4 A
❘
WEDNESDAY EDITION
❘ JANUARY 6, 2018
Siuslaw News
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
Opinion
❘ 541-902-3520 ❘
NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
The First Amendment
C
ongress shall make no law respecting an estab-
lishment of religion or prohibiting the free exer-
cise 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.
USPS# 497-660
Copyright 2017 © Siuslaw News
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.
Oregon Group Publisher 541-265 8571
Publisher, ext. 318
Editor, ext. 313
Consulting Editor 831-761-7353
Email: echalhoub@register-pajaronian.com
Marketing Director, ext. 326
Office Supervisor, ext. 312
Production Supervisor
Press Manager
James Rand
Jenna Bartlett
Ned Hickson
Erik Chalhoub
Susan Gutierrez
Cathy Dietz
Ron Annis
Jeremy Gentry
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
classifiedad,sThursday 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, $76; 6-month in-county, $52; 10-weeks subscription, $23; Out of Lane
County — 1-year subscription,$99; 6-month out-of-county, $65; 10-weeks subscription, $29; Out of State — 1-
year subscription, $125; E-Edition Online Only (Anywhere) — 1-year subscription, $71.
Mail subscription includes E-Edition.
Website and E-Edition: TheSiuslawNews.com
L ETTERS
Measure 101 is about deciding on
the kind of Oregon we want to be
2019.
Last year, the state
Legislature passed a 1.5 per-
cent tax on premiums collect-
According to the latest voter
return numbers, chances are
you haven’t turned in your bal-
lot for this Tuesday’s Special
Election on Measure 101.
The measure has not only
sparked much debate, but has
also confused a lot of voters in
terms of what a “yes” and “no”
vote means.
To put it simply, a “no” vote
repeals House Bill 2391,
which helps fund the Oregon
Health Plan.
A “yes” vote keeps the
funding in place through June
opposing views on whether
repealing HB 2391 with a “no”
vote would jeopardize the
health care of approximately
From the Editor’s Desk
N ED H ICKSON
ed by health insurers, along
with a 0.7 percent increase on
the tax rate collected from
some hospitals. The bills’
objective is to raise approxi-
mately $550 million from July
2017 to June 2019 to help fund
part of the Oregon Health
Plan’s $14 billion budget for
that two-year period.
The debate stems from
350,000
Oregonians
—
including 40,000 residents in
Lane County.
Regardless of which side
you’re on, both sides agree on
the question that is at the core
of Measure 101:
How willing are we, as
Oregonians, to help provide
health care for those who can
least afford it?
Backers of the repeal say
it’s unfair to tax health insur-
ers.
Maybe it is, although we
would be joining 48 other
states with similar “provider
tax” funding for state health-
care programs.
But at least for the short
term, as the full effects of
changes in the Affordable Care
Act and other federal funding
remains in question, we should
consider how much responsi-
bility we’re willing to take in
being the kind of Oregon we
want to be for those among us
with the most to lose.
Write Siuslaw News editor Ned
Hickson at nhickson@thesiuslaw
news.com or P.O. Box 10, Florence,
Ore. 97439.
LETTERS
NRA’ S LONG ARM REACHES
BEYOND MEMBERSHIP
I’m writing in response to Stan Easter’s
letter (“Inaccuracies Portray NRS in Bad
Light,” Jan. 17).
Mr. Easter’s statement that the NRA “is
no different from groups such as the Sierra
Club, Trout Unlimited, The VFW, the
Amercia Legion and Planed Parenthood”
doesn’t ring true.
While the NRA is a membership organ-
ization, it is also funded by gun manufac-
turers via direct contributions and adver-
tisement. For example, Ruger (arguably
the top-selling gun manufacturer in the
U.S.) launched a program that donated a
dollar for every sale of one of it guns
(which amounted to in excess of a $1.25
million contribution) going directly to the
NRA Institute for Legislative Action —
the lobbying arm of the NRA.
So to characterize the NRA as “simply
an organized group of like-minded indi-
viduals” is disingenuous at best.
Furthermore, the NRA has deviated far
from its original purpose of advancing
rifle marksmanship. It has become a top
lobbying organization in Washington, D.C.
whose agenda includes: attacking laws
that make it easier for untrained individu-
als to carry concealed weapons; deregulat-
ing gun silencers; opposing the strengthen-
ing of background check laws; and ending
gun-free school zones — to name just a
few issues.
Its influence is brought to bear through
campaign contributions and millions of
dollars in off-the-books spending on issue
ads. According to the nonpartisan, inde-
pendent and nonprofit Center for
Responsive Politics, the NRA’s lobbying
efforts alone exceeded $4.1 million in
2016 as it tried to influence a multitude of
government agencies including members
of Congress, the Departments of
Agriculture, Interior and Justice as well as
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the
Bureau of Land Management, the Forest
Service and the National Park Service.
So, if we are going to analyze tactics,
let’s be clear: The NRA’s long arm reaches
beyond its membership and into the lives
of every American.
It is not just a bunch of folks trying to
protect their Second Amendment rights.
And, while Mr. Charles Pennington’s
facts (“Learn the Art of Compromise,” Jan.
10) regarding history may not have been
spot-on, his contention that the NRA has a
major influence on legislation in this coun-
try is certainly closer to the truth than
some NRA supporters want to acknowl-
edge.
—Dolly Brock
Florence
P RESIDENTIAL VIEWS ON RACE
ARE ANTI -A MERICAN
America is a melting pot of immigrants.
America is an all inclusive nation. Since it
was founded, it has been a mixture of races
and religions.
America is not — and never has been —
an all white, all Christian nation.
Native Americans were here long
before America was “discovered.” Much
of the west coast and Texas was part of
Mexico before it was acquired by the U.S.
Black explorers in the 1500s landed in
the Gulf of Mexico and settled around the
area of the Mississippi River.
Many were Muslims.
Many of the slaves kidnapped and
brought from Africa were Muslim as well.
When the white European settlers finally
arrived, it was so they could practice what-
ever religion they wanted.
Since the beginning of his campaign
and continuing to this day, President
Trump has promoted, both subtly and bla-
tantly, notions of white supremacy. Prior to
running, he was one of the loudest voices
in the “birther” movement, which was an
attempt to try to delegitimize our first
black president.
In his announcement of running for
president, he accused Mexicans of being
“rapist and drug dealers.”
His defense of the neo-Nazi alt right as
“some very fine people” in Charlottesville
was blatantly supportive of racism and
bigotry.
He has abandoned the mostly black
Americans of Flint, Mich., (still waiting
years later for potable water); the majority
Hispanic residents of Puerto Rico
(American citizens), who since September
are still in need of basic necessities, have
seemingly been abandoned; his travel ban
applies only to brown-skinned travelers
and Muslims; his border wall is meant to
keep Hispanics out of this country; his
reversal of DACA affects mostly brown-
skinned people; and he has discontinued
protected status in the U.S. for Haitian
refugees and Salvadoran refugees.
Most recently, there has been the news
of the president referring to Haiti, El
Salvador and several African nations as
“shithole” countries during a discussion
that included both democratic and republi-
can leaders.
He went on to lament the fact that we
didn’t get more immigrants from Norway.
In other words, white people.
This president’s views on race are anti-
American. As Americans, we need to stand
together and reject his bigotry.
Remaining silent is complicity.
— Marybeth Marenco
Florence
V ERIFY BEFORE YOU VILLIFY
THE P RESIDENT
I think the hysteria about what President
Trump said or didn’t say in a private meet-
ing is beyond ludicrous.
No one reading this paper heard what
was said.
Not one of the TV talking heads heard
what was said.
The editor of this newspaper did not
hear what was said.
In my opinion, all these people are den-
igrating our president because of a rumor
started by an old, washed-up politician.
Why wasn’t anyone called for a test of
his mental ability and his hearing?
Actually, what the president says in a
private meeting is none of your business.
Verify before you villify.
— Martin Cable
Florence
See
MORE LETTERS 5A
TO THE
P OLICY
E DITOR
The Siuslaw News welcomes letters to the editor
as part of a community discussion of issues on the
local, state and national level.
Emailed letters are preferred. Handwritten or
typed letters must be signed. All letters need to
include full name, address and phone number; only
name and city will be printed. Letters should be
limited to about 300 words. 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, argumentative and anonymous letters
or poetry, or letters from outside our readership
area will only be published at the discretion of the
editor.
P OLITICAL /E LECTION L ETTERS :
Election-related letters must address pertinent or
timely issues of interest to our readers at-large.
Letters must 1) Not be a part of letter-writing
campaigns on behalf of (or by) candidates; 2)
Ensure any information about a candidate is accu-
rate, fair and not from second-hand knowledge or
hearsay; and 3) explain the reasons to support
candidates based on personal experience and per-
spective rather than partisanship and campaign-
style rhetoric.
Candidates themselves may not use the letters to
the editor column to outline their views and plat-
forms or to ask for votes; this constitutes paid polit-
ical advertising.
As with all letters and advertising content, the
newspaper, at the sole discretion of the publisher,
general manager and editor, reserves the right to
reject any letter that doesn’t follow the above crite-
ria.
Send letters to:
nhickson@thesiuslawnews.com
WHERE TO WRITE
Pres. Donald Trump
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, Ore. 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
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office
Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753/FAX: 202-
228-3997
541-465-6750
www.merkley.senate.gov
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio
( 4 th Dist.)
2134 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6416
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
FAX: 503-986-1080
Email: Sen.ArnieRoblan@
state.or.us
State Rep. Caddy
McKeown
( Dist. 9 )
900 Court St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1409
Email: rep.caddymckeown
@state.or.us
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