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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2008)
The INDEPENDENT, May 1, 2008 Page 3 Letters This is final year for fireworks’ sponsor To The Editor: This will be the last year for the 4th of July fireworks spon- sored by Vernonia Pride. It is apparent that the com- munity can no long support this function. Last year we sent out two hundred letters asking for do- nations and had only twenty- seven replies. Vernonia Pride has always held a fund raiser for this event as well as collecting after the show. Even after those three projects we still came up over a thousand dollars short. Hopefully, some other group will step up to the plate to spon- sor this event, as I am sure it will be missed by the community. We will still be sponsoring the 4th of July Parade. De Loris Webb Vernonia Pride Water shut off is not a problem for citizen To The Editor: To whom it may concern; I am the very honorable sen- ior citizen Leonard Simmons! I live in the little dumpy house at 606 Madison Ave. (not Street) that has no city water fur- nished, even though I helped pay for the new water plant and helped pay a $120,00.00 re- serve fund that has come up missing. Now it seems we, the honorable citizens, are sup- posed to repay $120,000.00 at a rate of $11.50 per month. I suggest the next time the less than honorable interim city manipulator and his queen (b-- ) of 5 months in the community decide to make up false allega- tions against a very honorable senior citizen that they get to know this very honorable citi- zen first. According to the queen (B--) of 5 months in the community that puts her time in at the front counter at city hall seems to think that any honorable citizen that refuses to repay this loan for the second time is a dishon- orable citizen. Hopefully the next time you and your less than honorable intimidator come into an honor- able man’s home (Vernonia) you will take time to get to know who you are trying to manipu- late. You (2) two do not intimi- date me one little bit by your bully attitude. This very honorable senior citizen happens to be a sur- Where to Find Them U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (Democrat-OR) 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 585 Portland OR 97232 Phone: 503-326-7525 230 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg., Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-5244 Website: http://wyden.senate. gov U.S. Senator Gordon Smith (Republican-OR) One World Trade Center 121 SW Salmon St., Suite 1250 Portland, OR 97204 Phone: 503-326-3386 Fax: 503-326-2900 404 Russell Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Website: http://gsmith.senate. gov U.S. Representative David Wu (Democrat-01) 620 SW Main, Suite 606 Portland, OR 97205 Phone: 503-326-2901 Fax: 503-326-5066 1023 Longworth Building Washington, DC 20515 Phone: 202-225-0855 Fax: 202-225-9497 Website: http://house.gov/wu Senator Betsy Johnson (Democrat-16) PO Box R, Scappoose, OR 97056 Phone: 503-543-4046 900 Court St. NE, S-314 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1716 E-mail: sen.betsyjohnson@ state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/johnson Representative Brad Witt (Democrat-31) 21740 Lindberg Road, Clatskanie, OR 97016 Phone: 503-728-4664 900 Court St. NE, H-277 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1431 E-mail: rep.bradwitt@state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/witt Representative Deborah Boone (Democrat-32) PO Box 926 Cannon Beach, OR 97110 Phone: 503-717-9182 900 Court St. NE, H-375 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1432 E-mail: rep.deborahboone@ state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/boone vivalist!! I do not need your service to survive. You have no idea as to how my dump is equipped for survival. You have done me a big fa- vor by having the water shut off. Now I can take the $77.00 per month that you would have gotten and put it toward a heat source that I have been without since the flood (thanks again). The unhonorable interim city manipulator is good at making false statements, threats and bullying anyone who refuses to jump hoops for him when he demands. Good luck next time coward. Thank you very much. The honorable senior citizen and survivalist!!! Leonard Simmons Vernonia 100 shares of Obama, 50 shares of McCain To The Editor: GIVE ME 100 SHARES OF OBAMA AND 50 SHARES OF McCAIN! So, in 2007 we imported 3.6 billion barrels of oil. Even at a paltry $100 per barrel, that is a lot of dinero. Just paying this year’s interest on our national debt at a rate of $1 per second would require over 20,000 years. And not to be an alarmist, but we have a lot of folks out there who don’t like us and we have gotten ourselves into two separate wars. Did I mention that we might not have much time left to start reducing greenhouse gases and switch- ing to clean energy? Mean- while a number of prominent folks in my party are committing to making the Bush Tax Cuts permanent – hello!! Why not re-elect the folks who brought us here? Surely they see the error of their ways by now and will break the choke-hold the special interests have on our government. Or should we take a risk and in- vest in someone who just may be able to pop the beltway bub- ble and restore the notion of a government of, by, and for the people? The problems are daunting and the outcome not guaranteed, but is it not worth the investment risk? This Republican candidate for congress is in for 100 shares of Barack Obama and should he lose the nomination, I will hedge my investment with 50 shares of John McCain, since there is an outside chance that he too could put the nation back on track. Joel Haugen Scappoose DAs support Kroger for Attorney General To The Editor: I urge Columbia County citi- zens to vote for John Kroger as Oregon’s next Attorney Gener- al. I, along with 24 other District Attorneys, have endorsed Kroger for this important office. Kroger has a strong record of law enforcement accomplish- ments and public service. He has been a front-line Federal prosecutor trying mafia defen- dants and drug traffickers. He has taught law students about the criminal justice system. He is a veteran having served as a United States Marine. Kroger knows that the Attor- ney General is the most impor- tant law enforcement officer in the State. He understands that the Attorney General plays a key role in Oregon by setting policy and helping local District Attorneys and law enforcement do their jobs more effectively. This help includes programs that: Provide statewide training for local prosecutors; provide appellate services to defend our convictions before the Ore- gon appellate courts; provide direct trial support in complex cases through the District Attor- ney assistance program; and provide resources to fight major problems statewide, including child pornography, metham- phetamine trafficking, organ- ized crime, and gangs. In my opinion, Oregon is one of the few states where the At- torney General works so close- ly with local District Attorneys. John Kroger has assured me that he understands and values this relationship and will work to see that it continues and grows. It is important that we have the right person in this job. Please vote for John Kroger on May 20th. Sincerely, Stephen Atchison Columbia County District Attorney Dickerson goal is to expand patrol hours To The Editor: I would like to explain why I’m supporting Jeff Dickerson for Columbia County Sheriff. I’m not sure if my fellow Co- lumbia County residents are aware that our current Sheriff Department hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. peri- od. I run the office at LC Hall’s Truck Line in St. Helens. Two weeks ago, our early man ar- rived at our dock at 5:00 a.m. to find an SUV in our driveway with a person sprawled out in- side. Our man had no idea what the situation was, and was completely alone in the area, so when he got inside our office he locked the door and called 911. They referred him to the Sheriff’s office, who told him that unless it was a life-threat- ening emergency, to call back after 10:00 a.m.! If you live in Columbia Coun- ty outside of city limits, come home at 10:30 p.m. after a high school basketball game to find that your house has been robbed and call 911 to report it, you will be told to call back to- morrow after 10:00 a.m. Surely we deserve better than half- time protection! Jeff Dickerson has a plan to expand hours of patrol, without additional fund- ing, simply by staggering start/stop times for deputies. Our deputies have not been ex- posed to new training tech- niques, nor have they had per- formance evaluations, since Gerry Simmons has been our undersheriff; Jeff intends to ad- dress these issues as well. It sounds to me like our Sheriff’s Department has stag- nated under its current leader- ship, of which Gerry Simmons is a significant member. Jeff Dickerson brings fresh ideas and dedication to public service that Columbia County needs. Denise Jones St. Helens More Letters, page 24 Policy on Letters The INDEPENDENT will not publish letters that include per- sonal attacks on private citizens. Because of space limitations, preference will be given to brief letters, 300 words or less. All letters must be signed and include a verifiable address or phone number.
