COFFEE BREAK
B6 — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
THuRSDAY, JAnuARY 27, 2022
Man’s estrangement from son compounded by incarceration
DEAR ABBY: My
38-year-old son is in jail for
meth. He’s been an addict for
many years. I tried several
times to help him, but he always
relapsed. He has been in rehab.
His mother and I divorced when
he was 7. He was a great kid
until the divorce. After that, he
became distant and wouldn’t talk
much to me.
His mother tried to make up
for the divorce by doing every-
thing for him. When I wanted
him to do something, like his
homework, he would just sit
and stare. I couldn’t punish him
because I was afraid he wouldn’t
want to come to my place when
it was my weekend to have him.
I did things with him and tried
to show him I loved him, but
I think he blamed me for the
divorce. (It was my wife who
wanted it.)
I don’t think he ever loved
me like a son normally loves
his father, the way I loved and
respected mine. He rejected any
advice I tried to offer and paid
no attention when I tried to teach
him something.
I’m trying to decide if I want
to contact him. I feel like I have
always had to do the heavy
lifting to try to have a relation-
ship with him, and he made no
effort at all to sustain one with
me. If I never heard from him
again, I really wouldn’t miss
him. All he has ever been is a
taker. So I’m asking: Should I
bother trying to get in contact
with him while he is in jail? —
FRUSTRATED FATHER IN
TEXAS
DEAR FATHER: Your son
is sick — an addict. That he is in
jail will hopefully mean he can
attain sobriety. Reach out to him
one more time. He may believe
you deserted him and his mother
because she allowed him to
believe it, which would explain
his attitude toward you all these
years. It might be of some benefit
to him to be reminded that you
love him and care about his well-
being. Once he is clean, he may
have a different attitude where
you are concerned. If not, at least
you tried.
DEAR ABBY: I have ended
a four-year romantic relation-
ship. When times were good,
they were very good. I had some
of the most joyful and wonderful
experiences of my life with him,
my children and his family. We
were planning to spend the rest
of our lives together.
However, when the going
got rough, he started seeing
other women and, later, was
hateful to one of my tween chil-
dren. Even as I write that last
part, I am appalled. I know in
my head the relationship had to
end, yet I continue to cry over
the loss every day, and my sleep
remains disrupted.
What’s the matter with me
that I’m pining over a man who
turned so sour? I should feel
relieved, right? How can I help
myself move through this? —
TOO MANY TEARS
DEAR TEARS: I sympa-
thize with your disappoint-
ment. We have all been there.
Now wipe your nose, dry those
tears and remind yourself that,
had the romance continued, you
might have married someone
who would verbally abuse your
children and cheat on you. You
aren’t crying over the loss of
“him” as much as grieving
the loss of a dream that didn’t
come to fruition. Stay busy and
focus harder on looking ahead,
and you will move through this
more quickly.
State and counties battle over more than timber
opposite planets,” said John
DiLorenzo, attorney for the
counties.
SALEM — The
The disagreement cen-
yearslong legal battle
ters on timber revenues
between the state of Oregon from 700,000 acres of state
and 14 counties over rev-
forestlands, most of which
enues generated by state
were donated to the state by
forests is about more than
county governments in the
money, even if it’s $1
1930s and 1940s.
billion.
Counties and other
That’s the amount
taxing bodies are
a jury in Linn County
entitled to a share of
awarded the counties
logging revenues,
and taxing districts
and historically these
in 2019. The jury
monies have been
DiLorenzo
held the state liable
a big part of their
for breaching con-
budgets.
tracts with the coun-
The state is
ties by logging an
required to manage
insufficient amount of
the forestlands for
timber from state for-
their “greatest per-
manent value.” The
ests, reducing their
state’s interpretation
share of profits. It
Bovett
of that concept has
awarded the plaintiffs.
evolved since the land
As the state govern-
ment seeks to over-
first changed hands.
turn the jury’s ver-
In recent decades,
dict on appeal, it has
the state has reduced
exposed a broader rift
timber harvests
between itself and the Bloemers to protect wild-
life habitat and
predominantly rural
enhance recreational
communities.
“This is a lot
opportunities.
bigger issue than a
The plaintiffs and
$1 billion judgment.
the state disagree on
It’s about rural jobs
what was promised
and economics —
when the counties
Nyquist
and a way of life,”
gave up the land.
said Roger Nyquist,
The state says the
a commissioner for Linn
lawsuit shouldn’t have even
County, the lawsuit’s lead
gone to a jury because the
plaintiff.
counties lack an enforce-
The dispute goes beyond able contract governing the
the stereotypical conflict
land’s management.
between the survival of
The county governments
rural sawmills and the sur-
argue they never would’ve
vival of protected species.
given up such massive
It’s a legal conundrum
swaths of forestland if the
that’s also about power: The state could simply reduce
counties want to stick up for logging levels and timber
themselves, while the state
revenues at will.
wants to protect its preroga-
“Who in their right mind
tive to set forest policy.
would have done that?”
“We’ve been residing on asked DiLorenzo.
to matters affecting a state-
wide interest, a county
cannot seek compensation
for losses caused by the
state’s breach of a statutory
contract,” according to the
state.
Under Oregon law, state
forestlands must be man-
aged for the “greatest per-
manent value of those lands
to the state,” which is a
matter that’s within the dis-
cretion of the board of for-
estry, the state said.
“The State of Oregon
gets to decide the greatest
permanent value for the
State of Oregon,” said
Ralph Bloemers, an
attorney for fishing and
conservation groups that
oppose the lawsuit. “There’s
nowhere that says: Timber
first, then everything else.
It’s everything. It’s mul-
tiple uses. It’s what people
enjoyed back in those days
and today.”
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Joshua Bessex/EO Media Group, File
Logging in the Clatsop State Forest in 2016. A dispute between the
state and some counties goes beyond the stereotypical conflict
between the survival of rural sawmills and the survival of protected
species.
‘An absurd notion’
master and servant.”
More than two decades
ago, the Oregon Board of
Forestry enacted a defini-
tion of “greatest perma-
nent value” that emphasized
“healthy, productive and
sustainable forest ecosys-
tems” that generate “social,
economic and environ-
mental benefits.”
The counties contend
that state foresters have cur-
tailed logging as a result,
depriving local govern-
ments of roughly $1 billion
in past and future revenues
needed for law enforce-
ment, schools, libraries and
other services.
“You can call this a
breach of contract, but it’s
a broken promise,” Bovett
said. “It is a direct promise
from the state to the
counties.”
The donated forest-
lands are governed under
a specific 1941 statute, and
according to the state, the
counties cannot enforce a
“statutory contract” related
to “matters of statewide
public concern.”
“At least when it comes
On Feb. 22, the Oregon
Court of Appeals will hear
arguments to decide which
of their perspectives is
legally correct.
A key question in the
litigation is whether the
counties have the ability
to challenge the state’s for-
estry decisions. Counties
are subdivisions of state
government.
While the state’s attor-
neys argue the counties lack
this power, the counties say
they have a right to enforce
their contract with the state.
“What’s the point of a
contract if the state doesn’t
have to live up to it?”
Nyquist asked.
It’s an “absurd notion”
that the counties can’t chal-
lenge the state in court over
the matter, said Rob Bovett,
legal counsel for the Asso-
ciation of Oregon Counties.
“If the state can walk
away from its contracts,
then we’ve got nothing,”
he said. “Then we would
have a partnership that’s not
only broken, but not a part-
nership at all. It would be
weather
| Go to AccuWeather.com
State law requires
counties to share in
timber revenues
The legal problem of
Oregon’s political subdivi-
sions suing the state gov-
ernment can be explained in
familial terms, he said.
“It’s like a kid suing
his parents for not getting
enough allowance, when
the parents have taken care
of school, taken him to
the dentist, made sure he’s
safe,” Bloemers said. “It’s
easy to pick on the state
and say the state isn’t doing
enough.”
The plaintiffs say they
realize that counties can’t
simply legally challenge
any state policy they dis-
like, such as marijuana
legalization. However, they
argue local governments
AROUND OREGON AND THE REGION
Astoria
Longview
34/51
Kennewick
28/47
St. Helens
29/47
Hood River
26/40
25/47
Condon
29/39
31/48
FRI
SAT
SUN
MON
Breezy early;
clear
Clouds and sun;
chilly
Mostly sunny
Morning snow
showers
A little ice, then
rain
30 10
29 17
31 17
Eugene
1
0
0
30/48
37 18
33 25
37 26
1
0
0
La Grande
26 34 21
Comfort Index™
Enterprise
0
0
0
18 39 19
Comfort Index™
3
38 22
33 29
4
1
0
3
TEMPERATURES Baker City La Grande Elgin
NATION (for the 48 contiguous states)
High Tuesday
Low Tuesday
High: 81°
Low: -33°
Wettest: 0.97”
25°
10°
32°
21°
31°
21°
PRECIPITATION (inches)
Tuesday
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Normal year to date
0.00
0.38
0.58
0.38
0.58
0.00
1.24
1.39
1.24
1.39
0.00
3.73
2.72
3.73
2.72
AGRICULTURAL INFO.
HAY INFORMATION FRIDAY
Lowest relative humidity
Afternoon wind
Hours of sunshine
Evapotranspiration
35%
S at 10 to 20 mph
6.3
0.07
RESERVOIR STORAGE (through midnight Wednesday)
Phillips Reservoir
Unity Reservoir
Owyhee Reservoir
McKay Reservoir
Wallowa Lake
Thief Valley Reservoir
2% of capacity
26% of capacity
20% of capacity
35% of capacity
20% of capacity
32% of capacity
STREAM FLOWS (through midnight Tuesday)
Grande Ronde at Troy
1760 cfs
Thief Valley Reservoir near North Powder
1 cfs
Burnt River near Unity
15 cfs
Umatilla River near Gibbon
363 cfs
Minam River at Minam
156 cfs
Powder River near Richland
43 cfs
Key West, Fla.
Crane Lake, Minn.
Burlington, Colo.
OREGON
High: 65°
Low: 6°
Wettest: none
North Bend
Meacham
Powers
39/63
SUN & MOON
FRI.
7:19 a.m. 7:18 a.m.
4:52 p.m. 4:54 p.m.
2:57 a.m. 4:16 a.m.
12:08 p.m. 12:52 p.m.
MOON PHASES
New
Jan 31
First
Feb 8
Full
Feb 16
Grants Pass
Last
Feb 23
Jordan Valley
19/41
Paisley
25/53
19/52
Frenchglen
20/47
32/58
Brookings
28/57
23/33
Klamath Falls
20/52
Lakeview
16/46
McDermitt
18/42
RECREATION FORECAST FRIDAY
SAT.
Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W
51/35/c 50/42/c
60/26/pc 55/21/c
31/14/pc 30/16/s
59/43/c 57/43/c
35/12/pc 36/13/s
56/34/c 55/39/c
47/30/c 48/33/c
30/5/pc
30/9/s
37/9/pc
34/9/s
48/31/c 52/38/c
37/22/pc 36/22/s
40/26/pc 40/30/c
46/27/pc 46/28/s
45/24/pc 46/26/s
41/25/pc 41/24/s
35/22/c 32/21/s
52/18/c 53/20/s
46/19/c 47/19/s
Grand View
Arock
15/36
18/43
Shown is Friday’s weather. Temperatures are Thursday night’s lows and Friday’s highs.
City
Astoria
Bend
Boise
Brookings
Burns
Coos Bay
Corvallis
Council
Elgin
Eugene
Hermiston
Hood River
Imnaha
John Day
Joseph
Kennewick
Klamath Falls
Lakeview
Diamond
20/42
Fields
Medford
41/59
Boise
17/31
Silver Lake
Chiloquin
FRI.
A fi ve-day blizzard began Jan. 27, 1966,
around Oswego, N.Y. Accumulation
reached 102 inches with 50 inches falling
on Jan. 31 alone.
THU.
33/55
20/32
19/47
REGIONAL CITIES
WEATHER HISTORY
Sunrise
Sunset
Moonrise
Moonset
Beaver Marsh
Juntura
14/35
22/50
17/48
Roseburg
Ontario
19/30
Burns
Brothers
34/58
Coos Bay
Huntington
19/36
28/60
Oakridge
11/30
24/34
Seneca
Bend
Elkton
Council
13/29
27/45
22/60
Florence
TUESDAY EXTREMES
ALMANAC
19/34
John Day
23/55
Sisters
34/56
Comfort Index takes into account how the weather will feel based on a combination of factors. A rating of 10 feels
very comfortable while a rating of 0 feels very uncomfortable.
13/28
Baker City
Redmond
37/55
36/53
Halfway
Granite
27/47
Newport
32/52
40 19
21/44
31/56
28/48
Corvallis
Enterprise
18/39
26/34
Monument
25/44
Idanha
Salem
TONIGHT
0
21/37
La Grande
25/42
Maupin
Comfort Index™
Elgin
Pendleton
The Dalles
Portland
Newberg
Lewiston
26/44
23/33
23/36
TIllamook
13 29 12
Forecasts and graphics provided
by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
Walla Walla
27/35
Vancouver
29/46
32/55
Baker City
can’t perform public health
functions and carry out
other tasks on the state’s
behalf if they can’t rely on
contracts.
Critics of the law-
suit point out that Oregon
cannot ignore federal laws,
such as the Endangered
Species Act and Clean
Water Act, which restrict
logging under certain
circumstances.
There’s no argument that
state law requires coun-
ties to share in timber rev-
enues, but it’s still allowed
to take environmental and
recreation considerations
into account, said Bob Van
Dyk, Oregon and California
policy director for the non-
profit Wild Salmon Center.
Tillamook County, one
of the plaintiffs, is dedicated
to environmental preserva-
tion but doesn’t believe it
conflicts with other values,
said David Yamamoto,
vice-chair of the county
commission.
“People think that if you
manage for timber, you
don’t care about the envi-
ronment,” he said. “That’s
absolutely wrong.”
The problem isn’t that
Oregon follows environ-
mental laws. It’s that state
foresters have restricted
logging beyond what’s
legally required, said
DiLorenzo, attorney for
the counties. That man-
agement strategy has now
resulted in Endangered
Species Act limitations
that have further decreased
logging. Van Dyk of the
Wild Salmon Center said
he’s also glad that Oregon
decided against settling the
lawsuit and is optimistic
about the state’s chances
on appeal.
FRI.
City
Lewiston
Longview
Meacham
Medford
Newport
Olympia
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Powers
Redmond
Roseburg
Salem
Spokane
The Dalles
Ukiah
Walla Walla
SAT.
Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W
44/27/pc 45/28/c
47/30/c 47/32/c
35/13/pc 35/13/s
57/29/c 56/30/c
55/39/c 54/42/c
50/32/pc 49/36/c
30/16/pc 30/16/s
35/23/c 36/24/s
36/20/pc 36/23/s
48/32/c 48/34/c
63/38/c 62/39/s
55/22/pc 57/21/c
55/35/c 55/36/c
48/30/c 50/35/c
32/22/pc 36/22/c
39/30/c 40/32/c
43/21/pc 45/21/s
33/22/pc 35/23/s
Weather(W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow fl urries, sn-snow, i-ice
ANTHONY LAKES
PHILLIPS LAKE
Clouding up
Mostly cloudy
33
21
32
14
MT. EMILY REC.
BROWNLEE RES.
Periods of sun
Partly sunny
37
26
36
16
EAGLE CAP WILD.
EMIGRANT ST. PARK
Periods of sun
Partly sunny
30
18
37
16
WALLOWA LAKE
MCKAY RESERVOIR
Partly sunny
Partly sunny
41
25
42
25
THIEF VALLEY RES.
RED BRIDGE ST. PARK
Cold
Breezy and chilly
29
12
34
21