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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (May 19, 2018)
4A | SATURDAY EDITION | MAY 19, 2018 NED HICKSON , EDITOR Opinion Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 | 541-902-3520 | NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM C The First Amendment ongress shall make no law respecting an es- tablishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Gov- ernment for a redress of grievances. “I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” —Thomas Jefferson (1800) Rhody Days: Defi ning Florence as truly and utterly unique a sleepy coastal town for three days each year. However, being a little older (fine, a lot older) and wiser, I've come to realize and Admittedly, I wasn’t sure what to make of my first Rhody Days experience back in 1981. I was 15 then and a recent transplant from the Los Angeles area. Naturally, I was used to being around large crowds of people. And thanks to an older brother who had been a member of the Hell’s Angels, I was used to being around bikers. But rhododendrons? I didn’t understand what that was all about. Or how a simple flower could be the catalyst for drawing hundreds of bikers and thousands of others to what was essentially contrasts that exist simultane- ously and harmoniously for the next 72 hours is a won- derful reminder of how our differences don’t necessarily From the Editor’s Desk Ned Hickson deeply appreciate that strange juxtaposition that, for a few days each year, defines Florence as truly and utterly unique. Harley riders and baby strollers; screaming carnival rides and quiet appreciation of art and fauna; late-night elephant ears and fine dining; shiny hot rods and backroad beaters; bands rocking the house and those dancing to their own beat — the many have to divide us. There’s a photo on my wall in the office taken a few years ago. In it, a woman biker clad in leather and tattoos is hug- ging a clown. She is beaming, utterly unable to hide her excitement over that hug. Her expression is a mixture of ela- tion and whimsy, with a touch of childhood dream mixed in. To me, it represents what the Rhododendron Festival is all about. Sure, it’s a celebra- tion that distinguishes us as the second-largest floral parade on the West Coast, next to the annual Rose Parade. And yes, it allows and encourages us to particiate in traditions that remind us of our community’s history as well as give us reason to pause and celebrate the present. But, perhaps just as impor- tantly, it also serves as a reminder of how, under the right circumstances and a mutual understanding of why we’ve come here, we can revel in the shared experience of what makes each of us differ- ent. Write to Ned Hickson at nhickson@thesiuslawnews or c/o Siuslaw News, 148 Maple St., Florence, Ore. 97439 LETTERS We will prevail “We the people are the rightful mas- ters of both congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who would pervert the Constitution.” —Abraham Lincoln We the people, the patriots, will fi ght back. We are a republic of the Constitu- tion and of laws. Take heart. We will prevail being led by President Donald J. Trump. —Pamela Richardson Florence Don’t minimalize death of millions Ian Eales’ Letter to the Editor (“Far Left Is Debasing Good Americans,” May 16) is fi lled with inaccuracies and ques- tionable statistics. His letter goes on to make the off en- sive and ludicrous comparison that NRA members are suff ering the same vilifi ca- tion as did the Jews under Hitler. Really? NRA members are not being forced into concentration camps and slave la- bor and starved to death. Nor are they being tattooed or sent on death marches or crammed shoulder-to-shoulder in live- stock cars and taken to be gassed to death. To compare the Jews to NRA mem- bers is to minimize the deaths of millions. I have no doubt that the majority of the NRA members are good and loyal Americans. I do vilify the leaders of the NRA, who speak with hate and fear. Th ey use fear to keep their members, while spending millions to buy the silence of members of Congress and the president, and to prevent passage of sensible gun laws. Lastly, the letter contains this sentence: “Th e corrupt media parroted a madman’s ravings, even though they knew better.” I found myself pondering whether he was referring to Hitler or President Trump and Fox News? —Marybeth Marenco Florence Observe the speed limit As we approach June and school being out for the summer, I have some defi nite concerns. I live on Mitchell Loop Road, less than two miles south of the bridge. Even though we live just a few minutes from town, Mitchell Loop is more like a “country lane” than the two-lane marked roads that most drivers are familiar with. In fact, Mitchell Loop Road dead-ends at the Girl Scout Camp and Cleawox Lake. Defi nitely a rural road. Although we have a fenced in yard to keep Ernie, our Golden Retriever, safe and off the road, most folks out here don’t. We have dogs, cats and many kids who live out here. Th e kids ride scoot- ers, skate boards, play with balls and walk back and forth from one friend’s house to another. Th ere are young kids playing in the road, especially on weekends, holidays and during summer vacation. Th e posted speed is clearly marked as 25 mph less about 500 feet aft er turning onto Mitchell Loop. My concern is that the biggest off end- ers who defi nitely go much faster than the posted speed are the people we love most to see driving up our driveways: Th e package delivery trucks. Keep in mind that the big gravel trucks and small cars are also guilty of driving that road much too fast. So I’m asking ... no pleading with all drivers, especially of delivery vehicles, to slow down and observe posted speeds ev- erywhere. Th ey are there for a good rea- son. It would be awful to hit someone’s dog or cat, but much worse if you hit someone’s child; the outcome could result in a child’s death. Could you live with that? Is it really worth the minute or two you might save by speeding? Let’s all of us enjoy the upcoming summer vacation months, as well as the weekends and aft er school, and drive whatever the posted speed is on any road. Hopefully it will prevent a horrifi c ac- cident. —Gail Katz Hanson Florence Do something to keep families together I know that many people who fought in World War II have died and a lot of us have forgotten what they were fi ghting for, or are too young to really have ever known. Th ey were fi ghting against something like this: Th e separation of children from their parents and the institutionalization of both. At Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Dachau, three of Hitler’s more infamous concentration camps, family members were routinely separated from each oth- er and atrocities perpetrated against both groups. A common fate, slaughter en masse, awaited most, whether by the gas chamber, being shot over an open pit grave or simply being shoved in and bur- ied alive. Now I hear that our president, as part of his policy towards people fl eeing to our country, is planning to separate the children from the parents and house the children at military bases. We as a nation, if for no other reason than to honor those World War II veterans who liberated the camps but cannot speak for themselves anymore, have got to do something to stop this policy from ever being imple- mented. While I’m not sure what we should do, I do know we need to start the conversa- tion. —Ivy Medow Florence USPS# 497-660 Copyright 2018 © 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. Jenna Bar tlett Ned H ickson Erik Chalhoub Publisher, ex t. 318 Editor, ex t. 313 Co n s u l t i n g E d i to r 8 3 1 -7 6 1 -7 3 5 3 echalhoub@register-pajaronian.com M ar k e t i n g Di re c to r, e x t . 3 2 6 O ffice Super visor, ex t. 312 Pro d u c t i o n Su p e r v i s o r Pre s s M a n a ge r Su s a n G u t i e r re z Cathy Dietz Ron Annis Je re my G e n t r y 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, Wednes- day 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 subscrip- tion, $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 Letters to the Editor policy 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, gram- mar and clarity. Publication of any letter is not guaran- teed and depends on space available and the volume of letters received. Letters that are anonymous, libelous, argumentative, 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 published at the dis- cretion of the editor. Political/Election Letters: 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 cam- paigns on behalf of (or by) candidates; 2) Ensure any information about a candidate is accurate, fair and not from second-hand knowledge or hearsay; and 3) ex- plain the reasons to support candidates based on per- sonal experience and perspective rather than partisan- ship and campaign-style rhetoric. Candidates themselves may not use the letters to the editor column to outline their views and platforms or to ask for votes; this constitutes paid political advertising. As with all letters and advertising content, the news- paper, at the sole discretion of the publisher, general manager and editor, reserves the right to reject any let- ter that doesn’t follow the above criteria. Emal 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 Oregon 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 (4th 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
