4A |
SATURDAY EDITION
| JULY 21, 2018
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
Siuslaw News
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
Opinion
| 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 Government 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)
Following our mission statement at the OCHS
(Editor’s Note: Viewpoint submissions on
this and other topics are always welcome as
part of our goal to encourage community dis-
cussion and exchange of perspectives.)
the shelter longer than average, we try to
place that animal with a recognized rescue
organization to find them the best forever
home possible.
We realize these groups also face more
s the Board of Directors of the demand to house homeless pets than they
Oregon Coast Humane Society can respond to, so options for transferring
(OCHS), we were elected less than
90 days ago. What we’ve learned in three
short months is that we must talk with
the community we serve. We believe the
By OCHS Board
problem of homeless pets is a commu-
nity problem, so we are reaching out to
community members for assistance in ad- hard-to-adopt pets from our shelter are
limited. We have people within our orga-
dressing that problem.
First, we’d like to take a minute to ex- nization who spend many hours a week
plain the challenges and opportunities reaching out to make contact with possi-
ahead. OCHS remains a no-kill shelter. ble placements for our long-term animals.
Would you consider fostering one of
We take in all homeless and at-risk dogs
and cats that we can help. We provide all these pets?
OCHS does not euthanize for reasons
of the assistance we can, including mar-
keting, networking to other rescues and of population control, space at the shel-
adoption assistance, to animals we are un- ter, age of the animal or length of stay at
able to take into our shelter due to lack of the shelter. This doesn’t mean that OCHS
never has to euthanize. OCHS has only
space.
It is part of our mission to partner with ever euthanized animals for medical rea-
this community, including the local ani- sons.
We treat the animals at the shelter as if
mal control, to help reunite or find forever
homes for stray, homeless and at-risk dogs they are our own, and that includes the
occasional circumstance when we have to
and cats in the Florence area.
Our goal is always to save the lives of all make that most difficult of decisions. How
the animals in our care who can reason- many of us at one time or another hasn’t
ably be provided with a humane outcome. had to make that decision for our own be-
Animals that are well-socialized and loved pets?
We believe that ending the problem of
healthy have as much time as they need to
homeless pets requires addressing the root
find adoptive or foster homes.
We utilize the expertise of trainers and causes of the problem. We are working
other professionals to work with dogs hard to make subsidized spay/neuter ser-
and cats who have behavioral issues in vices available to all. It breaks our hearts
an effort to socialize them well enough to see someone bring in a mother cat with
to make the transition to a forever home. a litter of small kittens because they can’t
Occasionally, when an animal has been at handle the care and cost of housing all of
A
Guest Viewpoint
those babies.
A simple remedy would have been to
take advantage of the spay/neuter clinics
we offer at very low cost.
Our commitment to place 100 percent
of adoptable animals has not — and will
not — change. We believe the best way to
achieve that goal is through collaboration
with this community and other animal
welfare organizations and individuals
who share our concern for companion
animals.
By necessity, due to lack of physical
space, we must limit the intake of ani-
mals at our shelter. By need, we must fos-
ter good relationships with other shelters
who can take in animals that we must turn
away. We will continue to pursue our mis-
sion to advance the goal of a community
in which every pet has a loving home and
no adoptable pets are euthanized.
We look forward to working with com-
munity leaders, animal professionals,
staff, our volunteers, members of OCHS
and pet-lovers to achieve this goal.
Will you help us in this endeavor?
We will continue to follow our mis-
sion statement which is: “The Mission of
the Corporation shall be to rescue, care
for, and find responsible, loving, perma-
nent homes for homeless and at-risk dogs
and cats; to advance the goal of a no-kill
community; to promote the principal of a
lifetime commitment to our pets; and to
provide for spay-neuter and educational
programs to the public.”
Consider joining our organization.
For more information, visit: www.ore
goncoasthumanesociety.org
—The Oregon Coast Humane Society
Board 2018
LETTERS
Library manners
NATO inequity
I love our library. I read somewhere,
“books like bookmarks.”
They don’t like folded or dog-eared pag-
es.
They don’t like spilled liquids.
Books like bookmarks, so please use
them. Almost anything flat works. Please
take extra care of the books checked out
out of our great library
While I am at it, I totally agree with the
signs about not using cell phones in the li-
brary. However, the irony I find in the vol-
ume of people talking, especially in front
of the DVD section, is often overbearing.
I was brought up to keep the volume
down in the library. This does not seem to
be the rule of thumb here in Florence.
If you have to have a group meeting,
take it to the lobby, please.
I disagree with Win Jolley’s assertion
that President Trump “tripped over him-
self ” at the NATO meeting.
Of the 29 members of the NATO Alli-
ance, only four currently contribute the
agreed upon payment of 2 percent of the
gross national income. The U.S. rate of
3.61 percent pays for 22 percent of NATO’s
Principle Budget.
Putting the non-paying nations on no-
tice that they must more equitable in their
contributions to the budget is quite appro-
priate and long overdue.
I personally believe that the whole
NATO concept is obsolete and ineffective,
as shown by its failure in Syria and the de-
stabilization of Libya.
Past U.S. Foreign Policy also shares
responsibility for converting the “Arab
Spring” into a humanitarian nightmare .
—Tom Jackson
Florence
—Keith Kraft
Florence
OCHS shoulm remain ‘No Kill’
Dodger was a dog who was at OCHS for
10 years. He lived in a small kennel space
with concrete floors, limited exercise and
no bed to lie up off the floor at night. All
of this despite being diagnosed by OCHS’s
veterinarian with arthritis in July 2017.
He was euthanized last week. According
to documentation I have, the OCHS re-
fused offers this past year to let Dodger go
to a hospice foster or be transferred to Best
Friends Animal Sanctuary, SevaDog or the
Sacred Animal Sanctuary.
From what I understand, the euthanasia
oversight committee didn’t meet to discuss
Dodger’s end of life — the decision was left
up to a few people.
It seems there is no transparency with
end-of-life decisions for these animals; this
must change.
Karma was another dog at OCHS for
8 years. She had recently been diagnosed
with a torn cruciate ligament and eutha-
nized. In her medical records the vet wrote,
“Because of age and disposition euthanasia
performed.”
OCHS President Jack Hannigan [who
resigned this week] posted on social media
that “She broke her elbow and was in ter-
rible pain” regarding his decision to have
her killed. Euthanizing due to age/disposi-
tion violates the no-kill policy that animals
with good long-term prognosis — such
as a leg amputation, which is what Karma
needed — are treated.
The community should demand that
OCHS stop killing adoptable animals;
improve quality of shelter animals lives;
comply with its no-kill policy; work with
fosters/rescues; and provide transparency.
—Becky Long, Lane Rescues
Eugene
Won’t you be my neighbor?
We in Florence are so fortunate in our
small coastal community to have such a
vibrant and varied selection of cinematic
choices as we have at at City Lights.
In no way am I a film critic, but I want
to thank Michael Falter and Susan Tive
for bringing “Won’t You Be My Neighbor”
to Florence. Please take advantage of the
many daily and hourly opportunities to
experience the lovely documentary about
Fred Rogers, a name familiar to many
Americans.
A lot of us grew up with our children
loving the television program, “Mr. Rogers’
Neighborhood.” This film not only brings
back fond memories, but also further in-
troduces us to an educated, decent and
humble man and his determination to help
adults and children understand the mean-
ing of love and acceptance.
At no time since his TV programs be-
gan in 1968 until his death in 2003 have his
words been more important.
Go see this movie.
—Judith Preisler
Florence
Wrong mirection
Mr. Hickson?
So, Siuslaw News editor Ned Hickson
thinks we have gone the wrong direction
("We’ve Come a Long Way Since the Dix-
ie Chicks — But In the Wrong Direction,"
July 18) I suppose it depends on which side
of the fence you sit, but I disagree.
As a country music fan, to this day I still
don’t listen to the “Dixie Chicks.” Not just
because they dissed G.W., but their music
generally stinks, IMO.
But let’s get to the real problem here.
It seems that we are supposed to believe
anything that comes out of our govern-
ment. Well, I can’t go there, and anyone
paying attention should have a hard time
too.
Mr. Clapper lied straight-up, then back
tracked and no one seemed to care except
me. I will never trust another word from
his mouth; just because he is an intelli-
gence official means nothing. Mr. Clinton
lied on live TV and was eventually im-
peached for it. The Senate then failed to do
its job — because of politics I suppose. If
Clinton says the sky is blue, I want a sec-
ond opinion.
Oh, let’s not forget Mr. Brenner who, if
he hated President Trump any more, his
look would burn him to the ground.
And finally, how about the past FBI
head, James Comey, and his underlings.
He and his underlings say they didn’t let
their biases affect their work. I say they are
lying straight-up and know it.
Just look at Comey’s family, all female
and all Hillary fanatics. They even marched
in that supposed (liberal) woman’s march.
And I am to believe he didn’t have a bias
and didn’t act on it?
Really?
Wow.
How about the point man Strzok and his
paramour and all those emails on a gov-
ernment phone? If he said two true words
in his testimony it was probably his name.
And he said he also did not act on his bias.
So, all these folks were just good old
boys and gals doing their level best to ad-
here to our laws and morals?
What a joke.
What we have seen since Donald Trump
became president is, in no small measure,
a Democratic Party which lost a supposed
safe election and is now going bananas.
They call themselves the resistance; I call
them deranged.
Even President Obama did not receive
this amount of negative coverage for all his
lies and half-truths. I personally think the
Dem’s have lost their party to the Socialists
and are going to be pursuing their agenda
in the future. This will manifest itself with
single-payer medical, guaranteed income
and attacks on capitalism.
Make no mistake: the socialists are as
much a danger to our Republic as any Rus-
sian ever thought to be.
I hope to God I’m wrong.
Anyone who believes the supposed
intelligence agency’s assessment, with-
out knowing their background, has been
duped.
As President Reagan used to say: Trust
but verify.
And that is where the rub begins.
—David Eckhardt
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 Emitor 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. 071618Dumb
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