Page 2 The INDEPENDENT, Jan. 29,1992
„ INDEPENDENT
Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published
m onthly on the last W ednesday of each month, by
Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 1206 State Avenue,
Vernonia, OR 97064, as a free newspaper. All material
protected under U.S. Copyright laws. Editors and
Publishers, Dirk & Noni Andersen, (503) 429-9410.
Ignorance of our
history is appalling
"A society that will trade a little freedom for a little
order soon will lose both and will deserve neither.”
James Madison
During this bicentennial year of the Bill of Rights, it
appears that a refresher course on that remarkable
document may be appropriate.
The Bill of Rights, a set of specific amendments to
the U.S. Constitution, was never intended to protect
the rights of the majority; that wasn’t and isn’t neces
sary. It’s purpose was to protect the rights of the mi
nority, to keep a fragile dem ocracy from being
crushed by a powerful majority.
One example of the need for such protection is
found in the behavior of the first white settlers in
America. They fled religious intolerance in Europe
and sought a place where they could practice their re
ligion without interference. Once they found it, they
instituted their own laws controlling religious practice,
and allowed even less religious freedom than in the
lands from which they fled.
The point of this commentary, however, is the
fourth amendment of the Bill of Rights
The fourth amendment says: ’’The right of the peo
ple to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects, against unreasonable searches and
seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall
issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath
or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to
be searched, and the person or things to be seized.”
Local school policy requires urine drug tests of all
student athletes, even though the district says it does
not consider all athletes drug users. How, then, can
the policy be justified? How can the policy not violate
the requirement of probable cause?
People’s opinions, including yours and mine, have
little to do with questions of constitutionality, however.
That judgement is left to the courts.
But something very exciting is happening here,
something very American: Minority opinion is ques
tioning majority opinion and policy. This challenge to
the school district is an affirmation of the heart and
soul of the Constitution, an affirmation that individual
rights are important and must be protected.
It also provides a unique opportunity to teach some
significant American history and show how it applies
to life today. It would be a shame to let the opportuni
ty pass.
We can't afford to trade freedom for order, and we
can’t afford to trade uncomfortable knowledge for
comfortable ignorance.
By Nancy Burch
Vernonia City Librarian
Although the library is generally known as
the place to borrow books, every once in a
while someone loans me a book from his/her
personal collection and last year Penny
Smejkal loaned me one of hers. Having the
unusual title of Fried Green Tomatoes at the
Whistle Stop Cafe and being written rather like
a diary, the book was put aside and not read
until this last week. What a treat! This is the
story of two women in the 1980s, as old Mrs.
Threadgoode tells her life story to 48-year-old
Evelyn, who is very unhappy as she tries to
cope with middle-age. Woven into the tale she
tells is the story of two other women-Ruth and
Idgie-who back in the thirties ran a little place
in Whistle Stop, Alabama, offering good
barbecue and all kinds of love and laughter,
along with an occasional murder. This story of
humor and drama in the South, by Fannie
Flagg, has recently been released as a movie
starring Jessica Tandy and Kathy Bates. The
movie looks like fun, but be sure to read the
book. The library now has a copy and I thank
Education, not testing
To the Editor:
Miss Christina Lynch, stu
dent-athlete at Vernonia High
S chool, wrote in praise of
drug testing athletes. She,
like the Vernonia School Dis
trict, confuses the results of
drug e d u c a tio n w ith dru g
testing. She adm onishes:
"Do not take it upon yourself
to declare it unconstitutional."
How can I not?
In 1943 the U.S. Supreme
Court ruled that "Schools are
educating the young for citi
zenship" and should "protect
constitutional freedoms of the
in d iv id u a l." If th e y d o n ’t,
schools would "strangle the
free mind at its source and
teach youth to discount im
portant principles of our gov
ernment as mere platitudes."
Since 1985 students have
lost much more than they re
alize . They have lost the
right to free speech and pri
vacy. T h e ir lo c k e rs , gym
bags and purses are not their
own; students may be sub
jected to spot searches, poly
graphs and breath-a-lyzers.
At this point, even their hair,
sa liva and u rin e are not
theirs.
VSD has continued urine
testing and has set precedent
for mandatory steroid, alcohol
and to b a cco scre e n in g —
perhaps even for sugar if a
diabetic is an athlete.
Surely now VSD must test
for HIV and AIDS since there
is a real danger of a bloody
nose or skinned knee as an
entrance point fo r a deadly
virus.
If "health, safety" and "dan
g e r" are ju s tific a tio n s fo r
physical intrusion as a control
mechanism, then it's not too
hard to envision testing "sus
pected" hom osexuals as a
hazard to the wrestling team.
In th e real w o rld , M iss
Lynch, you have lost much
more than a vial of urine.
Let's give $50,000 or more
to the History Department, or
found a Dep't. of Elementary
Reasoning and Logic. Per
you, Penny, for loaning me this delightful
book.
It's always rewarding to me to see that our
little library consistently has most of the top ten
national best-sellers. At present, we have
eight of the ten, including Robin Cook's
newest mystery with a medical theme,
Blindsight. This one deals with a New York
mob that is stealing corneas from reluctant
yuppies.
If there are community members interested
in researching their ancestors, please contact
the library. A very nice lady, who has done
much genealogical research of her own, has
volunteered to help others with such a project.
In doing your after-holiday cleaning, please
look for overdue library books. A list of these
will be posted in the library. Check this list on
your next visit to see if you need to search a
little more thoroughly.
Library Hours: Monday and Friday 1-5
p m ., Wednesday, 9 a.m .-5 p.m .,
Saturday, 19 a.m.-2 p m. Preschool Story
from 10:39*11
haps then, we could all be
proud of VSD.
Annette Naron
Vernonia
Let's w ork together
To the Editor:
It is my belief that it is co
operation, not com petition,
that makes a small town a
great town. When we work
together and share ideas and
resources, we can accom
plish almost anything.
We can raise the lights at
the football stadium, or build
a H ealth Center, or serve
2500 b ic y c lis ts com ing
through our town. We win
fo o tb a ll gam es and State
C h am p ion ships when the
whole team pulls together. It
is never a "one man show"
th a t a cco m plishe s such
things.
It's too bad that not all peo
ple see it that way, for any
other way is self-defeating in
such a small town. If some
one has an idea that might
make something better, the
way to enhance that idea is to
join in, to share and to sup
port each o th e r. . . not to be
little or criticize or separate.
My belief is that in working
together, neighbor with neigh
bor, friend and foe, we can
have a community that is rich
for all. That we can teach our
children that each individual
has value, that their ideas are
unique and special and worth
sharing. It also teaches them
the meaning of com m unity
and how to be a part of
something, whether or not ev
eryone shares the same
ideas within that group.
We can acco m plish so
much more working together
in ste a d of te a rin g th in g s
apart. These are the lessons
I want my children to learn.
What better way is there than
having the ad u lts around
them being role models?
Barbara Fulmer, Parent &
Community Member
Vernonia
No private agenda
To the Editor:
I have tossed my hat into
the ring for [Vernonia] school
board position #6. My reason
for doing so is not that I have
so much spare tim e that I
don't know what to do with it,
rather, I wish to do what I can
to improve education in the
district.
The community, it seems
to me, makes a wise invest
m ent w hen it educates its
young. Good education pro
vides tools for the communi
ty's children to better them
selves — hopefully so that
they will be able to make a
better world and to have a
better life than their parents.
O b vio u sly, the sch o o ls
must be kept affordable for
th o se w ho pay fo r them .
Within the bounds of the re
sou rces th a t we have, we
must be effective and actually
accomplish what we set out
to do, which is to provide that
education.
Feeling the way I do about
education has caused me to
make this attem pt. A fte r I
had filed for the position, it
o ccu rre d to me th a t some
m ight th in k th a t I was a t
tempting a seat on the board
because of a perceived anti
d ru g -te stin g philosophy. I
had q u e stio n e d the board
about its policy at a recent
emotional board meeting and
remember feeling at the time
that I was perhaps being la
belled as an "anti" by some of
the "pros."
My c o n c e rn at th e tim e
was that the District was do
ing something merely expedi
en t to cu re a d is c ip lin a ry
problem in the schools when,
in fact, what was being done
might not be legal. Further
more, I was concerned that
the policy in question covered
a ll drugs, including alcohol
and tobacco, not just "street"
drugs. I am glad that the is
sue will soon be settled, the
point is, I would come to the
board with no agenda other
More Letters on page 12