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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 2019)
A4 OPINION Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, February 27, 2019 Bigotry will not be tolerated in our schools A racial slur being used against one of our local stu- dent-athletes at a high school basketball game is appalling, and as a commu- nity, we must stand together in declaring bigotry will not be tolerated in our schools. As today’s front-page story recounts, the Prairie City boys basketball team had to overcome more than the talent of the opposing team in the district cham- pionship game when one of Crane’s players used a derogatory word. And not just any word. Filled with hatred, the N-word seeks to strip the humanity from the people it describes, to return to a time when some people were treated as property. The comment came after two athletes landed on each other during what had already been a heated game, as Prairie City’s players pointed out. While it’s true people may say things they do not mean when in pain or in a tense situation, when the knee- jerk reaction is a hate-fi lled response, it points to an underlying attitude as part of the problem. It’s sad enough that big- otry survives under a rock here and there, but it’s downright depressing that our students have to endure it in 2019. So many years after the civil rights movement, after countless contributions by black people to our com- munities, our country and, it should go without saying, to basketball, it’s sad that something like this occurs at a high school sports contest. Such hateful comments are truly out of place when we’re trying to teach our young people positive values such as dedication, team- work and sportsmanship. We commend Prairie City and Crane school offi cials for making positive prog- ress by communicating to address the situation, leading to disciplinary action for the offending student. Now, it comes down to all of us — parents, teachers, coaches, community mem- bers — to ensure the posi- tive progress continues, to make it known that we will not tolerate bigotry in our schools. GUEST COMMENT Cap and trade bad for ag By Robyn H. Smith To the Blue Mountain Eagle HB 2020, Oregon’s proposed carbon bill, known as “cap and trade,” raises significant con- cerns regarding the direct and indirect impact of the bill on members of Oregon’s agricul- tural industries. The bill would impose per- mits and taxes that would result in cutting greenhouse gas emis- sion levels 45 percent below the 1990 levels by the year 2035 and 90 percent below 1990 lev- els by the year 2050. The bill proposes an allow- ance budget, and each year the available allowance would decline. HB 2020 would cap certain carbon emissions and require the purchase of “offsets.” This likely will increase the direct cost of fuel and natu- ral gas for family farms and ranches, transportation costs in the supply chain and costs for food processing. This would mean not only could Oregon’s gas prices become some of the highest in the nation, but the increased financial burden on agricultural operations will significantly trickle down to every Orego- nian’s grocery store bill. Increasing input costs will place another hurdle on Ore- gon’s young ranchers who are trying to start their own busi- ness and who are trying keep Oregon lands working. Working the land is crucial for management and mainte- nance to combat erosion, inva- sive species, soil and water quality and fire control. Cattle ranchers sequen- tially control carbon emissions by maintaining healthy soil and controlling the fuel lev- els of wildfires through grazing habits. “One large Oregon wildfire produces more carbon in the air than Portland can produce in one year,” said Oregon Cattle- men’s Association’s Executive Director Jerome Rosa. “Mean- ingful change for carbon emis- sions should start with for- est management and wildfire control.” The increased costs as a result of this bill would shift production to other states and countries with less control over environmental regulations, car- bon-neutral power supply and fewer human rights and labor laws. “Oregon’s rural communities are committed to environmen- tal stewardship and we don’t want to see our state’s commod- ities outsourced to unregulated areas, we don’t want to see the cost of ranching and farming in this state outweigh the benefit,” said Rosa. The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association encourages anyone who will face increased oper- ation costs by not exempting commercial or agricultural fuels from this bill to voice your opposition. Robyn H. Smith is the communications director for the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Cap and trade would harm ranchers WHERE TO WRITE GRANT COUNTY • Grant County Courthouse — 201 S. Humbolt St., Suite 280, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0059. Fax: 541-575-2248. • Canyon City — P.O. Box 276, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0509. Fax: 541-575-0515. Email: tocc1862@ centurylink.net. • Dayville — P.O. Box 321, Dayville 97825. Phone: 541-987-2188. Fax: 541- 987-2187. Email:dville@ortelco.net • John Day — 450 E. Main St, John Day, 97845. Phone: 541-575-0028. Fax: 541-575-1721. Email: cityjd@ centurytel.net. • Long Creek — P.O. Box 489, Long Creek 97856. Phone: 541-421-3601. Fax: 541-421-3075. Email: info@ cityofl ongcreek.com. • Monument — P.O. Box 426, Monument 97864. Phone and fax: 541-934-2025. Email: cityofmonument@centurytel.net. • Mt. Vernon — P.O. Box 647, Mt. Vernon 97865. Phone: 541-932-4688. Fax: 541-932-4222. Email: cmtv@ ortelco.net. • Prairie City — P.O. Box 370, Prairie City 97869. Phone: 541-820-3605. Fax: 820-3566. Email: pchall@ortelco.net. • Seneca — P.O. Box 208, Seneca 97873. Phone and fax: 541-542-2161. Email: senecaoregon@gmail.com. SALEM • Gov. Kate Brown, D — 254 State Capitol, Salem 97310. Phone: 503-378- 3111. Fax: 503-378-6827. Website: governor.state.or.us/governor.html. • Oregon Legislature — State Capitol, Salem, 97310. Phone: (503) 986-1180. Website: leg.state.or.us (includes Oregon Constitution and Oregon Revised Statutes). • Oregon Legislative Information — (For updates on bills, services, capitol or messages for legislators) — 800- 332-2313. • Sen. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario – 900 Court St. NE, S-301, Salem 97301. Phone: 503-986-1730. Website: oregonlegislature.gov/Bentz. Email: Sen.Cliff Bentz@oregonlegislature.gov. • Rep. Lynn Findley, R-Vale – 900 Court St. NE, H-475, Salem 97301. Phone: 503- 986-1460. Website: oregonlegislature. gov/fi ndley. Email: Rep.LynnFindley@ oregonlegislature.gov. WASHINGTON, D.C. • The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20500; Phone-comments: 202- 456-1111; Switchboard: 202-456- 1414. Blue Mountain EAGLE Published every Wednesday by To the Editor: I am a lifetime Oregon resi- dent, and have been involved in raising quality beef for over 50 years. I have to use fuel to run my operation. In addition, to reach my doctor, dentist, attor- ney and banker, I must travel 180 miles round trip. I operate a sustainable ranch, have abun- dant well-managed timber that will absorb carbon, and I invite anyone to tour my ranch and see the job I have done in promoting stream sides and water use. Cap and trade will increase my operating expenses, and if you know about the livestock business, you know we operate on a narrow margin. I contrib- ute to the tax base, the schools, the community and the economy of my county. This will not be good for rural Oregon, and I’m certain Sen. Bentz has apprised you of our economy and our ‘Maybe everyone should rethink vaccines’ To the Editor: I am responding to an opin- ion article in the Eagle titled “Anti-vaxxers put us all at risk,” Feb. 13. In 1986 Congress passed a law that the victims of vaccine injuries could not sue the vaccine manu- facturer based on the design of the vaccine. Why do vaccine compa- nies need or get such special pro- tection? No other manufacturer enjoys such protections. Imag- ine what that does for incentive to design a safe product. It’s a lot like this: Your toaster causes your house to burn down, and then afterwards you fi nd out that toaster companies can’t be sued based on the design of the toaster. The title alone of the opinion article, “Anti-vaxxers put us all at risk,” implies that the effi cacy of vaccines is less than 100 per- cent. If vaccines were 100 percent effective and you get a vaccine and I don’t, how could I be putting you at risk? According to the CBS News article “Supreme Court vaccine ruling: parents can’t sue drug makers for kids’ health prob- lems” from Feb. 22, 2011, “The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a federal law prohibits lawsuits against drug makers over seri- ous side effects from childhood vaccines. ... Within hours of get- ting the DPT shot, the third in a series of fi ve, the baby suffered a series of debilitating seizures.” (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ supreme-court-vaccine-ruling-par- ents-cant-sue-drug-makers-for- kids-health-problems) Maybe everyone should rethink vaccines. Ron Bright Mt. Vernon 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. Deadline is 5 p.m. Friday. Send letters to editor@bmeagle.com, or Blue Mountain Eagle, 195 N. 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