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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 7, 2015)
4 A The First Amendment Letters to the Editor: C ongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Editor@TheSiuslawNews.com Press Releases: PressReleases@TheSiuslawNews.com SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7 • 2015 YESTERDAY’S NEWS LETTERS Food for thought MOMENTS IN TIME The History Channel A few days ago I reached into a plastic bag for what was left of a loaf of bread that had been bought at least a month and a half prior. What struck me as odd — no, it really didn’t — the slice of bread had just a little tiny bit of green mold, just a small lit- tle pinch. I recall a few years back watching a YouTube video in which some guy with a host of credentials said, as he pro- ceeded to unwrap a burger from a very well known fast food establishment, “I bought this burger a year ago,” and he also claimed that the burg- er looked as good as the day he bought it. I suppose, we as individu- als could perform the same experiment. However, the way I see it, what does all those preservatives do to the human body and our health that our government seems to be concerned about? Now I can understand shelf life — the longer a product sits on the shelf without going bad is a plus for the manufac- ture — but why with food that is suppose to be con- sumed almost immediately need all those preservatives? We have been told that X parts per million won’t hurt us. I think it does matter how many parts per million will or won’t hurt us. After 20, 30, 40 years, what about those X parts per million, what then is the effect on our health? I think, we know with the high- er rates of every disease and every ailment known to man. And yes, I consume those well-preserved burgers. Vernon James Florence • On Feb. 10, 1763, The Seven Years’ War, known as the French and Indian War, ends with the signing of the Treaty of Paris by France, Great Britain and Spain. France lost all claims to Canada and gave Louisiana to Spain, while Britain received Spanish Florida, Upper Canada and various French holdings overseas. • On Feb. 11, 1805, Sacagawea, the Shoshone Indian interpreter and guide to the Lewis and Clark expedition, gives birth to her first child, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, two months before the trek begins. The baby, nick- named Pompey, went on the expedition, carried on his mother’s back. Clark paid for Pompey’s education when the boy grew up. • On Feb. 14, 1842, fans of Charles Dickens organize the Boz Ball, an elite party for the cel- ebrated English writer during his first trip to America. (Dickens’ earliest works had been published under the pseudonym Boz.) Only members of New York’s aristocracy were invit- ed. • On Feb. 15, 1903, toy-store owner and inventor Morris Michtom places two stuffed bears in his shop window in Brooklyn, adver- tising them as Teddy bears. Michtom had earli- er petitioned President Theodore Roosevelt for permission to use his nickname, Teddy. The president agreed. • On Feb. 12, 1938, best-selling author Judy Blume, known for her children’s books and young-adult novels, including “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing” and “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret,” is born in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Blume’s books have been beloved by several generations of readers. • On Feb. 9, 1960, Adolph Coors disappears while driving to work from his Morrison, Colorado, home. The grandson of the Coors’ founder and chairman of the Golden, Colorado, brewery was kidnapped and held for ransom before being shot to death. License pedestrians I agree with Portlander Bob Huckaby; walking should require training, certifica- tion, licensing and taxing. Oh, he is only tar- geting bicyclists? Why stop there? Training: Our educational system uses the model that citizens must be taught, told and advised by public agencies down to the smallest aspect of their lives. Compliance requires indoctrination in approved ways. Since the young must be accompanied, high schools and colleges could provide. Certification: Pedestrians continue to cross roads where it’s not as safe. They should not be allowed to share space with those authorized unless certified and retested every few years as laws change. License: Our enforcers need to know who is in compliance. The license would be worn around the neck or pinned on the chest. It would be of a size, color and shape easily recognized. Tax: Sidewalks cost money to build and maintain, a cost pedestrians should bear. There is also training, administration, enforcement and imprisonment. Our public bureaucracies typically consume 80 percent of the revenue, leaving 20 percent for the sidewalks. And government can claim job creation. USPS# 497-660 Rather than become a criminal, those not given permission could use alternative authorized forms like bicycles, motorcycles, cars or buses. (Maybe allow an exception to go directly to and from a bus stop to reach work.) These alternatives also create more jobs dealing in pollution, medicine, resource acquisition, retailing, bureaucracies and infrastructure. We have all been taught, told and advised that more taxes, licensing and regulations means better quality of life and superior societies. Keith Stanton Florence Going the extra mile On Jan. 13, our small community was without water. We have a well and storage tank and a distribution system that includes 10 lots, of which five are occupied. As the system manager, I checked all that I could but knew I needed professional help. Until the recession, we had a company in town that serviced our well, but he is now long gone. I started calling plumbers first thing Thursday morning but all were already out on calls. I explained the situa- tion to each office person and they prom- ised to pass the info on to the plumbers. (c) 2015 King Features Synd., Inc. he Siuslaw News wel- comes letters to the edi- tor on subjects of gener- al interest to its readership. Brevity is mandatory, and let- ters are subject to editing. Libelous letters and poetry will not be published. Thank-you letters are gener- ally inappropriate. Publication of any letter is not guaranteed. Letters must be signed over the writer’s name, address and phone number. Send letters to: Editor @TheSiuslawNews.com T Copyright 2015 © Siuslaw News Publisher, ext. 327 General Manager, ext. 318 Editor, ext. 313 Advertising Director, ext. 326 Office Supervisor, ext. 312 Production Supervisor Press Manager DEADLINES: Wednesday Issue—General news, Monday noon; Budgets, four days prior to publication; Regular classified ads, Monday 1 p.m.; Display ads, Monday noon; Boxed and display classified ads, Friday 5 p.m. Saturday Issue—General news, Thursday noon; Budgets, two days prior to publication; Regular classified ads, Thursday 1 p.m.; Display ads, Thursday noon; Boxed and display classified ads, Wednesday 5 p.m. Soundings, Tuesday 5 p.m. NEWSPAPER SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Lane County, 1 yr manual pay, $71; 1 yr auto pay, $62.10. 10-wks manual $18; 10-wks auto, $15.42. Out of Lane County, 1 yr manual $84.75; 1 yr auto, $80.95; 10-wks manual, $21.35; 10-wks auto, $20.05. Out of State, $120; Out of U.S., $200. MAIL includes E-EDITION E-EDITION RATE (ONE YEAR): Anywhere, $60.30 Website and E-Edition: www.thesiuslawnews.com WHERE TO WRITE Published every Wednesday and Saturday at 148 Maple St. in Florence, Lane County, Oregon. A member of the National Newspaper Association and Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association. Periodicals postage paid at Florence, Ore. Postmaster, send address changes to: The Siuslaw News, P.O. Box 10, Florence, OR 97439. Phone (541) 997-3441 (See extension numbers below). FAX (541) 997-7979. John Bartlett Jenna Bartlett Ryan Cronk Susan Gutierrez Cathy Dietz Ron Annis Jeremy Gentry When I called Scott Ryland, I spoke to the man himself. He admitted that this was a bit outside the normal plumbing area but also knew there was likely no one else in town more qualified than himself. He promised to get out to take a look as soon as possible. He and his crew arrived about noon, and after checking the system, determined that the distribution pump had failed. He called about a dozen places in Eugene trying to find a comparable pump, but all were much smaller. We were about to give up when he called someone in Coos Bay. They had the exact pump we needed. It was now 2 p.m. and he said he would personally drive down there and pick up the pump and try to get it installed later that evening. At 6:30 p.m. I got a call from Scott to check my water. Sure enough it was back on. Needless to say my neighbors were pleased and so was I. So Scott went not just the extra “mile,” but an extra 100 miles to get us water. And the price he charged? Way below what I thought it would be considering the number of hours invested. Thanks Scott, from all of us on Lakeview Drive. Brad Hanscom Florence • On Feb. 13, 1991, Sotheby’s announces the discovery of a long-lost manuscript of “Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain. The man- uscript was the first half of Twain’s original version, heavily corrected in his handwriting, which had been missing for more than a centu- ry. Pres. Barack Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW Washington, D.C. 20500 Comments: 202-456-1111 Switchboard: 202-456-1414 FAX: 202-456-2461 TTY/TDD Comments: 202-456-6213 www.whitehouse.gov Gov. John Kitzhaber 160 State Capitol 900 Court St. Salem, OR 97301-4047 Governor’s Citizens’ Rep. Message Line 503-378-4582 www.oregon.gov/gov U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden 221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 202-224-5244 541-431-0229 www.wyden.senate.gov FAX: 503-986-1080 Email: Sen.ArnieRoblan@state.or.us U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley 313 Hart Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 202-224-3753/FAX: 202-228-3997 541-465-6750 State Rep. Caddy McKeown (Dist. 9) 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1409 Email: rep.caddymckeown@state.or.us U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (4th Dist.) 2134 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515 202-225-6416/ 800-944-9603 541-269-2609/ 541-465-6732 www.defazio.house.gov State Sen. Arnie Roblan (Dist. 5) 900 Court St. NE - S-417 Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1705 West Lane County Commissioner Jay Bozievich 125 E. Eighth St. Eugene, OR 97401 541-682-4203 FAX: 541-682-4616 Email: Jay.Bozievich@co.lane.or.us