4A |
SATURDAY EDITION
| AUGUST 15, 2020
Siuslaw News
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
| 541-902-3520 | NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
Opinion
The First Amendment
C
ongress shall make no law respect-
ing an establishment 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 Govern-
ment 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)
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Letters to the Editor policy
LETTERS
Chuck Trent far and
above the average man
Chuck Trent, the unpaid di-
rector of Boys and Girls Club of
Western Lane County, is one of
the finest men I have ever known.
The dedication and sacrifice that
he has shown to revitalize the club
is something few men would ever
tackle.
It has been a real struggle with
hours of scratching for every pen-
ny, just to make sure that the chil-
dren are safe and cared for by the
dedicated staff.
Chuck is far and above the aver-
age man in his ability to organize
and plan for the future of this vital
community resource. There are
hundreds of working families that
count on the club to keep their
kids safe, fed and educated with
the kind of activities that they en-
joy.
Many members of this commu-
nity have shown their support,
with their checkbooks. They are to
be highly commended. But those
that have used social media to
bash Chuck and actually call him
terrible names should be ashamed
— very ashamed — for teaching
your children to behave this way.
When you have a man that has
dedicated his life to this club for
no pay and sacrificed his personal
time, you should be giving him an
award and stepping up to support
all that he does for your children.
Is the school giving the club ma-
jor support as they should be do-
ing? Are those that appreciate all
that Chuck has done for this com-
munity letting him know that you
support him and will help him
with his good works?
I challenge Florence to step up
and be counted as major support-
ers of Chuck and what he does
for the children at Boys and Girls
Club of Western Lane County. He
should be praised not hurt by vi-
cious attacks.
—Karen Harden
President of Mapleton Food Share
Don’t jump to conclusions
and present them as fact
I was dismayed by the recent
Letter to the Editor from Pamela
Richardson (“This Country Has
Beaten Down Marxism Before,”
Aug. 12) condemning the BLM
movement for defacing the North
Jetty with graffiti.
I’m wondering how Ms. Rich-
ardson is able to discern that
the graffiti was actually done by
someone who supports BLM? Was
there video footage of the culprits?
For the record, during the
demonstrations in Minneapolis,
it was reported in the Minneapo-
lis Star-Trubune that an individ-
ual posing as BLM was recorded
breaking windows; that individual
turned out to be a neo-Nazi.
The same thing happened in
Richmond and elsewhere. This
is not a new trick, it even has a
name: False Flag Operation.
The Proud Boys have made a
habit of using it, and Ms. Richard-
son should be wary of assigning
blame sans evidence.
I don’t know if that’s what this
was, but neither does she.
In addition, Ms. Richardson
claimed that the BLM movement
is Marxist. I personally know
many people who fully support
BLM and I’ve never actually met a
Marxist in my life.
While someone who is Marx-
ist may also be a BLM supporter,
it does not hold that this makes
BLM a Marxist organization. I’m
quite sure that there are more than
a few new-Nazis and KKK mem-
bers who fully support the Repub-
lican Party, but that does not mean
the Republican party is a KKK or
neo-Nazi organization.
In fact, if memory serves, Da-
vid Duke once endorsed Donald
Trump. That may say something
about Duke, it says nothing about
the Republican Party as a whole.
As Ms. Richardson notes; be care-
ful with whom you align yourself.
I urge you to apply a little crit-
ical thinking before jumping to
conclusions and then try present-
ing them as facts.
—Raymond Plumery
Florence
Willful ignorance
is the worst kind
Garbage gravitates to the gutters
on either the extreme left or the
extreme right side of “any” road.
There’s a reason why a high-
er point (crown) is designed for
the middle of roads; if per the off
chance it’s not, the road quickly
deteriorates.
There’s an old saying: ignorance
is bliss, with some it’s a blessing.
Those ignorantly blessed zeal-
ots that use a vicious common
language should take special note
of Jimmie Zinn’s opinion letter
(“Listen Up Right-Wing Zealots
And Leftist Commies,” Aug. 12).
He’s right on.
And remember: sincere or will-
ful ignorance is the worst kind.
—Jeff Talbot
Florence
Are we to be governed by
mob rule or laws?
In response to Ms. Donna
Mlinek’s Letter to the Editor (“Re-
specting Constitution, Bible Is
Not Exclusive, July 29), a lot of
us thought Keith Kraft’s Letter
(“What ‘Far Right’ Means To Me,”
July 22) was on point.
In the great USA, we kneel to
pray and we stand when the Na-
tional Anthem is played.
We also put our right hand over
our heart; active and retired mili-
tary stand and salute the flag.
Kneeling during the national
anthem by a few athletes is, admit-
tedly, in protest — not a gesture of
respect for the flag and for which
it stands.
I think our police force is the
best anywhere. Yes, you will find
a few bad apples in every basket.
They put their lives on the line for
us every day and I am grateful for
their service.
The protestors in Portland,
Egene, Springfield and elsewhere
seem to be anything but peaceful.
They have set fires, looted, de-
stroyed property and caused mil-
lions of dollars in damage, as well
as causing injury to people.
Perhaps Ms. Mlinek would see
things differently if she was a busi-
ness or property owner in one of
those cities.
The riots have been going on for
more than two months now. Are
we to be governed by mob rule?
Or can we address our grievenc-
es in a lawful manner through
proper channels?
—Lillian Swant
Florence
No such thing as
‘A little bit Marxist’
Marxist theory took over Russia
in 1917. Over a period of years,
100 million Russians were mur-
dered by a Marxist government.
Some were my ancestors.
In a socialst country, bend-
ing a knee in protest will get you
shot. Groups like Antifa and BLM
would be considered terrorist or-
ganizations and be rounded up,
sent to work camps or killed.
Being “a little bit socialist” is like
being “a little bit pregnant.”
And I do not think the Consti-
tution or Bible need a lot of inter-
pretation.
— Martin Cable
Florence and Sherwood, Ore.
The Siuslaw News welcomes letters to the editor
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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
@oregonlegislature.gov
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