4A |
SATURDAY EDITION
| NOVEMBER 10, 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)
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; 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.
Mail subscription includes E-Edition.
Website and E-Edition: TheSiuslawNews.com
Letters to the Edutor polucy
LETTERS
Tough tumes call for
tough measures
We need to eliminate football as
an expense that the schools simply
cannot afford. Even if maintenance,
teaching salaries, extracurricular ac-
tivities, etc., are apples and oranges
budget wise, this sends a huge mes-
sage.
If we can’t afford a new school to
keep the kids warm, dry and safe, or
give our kids educations that prepare
them for our 21st century, then we
sure can’t afford football.
I know football is just as much for
the community’s enjoyment as it is
for the kids. But oh, well, sorry.
Tough times call for tough mea-
sures.
—Cris Reep
Florence
Faulure of bond measure
leaees more concerns
I'm disappointed that the school
bond measure failed. I understand
that there may have been some con-
fusion regarding the cost of the bond
versus property tax increase, and
that future attempts will be made for
smaller requests.
It is still concerning me, however,
that in the meantime our precious
students are being subjected to po-
tential hazards associated with an
earthquake.
I have seen, fi rsthand, building
damage and collapse due to liquifi ca-
tion of sand and resulting diff erential
settlement of foundations. It’s true
there may be minor stop-gap seismic
retrofi t measures that could reduce
some of the destruction potential.
If so, I hope these can be evaluat-
ed and addressed to make the next
bond proposal more palatable for
taxpayers.
—Bill Craig
Florence
Who really profi ts from the Death With Dignity movement?
(Editor’s Note: Viewpoint submis-
sions on this and other topics are always
welcome as part of our goal to encourage
community discussion and exchange of
perspectives.)
A
s someone who has spent thou-
sands of his own dollars promot-
ing expanding Oregon’s end-of-life
choices, the question of who stands to
profit from the Death With Dignity
movement is one I have have been cu-
rious about.
I have reached out to Compassion
& Choices, which is the original group
that helped get Oregon’s Death With
Dignity law passed. It is a well-financed
organization that receives lots of do-
nations for promoting Oregon’s Death
With Dignity law in other states.
Like many, I believe this law is re-
strictive and could be much more
compassionate. Compassion & Choic-
es has stated twice in the media — in
the Washington Post and Siuslaw News,
that it opposes my work through End
Choices to make Oregon’s law more
compassionate. It will not even com-
municate with me by telephone, email
or Facebook.
I have to wonder how it can, in good
conscience, accept donations while
calling itself Compassion & Choices
but not actually supporting compas-
sion? This is one question I have asked
and have not been given an answer to.
Myself being very passionate about
the issue cannot understand any group
or individual that professes to support
Death With Dignity but does not want
to help Oregonions make the current
law more compassionate.
Another well-financed nonprof-
it organization that opposes my work
Guest Viewpoint
By Bruce Yelle
End Choices
through End Choices is Right to Life.
Given that the organization has quite a
few religious-minded supporters who
rely on their faith to guide them, I can
understand.
However, what bothers me is how
Right to Life seems to misrepresent
what is being asked for in expanding
Oregon’s end-of-life choices to assure
an individual’s advance directive is
honored, even when they become vic-
itims of dementia.
In the past three years, a bill was in
front of the Oregon legislature to re-
write the state’s 25-year-old advance
directive laws. And every year, Right to
Life fought this bill with lots of money.
Last year, during the House of Repre-
sentative hearings for the bill, I was one
of three people testifying to support the
bill. Common sense asks, Why not re-
write a 25-year-old law?
What I heard from some of the 200
people who had signed up to oppose
it — most from Right to Life — was
that rewriting Oregon’s decades-old law
would take rights away from those suf-
fering from dementia. Those of us who
are educated on this subject through
personal experience know the exact op-
posite is true.
Today in Oregon, an individual’s ad-
vance directive may or may not be fol-
lowed in the event of dementia.
Once that happens, an individual’s
right to choose is given to someone
else — and they get to decide your end-
of-life options. One can only hope this
person and your health care providers
can agree on what your advance direc-
tive says, and whether you would have
chosen to continue living with your de-
mentia.
In my opinion, there is too much
money being made on keeping people
alive and living in a quality of life that
would be unacceptable to them if were
they still considered mentally compe-
tent.
End Choices has been working hard
the last year and a half to try and get
this changed.
In the upcoming 2019 Oregon leg-
islative session, there will be a bill that
will protect the rights of seniors and
citizens with incurable conditions and
unbearable suffering.
An advanced directive filled out when
someone is mentally competent should
be a contract for an individual should
they someday be considered mentally
incompetent to choose for themselves.
Oregonians need to educate themselves
on the restrictions of the current Or-
egon Death With Dignity law and the
rules regarding advance directives.
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.
Polutucal/Electuon 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