Wednesday, May 12, 2021
A4
OPINION
VOICE of the CHIEFTAIN
A second
charge
raises the
need to
investigate
T
he “cloud” that remains over the
city of Joseph is starting to take
on the appearance of smoke. And
where there is smoke, there is fire.
All popular adages aside, there truly is
a mess in the city of Joseph, and it seems
to be getting worse.
The good news of the council appoint-
ing Brock Eckstein as its interim admin-
istrator to get through budget season was
overshadowed by a second accusation of
harassment by a city employee, who is
on leave currently and may not return to
work.
The news of Dennis Welch’s accusa-
tion was announced by Councilwoman
Lisa Collier at the City Council meet-
ing Thursday, May 6, and came after the
council was already dressed down in a
letter by the Joseph Chamber of Com-
merce and by members of the commu-
nity who were in attendance.
One accusation of harassment — that
by former city Administrator Larry Bra-
den last month — should have been
enough for an immediate call for an
investigation. This second charge ups the
ante.
We already wrote in this space two
weeks ago that it was concerning the
council kept silent on whether there
would be an investigation.
Now, any answer other than “yes” to
that question should send up a massive
red flag.
Any accusation of harassment is a
matter that must be looked into, and the
reasons are pretty simple.
Suppose Councilman Matt Soots is
correct in his opining last week that this
may be a case of individuals being thin-
skinned. If what has been claimed as
harassment doesn’t rise to that sever-
ity after all, the community of Joseph —
and the council — needs to know that as
soon as possible.
But if these accusations are, in fact,
valid, then a thorough investigation must
be done, and quickly. The chamber, in
its letter that was read to the council last
week, called for the individual or indi-
viduals responsible — if this is indeed a
valid charge — to resign.
We agree, as we called for the same
move in this space recently.
We also know, though, that the pro-
cess must be allowed to play out, and we
don’t want to point an accusatory finger
until we know for certain where it must
be directed.
Which is why the investigation must
begin. Immediately.
Residents of the city of Joseph are
starting to lose trust in their government.
Accountability is the only thing that can
begin to restore order and put out this
fire before it turns from a manageable
blaze into a raging inferno.
LETTERS to the EDITOR
A different way to think
about the 2nd Amendment
When referring to the early colonial
days, some people conclude that since
the colonists had to fight to gain inde-
pendence from the tyranny of the king of
England, patriots now must have home
arsenals to fight our current government.
They believe that the 2nd Amendment to
the Constitution requires that there be no
limits to the amount of armor they collect
and prepare to use.
There is a different way to think of the
2nd Amendment and the way it relates to
the Declaration of Independence. On one
Fourth of July, a group of people reen-
acted the colonists’ development of the
Declaration of Independence as a cele-
bration of Independence Day. They were
assigned opposing positions, those agree-
ing to separate from English rule and
those who were reluctant to change the
status quo. As the group read the his-
torical document they noticed that the
phrases at the beginning of the document
were, and still are, used frequently.
“We hold these truths to be self-evi-
dent, that all men are created equal, that
they are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable rights, that among
these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness.”
The Fourth of July group read through
what seemed a never-ending list of griev-
ances against the king of England. Sure,
the colonists were against paying taxes to
the king, because they suffered extreme
abuses by the dictator king. The king’s
soldiers were the controlling power in the
colonies even during times of peace. Just
read the long list of abuses listed in the
Declaration of Independence and you will
appreciate our freedom today.
The Declaration of Independence is
a powerful reminder of the reasons our
Founders decided on the concepts in the
Constitution of the United States. Those
concepts make the U.S. a free country —
free because its citizens are the govern-
ment. In my opinion, colonial life was far
different from the lives we live in 2021.
We have civilian control of our govern-
ment and we raise taxes to maintain our
government services. We are not gov-
erned by a king or dictator. We disagree
with one another, but the majority rules.
The majority rules by a system of law
and order that is dependent on the loy-
alty, responsibility and education of the
people.
With a system of law and order that
supports freedom, men and women of
goodwill have no need to be armed with
high-powered military equipment and
ammunition to protect their homes, prop-
erty, families. Muskets were enough for
the patriots in 1776 and they ought to be
enough for patriots in 2021.
Evelyn Swart
Joseph
Waiting for more vaccine
information is not ‘arm
swinging’
I must respond to Mr. Kemp’s letter to
the editor from Wednesday, May 5.
EDITORIALS: Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the Wallowa County Chieftain
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First of all, a person does not have
a right to eat in a restaurant “free of
contagion.”
Secondly, the federal government fully
and clearly admits getting a COVID-19
vaccine does not always work.
FDA.gov states: “The Moderna
COVID-19 vaccine may not protect
everyone.”
It states the same for the Pfizer-BioN-
Tech COVID-19 vaccine and the Johnson
& Johnson vaccine.
The Moderna, Pfizer and J&J vaccines
have not received FDA approval.
FDA.gov states: “There is no U.S.
Food and Drug Administration-approved
vaccine to prevent COVID-19.”
Getting vaccinated does not make a
person any less of a threat to the gen-
eral public than someone who is not vac-
cinated. This potentially makes the vac-
cinated person even more of a danger
of spreading COVID-19 since he or she
is walking around with a false sense of
security.
Many people just want more informa-
tion before committing to a vaccine that
may or may not be effective. I wouldn’t
call that “arm-swinging.” In fact, I think
it is wise.
Mr. Kemp may be discouraging the
swinging of arms that aren’t swinging
at all but are, rather, merely waiting for
more facts. After all, we’re not bullies;
we’re people who understand the respon-
sibility, the beauty, and the danger of liv-
ing free.
Trina Rice
Enterprise
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