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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (May 6, 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 WEDNESDAY M AY 6 • 2015 1 2 5 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y F L A S H B A C K 1890 ❙ T T HE W EST F LORENCE T IMES T HE S IUSLAW O AR T HE S IUSLAW N EWS S IUSLAW N EWS ❙ 2015 his year marks Siuslaw News’ quasquicentennial, our 125th anniversary, a remarkable achievement for any business in a small community like Florence. To commemorate this milestone, throughout the year we’ll feature some of the town’s history as origi- nally published in the newspaper, including historic articles and photos from more than a century ago. Rhododendra crowned O RIGINALLY P UBLISHED M AY 22, 1908 T HE W EST , V OL . 17, N O . 53 Wednesday, May 20, was a memorable day in the history of our quiet town, for on that occasion was held the ceremonies of crowning the rhododendron queen and presenting to her the keys to the gates of the city. A large crowd was present. The town was handsomely decorated for the occasion. All the business houses and many of the private residences were orna- mented with the national colors, evergreens and the beautiful rhododendron flowers, which grow in profusion on the neighboring hills. The streets were ornamented with a grand arch of evergreens and rhododendrons. Boats loaded with passengers in holiday attire began to arrive about 9 a.m., and by the time for the exercises to begin, a large crowd thronged the streets. After they landed, pupils of Mapleton school marched up through town and then down to the city wharf, each bearing a ban- ner. At 10 a.m., Laura Johnson, who had been chosen queen for the occasion and attended by her maids, marched to the wharf where Mayor Edwards delivered an address of wel- come. Then Joaquin Miller, “Poet of the Sierras,” crowned Johnson queen, following an inter- esting address. The queen then took her seat on the throne and the keys of the city were present- ed to her by Mayor Edwards. The keys, appropriately, were made from the wood of the rhododendron tree and bore inscriptions. Then followed the triumphal procession of the queen’s barge and several floats on the Siuslaw River. After the return of the queen and her attendants, they proceeded to the Odd Fellows’ hall and then to the Western House, where dinner had been prepared for them. The afternoon exercises at the hall consist- ed mostly of songs, recitations and drills, all of which were well rendered and showed that great care had been taken in the preparation. Several races then took place on the street. There was lively competition. NEIGHBORS Snake oil of fatty oil (beef fat), red pepper, tur- pentine, camphor, etc. This is similar to modern Capsaicin liniment. If you, or someone you know, have a common PC (personal computer), you are bombarded shamelessly by modern snake oil salespeople each and every day. Following are just a few examples received in just one day from Newsmax Health, Moneynews, etc., with titilating titles: Foods that can ward off aging. Eating like a caveman, best way to lose weight. Begin enjoying a razor-sharp mind in only 48 hours. Baldness linked to can- cer. Alzheimer’s treatment stops memo- ry loss immediately. Seven deadly drugs being forced down your throat. Click here to see the inexpensive treat- ment that’s making doctors and big pharma look really bad (selling book). Before reading confirm that yes, I am B OB J ACKSON N EIGHBORHOOD C ORRESPONDENT For the Siuslaw News Q uite naturally, when the term “snake oil” appears, it conjures up a scoundrel pseudo doctor selling cure-all bogus medicine from the back of a covered wagon. Oftentimes he would have a “shill” planted in the crowd to attest vocally how this very elixir had restored his health. This scene appears in many old shoot-em-up western cowboy movies. The covered wagon is gone, but the scams continue today. Snake oil once meant any phony health product foisted upon a gullible public, that promised cures for most anything. Early on, rattlesnake oil was actually sold as a cure for rheumatism and skin diseases. The Chinese had used snake oil for years. One hypothetical theory for the term relates that it originated thusly: folks in New York and Pennsylvania had been rubbing wounds with oil that seeped naturally from the soil, it seemed to speed healing, so they began bottling and selling the stuff as a cure-all. They called it Seneca oil, after the local tribes. It was pronounced “Sen-ake oil,” which eventually became “snake oil.” (As this is purely folk etymology, it may not be factual). A product named Stanley’s snake oil was tested by the U.S. government and found to contain mineral oil, 1 percent over 21 (yeah, right!). Does Tylenol shorten lifespan? All these things are a hypochondriac’s delight! And then there are the “finan- cial advisers” that are desperately trying to make me rich. Leading Chicago developer offers exceptional terms on landmark building with minimum investment of $50,000 (what a deal!). Bob Jackson (do I know you?), not for sale book — I have reserved a free copy in your name, it’s on hold waiting for your response — click here to fill out your address. Lifetime moneymaking opportunity. Hundreds of millions in dollars avail- able — and on and on. And, a must read for Bob, How Ben Horowitz invested in a company, now worth $2.8 billion. Why are they telling me, why don’t they jump on this opportunity themselves? Saved the best for last: World’s great- est healing miracle of all time. 1-1/2 cents a day, self administer at home. Treat virtually all diseases successfully, including cancer, AIDS, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, asthma, hepatitis and emphysema. Everything from acne to yeast infections, flu, etc. Could poten- tially make most drugs and medical treatments unnecessary! Big threat to trillion-dollar pharma- ceutical and medical industries. Diseases caused by oxygen deprivation, low oxygen environment. Patients dragged back from the brink of death. CAT scan proof. Docs don’t want you to know about this simple cure for practi- cally all known diseases (multiple scle- rosis cure), lose alcohol craving, heal dogs, cats, horses, “gift to mankind” — no price quoted. Seems to me that we are off to la la land here, and right in the privacy of your own home. LETTERS Re-elect Ward Please join me in support to re-elect Rob Ward for Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue Board of Directors. Rob and his family have lived in the area since 1974. Over the years he has generously volunteered in the cities of Dunes City and Florence, serving both communities as mayor. Today, experienced leadership matters. Vote to re-elect Rob Ward. Rebecca Ruede Dunes City Take back democracy Kudos to Doug Hughes for having the guts to fly his gyrocopter onto the Capitol lawn to bring attention to the issue of campaign finance reform. Campaign finance reform is the single most important problem facing our democracy. Due in part to Citizens United, multi-national corpo- rations and special interests control our legisla- tors with their profit-driven agenda. Florida Rep. Alan Grayson and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders are the only two members of Congress who mostly financed their campaigns with contributions of less than $200. That leaves almost the entire Congress in the pockets of big business, and don’t expect corporate USPS# 497-660 media to enlighten us on this issue. Hughes knew he needed to bring this prob- lem to the attention of the people of this coun- try since Congress already knows what’s hap- pening. He suggests one proposal for campaign finance reform — a constitutional amendment ratified by 3/4 of the states that would skirt the vote entirely of the U.S. Congress through an Article 5 convention. That amendment could protect legislation from being struck down in the courts. I’m sure there are other options that could be considered also. Multi-national corporations are driving this country and the world for their own interests. It is time for the people to take back our democra- cy before there is no democracy left. Julie MacFarlane Florence ‘Modest’ measure A properly written ballot title should be a neutral summary that gives the voter impartial and non-emotional information concerning the proposed measure. The use of the words “ensure safety” and “modestly” fail in both cases. Nothing can ensure road safety and modest is an opinion. From zero dollars to $35 may not be considered “modest” by many on fixed incomes. Support Steve Reflecting back on my 50 years of career firefighting, I feel my experience of 18 years with the Siuslaw Rural Fire District, which became the Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue, was the absolute high point of my career. We were successful in replacing and/or rebuilding fire stations, replacing fire apparatus, recruiting and retaining volunteer firefighters, consolidating with the City of Florence Fire Department and creating an intergovernmental agreement with the Confederated Tribes for the protection of the Three Rivers Casino, all with a minimum increase in tax rates. We were successful on obtaining several fed- eral grants to enhance our mission. These were not the accomplishments of the fire chief, but a team effort. The team started with the board of fire directors and included the administrative staff, fire officers and career and volunteer fire- fighters. The board of directors is the key to any gov- ernmental agency, and our boards over these many years were the driving force to create a model agency. One fire director remains as the benchmark. Steve Olienyk has served the community for over 20 years as a fire board member, board president and my personal confidant. Steve has served our community since locat- ing to rural Florence, volunteering on several community service organizations, and was even named by the Governor of Oregon as the “Volunteer of the Year.” He also served our country at the end of World War II as a military guard of the Sugarmo Prison in Japan. I ask my many friends and former and active firefighters to support Steve Olienyk for re- election to the Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue Board of Fire Directors. John D. Buchanan Retired Fire Chief Florence 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: In Lane County — 1-year subscription, $71; 10-weeks subscription, $18; Out of Lane County — 1-year subscription, $94; 10-weeks subscription, $24; Out of State — 1-year subscription, $120; Out of United States — 1-year subscription, $200; E-Edition Online Only (Anywhere) — 1-year subscription, $65. Mail subscription includes E-Edition. 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: 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 The $11 million per year that would be raised by this measure will still not be sufficient to fund the $9 million annual deficit the county states it has in the roads fund. After sending 40 percent of the funds to the cities in the county, there will still be a $2.4 mil- lion annual deficit. Will this gap be filled by then increasing the vehicle fee up to the legal limit set by the State of Oregon? If passed, this measure will have no effect on the condition of either Highway 126 or Highway 101, which are not serviced by the county. Ed Scarberry Florence 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. Kate Brown 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
