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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 4, 2018)
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4, 2018 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9 NEWS Wyden talks gun control with area students Wyden said he’d like to ban bump stocks, a modifi- cation that allows a semi-au- There was one major issue tomatic weapon to fire as an on the minds of students who automatic, and lift restric- showed up at U.S. Sen. Ron tions that prevent research Wyden’s town hall meeting from being conducted on gun at Umatilla High School on violence. Finally, he said, he’d like Tuesday. “How many of you would to ensure that people can’t like to talk about guns?” have military-style weapons Wyden asked. Many students on the street. raised their hands. “Those four things I The meeting was open to described can be done within the public, with about half the Second Amendment,” he the audience comprising said. “I haven’t said to get rid community members and the of the Second Amendment.” rest students. Though audi- A student suggested that ence members were able to schools should conduct a ask questions on any sub- mental evaluation for each ject, after a student asked a student each year, to deter- question about guns, Wyden mine what resources schools might need to sup- switched focus, port them. talking mostly with “That might be students about their a little hard to oper- concerns from a vari- ate,” Wyden said. ety of viewpoints. “I heard you But he said that get- ting protective orders talking about guns, should be easier, if and people who shouldn’t have Ron Wyden a family member or them,” said a student. teacher notices that a “How do you plan on stop- student is showing signs of a ping that? There’s always problem. going to be a way for some- “In the case of the shooter one to get guns.” in Florida, everyone in town Wyden outlined his goals knew there was a problem,” for gun violence prevention. Wyden said. “But they didn’t “If someone has mental put the pieces of the puzzle health problems, domestic together.” violence in their background, The student also asked if on a terrorist watchlist,” there would be more funding Wyden said. “I want back- toward mental health pro- ground checks for every time grams and help for students a gun is sold in America. showing signs of problems. That applies to gun shows, “I have been supporting, any kind of sale at all. Right and think we should be get- now, we have this hit-and- ting more money for law enforcement at schools, and miss system.” By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITER health care services,” Wyden said. Some students disagreed with Wyden’s stance on guns, with one asking why, if gun violence accounts for fewer deaths than car accidents, Congress was focusing on it. Aden Cappello, a junior, said there are a lot of false statis- tics about gun violence. “I don’t think the focus should be on assault weap- ons,” he said. “Anything can be turned into an assault weapon. He noted that a .223 cal- iber rifle, a semiautomatic weapon, is smaller and speedier, but bullets from a 30.06, a gun used for deer hunting, are bigger and can cause more damage. “More crimes and mur- ders are committed with handguns daily,” Cappello said. “How do you suggest we fix that instead of going after assault rifles?” Cappello noted that he agrees with the policy of background checks, and would like to see them con- ducted every year. Wyden reviewed his gun policy with Cappello, com- mending him for doing his research. “I think the assault weapon issue is compli- cated,” Wyden said. “What I feel strongly about, and which is backed by the police of this country, is that these military-style assault weap- ons are clearly not used for sport.” Cappello said he under- stood the policy, but that it may not be so simple to enforce. “There are always things that can happen outside of a law,” he said. “There are peo- ple that make firearms from scratch.” Though gun violence was the prevailing topic, Wyden fielded questions from stu- dents and adults on a variety of issues. A woman whose husband is a veteran said she was concerned about the pri- vatization of the VA. “What can we do as citi- zens and elected officials?” she asked. Wyden said he encour- aged people to continue speaking up. “Policy change doesn’t start in D.C.,” he said. “It’s just the opposite — bottoms up.” He said providing health care and assistance is part of the commitment elected offi- cials and citizens make to veterans. Audience members spoke to Wyden about irrigation, farming, disability services and immigration. The final question came from another student, who asked what could be done to protect children from exploitation on the internet. “We have online report- ing, but it almost seems like it’s ignored,” he said. The student noted a time that his friend had tried to report a site that posted explicit images of minors, but did not get a response, and the site was not taken down. STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS A procession of hundreds follows actors during the Way of the Cross on Good Friday in Hermiston. BTW continued from Page A1 Butte on Good Friday as part of the annual Way of the Cross hosted by Our Lady of Angels Catho- lic Church. The pageant took participants through 14 “stations of the cross” depicting the crucifixtion of Jesus Christ and the hours before his death. • • • Hermiston/Pendle- ton Local Program #510 revived its Special Olym- pics powerlifting program this winter with training at the Boardman Recre- ational Center. Coached by Jason Bartman, four athletes powered their way through the competition March 17 at McArthur Court in Eugene. Jose-Angel “JoJo” Ramos earned two gold and two silver medals, Camron Goldie received three bronze med- als, Jeff McEachran gar- nered a bronze medal and Timothy Tichy took home four silver medals. Special Olympics pro- vides year-around train- ing and athletic competi- tions for people of all ages with intellectual disabili- ties. There is no charge to participate. Practice for the sum- mer sports season begins in April. If interested, call Angela Scheider at 541-314-0166. • • • A fourth grade stu- dent at Charlotte Latin School in North Carolina is requesting readers send items that will help his class learn about Oregon. Ivy Young sent a let- ter saying part of his class project for the North Car- olina State Fair is to research a state. Ivy is hop- ing people will send small items — such as postcards, pictures and facts — by April 30 to help.. Send items to: Ivy Young, Mr. McCo- naughy’s Class Charlotte Latin School 9502 Providence Road, Charlotte, NC 28277 MORE WINNERS. MORE OFTEN. pou Have The Poweo To START SOMETHING NEW! Win up to $1,500 in CASH & PRIZES duoing the $250,000 POWER CHALLENGE! Thuosday – Sunday, 4pm to 10pm. Eaon 2X entoies eveoy Wednesday! ® CASINO • HOTEL • GOLF • CINEPLEX • RV • MUSEUM • DINING • TRAVEL PLAZA 800.654.9453 • PENDLETON, OR • I-84, EXIT 216, wildhorseresort.com. 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