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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 24, 2018)
4 A ❘ WEDNESDAY EDITION ❘ JANUARY 24, 2018 Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 NED HICKSON , EDITOR ❘ 541-902-3520 ❘ NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM Opinion 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 LETTERS P OWER OF THE PRESS On New Year’s Eve, I received a letter from my landlord stating that as of Feb. 1, my rent will increase by $210 per month (62 percent). In his letter, my landlord explained that he “recently chose to take advantage of the favorable market conditions ... that exist in Florence.” He explained that “In 2016, the state legislators tried to initiate a freeze on what landlords could charge, and allow only minimal per- centage increases. This is a scary thing for property owners, and one would not want to get caught below market conditions. Though the initia- tive did not pass, the issue of afford- able housing has become very politi- cal, and Oregon tends to favor ten- ants.” I have lived here for 11 years and never missed a rent payment. Having researched Craigslist, Facebook, area classifieds, talked with local realtors and after network- ing with friends, I am suddenly faced with the reality of Florence’s lack of affordable housing for anyone work- ing for minimum wages. I think the issue of affordable hous- ing has become “political” thanks in large part to the excellent reporting of the Siuslaw News and its “Is Coastal Living in Jeopardy?” series. —Michael Simmons Florence I applaud those who fight for racial, gender, religious and environmental justice; more power to them. I would hope that my grandchildren will be able to experience the wild lands and our national parks free of pollution, and enjoy the many people of different ethnic backgrounds that help make our country great. God help us all to take care of each other. —Julie MacFarlane Florence F OOD FOR THOUGHT “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free; The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me; I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” —Emma Lazarus, inscription on the base of the Statue of Liberty, 1903 “Why do we want all these people from shithole countries coming here?” —Donald Trump, 2018 —Judy Kinsman Florence ‘U NDERSTANDING ’ OF NRA IS JUST PLAIN WRONG M ISGUIDED , INSATIABLE APPETITE OF ADMINISTRATION Our current American administra- tion in Washington D.C. represents the epitome of greed and exploitation. Its mantra seems to be destroy any- thing necessary — the Earth, people or other countries — to accumulate more wealth for a select minority. They condemn those who are less fortunate or struggling, whether it be those who already live here or those who come here to escape war and cor- ruption to pursue the American ideals of equality, justice and hope. I believe everyone’s basic needs — housing, utilities, healthcare and a safe environment in which to live — should be met rather than devouring the world to satisfy the administra- tion’s misguided and insatiable appetitie. It’s obvious from her Letter to the Editor (“NRA’s Long Arm Reaches Beyond Membership,” Jan. 20) that Dolly Brock does not like the NRA. So be it; it is her right. I, on the other hand, am a Life Member of the NRA and proudly so. It is often misunderstood among the general public, which has little if any interaction with the organization. The NRA does not reach beyond it’s mem- bership but, to the contrary, goes right where members want to go. So to say that the NRA is not an advocacy group like the many others noted is just plain wrong, and to state that just because it has multiple fund- ing sources somehow proves her point is a straw dog at best and a lie at worst. Not only does Ruger have a round- up program as we call them, but so does Midway USA, where I buy my supplies. I choose to use these compa- nies not only for their fine products but also because they support the NRA. Some may think us to be disingen- uous when we say we are like-mind- ed, but that simply is not true. As with any organization, many will have dif- fering opinions but we all agree on our need to protect the Second Amendment from those who misrep- resent it. I smile at the ignorance shown in thinking all the NRA did or does is teach marksmanship. I suggest read- ing its membership charter. The NRA is not only the best teacher of gun safety for our children (Eddy Eagle) but also teaches many first respon- ders, police departments and others — which none of the so called “safe- ty organizations” (read Gun Control) do. You may be surprised to know that the NRA came to the aid of our fellow citizens to make sure they weren’t denied their rights just because they were black, way back when that drew the ire from so many who thought they were less than a person. Yes, we lobby for our rights just the same as any other organization. And yes, we are proud to do so. I for one have Life Membership stickers on both corners of my windshield and Blue Lives Matter stickers on my side windows. And yes, I fly the flag with pride. You may find this to be narrow minded when, in fact, I don’t just swing right; I also swing with all the Constitutional rights, which is what separates us from the rest of the world. God Bless America. —David Eckhardt Florence TO THE P OLICY 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 Amendment U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden 221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 202-224-5244 541-431-0229 www.wyden.senate.gov ongress shall make no law respecting an establishment 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. 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 The First C E DITOR 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
