OPINION
A4 HERMISTONHERALD.COM
SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2015
COMMENTARY • LETTERS
HermistonHerald
VOLUME 109 ɿ NUMBER 19
JESSICA KELLER
EDITOR
jkeller@hermistonherald.com
541-564-4533
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SEAN HART
SAM BARBEE
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U.S. combat
forces in
Vietnam: The
50th anniversary
O
ne of my late
father’s favorite
trick questions was,
“What does a cat learn if
it jumps on a hot stove
burner?”
The answer, of course,
is not “To stay off the
stovetop when it’s hot,” but
the overly broad “Stay off
the stovetop PERIOD.”
That comes to mind
because March 8, 1965,
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3,500 U.S. combat Marines
were dispatched to South
Vietnam, and I wonder
if any of us (isolationist,
interventionist or in-
betweener) have learned the
right lessons over the past
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Nowadays for
something as simple as
“Are you or aren’t you in
a relationship?,” Facebook
offers the “It’s complicated”
designation. But many
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that directly or indirectly
affected all the world’s
superpowers, confounded
JFK’s “the best and the
brightest,” brought down a
presidency and cost more
than 58,000 American lives
— and smugly think they
have all the answers about
countering a guerilla war,
the perils of the military-
industrial complex and the
proper role of the news
media.
True, some individuals
have done the requisite
heavy lifting of research
and wrestled with their
consciences about “that
old crazy Asian war” (as
Kenny Rogers described it
in the song “Ruby, Don’t
Take Your Love To Town”).
But a lot of Americans
either dismiss the subject
as ancient history, close
their ears to anything
WKDWFRQÀLFWVZLWKWKHLU
entrenched worldview or
talk AT their opponents
over an unpleasant
Thanksgiving dinner.
If we can all agree with
Gen. William Tecumseh
Sherman that “War is
hell,” one would think
that playing DEVIL’S
ADVOCATE would be
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willing to try.
Too many people
get their unshakeable
opinions from fragmentary
memories of things their
college professor spouted
between bong hits or from
5,000 gung-ho sessions of
listening to a scratchy 45
rpm record of “The Ballad
of the Green Berets.”
DANNY TYREE
TYRADES!
Cagle columnist
On one side people
are dead certain that
giving peace a chance
was the answer and that
the “domino theory”
was a bunch of hooey
(although documents
show North Vietnam at
least had ASPIRATIONS
of spreading communism
to other nations). On the
other side are people
who think that nuking
the Demilitarized Zone
(preferably with news
anchor Walter Cronkite
present) would have solved
all our problems, without
any lingering ecological or
JHRSROLWLFDOUDPL¿FDWLRQV
I know that many
people are squeamish about
reopening old wounds,
but quite often reopening
old wounds helps with
healing and provides useful
information for future
patients. Our policymakers
and the people who VOTE
for those policymakers need
all the information they can
get.
Somewhere between
the extremes of the
defeatist “Ah, people
never learn from history”
and the optimistic “If we
just tweaked this...” exist
practical lessons.
As the 50th anniversaries
of various Vietnam War
milestones roll along, I
challenge you to Google
questions such as “Could
we have won the Vietnam
War?” or “Could the U.S.
have won the Vietnam
War?”
<HV\RX¶OO¿QGDORWRI
name-calling, exaggerations
and irrelevancies, but
somewhere in there
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perspectives to give you a
more nuanced view of the
war.
As we wrestle with
issues such as ISIS
and Vladimir Putin’s
expansionism, we owe it to
the war dead, the veterans
and future generations to
ask the hard questions and
make an honest effort to
know what we’re talking
about.
– Danny welcomes email
responses at tyreetyrades@
aol.com and visits to his
Facebook fan page “Tyree’s
Tyrades.” Danny’s’ weekly
column is distributed exclu-
sively by Cagle Cartoons
Inc. newspaper syndicate
Why reading matters
Editor’s Note: The Hermiston Altrusa Society’s Liter-
acy Committee recently sponsored an essay competition
asking middle school students why reading matters as
part of their campaign to promote literacy. Daisy Pare-
des, a student at Armand Larive Middle School, was
selected as the winner. She and the second-place winner,
Hannah Johnson, participated in a two-hour workshop
with Tri-Cities, Washington, author Maureen McQuerry
Friday. This is Paredes’ essay.
BY DAISY PAREDES
SPECIAL TO THE
HERMISTON HERALD
R
eading is essential
for everyone.
All age groups
are, at some point,
taught to read. Schools
worldwide focus on
refining your reading
so that you become a
capable adult. Most, if
not all, jobs have some
sort of reading material
involved. Even other
subjects require reading,
for example, math.
You cannot do a math
worksheet if you cannot
read the instructions
on the top of the page.
The point is, reading
does matter. It matters
in careers, households,
schools and in everyday
life, but it also matters
for you.
Let me elaborate.
When you are reading
a book, you don’t pay
attention to the words
or the written structure.
You pay attention to the
story: the characters,
the setting, the enticing
plot twists. You become
part of the story! You
feel the pain of the
main characters when
a loved one dies. You
feel the friendship and
bond between these two
people in a book — you
feel yourself connect
and relate to this.
Personally, this always
happens to me. I get so
connected and attached
to a book it’s hard for
me to let go. I know it
sounds ridiculous, and
as if I’m a total nerd,
but books are my life.
I can go home after a
tough day and know
my book is there on my
desk with a bookmark
on page 47 waiting for
me to engage myself in
it.
Everyone says that
reading is good for you.
It furthermore magnifies
your vocabulary and
knowledge; we all
know this. But let’s
face it, not many kids
and/or adults actually
read to “expand
their vocabulary.” A
great deal of people
read to simply enjoy
themselves. Something
about reading an
enjoyable book and the
ups and downs and the
rising feeling in your
stomach just draws
you in. I remember my
first book series I was
addicted to: “Junie B.
Jones” by Barbara Park.
I was in the first grade
at the time and reading
those books just made
my day. The way Ms.
Park was able to create
this character with
humor, wit and curiosity
just drew me in. Of
course, my 7-year-old
self didn’t know that the
vocabulary was simple
and the words, extra
large. I just focused
on Junie and her
adventures.
John Green once
said, “Great books
help you understand
and they help you feel
understood.” This is
100 percent true. Books
teach you so many
things. You learn new
things. You also learn
to become a better
person. You learn to
become compassionate
and kind, or maybe you
learn to be honest and
true to yourself. No
matter what it is, you
almost always learn
something. Books also
make you feel as if
you’re understood when
nobody else seems to.
They make you feel
special and rare. When
no one else gets you,
books do.
If it is not for
the knowledge and
astuteness you achieve,
or for the proficiency
to be a better worker in
your job, then reading
matters for the reason
of you. It shapes you.
It helps you grow.
When reading, you feel
understood. Reading
takes your mind off
the unpleasant day you
had. It lifts your spirits.
Reading is more than
just words on a page.
That is why it matters.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Hawkins incorrect
in letter
Editor,
In a recent letter to the
editor by Hermiston’s
“new expert on every-
thing,” Perry Hawkins,
he stated the following
concerning me and my
time on the Hermiston
City Council: “While
on the City Council he
was an attorney for sev-
eral persons who sued
the city.” Mr. Hawkins’
statement is both false
and libelous.
While on the City
Council I never rep-
resented anyone who
was adverse to the city
in any manner. In fact,
before I was swore in,
I wrote several clients
who might have issues
with the city and advised
them they would have to
get other legal counsel. I
could not represent them.
Additionally, I always
abstained from voting
on issues which might
involve a client. I even
declined to vote on rou-
tine motions approving
city bills because the city
might be paying one of
my clients.
Mr. Hawkins’ facts are
as off base as those in his
recent letter to the editor
when he excoriated Sen.
Bill Hansell.
While I could sue Mr.
Hawkins for libel, why
would I waste time on a
buffoon?
GEORGE ANDERSON
HERMISTON
Progress being
made for sage
grouse
Backcountry Hunters &
Anglers of Oregon is en-
couraged with current con-
servation efforts to save the
greater sage grouse from a
threatened or endangered
listing. The Oregon plan,
SageCon, will be released
later this spring, and, with
on-going efforts by the
BLM, the state and a wide
variety of stakeholders
progress is being made. In
a report released recently
by the Natural Resources
Conservation Service, Or-
egon is leading the way in
eliminating
encroaching
junipers, which rob the
landscape of sage habi-
tat and provide perching
points for birds which prey
RQWKHJURXVH:LOG¿UHDQG
invasive weeds are also
major threats to the bird.
The BLM will also release
reports this summer detail-
ing mitigation plans to help
bring the bird population
numbers back — just in
time for the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service to make
a determination on listing.
We are hopeful the bird
won’t have to be listed and
so are many other conser-
vation groups. Paul Hen-
son, who heads Oregon’s
USFWS, told us he’s “very
encouraged” with present
conservation efforts. That’s
notable as Henson was part
of the team that in 2010
said the bird was warranted
for listing. As an umbrella
species, one thing is cer-
tain: What’s good for the
sage grouse is good for all.
BRIAN JENNINGS
BEND
Letters Policy
The Hermiston Herald welcomes original letters for
publication on public issues and public policies. Submitted
letters must be signed by the author and include the city of
residence and a daytime phone number. Phone numbers
will not be published. Letters may be mailed to the
Hermiston Herald, 333 E. Main, Hermiston, OR, 97838;
or emailed to editor@hermistonherald.com
ELECTED OFFICIALS
STATE
District 29: Sen. Bill Hansell,
R-Umatilla Co., 900 Court St. N.E.,
S-423, Salem, OR 97301, 503-986-
1729. 101 S.W. Third St., Pendleton,
OR 97801 (541) 278-1396. E-mail:
ssen.billhansell@state.or.us.
District 30: Sen. Ted Ferrio-
li, R-John Day; 900 Court St. N.E.,
S-223 Salem, OR 97301, 503-986-
1950. 750 W. Main, John Day, OR
97845, (541) 575-2321. E-mail: ferr-
ioli.sen@state.or.us.
District 58: Rep. Bob Jenson,
R-Pendleton; 900 Court St. N.E.,
H-480, Salem, OR 97301, 503-986-
1458. 2126 N.W. 21st., Pendleton,
OR 97801, (541) 276-2707. E-mail:
rep.bobjenson@state.or.us.
District 57: Rep. Greg Smith,
R-Morrow, 900 Court St. N.E.,
H-280, Salem, OR 97301, 503-986-
1457. P.O. Box 215, Heppner, OR
97836, (541) 676-5154. E-mail:
smith.g.rep@state.or.us.
FEDERAL
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
Sac Annex Building, 105 Fir St.,
No. 201, La Grande, OR 97850;
(541) 962-7691. E-mail: kath-
leen_cathey@wyden.senate.gov;
(Kathleen Cathey, community repre-
sentative); 717 Hart Building, Wash-
ington, D.C. 20510, (202) 224-5244.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
One World Trade Center, 121 SW
Salmon Street, Suite 1250, Portland,
OR 97204; (503) 326-3386; Dirksen
6HQDWH 2I¿FH %XLOGLQJ 6'%%
Washington, D.C. 20510. (202) 224-
3753.
U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (2nd
District)
843 E. Main St., Suite 400, Med-
ford, OR 97504, (541) 776-4646,
(800) 533-3303; 2352 Rayburn
+RXVH2I¿FH%XLOGLQJ:DVKLQJWRQ
D.C. 20515, (202) 225-6730