4 A
❘
SATURDAY EDITION
❘ OCTOBER 31 2015
Siuslaw News
RYAN CRONK , EDITOR
❘ 541-902-3520 ❘
Opinion
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
VIEW FROM UPRIVER
YESTERDAY’S NEWS
Autumnal voices
W ESLEY V OTH
For the Siuslaw News
W
e have a lot of birds here that pro-
duce auditory stimuli this time of
year, though only a few like dip-
per birds, winter wrens and chickadees do so
in a lyrical manner. Fishing for salmon has
gotten me to spend more time along the river,
and I heard a couple of American bitterns the
other day; these make a repetitive glunking
boinking that is about as unbirdlike as any-
thing around. And then there is the raucous
croak of the great blue heron expressing dis-
satisfaction at being interrupted in its fishing
by interlopers.
As a boy I once was greatly spooked by
one of these landing on me in the dark while
I was fishing for catfish; probably I was sit-
ting in what was its favorite pond side patch
of cattails. I saw this enormous cloaking
blackness between me and the stars, heard a
sudden croaking cry that sounded like what I
imagined an attacking pterodactyl would, and
then a great rushing of wings and the flailing
rasp of its scaly legs and nails in my face as
it lifted rapidly away.
The noisiest feathered residents though
by far this past month have been the
pileated woodpeckers. Nearly the size of
a crow, and black with white patches and
a bright crimson crest or topknot, ham-
mering horrendously on dead wood and
this interspersed with ludicrously crazy
calling, it is not easy to miss nor to mis-
take for anything else. This time of year they
supplement their usual fare of carpenter ants and
termites with blue elderberries and apples. These
must have some alcohol or other inebriating
effect, because the birds get quite noisy and
behave erratically, sometimes falling to the
ground, crashing into things, and losing their
fear and usually more distant nature.
There is an incredible resource available to
anyone with access to the Internet. Cornell
University has a laboratory dedicated to the
study of birds, and they archive video and
sound recordings. From their website it is easy
to identify birds and to learn more about the
ones you already know. The website is
http://macaulaylibrary.org/search. For one of
my favorite examples of what is available, go
to this website and type in “American Dipper.”
Choose the second of the recordings there, the
song of a dipper bird recorded on an October
afternoon on the Elk River here along the
Oregon coast.
Dipper birds seem to freely harmonize with
the river; both male and female birds do it,
apparently not to communicate with other birds
but just for their own enjoyment. I have
observed them do this behind our house,
crouched on a small midstream rock at dusk,
sounding different every time. It is one of my
favorite things to listen to, a dipper bird and the
river.
I used to hear spotted owls in the woods
near here, especially late in the day while
mushrooming, but it’s been a while. Lately I’ve
seen and heard barred owls instead, a recent
arrival to this area. For thousands of years the
territories of barred and spotted owls were sep-
arated by the Rocky Mountains and the Plains,
but barred owls have moved westward over the
past hundred years, perhaps in part because of
human changes to the landscape — the plant-
ing of shade trees in towns and suburbs where
there used to be prairie, and fire suppression.
Now the more aggressive and adaptable
barred owls compete for territory with the resi-
dent spotteds. Recent studies show spotted
owls go quiet and then leave an area when
barred ones move in. If barred owls are
removed-shooting them may be the eventual
plan for a study area just upriver of
Brickerville — some displaced spotted owls
move back in. More information can be found
at http://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/
species/Data/NorthernSpottedOwl/BarredOwl
and by following the links, but the local study
area isn’t detailed online as it was in a presen-
tation by Robin Bown of the National Wildlife
Service to Siuslaw Watershed Council in May.
Who would have dreamed birds would
become such a political issue?
LETTERS
and Bob all came to our rescue.
They all put their heads together and
came up with a plan — and it worked! In
addition, the construction men working on
the condos next to the dock helped out with
boards and screwdrivers, as did Bridgeport
Market. And a special thank you to Jeannie
for moral support.
It’s a nice feeling that in our time of need
there were some really nice folks out there
to help.
Buck and Karen Buckmaster
Florence
PEO’s wonderful event
In October, I had the pleasure of attend-
ing a wonderful event. It was organized by
PEO Chapter FQ. Being a newer member of
the community, I learned that the purpose
was to raise funds for scholarships for
Oregon women who are pursuing degrees in
higher education. It was called “Wine,
Women and Who Knows What?”
Oregon wines were served with appetiz-
ers prepared by the culinary arts students
from Siuslaw High School. Their pairings
were the caliber that I would expect from a
high-end restaurant.
There was fantastic local art, a multitude of
auction baskets and raffle bags containing a
bottle of wine along with other surprises. Plus
it was enjoyable for me to visit with many
interesting Florence folks.
I encourage everyone in the community to
attend the fourth annual event next fall. You
will have a great time while supporting a very
worthwhile cause.
Barb Giudici
Florence
Support music fest
To the greater Florence community,
I am writing to express my support for the
Winter Music Festival, held each year since
2003, at the Florence Events Center.
In the fall of 2010, my family and I moved
to Florence from the Portland metro area. We
presumed that life in a small, isolated town
would provide few cultural opportunities for
our young family. That first year, we were
quite thrilled to discover that this town has a
wide array of offerings — primary among
them is the Winter Music Festival and espe-
cially, its unique Kids Concerts.
Year after year, the Winter Music Festival
draws a talented pool of performers. While
Florence is generally considered a retirement
community, the festival producers take great
pains to showcase talent that appeals to all
ages. During the dreary winter months here on
the coast, families can find an engaging and
EDITOR @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
educational refuge, right here at home.
Every fall, the Winter Music Festival coor-
dinators plan an outstanding outreach event
for our community’s students. Our Siuslaw
Elementary School’s first through fifth
graders receive part of the program in
advance, and our music teacher incorporates
the program into her curriculum.
Siuslaw students, along with those from the
surrounding Mapleton, Reedsport and North
Bend school districts, are then treated to a spe-
cial performance at the FEC main theater. It is
both heart-warming and awe-inspiring to see
several hundred students bouncing, singing
and clapping along with the music.
The best part: this live theater concert is
provided free to our students. The only cost to
the Siuslaw School District is providing bus-
ing to the event.
The Winter Music Festival is the major cul-
tural event of the season, for every age and
every economic level, in Florence. As such, it
deserves our support.
Mike Harklerode, Principal
Siuslaw Elementary
Helping hands
On Oct. 23, my husband, Buck, and I were
down on the river loading our boat. However,
we couldn’t get our boat motor up.
We didn’t know what we were going to do,
in terms of getting our boat out of the river,
without tearing the skag up. Fortunately,
David Huntington and fishermen Craig, Bill
Good friends in Florence
Thanks so much for all your calls of sup-
port. I didn’t know my son, Shawn Morgan,
had so many friends. All of the calls were from
shocked people and had the same response,
“He’s the best cop in the city.”
A lot of folks went on to say how helpful he
was with their young drivers and elderly par-
ents. Even some DARE people called with
their stories.
Thank you for your good thoughts.
Karen Morgan-Loren
Florence
Compassion in action
At the end of one of the worst weeks I’ve had
in years of business in Florence, I had the joy of
witnessing love and compassion being poured
out by one veteran to another who was in need. I
got to see firsthand the brotherhood that connect-
ed them to their very souls be a healing balm —
a connection that transcended one’s wealth and
the other’s desperate needs as they spoke of their
service to their country.
Being from different branches of the mili-
tary was the source of good-humored banter
with an undercurrent of deep respect. Needs
were discussed and met by the FAVRA repre-
sentative and a grass-roots effort gave support
and the necessities of life where our VA has
failed. God is good.
Liz Breon, owner
Coast Jewelers
MOMENTS IN TIME
The History Channel
• On Nov. 5, 1775, Gen. George Washington
condemns his troops’ planned celebration of the
British anti-Catholic holiday, Guy Fawkes
Night. Guy Fawkes had been charged with
placing gunpowder under the Houses of
Parliament to trigger a deadly explosion that
would have killed King James I.
• On Nov. 6, 1854, “the March king,” John
Philip Sousa, is born. The instantly recogniza-
ble sound of Sousa’s timeless pieces — such as
“Stars And Stripes Forever” (1896) — are well-
known to many Americans, even if they don’t
know the names of the pieces.
• On Nov. 4, 1928, Arnold Rothstein, New
York’s most notorious gambler, is shot and
killed during a poker game in Manhattan. When
policed asked the bleeding Rothstein who had
shot him, he reportedly put his finger to his lips,
keeping the gangsters’ code of silence.
• On Nov. 7, 1943, singer-songwriter Joni
Mitchell is born in Canada. A bout with polio as
a child had left Mitchell unable to form guitar
chords with her left hand, so she experimented
with non-standard tunings that would become
part of her signature sound.
• On Nov. 3, 1957, the Soviet Union launch-
es the first animal into space — a dog name
Laika — aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft. Laika
survived for several days, kept alive by a
sophisticated life-support system. She died
after the batteries ran down.
• On Nov. 2, 1960, a landmark obscenity
case over “Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” by D.H.
Lawrence, ends in the acquittal of Penguin
Books. The publisher had been sued for
obscenity in publishing an unexpurgated ver-
sion of Lawrence’s 1928 novel.
• On Nov. 8, 1994, for the first time in 40
years, the Republican Party wins control of
both the U.S. House of Representatives and the
Senate. The empowered GOP united under the
“Contract with America,” a 10-point legislative
plan to reduce federal taxes, balance the budg-
et and dismantle social welfare programs.
(c) 2015 King Features Synd., Inc.
L ETTERS TO THE
E DITOR P OLICY
The Siuslaw News welcomes letters to
the editor concerning issues affecting the
Florence area and Lane County.
Emailed letters are preferred. Handwritten
or typed letters must be signed. All letters
should be limited to about 300 words and
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and phone number for verification.
Letters are subject to editing for length,
grammar and clarity. Publication of any letter
is not guaranteed and depends on space
available and the volume of letters received.
Libelous and anonymous letters as well
as poetry will not be published.
All submissions become the property of
Siuslaw News and will not be returned.
Write to:
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Pres. Barack Obama
The White House
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FAX: 202-456-2461
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www.oregon.gov/gov
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
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FAX: 503-986-1080
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313 Hart Senate Office Bldg
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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