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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 1963)
"1 Communications Letters to the Editor muit beer the name ind address of tha writer, 1111100911 under certain circumstance! the uie oi a pen name or initial tor publication ii permissible. The Mail Tribune reserves the right to edit all letters with a view to clarification and condensation. Letters submitted or publication must not exceed 400 words. The letters printed in this column da not necessarily represent the views of the paper; in fact the contrary is often the case. Aren't Dead Yet To the Editor: Hi, you fellows who would like to step to the old fashioned round dances every Wednesday from 2 till 4 o'clock, come to the K.P. Hall first door north of the Groceteria on Grape st. and brush up on the waltzes, two-tops and dances you used to enjoy. The Security Benefit Club has 325 members; a fine group of friendly folk who welcome visi tors of the same personality. We meet at 11, eat a scrump tious lunch at noon for only 50c, sing together, hold a short bus iness meeting, often have in teresting programs, visit, make friends, then dance. I notice that there is a short age of gentlemen for partners and we need every man who cares to exercise and can spare the time. Most of us are oldsters but by gum, we aren't dead yet. Bob Knight, Rogue River, Ore. Incentive 1'lan To the Editor: Ever since the tax referendum, our "experts" have had a field day interpret ing the "will of the people" and suggesting new measures. The qualifications of these appear to be a mystic insight into the minds of the voters and healthy self-interest, like "Let's have a cigarette tax, because I don't smoke." In this spirit I offer my tax program, based on the insight afforded me by an old coffeepot lop which doubles as a crystal ball, and a set of prejudices guaranteed to be narrow, unen lightened and retrogressive. This program is the INCENT IVE PAY PLAN: Industry has used the princi ple of incentive pay to wonder ful advantage. When employees turn out more of a product, or a better product, they are paid a bonus as an incentive to do more of the same thing. For a bad job, they lose. This benefits the employee, employer and the public. Why not apply this incentive pay principle to our legislators? For example, cut their salaries back to about $4,000 for giving Ihe voters a tax bill which three out every four thought bad. Give Ihem a 51,000 bonus for every bill which in referendum the voters decide is good. This way, your representatives have a clear-cut motivation for discovering and carrying out the will of the people, and dem ocracy is revitalized within a fine American framework of free enterprise. As my contribution to the suc cess of the forthcoming special session of the legislature, I of fer the following, to be sung by them in group chorus: Sing a song of taxes. Not low, not middle, bul high: Sixty millon dollars Added to the pie. When the vote was over What a fearful blow! We're shocked to find our taxes Not high, not middle, but low. George Rode, 315 Fluhrer Bldg. Medford. Non-Excelsior To the Editor: No matter how long or how short the special session of the legislature, at this point it threatens to be a mere continuance of the debacle of Spring, 1963. As of this writing, the only thing which unites the legisla tors from our county (Lane) is their agreement that they be lieve the lax referral means the voters want economy. As to what to do about it, their pub lic statements reflect a com plete confusion, a lack of lead ership in either party, and a desire to do as little as possible to rock the boat of their own personal political posterity in the special session to come. Oh, to be a political cartoon ist; what one could do with that Wednesday meeting be tween the Governor and the four legislative non-leaders! Here's the picture. First, the I participants are Hatfield, Sen-j ate President Musa, House Speaker Barton, and minority j non-leaders Montgomery and j Yturri, all trembling and look ing scared. On one side, a bunch of irate voters. The cartoon caption: "We GLASSES ON CREDIT! ,'.' Green Stomps COLUMBIAN OPTICAL CO. MCDFORD SHOPPING CENTER have agreed to hold a special session, do as little as possible as quick as possible, and hope you'U forget by Fall, 1964." In caption balloons, their real thoughts as follows: Hatfield "I hope these guys will go home soon and not rock my future"! Barton and Musa "Let Hatfield do it; and we'll just leave the mess for the 1965 legislature, in the event it happens to be Republican"; and Monty and Yturri "We'll follow our leader; and besides maybe the Democrats will still be in control in 1965"! On Bar ton's coat is the note: "The job of a legislature is to kill bills, not to pass them!" On the other side, a bunch of legislators, some still mak ing faces at the voters, others protecting special state depart ments (Highways, fish and game, etc.) from cuts by Free man Holmer, who has a meat axe in his hand. The suggested motto for the coming session: "Non-leaders of the legislature, divide! We have nothing to lose but our seats! Backward and down ward!! NON-EXCELSIOR! !" Keith D. Skelton, Box 5285, Eugene, Ore. Little "Yes" Men To the Editor: Mr. Howell signed "Teacher, Errand Boy, Gardener, Butcher, Carpenter, Engineer and Administrator." For one that had his finger in everything, he sounds very narrow minded. To think any one would feel the school doors should not be opened for an erring boy that shows such remorse. I don't know what trouble this child got into, but some of the mischief the teenagers get into in this community, and have records for in the courthouse, would at one time have been called "sowing your wild oats," in the last genera tion. That was before new laws were made at old ladies' tea FROM THE COLONIAL you'll Our new collection of uphol stered turniture brings you Early American ai you lite it. You custom choose styling, fabric, color . . . each piece co ordinates nid others to give a wonderful look of harmony. Prices ere surprisingly low. At Trowbridge parties to squelch the life out of the young. The young have no release for their high spirits, which crave to run with the wild wind. There are too many people willing to cry "wolf, wolf," to distract attention from their own crookedness, especially un der the name of business. One reads so much about our high school drop-outs, but still it is so easy for children to be expelled. We are trying to have all little "yes men. J. C. Walker, 4030 Old Highway 99, Ashland, Ore. Lawless Applegate To the Editor: When we came to the Applegate in 1952, it was as fair and peaceful a land as Eden at the dawn of creation, when, it is recorded, God looked on all his handiwork and found it good. In the space of 11 years, all of this has been changed. We are told the pioneers lived danger ously in this area, if they lived at all being under constant threat from scalping Indians, claim jumpers, and renegades. Our present situation is not much different, for the Apple gate again has become a place where law and order do not ex ist, where the rights of private property are openly scorned and flouted, and where it is open sea son on everything all year long from registered cattle to U. S. mail carriers! It is a place where pot-shooters blaze away with rifles from public roads almost within spit ting distance of residences where spot-lighters operate in every likely meadow pasture all year where log trucks func tion sans muffler, sans speedom eters, with one headlight, and with drivers not legally quali fied to drive. The question was asked in a recent editorial: What kind of man would bomb little children? I answer, exactly the same kind of man who invades private property in broad daylight to ( with EARLY AMERICAN "made-to-your-order" and color selection so perfectly coordinated by J J r Jjk Jl SilSSS ;A lov,fstat ou'".,ov SSSl 'vilTTT3'"" lJ !JXJ ?lmt anywhere! I Electric, Main at MEDFORD slaughter a pet fawn, shooting 12 to 15 times from the state highway toward a house to ac complish this glorious example of American sportsmanship. This act was witnessed by 14 members of the Applegate Gar den Club on Oct. 17, two of whom attempted a citizen's ar rest, but the culprits two men and a young boy escaped, flee ing in atruck at excessive speed, taking the body of their victim with them. Their license plates, I might add, were concealed. Since appeals to constituted authorities have availed little, governor to send us a unit of the National Guard. In any event, "we've had it" and are growing a bit desperate over the deteriorating situation. Grace N. Pearson Route 2, Box 50 Jacksonville, Ore. Moral Aspects To the Edilor: This letter deals with moral aspects which militate against cooperation with the Russians. Our citizens believe in God as a supreme power. His name oc curs in the federal constitution and in every state constitution. We are known as a Christian na tion. Russians hold a diametri cally opposite view and have sworn to eliminate God from the thinking of their people. During the patriarchal period of civilization the Israelites cor responded to the present Chris tians in that they believed in the power of God. The tribes around them were heathen or anti-God. In the story of the Israelites, God's commands to them stand out. All laws of God are inexor able. They must be obeyed just as His law of gravity must be obeyed or disaster results. One of these laws prohibited their cooperation with the tribes around them. They disobeyed. Another inexorable law of God is the law of cause and effect. When they disobeyed the law of cause and effect began operat ing and the Old Testament from Joshua on is a record of their difficulties and final disaster as a result of this disobedience. This record has been given to us for our guidance. We can not cooperate with the Russians without activating the laws of cause and effect. The Russians have said they will bury us and that our children will grow up In this great fabric Broyr . V I k ' I . lL--v r Fir, with ample customer parking, MAIL TRIBUNE, MtrtH. under Communism. They have also said they will rule the world. Everything they do is de signed to further those plans. Hence when we cooperate with them we are hastening our own destruction and their take over of the free nations. Paul in the exquisitely beauti ful passage in 2 Cor. 6:14-18 puts it this way: "Be ye not unequal ly yoked together with unbe lievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteous ness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God: as God hath said, 'I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Wherefor come out from among them, and be ye separate,' saith the Lord, 'and touch not the un clean thing, and I will receive you, and I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters,' saith the Lord Almighty." Are we not selling our birth right for a mess of pottage? Anna M. Streed 36 North Peach st. Medford. noldwatcr's Views To Ihe Editor: Like most Democrats I hope that Barry Goldwater will be the Repub lican nominee for President next year. When he was in Eugene last week Oregonians saw with their own eyes the kind of cam paign he means to wage by com ing out foursquare (or "free dom" and for "victory." Perhaps it is in order to re mind any bemused observer, as will be done in the campaign if Barry gets the GOP nod, of a few aspects of this gentleman's record prior to his effort to win over the moderates. Goldwater has said that col lective bargaining results in "a weakening of the individual per sonality of self-reliance," and he would outlaw industrywide bar gaining, repeal the Norris-La-Guurdia Act, prohibit union shops, and turn control of labor disputes over to the states. Goldwater has said that relief, social security, and public hous ing "weaken" the individual per HOUSE COLLECTION ,: jBjjl fif( fcrM Poets' Corner Conducted by Arnold Eugene Jenny Prose and Poetry Prose engages a small part of the reader's attention; poetry all of it. Writing poetry is going into a sort of trance. The 'result should raise the reader to the same heightened sensibility the poet experienced while he was writing. Robert Graves, in Life, 6 28 63. Pleceful Co-resistance All Asia has been "mystic" muddle, Since white man stepped in Far East puddle; Bringing opium chests blessed by the cross; And by consortiums tried to toss His weight around the "Backward East" Or, rather, "undeveloped" yeast. sonality and self-reliance. "Let welfare be a private concern," he recommends. In the Senate he has always opposed public works with one exception, the Upper Colorado project which would benefit his home state. He opposes any fed eral aid to education and even voted against the Eisenhower ad mistration's small step toward medical care for the aged in 1960. Goldwater's beguilingly simple and direct solutions to national problems appeal to many peo ple, but not only will these so lutions not stand factual analysis but Barry himself dares not re peat them as he seeks to broad en his support. At the 1960 Republican Con vention it was Goldwater who won the most cheers. Now he leads the GOP popularity polls. He deserves the nomination, but let it be clear that his resound ing defeat by Jack Kennedy next year is assured because most Americans arc undaunted by the great and complex challenges of our age and look ahead in hope and confidence. Charles O. Porter 858 Pearl st. Eugene, Ore. Victory for Economy To the Editor: The people of the State of Oregon registered their protest against extrava gant and wasteful spending of 11 " the taxpayers money by elected officials. It might be well to note the reaction lo that protest as well as the effects. Suggestions have been made to cut the stipend of the blind, to lower the food allotment, the medical and nurs ing home care of the helpless. Instead of penalizing the lame, halt and the blind, it might be well to cut the sal aries of the legislators, their $20 per diem expense amount, the $17 per day seven days a week for clerical help, as well as vacations to Hawaii. Also to cut the salaries of several of ficials that were raised when the legislature took on the extra pay checks. Perhaps the 1800 increase in the number of state employees can be shaved to meet absolute needs. The protest of the tax package saved thousands striving to ex ist on a thousand or less of 30 cent dollars, from a tax of $5 a head. The same trcalment given the Oregon state tax package should be extended to Washington to halt the drift toward Socialism, the open door to Communism as well as the drift toward bankruptcy. Also to cut the bil lions wasted on the U.S. efforts to act as nursemaid to more than 100 countries of the world, whose combined national debt is less than that of the good old U.S.A. Ed Black 2573 Camp Joy rd. Grants Pass, Ore. ir '''""'some d;n; c ng room crM(C(, See our entire Sprague & Carlelon selection. LAMPS too A large assortment of excep tionally fine lamps, not all Early American but many Tra ditional styles also, see them all at the Colonial Mouse. .. t. rflWUIE Time flics it always And future change must make one ill. . . . There's India, the land of peace. Which feels that all such "rot" must cease; Like Pakistan, arming to the teeth The dove must yield to Martian wreath! Nehru, who pined 'neath British heel, And castigated Gandhi's wheel As slow to end Colonialist rule. Today sits pupil in their school. . . . A Bengal tiger dull fang pares. And dines at ease with millionaires. Poverty is still king in the East, And many millions do not feast. What matter? They're "untouchable" And Brahmins look not to such rabble. The Lama's prayer-wheel spins, and souls, Like Dervishes, dance upon hot coals. Now fire-breathing Chinese dragon, Like fabled bull, in Asian shop, With fiery tongue and tail awagging, Has put Lord Brahma on the hop. Nehru, Tibetan heights must scan Torn 'twixt Kashmir and Pakistan. While not far off, that devil "K", Looking amused, won't go away. At least as long as Mao and Sam Lean lions eye the Asian lamb. Tibetan prayer-wheel spins. . . . Who knows What Time or Karma will disclose? Kenneth F. Osthimer Pennsville, Ohio Judge Not We never know the reasons for the actions of a man For aught we know, he's striving hard lo do the best he can; We know not Ihe foundation upon which his life is built, Nor the soul that we dishonor, to it ascribing guilt! 'Tis just a wee bit probable his ways he'll not disclose So the workings of his conscience none other really knows. 'Tis possible that he prefers within himself to live. Not relating to the public all the reasons he might give. I'm 'minded of a story in a Book that we all know A tale in which the Master, in days so long ago, Reproved a throng of knockers assuaged their clamorous din; He said the first stone must be cast by him who had no sin. That fatal stone was never hurled a new idea he'd sent Into that crowd who'd gathered there with violent intent, "he laws our Master gave to us will through the ages stand; "Judge not, lest ye be judged," he said. 'Tis still a great command! Lila Curtis Bates Eagle Point, Ore. to u,e. by J0' 1ve w;(n - waroonj. A 20. 1963 A 5 has and will, ,.. O O a