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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 2012)
Page 18 The INDEPENDENT, January 18, 2012 Out of My Mind… WEATHER REPORT DECEMBER 2011 From page 2 Face, in 1995. His web site doesn’t mention what his prior work experience has been, nor have I seen that in- formation elsewhere. He refers to himself as a job creator, not- ing that he has had 60 employ- ees; presently, he has four full- time and two part-time employ- ees. In the past he ran afoul of the IRS, which levied a tax lien of $83,284 against Game Face for not paying payroll withhold- ing taxes for nine months, a problem he blames on “an em- ployee”. As a former small busi- ness owner for 20 years, I can only wonder if he actually ig- nored his business’ fiscal re- sponsibility for nine months, and also whether he thinks that blaming an employee some- how negates his responsibility. Neither approach demon- strates responsible decision- making. PolitiFact Oregon, a fact- checking feature of The Ore- gonian, has chimed in on a few claims of both candidates. In their decisions as to the factual basis of political statements by the candidates, Bonamici re- ceived two Trues and one False. Cornilles earned one True, one Mostly True, one Mostly False, and one Pants on Fire. In his ads, Cornilles contin- ues to use the Pants on Fire claim about Bonamici’s votes for taxes, even though it was judged egregiously untrue (If you are unfamiliar with it, the Pants on Fire rating is derived from a children’s rhyme of “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire”.), which seems like another problem with responsible decision-mak- ing. Bonamici’s False claim was about her own record, not about Cornilles, and was a one-time statement. One clear difference be- tween Bonamici and Cornilles is abortion. Bonamici supports women’s rights to make their own health-care decisions; Cornilles thinks abortion should be illegal except in cases of rape, incest or risk to the life of the mother. Since I’m much older than the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision making abor- tion legal in Roe vs. Wade, I re- member deaths and other hor- rific results from illegal abor- tions and won’t vote for a can- didate who wants to put gov- ernment in a woman’s uterus. We each have a right to our opinions, and I don’t question Cornilles opinion on abortion; I simply disagree with him. But I must question his decision- making ability, and feel that he needs to get some experience in an elective office that is not From page 4 ers have tried to keep water and sewer rates as low as pos- sible. By focusing on only the “hard” operating costs to craft rates for users, our leaders erred, neglecting the City’s re- sponsibility to set aside re- serves for replacement. Be- cause we have in the past been able to raise significant capital through state and feder- al grants, we have been able to keep our system functioning despite having effectively set aside no meaningful reserves for replacement from within our rate structure. Unfortunately, we can no longer depend on this ap- proach. For the last 20 years state and federal grants for wa- ter and sewer projects have been diminishing and are now virtually nonexistent. The best we can hope for is reduced in- terest rates rather than large outright grants. Recognizing this changing funding environ- ment, the Public Works Com- mittee and City Council have concluded that it is in the best interest of our ratepayers to be- gin setting aside sufficient re- serves for future replacements of our water plant and distribu- tion system. By raising the monies needed for these proj- ects over a long period of time, we can best stabilize future rates. years ago. He was a lineman for West Oregon Electric Coop- erative until his retirement. He enjoyed dancing, gar- dening, fishing, hunting, the beach and clam digging. He was a very social person with a great sense of humor. He was preceded in death by his wife; a son, Warren Wayne Aldrich; and a grand- daughter. Survivors include his three daughters, Sharon L. McKee of Longview, Wash., Judy Lynn McDonald of Vernonia; and Betty Jo Hiler of Kelso, Wash.; 12 grandchildren, 22 great- grandchildren, and 14 great- great-grandchildren. Remembrances are sug- gested to Home Health & Hos- pice in Longview, Wash. CHARLES D. COMSTOCK Charles D. Comstock, 83, Bellevue, Washington, died December 27, 2011. A celebra- tion of life was held January 13 at Newport Presbyterian Church in Bellevue, Wash. Mr. Comstock was born De- cember 20, 1928, in Longview, Wash., to George and Viola Comstock. His father was a power station operator in Keasey. In 1941, after his fa- ther’s death, the family moved to Tacoma, where he graduat- ed from Lincoln High School in 1947. He attended Washington State College majoring in hotel and restaurant administration, while working as a bellhop at Seattle’s Olympic Hotel. He worked for Westin Hotels and Resorts for 30 years, then for Hotel Systems International in Los Angeles. In 1962, he married June Marie Johnson. He received an award, in 2007, from WSU’s School of Hospitality Business Manage- ment for his contributions to the industry and the school. Survivors include his wife; a son, Charles Mark Comstock of Studio City, California; a daughter, Tracy Marie Jones Morris of Athens, Alabama; a sister, Jane Garl Avera of Van- couver, Wash.; and four grand- children. Remembrances are sug- gested to WSU School of Hos- pitality Business Management. as pressure-filled as the U.S. House of Representatives. Bonamici has learned how to work in pressure-filled situa- tions, and has demonstrated her ability to make thoughtful decisions in a bipartisan state House of Representatives. She is the best choice to effectively represent the people of Ore- gon’s first district. Water rates reviewed by committee DATE TEMPERATURE HI LO PRECIP. AMT. 1 47 28 -- 2 46 31 -- 3 47 25 -- 4 44 30 -- 5 41 25 -- 6 42 25 .02 7 44 27 -- 8 44 23 -- 9 44 24 -- 10 52 21 .04 11 38 31 -- 12 41 19 -- 13 41 16 -- 14 41 22 .03 15 40 32 T 16 45 29 -- 17 51 28 -- 18 51 26 .02 19 45 35 -- 20 44 30 -- 21 43 28 -- 22 42 18 -- 23 44 26 -- 24 48 33 -- 25 50 30 .22 26 44 28 .03 27 47 34 .63 28 51 45 .75 29 53 39 1.59 30 49 42 .14 31 44 29 T Temperature and precipitation amounts are from the official U.S. weather station at the Vernonia wa- ter plant. Measurable precipitation in December totalled 3.46 inches. Obituary WARREN F. ALDRICH Warren Franklin Aldrich, 95, Longview, Washington, died January 7, 2012. A celebration of life will be held January 21, at 12:30 p.m., at the Vernonia Senior Center. Interment was at Neer City Cemetery in Rainier. Mr. Aldrich was born Janu- ary 14, 1916, in Middle River, Minnesota, to Ralph M. and Mary J. (Peterson) Aldrich. The family moved to Vernonia when he was eight years old. He graduated from Vernonia High School. In 1936, he married Violet Ilene Ennis. They made their home in Vernonia until he moved to Longview, Wash. 11 DAVID RAY MCCOY David Ray McCoy, 54, For- est Grove, died January 1, 2012. Mr. McCoy was born May 14, 1957, in St. Helens, to David A. and Rosie McCoy. He attended elementary school in Vernonia and Castle Rock, Washington. During his teen years he lived in Montana. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps. In 1991, he worked at BIAMP Systems as a mechani- cal engineer. He enjoyed fishing, rock hounding, classic cars and traveling in Oregon. Survivors include his wife Sue Ann; his father of Montana; his mother of Vernonia; a broth- er, Pat of Kalispell, Mont.; a sis- ter Margaret Gilbertson of Miles City, Mont.; two aunts, Penny Dean of Vernonia and Peggy Helvie of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and two cousins, Tina Brewington and Richard Myers, both of Vernonia. Remembrances are sug- gested to the American Cancer Society or a charity of choice. Fuiten, Rose & Hoyt Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.