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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 2012)
The INDEPENDENT, January 18, 2012 Where to Find Them U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (Dem) 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 585 Portland OR 97232 Phone: 503-326-7525 223 Dirksen Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510-0001 Phone: 202-224-5244 E-Mail: http://wyden.senate.gov/ contact Website: http://wyden.senate. gov U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (Dem.) One World Trade Center 121 SW Salmon St., Suite 1250 Portland, OR 97204 Phone: 503-326-3386 313 Hart Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-3753 E-Mail: http://merkley.senate. gov/contact WebSite: http://merkley.senate. gov U.S. Representative David - Wu (Dem) OR District 1 ace pl 620 SW Main, Suite e 606 r Portland, OR 97205 o on Phone: 503-326-2901 – n lecti d e Ofc. Bldg. 2338 Rayburn l ne ti House g i Washington, s un DC 20515 e t Phone: R en 202-225-0855 Website: m http://house.gov/wu Senator Betsy Johnson (Dem) Senate District 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 (Dem) House District. 31 21740 Lindberg Road, Clatskanie, OR 97016 Phone: 503-728-4664 900 Court St. NE, H-373 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 (Dem) House District 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 Page 3 Letters Fair play, regulation can balance economy To the Editor: For sure, times are tough for Vernonians, let alone everyone else. Most folks, locally, want a good job, housing, food, to buy a few things, go visit a few places, have transportation, education for the kids and ade- quate services like police, fire, utilities and civic events. This isn’t happening like it should. Why? There are two economies: (1) Global and (2) Local. Globally, business is very good; the cost of workers (worldwide, including child and slave-like labor) is extremely low; fringe benefits are non ex- istent; regulation does not ex- ist; sale prices of goods is very, very good. Profits are excellent and in the billions, that is with a “B”, billions. Locally, minimum wage, or slightly above, is what you get, if at all. Unemployment is high. Housing, utilities, government services, medical care, gaso- line…everything, is way more expensive than wages. Most folks are broke and on the edge. Why? We’ve been robbed. How? The Global Economy is run by 1% of the folks on the planet. The Local Economies consist of the remaining 99%, the workers and local business folks. Financial movers and shak- ers control technology and the global banks, that is, the “Banksters” rule who gets what and when. This is not good or bad, it is what is. They have their own rules, to create profit and control. Simple. If you, as an individual, are not included, tough. Control in the United States is done by the Federal Reserve Banking System, a “private” business organization. It is not owned by the Federal Govern- ment. How did they rob us? Most recently? By deliberate, re- hearsed testing and planning, and then actually giving loans to everyone (wink, wink) on anything, especially houses. Repayment? Not a problem. Why? If you don’t pay, the bank owns what you have; and they take it back, which is what their plan was in the first place. (I am not talking about most local, small banks and credit unions. They are the ones that will bring sanity back). Meanwhile, all those loans were thrown into a big pot, mixed into a kind of financial “hamburger”; rated as A+ by crooked associates of the banksters, and sold in very highly priced pieces as “pure gold” to a gullible world market, including dumb folks and in- vestors in the United States. The result? Billions of dollars in loot, into bankster Swiss bank accounts or places like the Ba- hamas; and, best of all for the banksters, no taxes!! Well, what happened? We got robbed, not by someone sticking a gun in our face and saying “hands up”. No, this was an “Inside-Job” by folks in suits who were supposedly keeping our money and economy safe. Since anyone could get a loan, housing prices responded by going sky high. Money was everywhere. Loans got bigger, bigger and bigger and “Pop”!! Wages could not keep up, peo- ple could not pay loan pay- ments, banks foreclosed, bank owned assets skyrocketed; people lost jobs; small busi- nesses could not operate and CRRRRASH!! 99% broke…1% own most everything. Slick. Ohh, and by the way, wages are a lot lower in China, so, banksters moved all our jobs overseas. Homeless? Tough. What about Vernonia? Well, let’s take one example: since money was so easily available during the bubble, a hedge fund in Canada borrowed a lot of money on thin-air and bought Long Fibre timber com- pany, whose owners bailed out with millions, no problem for them. The new owners, in Canada, began cutting every- thing. Nice run for awhile. Saw- mills were converted to pulp mills; a lot of folks were thrown out of work; logs were thrown onto the export market and…”pop”!! What about sus- tained growth and steady tim- ber industry employment? Get a life, you’re fired! And by the way, taxes on the profits? For- get it, we took the money else- where. And the problem, you folks are having with floods? Sorry about that. We replanted fast growing hybrids but, mean- while, all that collapse of the canopy and destruction of the forest floor, which mushed up all your rivers and streams and your town…nasty break. May- be you can flip burgers. Solution? Rules of fair play and regulation of the banksters for the benefit of the 99% of us. It will take a while. But do this one thing, GET OUT AND VOTE!! Jack Phillips Vernonia Vernonia really does care: Thank you! To the Editor: Dear Vernonia Cares Food Bank Supporters; Thank you, one and all, for your continued support for our Holiday Grocery Box Project. Thanks to your generosity, 205 households (containing 652 people) were given a turkey and food for their Christmas meal. This proj- ect is always strongly support- ed by individuals and organiza- tions throughout our Vernonia community. Truly, you exempli- fy what our name says, “Ver- nonia Cares!” Gratefully, Sandy Welch, Director Vernonia Care Food Bank Policy on Letters The INDEPENDENT will not publish letters with per- sonal attacks on private citi- zens. Preference will be giv- en to brief letters, 300 words or less. All letters must be signed and include a verifiable ad- dress or phone number. Vernonia City Update Haack explains tree cutting on Bridge and Missouri by Bill Haack, City Administra- tor The City of Vernonia and the Vernonia School District are coordinating the development of the Bridge Street Improve- ment Project in conjunction with the new construction of the K-12 school campus on Mis- souri Avenue. In December 2010, then Governor Ted Ku- longoski announced that Ore- gon Department of Transporta- tion had found grant resources to allow an award of $3.8 mil- lion toward road improvements on Bridge Street between Texas Avenue and Spencer Av- enue and along the length of Missouri Avenue to the then proposed new school campus. Now in January 2012, over the next few months, in ad- vance of the road improve- ments, two projects will unfold: (1) a tree removal project and (2) a hydrant relocation project. ODOT is in the process of put- ting out a small contract for tree removal. In advance of that project, they will mark all of the trees to be cut. I know in ad- vance that this change will cause some chagrin, and I am hopeful that we can find a way to accept this modification in the landscape as a sign of progress. The required movement of the fire hydrant is specifically to allow for the realignment of Bridge Street. However the City intends to realign it also to allow for the eventual modifica- tion of Lakeview Terrace to align with Missouri to make a true intersection. This future modification will also allow for better access for Vernonia Rur- al Fire Protection District trucks to enter their fire station off of Lakeview in the future.
