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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 31, 2018)
4 A ❘ WEDNESDAY EDITION ❘ JANUARY 31, 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 Finding common ground rather than losing out on opportunity On the one hand, I’m never quite sure what to expect when my phone rings here at the editor’s desk. On the other hand, I do know it’s always an opportunity to share an exchange of viewpoints, ideas or — sometimes — a point of contention with someone in my community. Many years ago as a restauranteur, I learned that when a guest wants to talk to a manager about a bad experience, they aren’t seeking excuses, or reasons as to why you couldn’t meet their expectations. They want two things: 1) To be heard. 2) Some form of resolu- tion. My servers always knew I was willing to address issues at a table because I viewed every situation as an opportunity to build a rela- tionship with a guest — the kind that reaches well beyond a meal and table service. If you can turn a dissatis- fied guest around, you build a certain kind of loyalty through that shared experi- ence. Did I always manage that feat? Of course not. But I always tried. It’s the same approach I take to your phone calls as editor. Each is an opportuni- ty to build a relationship which, in this case, reaches beyond Wednesday’s and these kinds of conversations are important ones and a necessary part of our own system of checks and bal- ances as a community — here in Florence and beyond. It was through this dis- cussion that we also found other common ground, quite literally in Atlanta, where we had both spent time. From the Editor’s Desk N ED H ICKSON Saturday’s newspaper pages. One morning, I got a call from “John,” who wanted to know why we allowed one letter writer to use the phrase “admitted anti- Semite” on our Opinion page. This led to a discussion about our differing points of view on whether guilt by association is or isn’t a proper indicator of intent. John had some very good points that I took to heart. Though our viewpoints dif- fered, we could agree that It was the kind of conver- sation that left us both feel- ing heard and, more impor- tantly, resolved in the sense of understanding one anoth- er’s perspective. A short time later, I got a call from “Sharon,” who wanted to let me know about a troubling trend involving the destruction of certain “adopt-a-highway” signs that seemed to be politically motivated. Eventually, our conversa- tion turned to our joint con- cern about how political affiliation has begun to supercede our affiliation as Americans, within its citi- zenry as well as within our government. It was clear that we had supported different candi- dates in the past. However, the common ground we shared about our nation’s polarization went beyond election results. Naturally, not every phone call ends that way, any more than I was able to exceed the expectations of every guest who ate at my restaurant. But I also know that for every conversation that did- n’t take place, there was a lost opportunity. I want to thank the “Johns” and “Sharons” out there who take the time to call and provide an opportu- nity to turn things around and, most importantly, build relationships that reach beyond these newspaper pages. Write Siuslaw News editor Ned Hickson at nhickson@the siuslaw news.com or Pc/o Siuslaw News, 148 Maple St., Florence, Ore. 97439. 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
