time to post comments criticiz ing the Hammonds on the Capital Press website. Such an occurrence only reinforces what we have long believed — that some federal employees have personal agendas that deviate from public policy. If this par ticular employee really looks at ranchers as “clowns” who endanger people, as he said in his comment, then he needs to re assess his career choice. We hear McDon ald’s is hiring. In hindsight, this case should have been settled before trial. It would have saved the public the enormous expense of a trial, appeal, resentencing and providing the Hammonds with room and board for ¿ve years at a federal prison. And the Hammonds would now per manently be at home, where they belong. Article about new business offends To the editor: A couple of weeks ago (Sept. 16) the Chieftain saw ¿t to honor a new business venture on Main Street in Joseph. That business was a “pipe shop.” No matter what you choose to call it, it sells objects used in the process of smoking. The main impetus of the shop and the article was on the smoking of dope. The Chieftain obviously is quite enam ored with the objects so widely displayed in the largerthanusual photo on the front page of Wallowa County’s only newspaper. The fact that this new business made the front page says a lot about the leadership of the Chieftain. According to the Chieftain’s own statis LETTERS to the EDITOR tics, 61 percent of Wallowa County voted with me against the legalization of marijua na. The question is: Is the Chieftain Wal lowa County’s newspaper, or just another Oregonian? I ¿nd promoting smoking of any kind outdated and mindless. I ¿nd the glorify ing of smoking of dope on your front page sickening. The Chieftain has a right, within limits, to print what they want. I defended those rights and I believe in them. However legal this article was, the fact remains that it was in very poor taste. There have been many new businesses that have opened in the last year. How many were on the front page of the Chieftain? A new bakery opened in Enterprise last week. Where was the front page story promoting cinnamon rolls and other delights? The last time I checked, donuts have never been illegal in Oregon. The Chieftain staff’s obvious infatu ation with “amazing hookahs” should be kept to itself. The article was not news and not appropriate in any way. In closing: effective immediately, I am canceling all my future advertising with and my subscription to the Chieftain. Jim Russell Joseph