OPINION
Wallowa County Chieftain
A4
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
VOICE of the CHIEFTAIN
A chance to exercise an American privilege
O
n Saturday, Oct. 12, begin-
ning at 1:30 p.m., Wallowa
County will have an opportu-
nity to listen to and talk with Oregon’s
senior U.S. Senator, Ron Wyden, at a
town hall meeting in the Senior Center
at Community Connection in Enter-
prise. Wyden last visited the county in
late May 2018. His principal concerns
include natural resources, rural econ-
omies, and health care, especially for
older Americans.
The opportunity to speak directly to
our elected representatives is import-
ant. But, especially for U.S. senators,
it is rare. We are fortunate that for the
past two years, Senator Wyden has
held more town halls than ANY other
U.S. senator.
Wyden, elected to the Senate in
1996, is the ranking member on the
Senate Committee on Finance (which
oversees the subcommittee on Energy,
Natural Resources, and Infrastruc-
ture), the ranking member of the Joint
Committee on Taxation, and serves
on the Intelligence, Energy and Nat-
ural Resources, and Budget commit-
tees—all subjects of interest to Wal-
lowa County.
Wyden’s work and legislation
includes concern about drug prices,
health care, and wildfi res, including
support for thinning and management
projects in a bipartisan bill co-spon-
sored with senators Mike Crapo and
Jim Risch, both Idaho Republicans.
His most recent legislation is a
bipartisan bill to improve fi nancial
stability and prosperity for rural coun-
ties. Co-sponsored with Mike Crapo,
R-Idaho, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Jim
Risch, R-Idaho, Michael Bennet,
D-Colo., and Cory Gardner, R-Colo.,
the bill would reauthorize the Pay-
ments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) pro-
gram for ten years. The proposed pro-
gram provides critical resources to
nearly 1,900 counties across 49 states.
Counties have used these
payments for more than
40 years to fund law
enforcement, fi refi ght-
ing, emergency response
and other essential
Sen. Ron
county services. Wyden
Wyden
and his colleagues
believe it is time to rein-
state them.
Perhaps you think that Wyden is not
“your” senator. Perhaps you think he
is too liberal, or too conservative, or
too urban for your views. Maybe you
are trying really, really hard to avoid
politics. But this opportunity to lis-
ten and to participate directly in gov-
ernment is what America is all about.
This is what men and women have
fought and died for: a democracy,
where not only can we freely express
our opinions, but also we may express
them directly to our government and
our elected representatives.
As President Dwight Eisenhower
said, “Politics ought to be the part-
time profession of every citizen who
would protect the rights and privileges
of free people and who would pre-
serve what is good and fruitful in our
national heritage.”
At every football game, every vol-
leyball game, every rodeo, Rotary or
Lions Club meeting we all stand, hats
off, hands over hearts, and pledge
allegiance to the fl ag. What we are
really pledging allegiance to is the
Constitution, and our revered history
of participatory democracy that so
many have fought and died for. If we
stand up for the pledge, for liberty and
justice for all, then we should partici-
pate in all that it stands for, including
getting to know, and talking with, our
U.S. senator, up front and personal.
It’s an American privilege. And Sat-
urday, at 1:30 at the Community Con-
nection Senior Center, is a great place
to exercise it.
Fall has arrived: Of cows, China, and naps Public welcome
I
t’s been a rather sudden change of
weather and I guess that’s to be
expected this time of year. A lot of
people hate to see summer end but I wel-
come it. There are far too many things to
do in summer and it can be exhausting. Fall
brings a lot of good things with it such as
really good napping weather.
I used to nap for about half an hour and
then get up and go do something. Since I
have gone pro, I have increased my time to
about an hour. The biggest problem with
fall is that fl ies invade the house and can
be a serious problem to the dedicated nap-
per. They buzz around and land on your
face and walk around till you wake up and
swat them. Being a professional and having
a clear conscience I can usually get back to
sleep but it is still annoying.
One thing that can make napping diffi -
cult is too much caffeine in the morning.
I usually go downtown and have coffee
with some of the leading citizens, many of
whom share the same mental disorders as I
OPEN
RANGE
Barrie Qualle
do. By limiting myself to one cup of coffee
and eating a big lunch I can usually drift off
quickly. Kind of a mini-vacation.
Another good thing about fall is irri-
gation ceases and the grass quits growing
so in my case that means whatever cattle I
bought this spring get shipped and I don’t
have to worry about them. I ride over to my
neighbor Todd Nash’s fi eld and gather a few
that have strayed and, in most cases done
well. I sent my gluten free, organic heifers
to the sale and hit a home run. Made pretty
good money in a bad market. Very unusual,
probably a trick to cause me to expand and
go big next year so they get all the profi t
back along with a loss on all the extra cattle
I stupidly bought.
Due to the strained trade relations with
China a lot of growers are eligible for aid
from the government. I checked in with the
USDA Farm Service Agency to see how
big my check would be and was informed
that corn, soybeans, wheat, hogs, damn near
every commodity was going to get relief
except beef. Beef tariffs dropped from 38%
to 26.6% and then eventually to 9%. Mean-
while cars stay at 2.5%. Clearly something
is unfair.
Cattlemen don’t have the necessary
resources to pay off the necessary politi-
cians. Let’s face it, lobbying and campaign
contributions are basically bribes and unfor-
tunately most ranchers are encumbered with
debt, pride and honesty. They only repre-
sent about 1.5% of the vote so are not a
minority to be catered to by senators. We
have the best politicians money can buy.
Too bad we don’t have more statesmen and
fewer politicians.
Wyden to hold Town Hall Meeting in Enterprise Oct. 12
PORTLAND — U.S. Sen.
Ron Wyden will hold town halls
in Wheeler, Grant, Harney and
Wallowa counties.
In Wallowa County, Wyden
will hold his Town Hall meeting
Saturday, Oct. 12, at 1:30 p.m.
at the Senior Center, Commu-
nity Connection, 702 NW First
St., Enterprise.
In fulfi llment of his pledge
to hold at least one town hall
each year in each of the state’s
36 counties, Wyden has held 950
town halls statewide – including
37 so far this year.
“I believe strongly that open-
to-all town halls provide essen-
tial opportunities to get ideas
from Oregonians on reducing
prescription drug prices, build-
ing on rural Oregon’s strengths
and any other topic,” said
Wyden, who this year won a sec-
ond straight MVP award from
the Town Hall Project for hold-
ing the most town halls of any
senator in 2018.
WYDEN’S EASTERN OREGON TOWN HALL SCHEDULE
Sunday, Oct. 6
Wheeler County: 2:30 pm, Mitchell School, 340 SE High St, Mitchell
Monday, Oct. 7
Grant County: 9 am, Prairie City School new gym, 740 Overholt,
Prairie City
Harney County: 1:30 pm, Burns High School, 1100 Oregon Ave, Burns
Saturday, Oct. 12
Wallowa County: 1:30 pm, Senior Center Community Connection,
702 NW First St., Enterprise
to address
Enterprise ATV
ordinance
Town hall to be held Nov. 6
Wallowa County Chieftain
Should ATVs be permitted to run on
Enterprise city streets? A town hall-type
forum will be held Wednesday, Nov. 6, at
6 p.m. in Enterprise’s city council cham-
bers in to discuss a possible ordinance
that would govern the use of all-terrain
vehicles within the Enterprise city limits.
The town hall to obtain public input
was proposed at the Sept. 9 council meet-
ing. Council members said they want
to make sure ATV-users are complying
with the law, but they don’t want to be
so restrictive as to not have exceptions
for unlicensed drivers — such youths
younger than 16 — to be able to operate
an ATV-type vehicle for work purposes,
such as plowing snow or mowing lawns.
Continued discussion of the proposed
ordinance will be on the agenda for Mon-
day’s regular monthly council meeting.
Also on the agenda, although not com-
plete at press time, will be event per-
mits for the Eagle Cap Extreme Sled Dog
Race vet checks and this month’s Trunk
or Treat.
The public has until 4 p.m. today to
request additions to the agenda.
LETTERS to the EDITOR
Flu vaccine saves lives
Wallowa County Cultural Trust Coalition seeks grant applications
By Ellen Morris Bishop
Wallowa County Chieftain
The Wallowa County Cul-
tural Trust Coalition (WCCTC)
offers grants of up to $1000 each
year that support individual art-
ists, musicians, writers, cultural
historians and the non-profi t
organizations that support them
in Wallowa County. This year,
applications for the grants are
due no later than October 31.
In past years, the grants have
funded the Tuesday Courthouse
Concerts in Enterprise, Fish-
trap’s{span} Big Read for The
Wizard of Earthsea last year,
and other events that connect
Wallowa County people through
arts and culture. “We view those
kinds of events as important,”
said WCCTC coordinator Asch
Humphrey. “But we’d also love
to see applications that involve
culture, or a meaningful, evoc-
ative piece of art that would be
displayed in a public place.”
The WCCTC supports local,
cultural endeavors and promotes
participation in arts, heritage and
Ellen Morris Bishop
A Wallowa County Cultural Trust Coalition grant funded the Thursday
Courthouse Concert series this summer.
humanities through disseminat-
ing Oregon Cultural Trust grant
money.
Eligible grant applicants must
be Wallowa County residents
and have a public component
of their project that increases
access to local culture. Suc-
cessful grant applicants make
access to culture more avail-
able; recover and preserve his-
toric assets and achievements;
support development of artists
and cultural experiences; and/or
strengthen the capacity of cul-
tural organizations in Wallowa
County.
Applications are currently
available online at wallowaval-
leyarts.org or can be requested
by email at WCCTCoalition@
gmail.com. The applications are
due October 31, 2019. WCCTC
grants are typically awarded
in amounts from $250-$1,000.
The WCCTC board will meet
in November to review applica-
tions, make decisions and notify
applicants.
The Oregon Cultural Trust
was created under the direction
of the Oregon State Legisla-
ture with the purpose of award-
ing grant funds to Oregon coun-
ties and Confederated Tribes
to support endeavors that pro-
mote arts, humanities and local
heritage. For more information
about the Oregon Cultural Trust,
or to donate, visit CulturalTrust.
org.
Wallowa County’s Newspaper Since 1884
M EMBER O REGON N EWSPAPER P UBLISHERS A SSOCIATION
Published every Wednesday by: EO Media Group
VOLUME 134
USPS No. 665-100
P.O. Box 338 • Enterprise, OR 97828
Offi ce: 209 NW First St., Enterprise, Ore.
Phone: 541-426-4567 • Fax: 541-426-3921
Contents copyright © 2019. All rights reserved.
Reproduction without permission is prohibited.
General manager, Jennifer Cooney, jcooney@wallowa.com
Editor, Ellen Morris Bishop, editor@wallowa.com
Publisher, Chris Rush, crush@eomediagroup.com
Reporter, Stephen Tool, steve@wallowa.com
Reporter, Bill Bradshaw, bbradshaw@wallowa.com
Administrative Assistant, Amber Mock, amock@wallowa.com
Advertising Assistant, Cheryl Jenkins, cjenkins@wallowa.com
As a follow-up to Dr. Kelsey Allen’s
Mountain Medicine column of last week
regarding infl uenza vaccine, this was
reported in the Sunday (October 6) New
York Times.
Dr. Patricia N. Whitley-Williams, the
National Foundation for Infectious Dis-
eases president-elect, described standing in
an intensive care unit last winter with the
mother of a 9-month-old child with severe
fl u who was sedated and on a ventilator for
seven days.
“This mother did not believe in vacci-
nating, because she felt that the fl u vaccine
was not effective and she was concerned
about vaccine safety,” Dr. Whitley-Wil-
liams said. “She looked at me and said,
‘You mean I could have prevented this?’”
Ron Polk
Lostine, OR
WHERE TO WRITE
WASHINGTON, D.C.
The White House — 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20500; Phone-comments: 202-456-
1111; Switchboard: 202-456-1414.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D — 516 Hart Senate Offi ce Build-
ing, Washington D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-5244.
E-mail: wayne_kinney@wyden.senate.gov Web site:
http://wyden.senate.gov Fax: 202-228-2717.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D — 313 Hart Senate Offi ce
Building, Washington D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-3753.
E-mail: senator@merkley.senate.gov. Fax: 202-228-3997.
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