Page 1
I Horse sense I
I FJtXfXTV. JOINER I
A lot of people are clamoring for a gun registration la,
sincere in the belief that such a law will take guns out of the
hands of criminals, thus eliminating murder and other
crime. These current crusaders might be interested to know
that for many years the District of Columbia has had a very
strict gun registration law. Yet the District of Columbia for
as many years has been known as the crime capital of the
United States! According to Attorney General William
Saxbe. there has never been an arrest under that law. "It is
disturbing to me," Saxbe said recently, to pass a law and
then to find that it is not being enforced in the courts here in
the District."
People still believe that the way to get rid of a problem is
to '"pass a law." Just make it illegal and the problem will go
away. This is especially true of laws that attempt to regulate
human conduct in the field of morals The 13th Amendment
apparently didn't teach Americans much on the subject of
enforced sobriety. Such laws cannot be enforced, and never
will be enforced except in "select" cases
One doesn't have to go any farther from home than
Heppner for examples of laws that are not and cannot be
enforced. If Heppner "s city ordinances were all enforced
there wouldn't be a dog on the streets unless it were licensed
and on a leash. The Monday noon blast of the fire siren that
summons members to the chamber of commerce meeting
would be silenced, because there's an ordinance against it.
There is also an ordinance prohibiting children from
bouncing balls on downtown sidewalks.
There are thousands of useless, hypocritical and
nonsensical laws on the books in this country that aren't
solving the problems they were instituted tocure. They make
a mockery of all law and create widespread disrespect for
law. As far back as 600 B.C. thoughtful people like
Anacharsis. a Scythian philosopher, wrote. "Written laws
are like spiders' webs, and will like them only entangle and
hold the poor and weak, while the rich and powerful will
easily break through them." Before any law is enacted the
people should answer three questions: should this law be
enforced? can this law be enforced? and will this law be
enforced? If all three cannot be answered in the affirmative
is should never become a law. Apply this test to a gun
regisiration law and discover the absurdity of enacting one
Common Cause and Ralph Nader's Wonder Boys are
' among many organizations being supported by the people to
tell state and national legislators what the people want and
need. This is a strange duplication of the legislative
processes On one hand we have state legislators and
congressmen elected by the people and sworn to look after
their interests. Legislators are the people's lobbv. They are
hired by the people and are responsible to them for their ac-
Hons. Then why are there organizations like Common Cause,
and where is the need for them? Common Cause (to choose
one as an example is doing exactly what highly-paid and
elected legislators dodo the people's business. There is
nothing Common Cause is doing that legislators aren't hired
to do. If Common Cause, and other such "people's lobbies."
.do a better job of representing people than the people's own
representatives, then perhaps we should get rid of legislators .
and hire Common Cause. But hiring Common Cause to watch
our senators and representatives is like hiring one worker to
watch another; or. setting one thief to keep another thief
honest. The criminal inference on the part of elected
congressmen is nothing new. Mark Twain once said that it
probably could be shown by facts and figures that there is no
distinctly native American criminal class except Congress!
The very fact that Common Cause exists is proof enough that
state legislators and congressmen are not doing their jobs to
the people's satisfaction. If legislators and congressmen are
not doing their jobs to the people's satisfaction, why do we
continue to employ them?
If the nervous streaker who bare-blitzed through the
Kinzua mill astride a Honda motorcycle Friday night will
come by the mail box at the Claude Graham place he can
retrieve his underwear . . . Orville and Barbara Cutsforth
attended the Boat Show in Portland. Orville fell into the
clutches of a pretty salesgirl and quickly became the proud
owner of a new motor home. Later it occurred to Orville that
he already had a motor home with only 28.000 miles on it.
which he has just overhauled, adding five new tires, two new
batteries and paid the licensing for two years. If anyone is
interested in a used mobilehome at a bargain price . . . The
Saturday before St. Patrick's Day it was like the good old
days at Bucknum's Tavern. Free sandwiches and 5-cent
beer! With an impromptu rendition of "When Irish Eyes Are
Smiling" there wasn't a dry eye--or a dry throat--in the joint .
Before I am crucified head-down and drawn and
quarsered for having said something nice about Boeing
Corporation's operation last week, let me hasten to assure
disturbed readers that Boeing is not an advertiser of this
newspaper I have no relatives on the Boeing payroll and I
own no stock in that company My case for Boeing is that it
has a valid 99-year lease on nearly 100.000 acres of land near
Boardman Is also has a valid contract which stipulates that
Boeing has the option to lease any adjoining or adjacent land
in thai 1 "".' acres that may become available during the
lerm of the lease The Navy bombing range may become
available U joins the Boing leased lands. Therefore. Boeing
ha. the ops ion to lease every acre of the bombing range at 65
t en's an acre My point made last week is. and remains, that
peiiplewhonou v an' to move in and make family-sized farm
unit oui tii this estimaied 50.000 acres cannot legally do so if
Boeing eiecis lo exercise its option Therefore, insiead of
turmuig committees and putting heat on state and federal
officials to make tm bombing range land available for small
farm unit, cwnt-emed citizens sttould instead be consulting
Boeing. Boeing owe have a contract Are we at Ihe point
ftp want in repeal the Jaw of contracts? If so. there
a piece nf proper) m the l.S that would be safe!
I fwpp! in taf if- bombing range land for family
farm use ha- mr a: tw epnw of Boeing, which eniered
into a cmrac m gmxi faiifc arid ha performed its terms
atisfactrily and a on cost Boeing has expressed a
willingne! in urr-nGer i' up ton if a plan satisfactory to it
t presented .-Natural! . if the land is going to be developed on
a corporate om. Boeing wants to do it. Could anything be
more fair'.'
I am disappointed thai me people harbor ill-will
toward Boeing over ihe Boardman operation. Boeing came
into that land openly and honestly, and only after local
fanner and developers had let that land go undeveloped for
too years. Well-heeled, local farmers could have taken Ihe
land ai any time and developed it. They didn't. So Boeing did.
II local people feel resentment over Boeing success on
once-woilhless land, that resentment is better directed lo
then Guv. Mark Hatfield, who engineered this "land
giveaway" in Ihe first place Boeing merely made a
far-sighted business deal, fraught with economic peril. But
Hatfield made what turned out to be a bad deal by giving
away land that has become valuable over the years. If there
is a culprit, isn't lie Hatfield and iiol Boeing?
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The mail pouch
EDITOR:
I am a 6th grader at the middle school in Rumford, Maine.
Our community is a "Right to Read" center and our school is
doing projects for "Right to Read" month during April
Our school project is collecting newspapers from all over
the United States for reading ih our classrooms and library,
and we would very much appreciate it if you would send ua
copy of yours.
LYNCOXTI.
Rumford. Maine.
ED. NOTE--They're in the mail. Lyn. I hope your class if
readv for this'
EDITOR:
A District Improvement Company is being formed in
Morrow County by local family farmers. Some have land that
is near the river, some are irrigating from wells and some
are interested in obtaining land to irrigate.
The local people are interested and willing to develop the
Boardman bombing range and are organized to do so. Small
privale business was a major part in building this county on a
sound financial and social basis Better communities and
more responsibility develop from private ownership.
In your last paper you presented a case for Boeing 's rights
How about the rights of the original landowners who were
forced to give up their land to the government for a mere
pittance when the bombing range was established; and
might I ask the editor why he is in Heppner rather than
working for a large metropolitan newspaper?
DON PETERSON" '
lone ;
EDITOR.
For critical folks such as Mike and Joanie Wells 'Cazeae
Times. March 21' 1 have a question: what have you done
recently for man or beast0 Also I'd like to contribute this
"daily thought" for them:
Let me tonight look back
across the span
"Twixt dawn and dark and
lo my conscience say
because of some good act
to beast or man
"The world is betier thai I lived todav."
Planners
LOIS WINCHESTER.
Heppner.
i Continued from P. 1 1
this i! must first seek approval
from such agencies as the
Department of Environmental
Quality, the State Fish and
Game Department and Ihe
state engineer.
To further aid in cleaning up
the present trash disposal
sysiem. Kinzua has agreed
with DEQ to install a trash
burner which would allow
virtuallv no emissions. The
proposed burner will hopefully
be in operation by December.
Parking for Ihe mill is being
planned in and around the
current shop area and would
extend back inio the present
trash area.
In other action, three
Boardman residents. Robert
Harwood. Homer Prilchard
and Lester Moen issued a
complaint concerning a land
owner who is apparently not
complying wiih county zoning
laws. After discussion as to
who and where the law
enforcement body for the
planning commission is. it was
decided that the staff would
investigaie the situation and
hopefully correct any prob
lems. Ethel McKenzie of Irrigon
pointed out that since the area
was undergoing rapid trailer
expansion that controls should
be enforced "If controls
aren't clamped down right
now. we're going to have a
heck of a mess pretty soon."
she said.
Irrigon landowner Hilda
Sharp of Portland was present
to present her views on the
proposed rezoning of the 1.500
acres of land around Irrigon
from farm to farm residential.
This move would allow land
owners lo break their land into
one-acre plots, not just five
acre plots as Ihe current
zoning allows.
Mr. and Mrs Leon Lablanc
of Irrigon also presented their
views to the change. The
planning commission noted it
had received 52 returned
questionnaire ballots which
included 32 in favor of the
change. 21 against the change.
2 unsigned ballots for and 1
unsigned ballot against.
It was agreed a public
hearing would be set up at
Irrigon where the commission
wouid finally make a recom
mendation lo the county court
from their findings.
The commission passed a
variance for Chip-a-Way
Trucking allowing it to change
a five-acre area from farm to
industrial zoning so it may
construct a truck shop
A letter to the commission
said plans for a trailer park on
the Van Winkle lot had been
dropped, with no proposed
new plans.
Progress reports from two
north county areas were also
given lo the commission I.M.
Docken of Desert Springs
Mobile Estates said current
action was "static" while
awaiting various permits and
approvals. A letter from the
business manager of Boeing
Company's agri-business said
the present project is about
"20 per cent completed " The
report said work on feedlots
and storage areas was pro
gressing steadily.
The final portion of business
before Ihe commission was
brought forward by member
Fritz Cutsforth. Cutsforth
thought he might need a
variance for structure altera
tion on his place. Attorney
Dennis Doherty ruled that no
action need lie taken by the
commission.
PGE files for -650 million
nuclear plant, Boardman
Portland General Electric
has filed application with the
Atomic Energy Commission
for a construction permit for
Eastern Oregon's first nuclear
generating plant, it was an
nounced yesterday by Joseph
L Williams, vice-president of
PGE. Portland.
The application is for the
Carry Reservoir Site 12 miles
west and south of Boardman.
to be known as Boardman No.
1. Irrigation water will be part
of Ihe multi-use project
Cost of the 1260 megawatt
pressurized water nuclear
plant is $650 million, exclusive
of fuel
PGE will build a cooling
reservoir at Carly and coop
erate with the Boeing Cor
poration for space in it for
irrigation water. The site will
have a capacity for four 1260
megawatt planis. one or two
coal plants, and provide up to
30.000 acres of irrigation
water.
PGE has arranged with
Boeing for 20.000 acres of state
land now leased to Boeing, and
land not required for the
nuclear facility will be turned
back to Boeing. PGE needs
5.700 acres of Navy bombing
range land.
Williams announced that the
Navy is tentatively relocating
the bombing range to Douglas
County. Wash., and thai his
company is no! involved in Ihe
disposition of land except lhai
needed for the reservoir.
Lexington
has postal
"The Navy can and will
move from the bombing range
prior to 1979," Williams an
nounced. Congressional ap
proval is expected
An additional application is
being prepared for a nuclear
plant at Pebble Springs near
Arlington, but the Carty Site is
Ihe first choice because of the
multipurpose potention.
"Work will begin as soon as
authority is granted iby the
Atomic Energy Commission),
hopefully by the first half of
1975." Williams said. "The
plant should be on line by July
1980."
Heppner, Ore., Gazette-Times, Thursday, March 28, 1974
Mayor of Hardman
DEAR MISTER EDITOR:
Folks that run them steak eating places long ago stopped
believing in doggy bags.
Any man that can afford a steak has done to well in life to
be reckless enuff to toss even a best rabbit dog a bone with as
much meat on it as you see em take home from the cafe. The
leftover meat will turn upon his breakfast table with a egg on
top of it, or he will hold it back fer Sunday dinner. The dog
may git to lick the greasy sack.
Now it looks like. Mister Editor, that the feller that runs the
store has quit believing in lawnmower gas. It use to be a
customer could tell him to fill the two-gallon can In the back
of the pickup and he would do it. Everbody figgered he
needed to run the tiller over the old lady's garden, mow some
grass or maybe mix up a batch fer his fishing molor. Here
lately, the store feller won't pump but precious little in
pickups, and none at all in cans. It was Bug Hookum that
changed his policy.
About ever other evening fer a couple of weeks, Bug would
git his lawnmower gas can filled up. The store feller didn't
ask Bug what he was doing with the gas, and Bug didn't say.
He jest kept hitching a ride to the store with Clem Webster to
git his can filled up. It wasn't until somebody mentioned that
Clem and Bug was going to the Portland farm show that the
truth come out.
Actual. Bug don't have a thing on his little place that needs
gasoline. His old lady hoes the garden, and Bug still trims
their patch of front yard grass with a old man-powered reel
mower he keeps in tiptop shape.
What happened was. Clem told Bug he'd take him to the
farm show if Bug would take care of Ihe extry gas they'd
need to git home after all the service stations closed. So Bug
had been buying the gas and storing it in Clem's tractor tank
until they got ready to go. Bug had even borrowed two stout
five-gallon cans to carry the extry gas in the back of Clem's
pickup.
Saturday night at the country store. Clem reported to the
fellers that he and Bug didn't git to see the farm show last
week. He said he went down to his tractor shed the morning
they had planned to go. and he found somebody had punched
a hole in the bottom of the tractor gas tank and drained it dry.
Clem said you can't win fer losing. A month ago he bought a
lock fer the tractor tank, and now he is out tank and the gas
to It jest proves agin that locks is fer honest folks, was
Clem's words.
The feller that runs the store said he was sorry Clem's
tractor tank was busied, but he was put out about Bug
hording that gas under false pretenses. He said maybe Ihe
gas was took by somebody desperate, like a young feller that
needed to go see his gal. He said the gas quota don't give him
enuff to fill extry cans, and it looks like he's going to have to
ask fer a not from the preacher to check on all the folks that
say they got to have gas to git to church.
Yours trulv.
MAYOR ROY.
change
The Lexington Rural Station
of the U.S. Postal Service has
been moved from Del s Mar
ket to the Edward Struthers
home in Lexinglon.
The move will become
effeclive April 1. 1974. accord
ing to Hubert C. Wilson.
Heppner postmaster.
Patrons will be assigned
boxes at the new postal unit
and are asked lo contact the
station after April 1 to receive
new box numbers.
Hours for the new station
will lie 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
and 1 to 5:30 p.m. except
Sundays.
Marie Sirulhers will be
maintaining Ihe station.
Questions concerning the new
postal boxes or the station
should be addressed to her in
Lexington.
Sweek
injures
hand
Greg Sweek. 21. son of Mr.
and Mrs. Ned Sweek of
Heppner. underwent surgery
on his left hand Saturday
following an accident at the
Kinzua Corporation.
He suffered severe damage
to his hand when he caught it
in a large saw. He was given
emergency treatment at Pio
neer Memorial Hospital, then
taken to Good Samaritan
Hospital. Portland, where
part of his thumb was ampu
tated. Physicians believe he
may also lose part of his
forefinger and pari of the
middle finger. Sweek will
undergo another operation
involving plastic surgery.
Lions Club to
hold Charter
Night, May 3
The Heppner Lions Club will
hold its charier night and
installation ceremonies at the
Elks Club. May 3.
An esiimated 140 Lions from
the local club, neighboring
Lions Gubs. district and state
Lions Club officials and wives
are expected to attend Ihe
dinner and program.
At Tuesday's meeting.
Heppner Lions elected Don
Cole as Lion lamer and Dave
Franzen. tail twister.
Next meeting of the Hepp
ner Lions is Wednesday. April
3. 6:45 a.m.. at Ihe Wagon
Wheel Restaurant.
GAZETTE-TIMES
MORROW COUNTY'S NEWSPAPER
B m, Htepaer, Ort. 7IM, Tel. 7t-tU
"if you dwt want H poMitlMd. f it toMn"
Tne Heppner Gaiette w titeslied MtrcX 30, IU3. TIM Heppner
T.mes ws it4biyM Nov II, W7. Th two were conwixMled
Fee 15, 112
AnnToney chief. Information Section;
Official taster; Liason Officer
lo the Elks Club
Ernest V. Joiner
Purveyor of Political Poppycock
Ernie Ceresa Intelligence, Bottle Washer
and Drama Critic
Glenn Morrison Group Therapy, Corporate
Masseuse and Picture Taker;
Streaking and Other Sports
Phil Strandvold Hair Sty,is, and PubUc Speak.
ing Specialist
Peggy Taylor 38-22-36
r Vu
davits
neglects
clergy
BY
LESTER KINSOLVI.NG
When Senator Jacob Javits (R-N.Y.i runs for reelection
this fall he will no doubt point with pride to his authorship of
the Pension Reform Act.
But ministers, priests, rabbis and their parishioneers
throughout the nation - and especially in the Empire State -should
in turn point to Senator Javits and their congressmen
who passed this bill and ask:
"Why did you exempt religious pension plans from your
pension reform bill?"
This should be a particularly compelling question to the
New York Conference of the United Methodist Church,
For it was recently discovered that their S7 million
Endowment Fund -- Ihe primary source for paying pensions
to retired clergy - was short $4.2 million.
The Conference's treasurer - now suspended and under
investigation --lost Ihe $4.2 million by investing it in high risk
businesses. Not one dime of this loss is recoverable.
The Conference has since been forced to lay off a number of
its staff, in order lo keep paying the pensions upon which
Iheir retired clergy depend.
Another clergy pension scandal right there in Senator
Javits' own back yard is the Episcopal Church (clergy)
Pension Fund in Manhattan.
This $250 million organization has arbitrarily confiscated
Ihe accured pension benefits of hundreds of clergy who were
deposed (unfrocked before 1968. Even though some of those
clergy are like Ralph Higgins of San Anlonio, who served
devotedly for more than three decades (before his divorce
and remarriage), their pension benefits have been entirely
confiscated. (The denomination now pays off only if the
clergyman was deposed after 1968. and provided he served
for at least 10 years).
Moreover, the layman who heads this Episcopal Church
organization has arranged lo have himself paid a salary
which is five times more than the average priesl's, and
nearly twice that of the denomination's ranking bishop.
Last fall, when the Javits bill was introduced in the senate
land while the N.Y. Melhodists were losing $4 million), I
asked Ihe senator why church pension beneficiaries
deserved any less legal prolection than other privale pension
funds.
Javils rather brusquely referred me to his assistant,
Michael Gordon, who specializes in pension law.
"When the Welfare and Pension Disclosure Act was
introduced in 1958," recalled Gordon, "I understand that
there was such an outcry from church leaders thai their
pension funds were exempted, and we didn't want to raise the
issue again."
To exempt church pension funds on the basis of a rumor is
hardly what should be expected from anyone as reportedly
bright as Javils or his staff. For contact with the Washington
headquarters of the U.S. Catholic Conference, the National
Council of Churches, the Lutheran Council and the Friends
Committee on Legislation, as well as the Central Conference
of American Rabbis in New York, revealed that they had
made no such outcry or objection whatsoever.
Moreover, during the 1957 hearings on this bill, the only
religious organization among hundreds of witnesses and
correspondents was the Committee on Publication of the
First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston. Inman Douglas,
manager of the organization's Washington office, explained
that the Christian Science Board of Directors believes in "the
principle of complete separation of church and state."
There is indeed a "complete separation" when the state
supervisory restraints are so lacking that Senator Javits'
unfortunate Methodist Church constituents are very nearly
ruined by losing more than half of their retirement pension
fund.