OPINION READER’S FORUM
Founded in 1906
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2022
A4
OUR VIEW
Get ready for Hermiston’s Distinguished Citizen Awards
he Distinguished Citizens
Awards Gala in Hermis-
ton, March 2, is Hermiston’s
opportunity to recognize local stars.
We are looking forward to it, and we
hope people will submit their award
nominations for it.
Visit https://hermistonchamber.
com/distinguished-citizens-annu-
al-banquet/ to nominate deserving
individuals and businesses for the
following awards: Man of the Year,
Woman of the Year and Business of
the Year. Nomination forms are also
available at the chamber offi ce, 630
S. Highway 395. Nominations must
be received by Feb. 6.
Every day, we at the Herald are
T
in touch with excellent people who
deserve recognition at an award show
like this one. Likewise, we visit busi-
nesses which seem deserving of
acknowledgement.
When we, for example, attended
the Martin Luther King Jr. Peace
March recently, we saw speakers and
attendees who are great champions in
our community. Every time we attend
an event, too, whether it be a chil-
dren’s story reading or a pop-up vac-
cination clinic, we see people who
deserve a trophy.
Similarly, when we drive through-
out our town, we come across busi-
nesses that can be rewarded for their
leadership and community service.
Honoring a local business, just like
awarding a person, can brighten not
only the recipient’s existence; it illu-
minates our own lives.
We are in the midst of a diffi cult
time, as the coronavirus still has us
on the ropes. As the rest of the world
suff ers, Hermiston does as well. Peo-
ple get sick, and people have died.
Masks and social distancing have
added to our gloom.
Still, Hermiston can feel great
pride, even during its troubles. A
beautiful new city hall building is
going up in the middle of town. Also,
two new school buildings are being
built. These structures will serve a
growing population.
INSIDE MY SHOES
The town also has Funland Play-
ground, which has not lost much of
its new-park shine. This is just one
of the things in Hermiston that has
resulted from the hard work of peo-
ple. There is the Hermiston Pub-
lic Library, Martha’s House, Agape
House and more; the list of institu-
tions that provide great service to
Hermiston is a long one, but the list
of people behind those institutions is
even longer.
We hope people will fi ll out nom-
inations and then, if they are able,
attend the upcoming gala. Hermis-
ton and its people are worthy of such
appreciation.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
There’s always something going wrong
Comfortable conservatives are bending reality
o you know how diffi cult
ter’s nap waiting for the referral
it is to perform everyday
and then getting an appointment.
tasks with approximately
It seems a little ridiculous that I’m
50% loss of muscle mass in your
an established patient (my chart
hand? Unfortunately, I do. And it’s number is 8), yet I can’t just call
my dominant hand — well, once
and make my own appointment.
dominant hand.
I mentioned my hand issue to
When I fi rst started noticing
several people and I had some-
problems with my hand
one suggest tart cherries.
I thought it was arthri-
While they were delicious
tis. And after comparing
(thanks Julie Puzey), they
symptoms with a friend,
didn’t make a diff erence.
I thought I might need to
And Cathy Stolz dropped
have my thumb fused. How-
by some magnet bracelets. I
ever, because I don’t have
was pretty much willing to
an M.D. after my name, I
try anything.
decided to consult with my Tammy
I fi nally got into my
Malgesini
physician.
orthopedic surgeon on Dec.
Since I had a telemedi-
30. By this time the symp-
cine appointment coming up I fi g- toms had gotten worse. Luckily,
ured I’d talk to him then. While
the pain has been bearable for the
I appreciate the convenience of
most part.
not having to go into the doctor’s
However, in addition to hav-
offi ce, it was rather amusing jug-
ing diffi culty zipping my pants
gling my phone to show him what and buttoning my clothes, I have
was happening with my hand. In
a hard time gripping a pen. And
retrospect, I’m glad I wasn’t suf-
opening jars is totally out of the
fering from hemorrhoids.
question. I can still open cans of
My doc said it could be arthri-
Pepsi, so the world is still safe.
tis but it was best to see an ortho-
I was somewhat puzzled when
pedic surgeon for follow-up.
my orthopedic doc fi rst indi-
Thus, I was thrust into a long win- cated that the problem was likely
It’s pathetic how comfortable conservatives are bending reality. Our
region’s U.S. representative, Cliff Bentz, said last year’s deadly Jan.
6 riot at the U.S. Capitol Building is being blown out of proportion to
divert attention from the real issues facing the country (“Bentz alleges
2020 election was ‘bought’,” Jan. 15 edition of the East Oregonian).
I can’t imagine a more pressing issue than determining what and
who precipitated the attempted insurrection. The eff orts of the U.S.
House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack have clarifi ed the premed-
itated nature of that attack and the enormity of the organized attempt to
subvert the presidential election through massive election fraud.
That’s right, while conservatives scream about voter fraud, which
is extremely rare and has not aff ected the outcome of elections, many
support the brazen election fraud sought by the former president (such
as asking the Georgia secretary of state to “fi nd 11,780” votes). Now
they want to enable future election fraud by subverting voting and
election protections at the state level.
The crux of the problem is the former president, and many of his
minions, refuse to accept the reality of his election loss. And those
who begrudgingly admit he lost, downplay his eff orts to steal the elec-
tion and inspire the insurrectionists.
Our country desperately needs people (particularly elected offi -
cials) to embrace truth and call out lies. A compulsive liar like the for-
mer president wouldn’t be a problem if no one listened to him. But his
compulsive believers, and the politicians who know better, continue to
enable him. The reality is an overwhelming majority of one political
party’s entire congressional delegation has rejected reality and truth in
the quest to secure minority rule.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, 19th century American essayist and
staunch opponent of slavery, noted that every violation of truth “is a
stab at the health of human society.” And thus, our current mess.
Hal McCune
Pendleton
D
related to my elbow, shoulder
or neck. Then I remembered the
children’s song, “Dem Bones” —
“The fi nger bone’s connected to
the hand bone/ The hand bone’s
connected to the arm bone/ The
arm bone’s connected to the
shoulder bone.”
Now I’m thrust back into the
waiting game. I need to see a neu-
rologist for a nerve conduction
test. And once again, the way the
system is set up, it’s a matter of
don’t call us, we’ll call you.
It’s all good. As much as I’m
dropping stuff these days and hav-
ing to bend over to pick things up,
at least I’m getting some exercise.
I’d say I’m keeping my fi ngers
crossed that the issue is either
with my elbow or shoulder but I
can’t cross my fi ngers.
As Gilda Radner used to say
on “Saturday Night Live” — “It’s
always something.”
———
Tammy Malgesini, the Herm-
iston Herald community writer,
enjoys spending time with her hus-
band and two German shepherds,
as well as entertaining herself
with random musings.
Facts don’t back Bentz’s claim that election was ‘bought’
SCHOOL DAYS
Each diploma is a win for Hermiston
T
he 351 diplomas handed
pandemic. The state assess-
to Hermiston High School
ment was waived, but the skills
graduates in 2021 represent required to pass it were not. Each
more than just a statistic on a state Hermiston graduate in 2021
scorecard.
earned a diploma equivalent to
Those diplomas are stories of
any other year and is equally pre-
individual success, of 351 stu-
pared to enter the wider world.
dents’ perseverance through
This quality of instruction
challenging times, of thou-
is important because gradua-
sands of educator and staff
tion isn’t a one-year accom-
investments over the past
plishment. The path starts in
13 years to make sure they
kindergarten and relies on
reached that goal. Graduation
continual and steady growth.
is a fi nish line for K-12 edu-
As excited as we are about
cation, but a starting line for
the 2021 graduation rates,
Tricia
the rest of a life. It opens a
we’re already at work in kin-
wider range of opportunities, Mooney
dergarten preparing the class
allowing students to set the
of 2035.
course they want to travel.
It’s gratifying to see the systems
It is signifi cant that Hermiston
we’ve put in place that focus on
School District was able to reach
individual student needs are work-
an 88% overall graduation rate
ing. We dedicate ourselves to the
and see improvement across every idea that no student slips through
cohort of students. Students who
the cracks, no matter what grade
don’t speak English as a fi rst lan-
level. Chronic absence in elemen-
guage, are economically disadvan- tary school erodes the foundation
taged, or have learning disabilities of learning. Lack of rigor in mid-
all graduated at a rate higher than
dle school can hobble the transi-
80%. Even with a steady barrage
tion into high school. Lost cred-
of obstacles through the second
its as a freshman can become an
half of their high school careers,
insurmountable hurdle as a senior.
these students carried on.
Along the way there are numer-
Part of this is because the dis-
ous social, relational, mental and
trict has remained focused on
emotional issues to attend to. Life
quality instruction despite the
happens, and helping students
cope with the stresses and chal-
lenges can become as important as
their academic progress. Investing
in counselors and social workers
to provide that extra layer of sup-
port has been key.
Schools have been a beacon of
stability and an essential service,
which is why we worked so hard
to get them open and keep them
open. They stayed true to the mis-
sion of providing equitable educa-
tional opportunities to every stu-
dent they serve. That was true in
Hermiston, where, by sheer force
of will and talent and passion,
teachers reached students going
through the most diffi cult years of
their lives and helped them move
forward.
The steadily improving grad-
uation rate at Hermiston High
School is the result of more than
a decade of work. It’s a testament
to the sheer force of will and tal-
ent and passion of our educators,
and the drive and spirit of a class
that refused to be derailed by the
obstacles in front of them. It’s
something the entire Hermiston
community can take pride in.
———
Tricia Mooney is the superin-
tendent of the Hermiston School
District.
Oregon’s District 2 Rep. Cliff ord Bentz, who represents a grand
slice of Oregon, is telling us, according to EO Media Group, that the
2020 election was fraudulent. He cites information written in the Fed-
eralist that a group of people who had the money to do so, donated
funds to the Center for Tech and Civic Life.
First, The Center for Tech and Civic Life is an organization of
and for election workers across the country. It off ers courses for how
to conduct safe and secure elections. Anyone can go into their web-
site and check out the courses they off er for election workers, includ-
ing the content of the courses. I suggest everyone do so before accept-
ing Mr. Bentz’s word that the Center for Tech and Civic Life acted
to infl uence people to vote a certain way or for election workers to
swing the election one way or another.
Next, I found an article from another organization that calls itself
2022 Infl uence Watch that has much information about what the Cen-
ter for Tech and Civic Life has done. If the information is correct, it is
specifi c as to where funding went to electoral offi ces around the coun-
try. I did not see any proof in their article that proves the CTCL is in
any way partisan. My problem with this article is that it starts out by
naming the Center for Tech and Civic Life as a “left-wing” group.
There are several reasons I disagree with Mr. Bentz. One, the
Federalist is, and always has been, a mouthpiece for the Republi-
can Party. Two, I fi nd it illogical to infer that the Center for Tech and
Civic Life turned the election in favor of President Joe Biden. The
Center provided information to election workers about doing their job
fairly and eff ectively. One would expect the infl uence of the CTCL
would cause the election to be conducted fairly and eff ectively. It is
not logical to say President Donald Trump lost just because of the
training given. Anyone can check the content of the training to dis-
cern whether it favored any candidate.
My conclusions are: Giving a person or group a name, such as
“left-wing” or “right-wing” does not provide the validity or non-va-
lidity of that person or group. “Correlation does not equal causation”
is still the case in any logical argument. I would also infer that Mr.
Bentz believes that any election is fraudulent in which his candidate
is not the victor.
Evelyn Swart
Joseph
CORRECTIONS
Printed on
recycled
newsprint
VOLUME 115 • NUMBER 4
Erick Peterson | Editor • epeterson@hermistonherald.com • 541-564-4536
Angel Aguilar | Multi-Media consultant • aaguilar@hermiston herald.com 541-564-4531
Audra Workman | Offi ce Manager • aworkman@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4538
Tammy Malgesini | Community Editor • community@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4532
Andy Nicolais | Page Designer • anicolais@eomediagroup.com
To contact the Hermiston Herald for news,
advertising or subscription information:
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Herald, 333 E. Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838,
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It is the policy of the Hermiston Herald to correct errors as soon as
they are discovered. Incorrect information will be corrected on Page 2A.
Errors commited on the Opinion page will be corrected on that page.
Corrections also are noted in the online versions of our stories.
Please contact the editor at editor@hermistonherald.com or call 541-
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