Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 26,2006 - SEVEN
-
Letters to the Editor
~
The Heppner Gazette Times will print all letters to the Editor with the following
criteria met: letters submitted to the newspaper will need to have the name of
the sender along with a legible signature. We are also requesting that you provide
your address and a phone number where you can be reached. The address and
phone number will only be used for verification and will not be printed in the
new spaper. Letters may not be libelous. The GT reserves the right to edit. The
GT is not responsible for accuracy o f statem ents made in letters. Any letters
expressing thanks will be placed in the classifieds under "Card o f Thanks" at a
cost of $10.
Caution should be taken when
looking at speedway
To the Editor:
L et’s approach the
“speedway” proposal with a
w ord o f c au tio n . Every
p ro m o ter
of
any
d ev elo p m en t
o f this
magnitude will only supply
facts to support his proposal.
B efore m aking a
commitment to this gigantic
p ro p o sal and w ishful
endeavor, let us also examine
the possible negative effects.
If I were as sure of
this under taking as the
prom oters, I would make
every effort to buy or take
options on every piece of
property available in south
Morrow County.
We
have
an
economic depression in our
end of the county, which
would greatly benefit from
this growth at the north end.
I would only hope that any
grow th and developm ent
would also benefit all of the
Willow Creek Valley.
A n o t h e r
consideration would be the
noise factor, which would
probably not affect us, but
for fa m ilies east o f the
“speedw ay” it could be a
huge problem.
Having racecars and
motorcycles blasting away
day and night for most of the
year, w ould not be
conducive to a peaceful
neighborhood.
So, let’s have a word
of caution and be informed
of the draw backs o f this
endeavor.
(s) Archie Padberg
Heppner
Experience and make Spicer right
forjudge
To the Editor:
As a former district
atto rn ey , Ann S p icer
understands the need for a
ju d g e to insure that
sentencing guidelines are
followed and that society is
p ro te c ted from h abitual
criminals. As a judge she will
review criminal cases and
plea bargains to see that the
punishment fits the crime.
When the situation calls for
it, she will have the courage
to keep the offender behind
bars.
P lease vote for
person who has proven she
can be tough on crime, vote
for Ann Spicer for Circuit
Judge.
(s) Florene Robinson
Heppner
LEXINGTON AUTO BODY
IS NOT AFFILIATED WITH
LOOSLIE AUTO BODY.
Lexington A uto B ody is doing
A uto B ody R epair, G lass R epair
an d R eplacem ent, an d Towing.
Ken Grieb
M orrow C o u n ty C o m m is s io n e r
“Working fo r ALL o f Morrow County”
Current DA supports Elizabeth
Ballard’s candidacy
To the Editor:
It is a pleasure to
write this letter of support
for E lizab eth B allard as
M orrow C ounty D istrict
Attorney. During her more
than three years of service as
M orrow C ounty D eputy
District Attorney, Elizabeth
has proven herself to be a
highly skilled and effective
p ro secu to r. E liza b e th is
always prepared and up to
date on recent developments
in the law. She has fostered
credibility with all o f the
judges she appears before on
behalf of Morrow County. I
b e lie v e she is the c le a r
candidate to succeed me as
district attorney.
One candidate for
district attorney has said they
would “take control of these
agencies.” This statement
underlines a fundamental
lack of understanding about
the process. The district
attorney is not a dictator.
Rather, an effective district
attorney w orks w ith law
e n fo rc em en t a g en cies,
developing a team approach
to fighting crime. On a daily
basis, the district attorney’s
o ffice
w orks
w ith
rep resen tativ es from the
M orrow County S heriff’s
D epartm ent, the C ity of
B oardm an
P olice
D ep artm en t,
M orrow
C o u n ty
Ju v en ile
D ep artm en t,
M orrow
County Behavioral Health
and parole and probation.
The fact that representatives
from
all
of
th ese
organizations have endorsed
Elizabeth speaks highly of
her ability to foster effective
p a rtn e rsh ip s in fig h tin g
crim e. I doubt seriously
w h eth er the o th e r tw o
c a n d id a te s w ould be as
effective in working with
local law enforcement. The
e n d o rsem e n ts speak for
themselves.
P erh ap s
m ost
im p o rtan t, E liza b e th is
fa m ilia r w ith M orrow
C o u n ty ’s c u rre n t law
enforcement problems and
available resources. Some
have said this office is not
doing enough to combat the
raging m etham phetam ine
epidemic. Nothing could be
further from the truth. This
office routinely prosecutes
cases that m any o th e r
counties do not. These so
called “residue” drug cases
are regularly prosecuted
when there is any detectable
am ount o f c o n tro lle d
su b stan ces found. Many
counties in Oregon do not
have sufficient resources to
prosecute such crimes. In
Morrow County, if you are
found with any detectable
amount of drugs you go to
jail right then and there.
Unfortunately, with only 11
jail beds available. Morrow
County cannot keep every
drug addict in jail. Further,
O re g o n ’s
sen ten cin g
g u id e lin e s p rescrib e a
probationary sentence for
m ost drug o ffen ses. In
reality, many of these drug
o ffe n d e rs
do
spend
significant time in jail when
they
are
unable
to
successfully complete their
probation. It is easy to say
you are going to “wipe out”
methamphetamine, however,
I am not aware of any county
in Am erica that has been
successful in eliminating this
sco u rg e
from
th eir
communities. Unfortunately,
m eth is a n atio n w id e
problem that will require
statewide and nationwide
so lu tio n s, such as the
recently introduced meth
bills in the Oregon legislature
and U.S. Congress.
Please jo in me in
voting for Elizabeth Ballard
as the next Morrow County
District Attorney. She is the
right choice for continued
strong prosecution o f all
crimes in Morrow County
(s) David C. Allen
Morrow County District
Attorney
Heppner
Leadership for Morrow County
Paid for by Elect Grieb Committee
Voting no, w ould
actually open the door for
developers w ho actually
have the monetary means to
build this track as a stand
alone venture as it was sold
to the p u b lic in the
beginning. Putting Morrow
C o u n ty ’s good nam e on
bonds that may become junk
bonds down the road is risky
business. Just ask Seattle. As
you know everything is open
to litigation and lawsuits.
Their bond rating dropped
so low after the monorail
project, voters wanted to put
government officials across
the rails and wait for any
train to com e. Som eone
alw ay s
pays
w hen
c o rp o ra tio n s d efau lt on
bonds. R em em ber the
W H O O PS Bonds? Safe,
publicly secured bonds. Do
you remember who paid for
them when they moth-balled
the plants. You did. Whoops.
Morrow County don’t get
sucked into this. Let the
wealthy race team owner, his
rich baseball friend and their
motor sport investor’s pay
their own way. D on’t let
them leach o ff M orrow
County while they line their
own pockets. Let someone
in here to do this right or we
will be sorry.
P S . Shame on the
Yes committee for using the
good nam es o f these
politicians and businesses
under false pretences. Shame
on these p o litic ia n s and
businesses who don’t even
live, or vote, in our county
for letting them use these
letters.
(s) Mary Reade
Boardman
Youth and communication skills
make Grieb right as commissioner
Spicer’s idea of more accessible
court good for the public
& 2000
Ken Grieb
To the Editor:
I recently clicked on
the
w w w .yesm cs.com
website and was surprised to
read the form letters signed
by Pendleton Pepsi Bottling,
Three Mile Farms, R.D.O.
John D eer E q u ip m en t,
T id ew ater, T illam o o k ,
Potlatch, Rinker Materials,
Swire Coke and Blue Cross.
Hoping to gain some insight
into why people would vote
for this, I read on. These
people are not in favor of the
Excise Tax District. They are
looking to cash in on the
perks offered if they join in
on the initial stages of the
“ speedw ay p ro je c t” like
e x clu siv e
prem ium
opportunities and discounts
to marketing packages, sky
boxes, VIP garage suites,
sig n ag e o p p o rtu n itie s,
utilizing golf and recreation
facilities, reduced rates on
services, naming rights to
special events and of course
m em b ersh ip
b en efits.
Included in the signing of the
letter, come inception rights
into the Lewis and Clark
Founders Circle (reserved
exclusively for those who
will sign on as supporters,
known to the rabbit as, a
carrot). In not one letter
from and including the letters
from the Governor, Senator,
Mayor or anyone else did 1
find that they are in favor of
the Excise Tax. D on’t be
fooled by who is in favor of
the track and who is in favor
of the Sales Tax and why that
is. No politician or business
in O regon w ants to be
co n n ected w ith more
g o v ern m en t
tax in g ,
especially for private gain.
To the Editor:
le ad e rsh ip
and
We are w riting to communication skills.
urge Morrow County voter
We think Ken will
support for Ken Grieb for make an excellent addition to
county commissioner.
county government. He will
Ken is a successful bring a perspective from a
agri-businessm an with a younger generation that will
proven record of being able be a valuable asset in terms
to work with people to reach of long term planning for the
satisfactory decisions.
Health District sees speedway as
county and im proved
Ken has served on communication with county
positive impact on county
several co m m ittees and residents.
boards within the county and
P lease jo in us in
To the Editor:
was president of the Oregon voting for Ken Grieb for
T he
v o ters
o f w ould be fa r-rea c h in g ,
W heat G row ers League county commissioner.
M orrow C ounty have an creating jobs and growth
w here he has honed his
(s) Larry and Betty Mills
opportunity on May 16 to throughout the county- a
Heppner
make a positive impact on p o sitiv e retu rn w ithout
our county’s economic well p ro p erty tax im pact on Integrity makes Spicer best person
being.
Morrow County residents.
forjudge
A Yes vote to
the best. Going to court can
We strongly support
support an excise tax within a Yes vote on B allot To the Editor:
be a traumatic experience.
the S peedw ay A ctiv ity Measure 25-45.
The person who is Ann will treat each person
D is tric t’s b o u n d a rie s is (s) Morrow County Health the best for circuit judge she deals with in court with
essential to move economic
District position five is Ann Spicer. integrity while making sure
growth here forward. The
Board of Directors As an attorney, she is very that the law is correctly
im pact o f the Speedw ay
concerned with providing applied.
her clients the best service
Vote for Ann Spicer
possible. She will be the for Circuit Judge.
same as a judge, wanting to
(s) Rosemary Bums
provide the public with only
Heppner
• Morrow County Grain Growers' Board
• Morrow County Wheat Growers’ President 1999
• Oregon Wheat Growers’ League President 2003
• Morrow County Soil & Water Conservation District
1998- Present
• Morrow County Planning Commission 1997-Present
• Morrow County School District Advisory Committee
1999- 2003
• Lobby wheat issues at State and National level
• SMART reading volunteer, Heppner Elementary School
• Oregon Wheat Foundation Board
• lone Community Agri-Business Organization
• North Morrow Vector Control District
• National Association of Wheat Growers’ Budget Com
mittee
• Morrow County School District Ag Science Advisory
Committee
• OSU Extension Advisory Committee
• Morrow County Pre-Disaster Mitigation Committee
Make developer pay his own way,
don’t support the excise tax
w
CfctÀ
Lo&üet-
To the Editor:
We would like to join
other residents of Morrow
County to add our support
to Annetta Spicer for District
6 C ircu it C ourt Judge,
Position 5. It is always nice
to have a local person
rep re se n tin g
and
understanding your interest
on the co u rt. Ann has
d em o n strated honesty,
fairness and what we would
c o n sid e r
a
ju d ic ia l
tem peram ent. We believe
Ann’s idea of a court more
accessible to the public is
good.
P lease jo in us in
voting for Annetta Spicer,
(s) Nancy and Victor
Vander Does
Heppner
ODFW to hold public meetings
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will be
holding public meetings in Heppner and Fossil to discuss
the 2006 hunting season tag recommendations. The first
meeting will be on Wednesday, May 3 starting at 7 p.m. at
the Heppner ODFW' office. The office is located in the old
Kinzua mill office at 54173 Highway 74. The second
meeting will be on Thursday, May 4, starting at 7 p.m., at
the Fossil Community Center. 401 4lh Street.
All 2006 hunting season proposed tag numbers will
be available. People are encouraged to stop by and visit
with the biologists concerning any wildlife questions they
may have.
\