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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 2016)
4 A ❘ WEDNESDAY EDITION ❘ NOVEMBER 30, 2016 Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 NED HICKSON , EDITOR ❘ 541-902-3520 ❘ EDITOR @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM Opinion LETTERS Accept the facts I just finished reading the latest edition of the Siuslaw News section of the Letters to the Editor. This makes the third straight edition that has printed only letters of complaint by those whose candidate lost the election. There hasn’t been a single letter from the Republican Conservative side. I don’t for one minute think the newspaper is printing only the left’s tired viewpoint and dis- carding the rest, but I don’t understand why those on the Republican Conservatives side don’t write more letters; it seems that only two L ETTERS TO THE E DITOR P OLICY The Siuslaw News welcomes letters to the editor concerning issues affect- ing 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 verification. Letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and clarity. Publication of any letter is not guaran- teed 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 Libelous and anonymous letters or poetry will not be published.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 proper- ty of Siuslaw News and will not be returned. Write to: Editor@TheSiuslawNews.com USPS# 497-660 or three of us are expressing our thoughts. Also, I would like to see a section of the paper, even if delegated to the back page, with a list of those so-called Hollywood “stars” and politicians who actually followed through on their promise to leave the country if President- elect Trump defeated Hillary, which he did. I’m confident that space would, unfortunate- ly, remain empty. I wish those who supported Hillary would do as the rest of us did when President Obama was elected in ’08 and ’12. How many riots, acts of vandalism and destruction took place at the hands of Republican Conservatives? None. So enough with the protest marches. Accept the facts for what they are and have another go at it in four years. And in the meantime, please tell educators to keep students in their seats to learn the things their parents are paying for instead of sending them into the streets to act like 5 and 6 year olds having a tantrum. Tony Cavarno Florence Don’t take the risk Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day. The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), if left untreat- ed, leads to AIDS. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), since the begin- ning of the pandemic, HIV has infected more than 70 million people worldwide and has claimed about 35 million lives. At the end of 2015, 36.5 million people glob- ally were living with HIV. As a retired nurse practitioner who spent two decades specializing in the care of people with HIV, I was truly saddened to learn of the cluster of new infections here in Florence. HIV can infect anyone who is engaging in unsafe behaviors, such as sharing infected drug paraphernalia or unprotected sexual activity. Media needs to Represent both sides I used to read Rolling Stone magazine because it was anti-establishment. But it lost my respect after reading Matt Taibbi’s latest one- sided, political propaganda piece (December issue), which does a great injustice to someone who many people see as a national folk hero, President-elect Donald Trump. Rolling Stone, like a lot of mass media out- lets, demonstrates — and in this case even admits — how it hasn’t represented both sides fairly. But I thank Taibbi for his last three para- graphs which say it all: “We journalists made the same mistake the Republicans made, the same mistake the Democrats made. We were too sure of our own influence, too lazy to bother hearing things firsthand, too in love with ourselves to imagine that so many people could hate and distrust us as much as they apparently do. “It’s too late for any of us to fix this colossal misread and lapse in professional caution. Now all we can do is wait to see how much this fail- ure of vision will cost not just us, but the public we supposedly serve. “Just like the politicians, our job is to listen, and we talked instead. Now America will do its own talking for a while. The world may never forgive us for not seeing this coming.” Guthrie Wilson Florence The First Amendment C ongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or pro- hibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridg- ing the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assem- ble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 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 To underscore that last sentence, here are a couple of Centers for Disease Control (CDC) statistics that should be of particular interest in Florence: “In 2014, people aged 50 and over accounted for 17 percent (7391/44,073) of new HIV diag- noses in the United States.” “Of the 6,721 U.S. deaths from HIV in 2014, 2610 (39 percent) were among those age 55 and older.” Many older people are sexually active but come from an era when openly discussing sex- ual issues, even with a health care provider, is embarrassing. Widowed and divorced older folks often date again but mistakenly believe HIV is not an issue for them, so they are less likely to use protection. Women over age 50 may believe that with the worry of unwanted pregnancy behind them, there is no need to ask a partner to use a con- dom. Lack of, or misinformation, can have deadly consequences. Use protection. If anyone tries to convince you that a condom isn’t necessary, that should raise a red flag. If a bed partner truly cares for you, why would he or she want to put you at any risk? Get tested together and share your results with a new partner before you agree to unpro- tected sex. Get tested if your behaviors past or present put you at risk for HIV. Become informed by visiting reliable websites such as WHO and CDC for accurate data. Spread the word, not the infection. Mary McCarthy 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
