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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (April 14, 2018)
4 A ❘ SATURDAY EDITION ❘ APRIL 14, 2018 Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 NED HICKSON , EDITOR Opinion Your feedback makes us better A year ago this month, we launched the updated version of our news website (www. thesiuslawnews.com), which has been a key component in our pursuit as a twice-weekly newspaper to increase the timeliness of our reporting, as well as be more relevant on a daily basis in our coverage of the community. April also happens to be a year and a half since I became editor in 2017. Without ques- tion, the Siuslaw News has changed over the last 18 months, some due in part to the goals I had as editor, and others as a result of the shift- ing landscape we have experi- enced socially and politically during that time. Through letters, emails, phone calls, community forums and conversations that have taken place over coffee (and other types of beverages), I’ve had the opportunity to hear what many of our readers like and dislike about the changes. Some appreciate our longer, more in-depth pieces examin- ing the impacts of state or mation and coverage that offers something for each of you in every edition, whether it be local politics, business, the arts or special events and people in our community. At the beginning of April, we launched a month-long survey for readers to provide feedback to help us see where we are hitting the mark on From the Editor’s Desk N ED H ICKSON national issues on the local level; others feel our scope has broadened too much. Some readers think we lean too far left, others right — and some feel we try too hard to straddle the middle without taking a stance. Ultimately, our objective is to serve you in the best way we can by attempting to pro- vide the kind of news, infor- your expectations, and where we might be missing it. Because of your feedback, we’ll soon be including an “In Brief” round-up of top nation- al and state headlines for those who want a brief re-cap of the week’s top stories. The survey includes a total of 12 questions, asking every- thing from why you read the Siuslaw News, to your thoughts on changing publica- tion days to Tuesdays and Fridays. I also learned from one commentor that I’m too skin- ny and need to eat more — a change I plan to make imme- diately. Over the next two weeks, I hope you’ll consider providing your feedback by participating in our survey at www.survey monkey.com/r/977FTXV. If you’re already a sub- scriber who frequents our website, you can also find the survey on the dropdown menu under “Reader Survey.” And for those who do their best to avoid websites, social media and the Internet in gen- eral, I’m always available to lend an ear over that cup of coffee. Write Siuslaw News editor Ned Hickson at nhickson@thesiuslaw news.com or c/o Siuslaw News, 148 Maple St., Florence, Ore. 97439. LETTERS S CHOOL SHOOTINGS NOTHING NEW Sorry, I don’t believe there is an effective solution to school shootings. They have been going on for more than 200 years, starting with the first record- ed school shooting in Greencastle. Penn., at Enoch Brown School in 1764, when schoolmaster Enoch Brown was shot and killed. How can we predict when or which teenager is going to kill or maim others at school with any means available in order to be famous or emulate someone else? Maryland proved that an armed staff can have a positive result — but is still only a reaction to an attack, not a solu- tion. The recent reaction we are seeing is the Left using their kids to make President Trump look bad for supporting the Second Amendment. Sexual activity kills more people each year in the U.S. than guns and knives. Maybe the Left should attempt to ban that? —Martin Cable Dunes City U NINTENDED CONSEQUENCES In response to Bill Durst’s “Apples and Oranges” Letter to the Editor (April 11), the point of the knife statistic was not to compare to firearm but to illustrate that banning does not work. Regarding the 21 percent increase in knife homicides in the U.K. after a ban, there were over 37,000 U.K. knife offenses up to September 2017 — so 21 percent is a sizeable number. There were 80 knife murders in London alone in 2017, and 30 so far in 2018 as of March 31. The London mayor recently ordered a £15 million police crackdown, including profile stop and searches to combat the epidemic. Banning does not work. Firearm deaths in the U.K., Australia and the U.S. peaked in the 1990s and declined thereafter. Both the UK and Australia implemented stricter firearms regulations and yet violent crime has increased far more in the U.K. and Australia than the U.S. In contrast, millions more firearms were sold in the U.S., yet the U.S. mur- der rate actually declined at about the same rate as in the U.K. and Australia. According to Australian government sta- tistics, a number of serious crimes peaked in the years after the ban. Manslaughter, sexual assault, kidnap- ping, armed robbery and unarmed rob- bery all saw peaks in the years following the ban, and most remain near or above pre-ban rates. The effects of the firearm bans on violent crime are unimpressive at best. Banning does not work. For every action, there is an equal an opposite reaction. Banning firearms will only have unin- tended consequences. —Ian Eales Florence Q UESTIONS FOR C OMMISSIONER CANDIDATES At the recent County Commissioners candidate forum (April 6) hosted by the Florence City Club, I presented one of more than 100 questions that did not get asked of candidates Nora Kent and Jay Bozievich. Because my question is timely and important, I am posing the question here: Will either candidate, once elected, commit to rescinding a resolution passed by the Commissioners in 2015 that stat- ed “Lane County is unable to expend resources for the implementation and enforcement of Senate Bill (SB) 941?” SB 941 requires background checks on sales and transfers among private par- ties for both hand guns and long guns. It was an expansion of an existing law that only required background checks for gun sales with licensed gun dealers and gun shows. Commissioner Bozievich, as chair, voted for and signed the resolution, euphemistically titled “In the Matter of a Resolution Supporting Second Amendment Rights.” This action effectively prevented enforcement of the new law. The argu- ment used as justification was that SB 941 was an “unfunded mandate,” despite the fact its cost to implement was not prohibitive. The newly appointed Lane County Sheriff Byron Trapp agreed that SB 941 put an extra burden on the Sheriff’s office and supported the resolution. As current chair of the board, Commissioner Bozievich had the oppor- tunity to rescind the resolution in response to the #Never Again movement started by our young people. This he did not do. Even though my question was not asked by the moderator, we did hear from one of the candidates on this sub- ject. Kent, in her opening remarks, declared that as county commissioner she would enforce all background check laws mandated by the state. Recognizing the importance of enforcing all laws designed to prevent gun violence, I feel she adds another good reason to vote for her to represent West Lane County. —Michael Allen Florence G UNS ONLY HAVE ONE PURPOSE Automobiles, drugs and matches all have specific purposes: they are designed and created to be helpful to people. If there are deaths related to them, it is due to the misuse of those things. Guns have one purpose: to kill (or seriously wound) people and animals. Period. —Shirley Nelson Florence ( More Letters page A5 ) ❘ 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. 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 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 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. Letters that are anonymous, libelous, argumen- tative, sarcastic or contain accusations that are unsourced or documented will not be published. Letters containing poetry or from outside the Siuslaw News readership area will only be pub- lished 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
