Wednesday, December 8, 2021
A4
OPINION
VOICE of the CHIEFTAIN
Dickenson
leaves
behind a
legacy worth
following
U
nless you open up to the Opin-
ion page first upon reading the
Chieftain (or click on that tab
first on the website), you’ve likely read
the piece on the front of today’s edi-
tion about former longtime reporter
Elane Dickenson, who died in early
November.
That she dedicated nearly 36 years
of her life to the Chieftain is an amaz-
ing feat. That she did so while raising
her two children, Jenny and Matt, is
even more impressive, especially when
you stop to consider the nonstop work
that parenthood is and the daily grind
that is journalism.
Trying to navigate one of those
on its own is a challenge. The two
together — especially as a single par-
ent — feels like it would be an impos-
sibility. There are not enough words for
even the most talented wordsmith to
express what she did.
Yet she did it, and, as many who
spoke to the Chieftain for the article
shared, did it with accuracy, integrity,
kindness and without complaint.
The last one of those is, perhaps,
the most impressive. Anyone knows
the difficulty of doing something you
don’t like to do, and, admittedly, that
happens from time to time in any job,
including journalism. Even if it is your
dream job — as it seemed to be for
Dickenson — challenges and difficul-
ties in the newsroom or what you are
covering arise. Gut-wrenching stories
of a car wreck that takes a life unex-
pectedly, reports on crimes when they
happen, or an article on a fire that
burns a home to the ground are not
easy to write — even though necessary
— and to grumble about those is easy
to do.
But none of that reportedly came
from Dickenson, even though she cov-
ered every topic imaginable in 3½
decades.
She also attained a standard jour-
nalists strive to be known for: accurate
and fair.
In a day where there is so much
swirling about journalists who have an
agenda or can get nothing right, it is
refreshing to hear so many comments
about Dickenson that she rarely got
anything wrong — and if she did, was
quick to correct it.
The standard she brought to the
Chieftain is the standard we hope to
reach here each week. We aren’t per-
fect, but if we are striving for accuracy
and fairness and doing our due dili-
gence, we’ll be on the right track.
That is what Elane Dickenson did,
notepad and camera in hand, for nearly
36 years.
She leaves a legacy her children and
grandchildren and the Wallowa County
community can look on with fondness,
and leaves big shoes for those who fol-
low her at the Chieftain — not only
now, but in the years to come.
LETTER to the EDITOR
Republicans only now care
about the national debt
Well, here we are again: a battle over
the debt ceiling and funding to keep the
federal government operating that will
bring us to the brink of a government
shutdown, or over the edge into a full-
blown catastrophe. After four years of
profligate spending and tax breaks for
extremely wealthy individuals and big
corporations, suddenly Republicans are
horrified by the size of the national debt.
Here are some facts, as outlined in a Pro
Publica piece recently:
The national debt rose by almost $7.8
trillion during Trump’s time in office.
That’s nearly twice as much as what
Americans owe on student loans, car
loans, credit cards and every other type
of debt other than mortgages. Candi-
date Trump promised to pay down the
national debt in eight years. Instead, he
presided over a 40% rise in just four
years.
The growth in the annual deficit
under Trump ranks as the third-biggest
increase, relative to the size of the econ-
omy, of any U.S. presidential admin-
istration, according to a calculation
by Eugene Steuerle, co-founder of the
Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.
Two other presidents, George W. Bush
and Abraham Lincoln, had larger growth
rates, both due to war spending. Trump?
He just shoveled money out of our pock-
ets (by “our” we mean residents of this
county) into the pockets of hedge fund
managers, CEOs of financial institutions,
and insurance companies.
Arguing over the debt limit legis-
lation will bring Medicare payments,
CONTACT your REPRESENTATIVES
U.S. PRESIDENT
Joe Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
U.S. SENATORS
Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
La Grande office: 541-962-7691
Bobby Levy, District 58
900 Court St. NE, H-376
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1458
Rep.BobbyLevy@state.or.us
EDITORIALS: Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the Wallowa County Chieftain editorial board. Other
columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily that of
the Wallowa County Chieftain.
LETTERS: The Wallowa County Chieftain welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public issues
and public policies for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper reserves the
right to withhold letters that address concerns about individual services and products or letters that
P.O. Box 338 • Enterprise, OR 97828
Office: 209 NW First St., Enterprise, Ore.
Phone: 541-426-4567 • Fax: 541-426-3921
Contents copyright © 2021. All rights reserved.
Reproduction without permission is prohibited.
• • •
Bill Hansell, District 29
900 Court St. NE, S-423
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1729
Sen.BillHansell@state.or.us
infringe on the rights of private citizens. Letters must be signed by the author and include the city of
residence and a daytime phone number. The phone number will not be published. Unsigned letters will
not be published.
SEND LETTERS TO: editor@wallowa.com, or via mail to Wallowa County Chieftain, 209 NW 1st St.
Enterprise, OR 97828
General Manager, Karrine Brogoitti, kbrogoitti@eomediagroup.com
Editor, Ronald Bond, rbond@wallowa.com
Reporter, Bill Bradshaw, bbradshaw@wallowa.com
News Assistant, Cheryl Jenkins, cjenkins@wallowa.com
Classifieds/Inside Sales, Julie Ferdig, jferdig@bakercityherald.com
Advertising Assistant, Devi Mathson, dmathson@lagrandeobserver.com
To submit news tips and press releases, call 541-426-4567
or email editor@wallowa.com
SENATOR
Greg Smith, District 57
900 Court St. NE, H-482
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1457
Rep.GregSmith@state.or.us
Member Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
USPS No. 665-100
Cliff Bentz
1239 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6730
Medford office: 541-776-4646
REPRESENTATIVES
GOVERNOR
Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, OR 97301-4047
503-378-4582
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE
Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753
Pendleton office: 541-278-1129
Wallowa County’s Newspaper Since 1884
VOLUME 134
Social Security payments and infra-
structure spending to a grinding halt. Of
course, that’s their objective! Here’s the
thing: If the Republicans retake Con-
gress in 2022, be prepared for whiplash
as these same spending hawks pass bills
cutting taxes even more for those least in
need. It won’t help the national debt any,
but it will sure gut the Build Back Bet-
ter Act, with good things like protection
for families with children, affordable day
care, help with their hearing for Medi-
care recipients, paid family leave, and
addressing the climate needs (many times
greater than the help included in the
Build Back Better Act, but it’s a begin-
ning). So have at it, newly-minted deficit
hawks. Just keep fiddling while the USA
— and the entire earth — burns.
Dan and Jan Blair
Joseph
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