4A |
WEDNESDAY EDITION
| MARCH 24, 2021
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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Copyright 2021 © Siuslaw News
Siuslaw News
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Office:
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Florence, OR 87439
LETTERS
Historic perspective on
the here and now
This is from a book by Richard
Woodman, “Ebb Tide,” on page
197. Keep in mind, this is from the
early 1800s in Great Britain:
“One may surely disagree with
the opinions of another without
the risk of retribution? After all, it
is the hallmark of civilization.
“The present woes of our coun-
try, with trouble in our unrepre-
sented industrial towns, unem-
ployment in our countryside and
difficulties in trade, are matters
close to all our hearts. ... The solu-
tion lies either with government or
in revolution, for there are limits
to the toleration of even the most
passive and compliant people. But
the problem seems to lie in what
exactly one does to ameliorate dis-
satisfactions.
“One can hope something will
turn up, but this seems to me
damned foolish and most unreli-
able. ... One cannot throw over the
cart without losing the contents
and to do so runs the risk of bring-
ing down a tyranny greater than
the one formerly endured.
“On the other hand simply to ob-
struct all progress upon the princi-
ple of exclusion seems to me to be
both dangerous and foolish. ... A
policy of slow but steady reform,
a policy which would be percepti-
ble to men of every condition but
which would allow due controls to
be exerted.
“It is my experience that nei-
ther coercion nor bribery produce
loyalty, though both may produce
results, whereas some moderating
policy would be wiser than sending
in light dragoons to cut up politi-
cal meetings that can have no voice
other than in open fields.”
—Dana Rodet
Florence
When vaccination is a
non-political endeavor
Kudos to Albertson Corp. and
Florence Safeway on their adminis-
tering COVID-19 vaccines.
The process for registering for
vaccines from Albertsons/Safeway
website was very easy. The person-
nel in the Florence Safeway were
compassionate, informative and
discrete in administering the vac-
cine.
Although their supply was small,
it was distributed evenly among
their stores with no regard to the
size of the city.
This is what can happen when
politics is taken out of the distribu-
tion.
—Robert Smith
Florence
Climate Change is
nonsense
Th e MSM claims that 97 per-
cent of scientist agree that climate
change is anthropogenic. Yet not
one off ers any incontrovertible
mathematical proof. All parrot
claims based on models they did
not create. Ergo, not one can say
with any degree of certainty climate
change is anthropogenic.
Not one climate model is able to
take current conditions and run
backwards to past conditions. Ergo,
the models are pure speculation.
Evidence abounds that the earth
has a climate cycle of approximate-
ly 1,500 years ± 500 years. Romans
ran around bare headed in togas;
Britain had vineyards; 1,500 years
later, Europeans wore heavy capes
and warm hats; Otzi the Ice Man
was buried about 5,000 [≈3 climate
cycles] years ago. For him to be so
well preserved, the Earth would
have been warmer and then cooled
rapidly — otherwise he would have
deteriorated from exposure and
predation.
CO2 contribution to atmo-
spheric warming is approximately
logarithmic. Hence 3,250 ppm is
required to have a doubling eff ect
relative to 1970. Current CO2 lev-
els are logarithmically 13 percent
higher relative to 1970, yet the
global temperature has only in-
creased about 0.5 percent.
Clearly something other than
CO2 is driving the change. Just as
the MSM are wrong about CO2,
they and their minions are just as
wrong about climate change in
general.
Th e U.S. average temperature
has increased 1.5°C since 1895,
but fallen for of the last fi ve years
while global CO2 increased 1 per-
cent. Between 1897 and 1910, CO2
increased 5ppm [1.7 percent] but
global temperature fell by 0.3°C.
Between 1935 and 1942, global
temperatures increased at the high-
est rate in the 20th century while
the world was in a severe global
economic down turn. Between
1942 and 1950, temperatures fell
at an equally steep rate yet facto-
ries were going 24/7/365 building
planes, ships, tanks, etc.
Chicken Littles demanding we
do something must lead the way.
Eschew all petroleum derived
products, heat and light their
homes with renewable, non-CO2
producing energy only, park their
cars and grow all their own food.
A good dose of reality might
awaken them before their schemes
kill the goose.
Time spent on risible resolutions
and pointless posturing for the
scientifi cally and mathematically
challenged is an utter and complete
waste. City Hall’s job is to ensure
we get the most bang for our buck.
Full stop.
—Ian Eales
Florence
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Email letters to:
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Random thoughts
A couple of random thoughts:
Wouldn’t it be more efficient to
eliminate the middleman and elect
timber lobbyists directly to the Or-
egon Legislature?
And if antifa (anti-fascists) are
bad, does that mean profa (pro-fas-
cists) are good?
—Jim White
Florence
WHERE TO WRITE
President Joseph Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
TTY/TDD: 202-456-6213
www.whitehouse.gov
900 Court St. NE - S-417
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1705
Email: Sen.DickAnderson@
oregonlegislature.gov
Oregon Gov.
Kate Brown
State Rep.
Boomer Wright (Dist. 9)
State Sen. Dick
Anderson (Dist. 5)
160 State Capitol 900 Court St.
900 Court St. NE
Salem, Ore. 97301-4047
Salem, OR 97301
Message Line:
503-986-1409
503-378-4582
Email: Rep.BoomerWright@
www.oregon.gov/gov
oregonlegislature.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
Lane County Dist. 1
Commissioner
Jay Bozievich
125 E. Eighth St.
Eugene, OR 97401
541-682-4203
Email: Jay.Bozievich@
co.lane.or.us
313 Hart Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753 | 541-465-6750
Florence City Council
www.merkley.senate.gov
& Mayor Joe Henry
Florence City Hall, 250
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio Highway 101, Florence, 97439
(4th Dist.)
541-997-3437
2134 Rayburn HOB
ci.florence.or.us
Washington, DC 20515
Email comments to Florence
202-225-6416
City Recorder Kelli Weese at
541-269-2609 | 541-465-6732 kelli.weese@ci.florence.or.us
www.defazio.house.gov