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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (May 26, 1963)
BEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, OREGON SUNDAY. MAY 26. 1963 Communications LttUit to Ihe Editor mutt beat the name ind address of the writer, although under certain circumitancei the uie of a pen name or initial for publication is permitiible. The Mail Tribune reserve! the right to edit all letters with a view to clarification and condensation. Letters submitted for publication must not exceed 400 words. The letters printed in this column do not necessarily represent the views of the paper; in fact the contrary is often the case. Legalise Gambling To the Editor: The Legisla ture of our state appears to be at wit's end, seeking a solu tion to the problem of raising revenue without a raise in taxes. To enact a sales tax is at best only shifting the burden, at worst it would end a large flow of business from border ing states which have a sales tax. Many of their people come to Oregon to buy be cause they get more for their money and avoid a sales tax, which they detest. Some Oregonians say let the tourists help pay our taxes. I feel that a sales tax would turn away enough tourists to create a loss rather than prof it, for many vacationists come here now because they get more for their money, and this consideration can sway a number of potential visitors. We do have one source of revenue which, if turned into profit instead of an expense, as it is at present, no one would be hurt more than at present and a great part of the problem be solved. Tourism would increase with its at tendant spending, expenses lowered and Oregon emerge into a comfortable era, with money to meet its obligations and provide for expansion. The source I refer to is le galized gambling. Today we are spending time and money to stop gambling, but without success. No one will deny that gambling still exists, so if we can't abolish it, why not con trol it, at a profit? Some will argue that gam bling is sinful, but that is de batable. Gambling is defined as taking a chance, assum- ing a risk where the outcome is uncertain. What difference in principle if the risk is on the commodities of the stock market, the turn of a card or the roll of the dice, to buy in surance or to place a bet on a horse or dog race? Horse and dog racing are legal in Ore gon. Let us bury our inconsisten cies, at a profit. Let us cast off our hypocrisies and go all the way. New Hampshire has recent ly legalized a lottery. Ireland has adopted the Sweepstakes and came out of national debt to become solvent. Nevada is DrosDerous with its gambling without overtaxing its small Dooulation, while Oregon is struggling along in debt to enjoy a righteousness it does not have. To legalize gambling will call for tight laws and rigid vigilance, but "eternal vigil ance is the price of liberty." Oregon can do it and solve a major part of its tax problem. C. R. Burrut 834Vj Cherry st. Central Point, Ore. Anti-Dunes To the Editor: People are asking, "What would be the cost of a sand dunes park as proposed by Sen. Maurine Neuberger?" The cost can be divided into three parts: (1) Acquisition of private property. A survey by the In terior Department stated it would cost $7.5 million lo ac quire the 264 residences, 44 businesses and other prop erty. This proposed park, how ever, takes in only a part of what Secretary Udall sayj he wants. He recommends that the park follow the bound aries advocated four years ago, taking in at least 160 more homes and much more land, thus bringing the total cost to an estimated $10 mil lion or more. (2) Relocation of Highway 101, a move considered by park officials. The reasons are that relocation would avoid a highway through the park and would make it unneces sary to stabilize sand dunes. Conrad L. Wirth, park service director, announced that plans call for returning the 42,000 acre to wilderness and elim inating all housing. In the Jensen report (page 24) fig ures were presented by the park service estimating tint the relocation would cost $15 million. (3) Construction of admin istration buildings and other installations would no doubt reach $5 million, bringing the cost to $30 million, probably a very low estimated. The dunes area, the beaches and the lakes are already pub licly owned. The state owns the beaches. The U.S. Forest Service has about 19,000 acres along the coast next to the ocean which is used for rec reation. The state has two ex cellent parks Honeyman and Umpqua Lighthouse in the dunes region. There is no van ishing seashore. To bring in another federal agency would be a waste of money, as it would result in duplication. It is obvious that the N? tlonal Park Service had bet ter spend its funds in keeping up the many parks it already has. R. M. Falk, M.D. Mapleton, Ore. Poets' Corner Conducted by Arnold Eugene Jenny Without Poets Without poets we could not see through the fogs and fakeries of life. Indeed it seems obvious . . . that our poets have a far belter grasp of the ultimates than politicians and preachers do. God has given poets the knack of being able to push aside the irrelevant and inane and to lift all of us above the wearying empiricism of every day. Alfred P. Klausler, in The Christian Century, 33063. o Modern Science We are indeed afraid of monsters we create: Before the secrets we have dragged into the light We cower frightened as they turn our day to nighl, And shaking in the dark we must await our fate. W. Arthur Boggs Oswego, Ore. From the author's "Odysseus And Other Poems," by permission. Orginally published in The Christian Century. o No Star To See No highway smooth Before me lies With center line To guide my eyes; No course is mapped To mark my way, Nor charted route Wrong steps to stay; No compass sure The poles to show When fog beshrouds The stars' pale glow. Uusure, confused, I wander still, Whether my way Be good or ill. George H. Bell Mcdford O Beyond A fiddle-footed cowboy rode Full many years ago For, what was just behind that hill He simple had to know. In later years he drove a car Down highways firm and smooth, For that same longing burned within Which he still sought to soothe. The billboards, stretched on either side For weary mile on mile. Proclaimed each brand of cigarct, The only smoke worth-while. He studied half a dozen brands Of luscious, foaming beer. Each guaranteed to bring the most Of happiness and cheer; He saw a swim-suit on a maid, Curvaceous to a fault, And just beside her, on the beach, An appetizing malt. In apathy he gazed at these; Each glaring "ad" he conned; And. as in youth, the longing grew To see what was beyond. Jack Fincl Central Point, Ore. O Dreams The winds have cast their shadow on the moon tonight. Dim footprints of old fantasies are moulded by the light, where dreams have knelt In slardust on broken twigs of sleep. Mystery Alircs Portland, Ore. Let us no more pass judgment on one another, but rather de cide never to put a stumbling- block in the way of a bro ther." (Rom. 14:10, 12 RSV). Arnold Eugene Jenny Rogue Valley Manor Medford Brotherhood To the Editor: Some time ago a writer in Communica tions castigated what he called "Bible-thumping cor respondents who try to lend weight to their otherwise feeble arguments by quoting copiously from the Bible generally "proof-texts" taken out of context and which, IN context, usually have mean ings quite unrelated to or even at variance with their babblings. Recently, I received in the mails a long-winded, single spaced, typewritten letter from a Communications read er who appended to his name the appellation, "A Christian minister." Unlike some of the cowardly ones who fail to do so when writing to upbraid me for something 1 had writ ten, this brother had the de cency to sign his epistle. His theme seemed to be, "Yes, I, too, believe in brotherhood BUT ..." Following is my answer to this "minister." "Somewhere I once read of a Scotsman who, visiting friends in this country, was taken to a movie by his hosts. Upon seeing a huge animal on the screen he'd never seen be fore, he asked, 'What in the worrld is that?' Told it was a moose, he exclaimed, 'Well, if that's a moose, I'd hate to see one of yourr rrats!' "If your 9-page epistle of April 15 is a 'message short and to the point' (that's how it began), I'd not be keen to read a letter in which you gave your Imagination and loquac ity free reign! "As to the content of your 'message, I'm afraid it reveals a tragic misreading and mis understanding of the Bible, especially of the New Testa ment. Not in a long time have I come across anything garbled and utterly alien to the spirit of the Gospel or even of the more enlightened teachings of the Old Testa ment. Please don't burden me with any more of your hor rors." I would remind that corres pondent, and others equally careless in their use of the Scriptures, of the Gospel's pointed teachings: "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your en emy.' But I say unto you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you . . . " (Mt. 5:43-44 RSV); and "Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or why do you despise your brother? . . . Brother's Keeper To the Editor: Were you lately shocked and grieved enough to fairly hang your head dejectedly in sorrow and shame over an occurrence you couldn't change? Such was our experience in Grants Pass lately when two choice markets began to sell the morale-destroying, body- destroying, soul-destroying in toxicants, beer and wine! "Saloon departments" now grace - excuse me - disgrace convenient places in the two markets; and the checking clerks must of necessity do as all bartenders do, and sell al cohol to the customers! And why? One reason, to make more money, even though per force it is "blood money." As Webster defines it, it may mean "money obtained from the sale of that which will de stroy the purchaser." Our dailies must now add accounts of more tragedies and deaths because more drunk drivers add to the toll and how we all fear lest we meet that erratic driver becred or wined to a brain-be- muddlcd state! How guilty the purveyors are! What would the Christ who drove the money mongers from the Temple do in modern respectability, claiming intox icant purveying food markets which, contrary to the Scrip ture, lift the bottle to their erring neighbors' lips? That same neighbor who is journey ing by their side to the dis criminatory judgment where a just God separates and ban ishes from His presence those who failed to separate them selves from self-destroying evils in the day of mercy and grace! Remonstrating with the gen eral manager against this ca tering to the colossal evil of drink as it is shattering mor als and manners; mcapicitat ing and unfitting men and women and youth lo meet the demands of life and living desecrating to worse than ani mal life our God-given facul ties; and arousing the worst of evil passions in our fellow men. his reply was, "If we don't sell it someone else will They don't have to buy it. It's their own responsibility." quoted the Bible, "Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that putteth the bottle to him, and makes t him drunken also-." Then he plead that they must sell it to keep going, for they were losing money! I judged he meant they weren't able to lay up ill gotten blood-letting gain the breweries and wineries af forded them in the sale of de structive and murderous alco holic "beverages." It was Cain who said after he had mur dered his righteous brother, "Am I my brother's keeper?" H. R. Bulman Route 4, Box 316A Medford teacher added the advice: What you see in others de termines what YOU are." The threat of the "Bogy- man" and the myths of "Santa Claus" and "the stork" -along with my first book of Fairy Talcs - introduced me to fic tion and the "white" lie; and as I grew up I became well acquainted with the use of the real lie, so often used by not only individuals and groups, but even by nations. I recall my first lessons in fooling one's self: A playmate and I had been stealing a neighbor's grapes; but one day he caught us in the act and proceeded to "spoil all the fun" by announcing: "I've been watching you boys for some time; you don t have to steal 'em! Take all you want," It seems that life's values must be gleaned largely from both good and bitter expert ence. Strange to say, we are sometimes faced with the paradox not only of choosing between one right and anoin- er, but between one wrong and another. As an example of the latter, I heard of a boy tween his Irish and Mexican parentage, had to choose which side he would join in an impending gang-fight be tween the Irish and Mexican buddies. A stickler for a fair fight, he chose the Mexican gang because it was outnum bered. But. the next time out, he chose the Irish gang - for the same reason! Triers are so many contro versial problems in our so ciety today that it behooves each of us to keep an open mind and withhold judgment until all the facts are in. As our Indians so well put it: "You can't judge a man until you have walked in his moc casins." In any event, we should avoid allowing ourselves to become the "holier than thou" sort of person who is always right. It is inevitable that people will occasionally use bad judgment; but that can be written off as merely one way of learning what is good judgment. Like all experi menters, we have to keep on trying until we "hit the jack pot!" George M. Babcock 427 Hospital dr. Ashland, Ore. Happiness Is Tobacco To the Editor. Somehow or other I cannot help but love and admire people who smoke. Stay close on my heels and I will tell you, should you wonder why. Housework, once a drudg ery, suddenly becomes easier while enjoying a cigarette. Women love their work and look upon it as though they wouldn't be engaged in any thing else or an: other ccu pation. The princess and the farm er's daughter alike look upon smoking as the greatest jift on earth since the broom, look ed upon by women not as a special art, but one that can be shared with the men they love. Tobacco has become as es sential in the domain of a happy household as sowbelly on the table. It is a fact that no woman would remain long with a man who did not pro vide her with cigarettes or the means of obtaining them. The woman of today regards it her personal duty to provide three meals a day for her fam ily. She sees everything is done properly in return for complete enjoyment of smok ing while she works. A wom an is not content to get all the pleasure of smoking, so she shares with her husband that which he has supplied for her. Mother nature has fulfilled her function with in gredients of beneficial results. In spite of the fact that I know little of where tobacco comes from, I shall always be lieve people of sound reason and good judgment are to bacco users, and specifically speaking, of our society. Tobacco users operate at a fantastic rata of speed and the production economy is be wildering. It Is the best man aged, finest operated and cleanest business the world has ever known. We should offer compliments on the near perfect profession. " "'icco has given Americans more pleasure, more leisure and more contentment than any other country in the world. The value of tobacco, so richly deserved, coming from the very soil from which all men were created, carries the same beauty and wonder of man. War against tobacco will overpower the counsel. Take heed, get the beam of a ciga rette light in your eye while you have yet time to enjoy the rclaxtion it offers you. In a short time America will be abused beyond the tobacco field and it will be too late to know the value of tobacco. E. Dykes, Central Point, Ore. Life's Values To the Editor: I early learn ed my lesson in tolerance. I had to stay after school one afternoon and copy from my Grammar, "Be lo other's faults a little blind; be to their virtues very kind," 100 times! After I had finished, my QUimSlb B t A N D BRCATHIN' BRUSHED PIGSKIN CASUAL SHOES BY WOLVERINE AMERICA'S FAV0RI7E CASUALS -FOR WE ENTIRE FAMILV As Seen in Today't Family Weekly Page 6 j NORFIELD SHOE COMPANY "Southern Oregon's Oldest Shoe Concern" 221 East Main Si. Phone 772-2123 frgAMSW i - .". n. Ml,. hm .t.-.K .mn,,n,n ..Jt.w , ni, We believe, these are the lowest prices ever offered on Bulova Watches in this State. We know these are the greatest savings Zale has ever offered on a famous brand watch. SAVE AT ZALE! No fake comparatives ... no phoney suggested retail tickets, no wild cllaims of "wholesale" prices, no worn out phrases like "discount". 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