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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 31, 2018)
4A | WEDNESDAY EDITION | OCTOBER 31, 2018 Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 Florence, OR 97439 NED HICKSON , EDITOR 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) LETTERS Vote, or don’t complain We are fortunate to live in a state where we have the ability to vote in the privacy and peacefulness of our own homes, but for some reason our voter participation is not very good. We will all want to express how upset we are with the results, and how terrible the other people are who did not vote the way we think they should. It is all very simple: If you do not vote, you have no right to complain. So please vote — and then complain all you want. Thank you. —Charlie Pennington Florence Judging bc label The vast majority of us on the Cen- tral Coast of Oregon are migrants from someplace, even if that place is within the boundaries of the U.S. Our identities are increasingly gleaned from TV and our handheld devices. I grew up in rural N.Y. where identi- ty was local even though neighbors were recognized by ancestor country of origin. The “inks” were Dutch, “skis” were Polish, “walds” were German, Greens were Irish, etc. We kids hopped on the same school bus and bonded at our well-funded pub- lic school. Elections for governance of the township offered a slate of citizens with talents required for the positions. Nom- inees’ names ended in “ink,” “ski,” “wald,” etc. Everyone knew everyone and was thankful that individuals with know-how, were willing; political or church affiliations were immaterial. No candidate running for a nonpartisan position had a hidden agenda. No outsider organization was paying for advertising, buying signs, managing a candidate or attempting to influence outcomes. There was no big money involved and we were better off without it. My grandmother, 1/8 Seneca whose fa- ther died in the Civil War, taught her chil- dren to know their neighbors, help them reap harvest, rebuild a burned barn, go to their weddings, attend their funerals, work with them and never, never gossip about nor demonize them. “Do not judge with a label.” We knew our neighbors and found com- mon ground. May we migrants to Florence area strive to do the same. —Kathryn Damon-Dawson Florence Not about political ideologc I am a registered Democrat. I live in Westlake, so I am unable to vote for Mau- reen Miltenberger. However, I collected signatures for Maureen’s Florence City Council candidacy because she is an objec- tive and honest person who listens closely. I admire and respect her commitment to making our world a better place for each of us. That’s full disclosure, but not why I’m writing. I attended the first Florence ORganizes (FOR) meeting because it was a productive call for interested people to make positive efforts for change, no matter how small or local. It was not then — and is not now — a political group. FOR is a consortium of committees in which each member can focus on a par- ticular area of interest: education, recy- cling and plastics disposal/reuse, Climate Change, social justice, and healthcare, among others. This is not about political ideology; it is about doing what each of us believes is nec- essary for a better and sustainable world. After reading the two-part Siuslaw News article (“‘Chaos’ In The Community,” Oct. 27), I was dismayed that there seemed to be a conflation between Patriot Place and Florence ORganizes as political opponents. Please! — Patricia Burke West Lake Will we stand united or fall divided? I have been watching electioneering since I missed, by one week, being old enough to vote in the 1968 presidential contest. Today, I am completely disgusted with what the process has evolved to over those years, the degradation clearly accel- erating over recent history. For the past few weeks my mail box has been inundated with partisan political fly- ers, issued by both parties and all following the same format. Not a single one informs me as to what the particular candidate has to offer, but instead harangues me with the myriad evils of their opponent. Apparently these things are effective be- cause a great deal of effort and money must go into their production. That being true, it just speaks so well of the intelligence of the American electorate, doesn’t it? Personal attacks and smear campaigns are more effective than honest discourse. On top of all this, I took the time to read, in detail, the various pro and con ar- guments on ballot initiatives provided in the published voters pamphlet. More misdirection and frequently out- right distortion is difficult to imagine. For me, whether selecting a president, a representative to congress or a member of the local city council, it comes down to this: As Aesop first stated, and so many have quoted over the ages, “united we stand, divided we fall.” The disgusting display of unveiled ani- mus permeating recent political cycles has become what is, so unfortunately, now a national disgrace. And you know what? It isn’t just them doing it; it is also you and me! Each and every one of us should take a moment and think about those words, “united we stand, divided we fall,” and ask ourselves which side of the phrase our own words and deeds are most contributing to. —Jimmie Zinn Florence Trickle-down thinking Thanks to the Siuslaw News for two de- tailed articles on conflict in the city coun- cil. (“‘Chaos’ In The Community,” Oct. 24 and Oct. 27) In the 27 years I have observed the Flor- ence City Council in action, I have seen fisticuffs between a city employee and a citizen contrasted with a calm centrist council re-electing a councilor and a may- or until they were termed out and then continued to serve the community; I have watched two councilors consume bags of candy as they voted in every fast food outlet along Highway 101 and demanded ‘turrets’ on the Fred Meyer building in the sand dune; and a mayor who approved li- quor license applications to increase the thousands of dollars poured into the city’s general fund from ‘sin taxes’; I’ve seen dis- abled councilors struggle to mount the dais and a businessman mayor who peered at seniors in the audience who would re- ceive his business letter the next day. But the only meeting I attended pur- portedly on rural development that in- cluded hoots of derision, bullying and out- right threats was 15 years ago. That winner-take-all attitude has now raised it’s hideous head again. School yard behavior just does not cut it for adults. As a community we must thrive togeth- er in harmony or sink into stagnant dol- drums. The Siuslaw News said it best with it’s fi- nal comment of “We need to grow up.’’ —Jenny Velinty Florence We need more listeners I read with interest the recent articles “‘Chaos’ in the Community” (Oct. 24 and Oct. 27). Personally, I don’t care about who on the council or among the candidates is a Republican or Democrat. It just doesn’t matter to me. There are three candidates running for two seats. The one incumbent member is Woody Woodbury. It is something of a cliche but quite true that “everyone knows Woody.” His record of public service to our community is near legendary. The controversy lies with the other two candidates, Geraldine Lucio and Maureen Miltenburger. There are obviously some people who don’t want to see Ms. Milten- burger on the council. There are also peo- ple who don’t want to see Ms. Lucio on the council. The solution to this is not through anon- ymous phone calls or Photoshopped hit pieces. The solution is to vote, get involved, write letters to the paper, put up signs, and talk to your friends and neighbors. Then, when the election is over, let’s all work to- gether to keep Florence such a great place! Much has been made of Ms. Lucio’s seeming reluctance to engage in public speaking. Has anyone offered to help her with that? I met Ms. Lucio at the Candi- dates’ “Meet and Greet” held at the Elks Club. I found her to be rational, engaging USPS# 497-660 and articulate. More importantly, I noticed that she lis- tened. She listened to me, basically a no- body, as if I were Socrates, himself. I am most certainly not Socrates. I think listen- ing is a quality we need more than smooth talking. We have talkers at every level of state and national government. We need more listeners. —Stan Easter Florence Buehler will tighten spending, reduce taxes Knute Buehler’s visits these past few weeks to the small towns of Oregon speak volumes. He understands that Oregon is much bigger than the Portland area. Kate Brown doesn’t get it. Those making up the majority of the area of Oregon are hardworking, fiscally conservative folks. Knute Buehler under- stands their needs and will remember all of us who make up this great state when he becomes governor. Kate Brown will take more of our hard- earned money and keep our state in finan- cial ruin. Knute knows we can’t afford Kate Brown with her liberal spending and expensive programs, which results in increased taxes for every program she invents. That’s why I believe he will make a great governor; he’ll tighten up spending which results in less taxes for us. Thanks for remembering us, Knute. I will remember you at the polls. You have my vote. —Kay King Florence Points to ponder about school bond In casting your vote for the proposed bond to construct and upgrade school facilities and improve safety, all property owners must consider carefully the impact the proposed bond will have on property taxes. Many people in our community are in agreement that the school facilities would benefit from some major improvements. There is concern, though, that the amount of the proposed bond, $108 million, may reflect an imbalance of “wants” vs “needs.” Voters should be able to review a line- item breakdown of the proposed replace- ment and upgrades to the schools. This bond is asking the property owners of our community to shoulder a substantial in- crease in their property taxes. The bond proposes a $2.72 per $1,000 of assessed property value. If a home has a taxable value of $225,000 that would mean a yearly property tax increase of $612. Florence is comprised of a very high per- centage of seniors, many of them on tightly fixed incomes. Single parents and families are struggling to make ends meet. Renters of all ages may see a substantial increase in their already high rents from their landlords looking to recoup their costs. What daily living basics will need to be sacrificed by these folks because of the burden of a tremendous tax increase? Have proponents of this bond consid- ered that property taxes inherently go up annually to support education and general government taxes? Siuslaw School District Superintendent Andy Grzeskowiak said he believes the district faces considerable issues regarding the safety, comfort and education that stu- dents in the district will face if the decided upon bond modifications are not under- taken. What about the considerable mone- tary issues property owners will face if this bond passes? We love our kids and supporting our schools is an important investment in our community, but this bond is not a viable solution. —Fred and Doris Boyan Florence Measure 105: whc fix something that isn’t broken? Oregon is a beautiful, wonderful place to live in this great country. It always has been, and we are all blessed to be here no matter where we came from. ORS181A.820 has been on the books for more than 30 years. If it’s not broke ... You know the rest. —Theresa Olmstead Florence 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; Display classified ads, Friday 5 p.m. Saturday Issue—General news, Thursday noon; Budgets, two days prior to publication; Regular classified ads, Thursday 1 p.m.; Display ads, Thursday noon; 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-week subscription, $23; Out of Lane County — 1-year subscription, $99; 6-month out-of-county, $65; 10-week subscription, $29; Out of State — 1-year subscription, $125; E-Edition Online Only (Anywhere) — 1-year sub- scription, $65. 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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