4 A
❘
WEDNESDAY EDITION
❘ JANUARY 10, 2018
Siuslaw News
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
❘ 541-902-3520 ❘
NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
Opinion
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
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
A VERY SAD
DAY
I was crestfallen to read of the
recent intentional killing of three
young bears at Greentrees by the
Oregon Department of Fish and
Wildlife.
I understand the potential dan-
gers when bears are roaming with-
out fear in residential areas, often
encouraged by unsecured garbage
and birdfeed at the ready.
What I don’t understand is why
the ODFW captures them in live
traps only to turn around and shoot
them.
According to the recent Siuslaw
News article (“Black Bears at
Greentrees Cause Concern,” Feb.
7), ODFW made efforts to do oth-
erwise.
I’d like to know what those were.
How hard did they try for a more
humane ending?
Maybe they consider what they
did to be humane.
And easy.
And in the budget.
I try to live on the positive side
of the street and I appreciate all
those who are doing good in the
world, but sometimes I don’t feel
so good about being a member of
humanity.
It’s no wonder Mama Bear is
nowhere to be found. I’m guessing
she’s lying deep in the woods with
her broken heart.
—Allie LeCaux
Florence
H OW
MUCH MONEY
CROSSED PALMS ?
In response to Rand Dawson’s
letter “Creature of the Beltway”
(Feb. 3) about Dodd-Frank, repeal
of Glass-Steagall with bipartisan
support of Gramm–Leach–Bliley,
signed by Bill Clinton in 1999,
enabled commercial banks, invest-
ment banks, securities firms and
insurance companies to consoli-
date.
It failed to provide for any over-
sight of large investment bank
holding companies.
In February 2003, the Office of
Federal
Housing
Enterprise
Oversight released a report stating
unexpected problems at Fannie
Mae or Freddie Mac could imme-
diately spread into financial sec-
tors beyond the housing market —
and an almost evenly split 107th
Congress did nothing.
Subsequently, Congresses also
failed to act in spite of repeated
warnings.
Dodd-Frank closed and locked
the barn door after the horse was
gone.
Since Dodd-Frank, more than
1,700 small community banks
have closed, largely due to the
mountain of paperwork; another
example of unintended conse-
quences.
When small banks don’t do
well, neither does small business.
Small business is the engine of
employment. That misfiring
engine is the result of over-regula-
tion and largely the proximate
cause of the economic malaise of
the previous administration.
In any investigation, rule No. 1
is to “Follow the money.”
Wall Street contributed 23,000
percent more to Hillary than
Trump: $56,000,000 vs $243,000.
The financial sector contributed
more than $1.2 billion, or an aver-
age of $3.7 million per member of
Congress.
Schumer got more than his share
at $5.3 million, the most of all.
One has to wonder how much
money crossed palms in 1999 to
permit mega-banks without any
oversight?
— Ian Eales
Florence
The First
Amendment
C
ongress shall make no law
respecting an establishment
of religion or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the
freedom of speech, or of the press,
or the right of the people peace-
ably to assemble, and to petition
the Government for a redress of
grievances.
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@
oregonlegislature.gov
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