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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (April 26, 2017)
A4 Opinion Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, April 26, 2017 Two adult wolves from the Walla Walla Pack were caught on remote trail camera Jan. 16, 2016, in northern Umatilla County. Wolf plan hearing should be in NE Oregon T he Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission has scheduled two public hearings on an updated wolf management plan. Many ranchers in wolf country would counter that state wildlife officials have in reality updated their plan to manage cattle producers. And it seems they’re doing it a bit far from where wolves and people most often interact. Oregon’s wolf population has grown steadily in the decade since the first wolves migrated from Idaho into Northeast Oregon. In 2011 there were only 23. The state visually documented 112 wolves at the end of 2016, according to ODFW’s annual report. At the end of 2015, Oregon had 110 confirmed wolves. ODFW officials have described Oregon’s wolf population growth as a biological success story, and the state commission took wolves off the state endangered species list in 2015. They remain protected under the federal Endangered Species Act in areas west of U.S. highways 395, 78 and 95. That’s most of the state. We have generally agreed that wolves have a place in Oregon’s wild country. Oregon is a big place, with room for native wildlife and domestic livestock. But we’ve been equally adamant that ranchers should have reasonable leeway to take action against wolves when non- lethal actions aimed at keeping them away from livestock don’t work. That’s not the case in the current plan, and less so in the proposed update. Instead, ODFW has proposed raising the bar. The commission plans hearings on the updated plan at its next two regularly scheduled meetings. The first was April 21 in Klamath Falls, an area of the state that only recently started to report some wolf activity. The second will be May 19 in Portland, where there have been no wolves for decades. The commission has received quite a few letters from Portlanders who write passionately about their desire that wolves go completely unmolested in the state. They argue that the wolves, as property of the state, belong just as much to them as Eastern Oregon ranchers. That’s true. But while the Willamette River belongs to all Oregonians, discussions on its restoration are never held in Enterprise. It seems to us that commissioners would want to make it easier to hear from people for whom wolves are not an abstract attraction. We can assure them that there is no lack of diversity of opinion on wolves, even in the far reaches of Wallowa County, where livestock depredation is common. Paraphrasing a member of Oregon’s wolf management team, the ultimate success of wolves in Oregon requires their widespread acceptance in those areas where they most come in contact with human activity. For now, that’s ranching country. That’s where the wolves will be managed. Perhaps that’s where the plan should get a hearing. L ETTERS TO THE E DITOR Standing by our midwife To the Editor: In response to the article on our midwife Sherry Dress, I felt it necessary to show another side in her defense. I am the father of five beautiful daughters — two with my first wife and three with my current. I witnessed the birth of all five. There is nothing more beau- tiful than a mother and her new- born child, and no one other than the mother should have the final say on who to assist and share that most cherished and precious mo- ment. My first two were born in the hospital with a very sterile and controlled environment. Bright lights, stirrups, face mask, you get the picture. It was heartwarming to see my children come into this world, but I must say there was a lot of screaming, anger and pain. Now to share the experience of the daughters that were born in our home under the care of Sherry Dress. During the first pregnancy, we were lovingly guided in nutri- tion and prenatal care organically to insure a healthy baby and moth- er. Toward the end of the preg- nancy when most doctors would have been considering a cesarean because the baby was still turned feet first, Sherry simply instructed my wife with a few simple move- ments and gravity to turn the baby, and to our amazement, it worked! The baby entered the world in our home to meet her parents with tears of joy. No screams, bright lights, masks, stirrups, needles or otherwise. Rather, she emerged in a pool of water into my arms, then into the mother’s. All witnessed by smiling family and friends. The same with our second child. With our third and my fi fth, there were complica- tions that could have cost the lives of both mother and child. With the vast experience of more than 2,000 births, Sherry knew just what to do and made a potentially horrifying experience into another beautiful and cherished memory. To this day, Sherry con- tinues to be a most treasured friend. We love and will always stand with you. David Paddock John Day ‘No more road closures!’ To the Editor: In 2013, with the urging of citi- zens, the county court and sheriff approved a road ordinance barring any closures of roads in Grant County without the consent of the court or sheriff. The ordinance was motivated to insure public safety and access to roads within the county. Many issues were ad- dressed such as recreation, wood gathering, access to grazing al- lotments, search and rescue, fire- fighting and hunting, among oth- ers, as reasons to not have roads closed. Former county judge Mark Webb has petitioned the court to repeal the road ordinance, yet states in a letter to the editor, April 19, that as executive direc- tor of the Blue Mountains Forest Partners, the nonprofit organiza- tion he heads, they are for what- ever the Malheur National Forest wants in a road system. He goes on to list socioeconomic benefits for area communities such as pub- lic access. Mark Webb is talking out of both sides of his mouth in an effort to rubber stamp the road closures the Forest Service is attempting to do and using the BMFP as the ve- hicle to achieve the goal through collaboration. The court must respect the citi- zens of the county by standing be- hind the road ordinance. No more road closures! Guy Sproul John Day Emergency fi rst responders, and community support, deserve praise To the Editor: Our ambulance and fi refi ghter volunteers are an intricate and vital part of our communities and coun- ty. The EMS Appreciation Dinner is a positive event that brings our community together to celebrate those who voluntarily serve us. It is heartwarming to see so many offer up their time and energy to make this event a success. All the planning and effort pays off as we see nearly every seat in the room fi lled. The auction is well supported through the donations of many who give wonderful items to bid on. We truly are indebted to those who so selfl essly give or their time to our communities. We are also appre- ciative for a supportive county who see the need for each community to have their own EMS teams. Linda K Hunt Long Creek Protect Medicaid To the Editor: In response to your coverage of the new administration and Con- gress: The GOP-dominated Congress and the Trump White House are again attempting to strip vital health insur- ance from millions of middle and low-income Americans! These ac- tions will affect the health of children, seniors and people with disabilities all to give a tax break to the top 1 per- cent — who can afford the best health insurance money can buy. Americans deserve better consideration from the offi cials they elected. Last month, we narrowly avoid- ed disaster when the House health care bill failed at the last minute. Now there’s talk of trying to jam through another version of that bad bill in the next two weeks. It would still end Medicaid as we know it and strip health coverage from 24 million Americans. And if that wasn’t enough, it now also threatens people with pre-existing conditions. I hope we can count on our members of Congress to listen to the people they were elected to rep- resent. They need to protect Medic- aid and reject this bad proposal. Janet McClenahan Boise, Idaho Degrade North Korean economy To the Editor: President Trump has pointed out the strong linkage between China and North Korea, and he correctly assumes China can infl uence North Korea’s weapons development pro- gram. We must work with China on resolving this situation, and also on the Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea and the trade defi - cit imbalance. At this juncture, the North Ko- rean nuclear missile program is of primary concern. China can bring pressure on North Korea to stop its development of these weapons systems by reducing its trade with North Korea. One area of trade that comes to mind is the large quantity of coal China imports from North Korea. It is estimated this amounts to 22 million tons per year, which is 40 percent of North Korea’s coal exports. A reduction in the im- portation of North Korean coal would significantly impact the North Korean economy, and could force it to change. The U.S. has large quantities of coal available for mining, which could be sold to China, if cost effective, to fill its coal importation needs. This would help our trade imbalance with China, boost our coal mining industry and put our coal miners back to work. Donald Moskowitz Londonderry, New Hampshire L etters policy: Letters to the Editor is a forum for Blue Mountain Eagle readers to express themselves on local, state, national or world issues. Brevity is good, but longer letters will be asked to be contained to 350 words. No personal attacks; challenge the opinion, not the person. No thank-you letters. Submissions to this page become property of the Eagle. The Eagle reserves the right to edit letters for length and for content. Letters must be original and signed by the writer. Anonymous letters will not be printed. Writers should include a telephone number so they can be reached for questions. We must limit all contributors to one letter per person per month. 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