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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 17, 2016)
4 A ❘ SATURDAY EDITION ❘ SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 NED HICKSON , EDITOR ❘ 541-902-3520 ❘ Opinion YESTERDAY’S NEWS VIEW FROM UPRIVER Warning signs W ESLEY V OTH For the Siuslaw News T he season turns: butterfly wings float on the river, maple leaves and pump- kins color and a huge fir limb falls across the path during a windless, gorgeous afternoon. As others have commented on these pages, this has been a year of abun- dance in the local gardens, orchards and wild or abandoned openings. As a fourth variety of apple ripens in our yard, the elk are back with their willingness to co-harvest what they can reach. Although they break fewer branches than the bears, they are not gentle in their ingestions. I know now that they prefer red over white wine, or I infer that from the color of grapes they select from our arbor. Out of curiosity I parked my car up close to their current browsing tree, and this result- ed in the dust being wiped off that side of the car. They clearly have no sense of caution while eating. Fortunately for their health, our produce is unsprayed and non-irrigated. Delivering mail here has been made more interesting this summer by the much needed and appreciated road work happening locally. As a writer, I am interested in posted signs, especially ones written as some form of warn- ing. Some make me laugh, over and over, as I pass the same ones day after day. Lane County road crew signs are especially pithy: Fresh Oil. Weeks can pass and even in the summer sun, long after the roadkill stuck to it has melted into ooze, the signs still promise the oil to be fresh. Or, my favorite sign of all, Flying Rock. Who needs aerial pigs when rocks here can spread their wings. Some people are irritated by what seems like a great increase in posted warnings, but sometimes it would have been helpful if more attention was being paid to public health. The front page of this newspaper recently revealed that drinking water at Mapleton School had been tested and contained higher than accept- able levels of lead. I don't want to even get into the debate about how much of that dan- gerous-in-any-quantity metal could be accept- able; as the first statement on the EPA website warns “EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) agree that there is no known safe level of lead in a child’s blood. Lead is harmful to health, espe- cially for children.” Many people reading the newspaper article, or hearing of the finding, grew up drinking that water, and their children or grandchildren are doing so now. And is the problem limited to the school? Many homes I've been in here have old or brass fixtures that probably contain lead; ours does. And how can one know? Mapleton School gets its water from Mapleton Water District (240 connections), whose source is surface water from Berkshire Creek. Others in the area also get their water from creeks or springs, or from shallow wells like ours. Anyone who spends time looking in the above-tidal sections of our river can tell you that lead fishing sinkers here appear to melt in a remarkably short period of time. That same water chemistry must do likewise with whatever lead is in the fixtures supplying drinking water here. True, there may be a number of things even worse than lead in ruining our children's potential for success and health, but when we know that every cell in their bodies contains water, can't we try and make that water as free as possible from what causes harm to every organism ever so studied? I trust our community will ask for answers, for more testing, and for help with testing. I plan to. LETTERS Republican demgogue Joseph McCarthy was I believe our first Republican demagogue. Fast forward to more of the same and now we have Trump. Now I must go back in time to understand how we went from the past to the present. When “The Great Communicator,” Ronald Regan was said to have known about the Iran-Contra scandal, Republicans were infuriated and how dare anyone accuse him of wrongdoing. Then we have Nixon. His demise really burnt the GOP to the core. Dirty tricks then became dirty politics which the GOP made into an art form. They did railroad a few Democratic potentals, tried to take down Clinton with his smoking cigar and did a good job on John Kerry. They blew it with Obama, although dirty politics keep coming up with old mudslinging. Not to think that Trump is a real Republican or even a politician he is the ultimate mudslinger. — Win Jolley Florence Thankful for heroes Early Tuesday afternoon, while you were getting your hair cut or your oil changed, grocery shopping, or having lunch with friends at the port, a fire broke out north of town, in a dry wooded area. Anyone who has experienced the volatili- ty of wildland fires, or been evacuated from their home with 30 minutes notice can attest to the visceral fear that such news incites. Thanks to a swift response, with all per- sonnel mustered, and a nod to the gra- ciousness of mother nature for a very mild USPS# 497-660 breeze instead of our usual bluster, our Siuslaw Valley firefighters with the aid of Oregon Department of Forestry, quickly doused flames and avoided disaster, but while the company was still occupied with the wildland fire, another blaze began in a residence on 17th street. Wow, what a day in quiet Florence. People of our beautiful Siuslaw River environs, you have heroes living in your neighborhood; painting your house, work- ing on your car, sweeping your chimney, and so many other occupations in our town. They work at everyday jobs like the rest of us until, called into action, they join their brethren (I don’t know the feminine for that, so I include my sisters in that society) in a race to save lives and protect property. They volunteer their livelihood and risk their lives... volunteer! There’s a new Firefighter Academy coming up soon and I believe registration is still open. Think about it. Check out the requirements at SVFR.org or stop into the station. It is a commendable, worthwhile endeavor, both to yourself, and to our community. Firefighters of SVFR, I am over- whelmed with gratitude and deep appreci- ation for the service and sacrifice you and your families give to our community. That extends to our police, ambulance, and all first responders as well. It’s been a busy day people. Go home, set your boots and turnouts up for the next tap-out, and get some rest. Thank you, heroes. Florence Doesn’t get much better One of the reasons that I moved to Florence was because of the many great events held throughout the year in our great city. Now we can add Windfest to this list. This is an event put on by Steven Leskin and crew at the Port of Siuslaw. Windfest became a very enjoyable way for people young ( boy can two year olds dance!) and older (I met people in their eighties and nineties there) to spend their Saturday evenings. Windfest was held this last summer on every Saturday evening on our much appreciated green area next to our board- walk in Old Town. It featured very talent- ed people from several local area bands who played a wide variety of music. This event was free with a suggested donation to Florence Food Share so it could be appreciated and enjoyed by everyone. I saw many local people who attended every Saturday as well as many visitors who were getting to enjoy yet another of the many great things Florence has to offer. Windfest is an event that provides great music that you can listen to while watch- ing our beautiful river. Things just don't get much better than that! Thank you Port of Siuslaw Commissioners and staff for an event that will hopefully continue for many sum- mers to come. — Maureen Miltenberger Florence MOMENTS IN TIME The History Channel • On Oct. 6, 1866, in Indiana, the Reno gang carries out the first robbery of a moving train in the U.S., making off with over $10,000. Holding up moving trains in remote locations soon became popular in the American West. • On Oct. 5, 1947, President Harry Truman makes the first-ever televised presidential address from the White House, asking Americans to cut back on their use of grain in order to help starving Europeans. He asked that the public voluntarily forgo meat on Tuesdays, eggs and poultry on Thursdays and to save a slice of bread each day. • On Oct. 4, 1957, the "Space Age" begins with the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite. Other firsts for the Soviet space program included first man in space, first woman, first three men, first space walk and first to orbit the moon. • On Oct. 3, 1961, the United Auto Workers union goes on strike at Ford plants across the country to win higher wages and better bene- fits. It was the first company-wide strike since Ford had agreed to a collective-bargaining deal in 1941. • On Oct. 8, 1970, Matt Damon, the future star of a long list of hit movies, including "The Bourne Identity," is born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Damon, who left Harvard University before graduating to pursue an act- ing career, made his big-screen debut with a small role in 1988's "Mystic Pizza." • On Oct. 7, 1984, at Soldier Field, Chicago Bears running back Walter Payton runs for 154 yards to become the NFL's all-time rush- ing leader, breaking the record set by Cleveland's Jim Brown in 1965. • On Oct. 9, 1992, a bowling ball-sized mete- orite crashes through an orange 1980 Chevy Malibu in Peekskill, New York. Scientists say it came from the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars. (c) 2016 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 must include the writer’s full name, address and phone number for veri- fication. Letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and clarity. Publication of any let- ter is not guaranteed and depends on space available and the volume of letters received. Libelous and anonymous letters or poetry will not be published. All submissions become the property of Siuslaw News and will not be returned. Write to: Editor@TheSiuslawNews.com — R. M. Dickerson Copyright 2016 © 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; fax 541-997-7979. All press releases may be sent to PressReleases@TheSiuslawNews.com. John Bartlett Jenna Bartlett Ned Hickson Susan Gutierrez Cathy Dietz Ron Annis Jeremy Gentry EDITOR @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM 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
