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ANGLOCENTRIC SCHOOL BOARD On Feb. 18, Latinos and Latinas turned out to support the renaming of south-side elementary to César Chávez. Latino educators, students, parents, and non-Latino groups showed their support for a more inclusive Eugene school district. This process has been eye-opening for me, not because of the participation — it has always been there. The process has been eye-opening because it illustrates how lack of diversity in the school board can marginalize community members. The school board is one hundred percent white. Although the superintendent is black, he is held accountable by white board members, which excludes him from truly yielding power for all children. There are no Latinos, Latinas, or Asians, which makes the power imbalance worse. So what happens when power is most exercised by one group? In this case, issues are framed around white criteria. The criterion for naming the school is a perfect example, which excluded names that required non-Anglo pronunciation. The school board will decide on March 18 whether it will include or exclude César Chávez in its final decision. Given similar power dynamics in the school board and the city council, chances are that last year's controversy of re-naming Centennial to Dr. King can bubble over into the re-naming of south-side elementary to César Chávez. The Latino community will be prepared for the worst. Javier Ayala, Eugene
UNDERSTANDING UNDERCOVERED I look forward every Thursday to reading the "undercover" column by Kate Rogers Gessert. I am deeply interested in her articles on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the role of current U.S. government. She provides information that mainstream media don't. With her articles I can go and check for myself and read further about this disturbing conflict. Her information comes from reputable news sources. Many pro-peace Israelis would appreciate her effort to inform us about events that don't reach us. I find Mr. Bob Kholos's recent attack on her work and character extremely disturbing. Yes, we need real discussion on the problems in the Middle East. To do that, we need to be informed and Ms. Gessert is doing just that. In her writing I don't see any sentiment against Jews or any inciting of riots against synagogues. The tone of Mr. Kholos's own discourse is dangerous and will not contribute to any understanding of the conflict(s), either political or personal. But since he identifies himself as a member of the peace community, I hope he can see the contradiction in his own statements. Anuncia Escala, Eugene
SPIRIT OF DEMOCRACY The power and morose responsibility Ms. Fabian (2/12) allots the Green Party is earth-shaking. To blame the retaliatory War on Terrorism and the resulting deaths of thousands of innocent lives on the Green Party is a gross fallacy at best. "Lest we forget for one-second," we have the current political administration, George W., to blame for the last four years of greed. Not the Green Party, as Ms. Fabian erroneously believes. The Green Party continues to stand up and get active. They are people of courage and conviction, exercising their true democratic right to vote their conscience; not utilize their "kindergarten degree in electoral politics" to use their vote as a tool to not "split the left" by electing the lesser of two evils; but to vote for the only alternative that makes any sense. Come on now, Ms. Fabian. Try to remember back to the last election, when by the popular vote, Al Gore was the fore-runner and Bush trailed behind. And remember all those voters in Florida whose votes weren't even tallied. And remember how Bush was appointed our president and not elected. Now if you really want to blame the last four years of horror on somebody other than the current administration, begin with some of those hard facts. I suggest you focus all your steam to oust the current administration by encouraging people to vote, period. A democracy means that we all have a say in our politics and every vote should be counted, no matter for whom that vote is cast. That's the spirit of democracy — standing up for what you believe in and getting the opportunity to have your voice heard. If more people had voted in the last election, and voted their conscience, the results may have been a lot rosier, if not possibly even greener. Gail Diehl, Cedar Flat
DRAMATIC SPINNING I attended the Sunday matinee of Lord Leebrick's Spinning into Butter and I saw a very different play than the one reviewed by Ms. Smith in your 2/19 edition. She spent one-third of her review bemoaning the fact that there were not any black characters. She evidently reviewed the play she wished it had been rather than the play as it is. I hope her review doesn't keep audience members away because the play that I saw had a clever and thought-provoking script, talented actors who brought both subtle humor and emotional depth to their parts, a set that suited the mood and movement of the play, and music that underscored the building tension between the white characters and their growing discomfort with their realization of their own prejudice. Barbara Edmonds, Eugene
SUPERB PRODUCTION My husband, myself and two other "drama-sophisticated" friends of ours thoroughly enjoyed everything about the play Spinning Into Butter. The play was subtle, provocative and just humorous enough. The acting was superb. We all thought the review completely off-base and are concerned about the number of people who may not have attended due to the scathing review. It's not too late, however, to see this fascinating play since it is still running.
Mary Dwan, Eugene Editor's Note: We received two other letters, although too late for this issue, praising Spinning into Butter, which continues through March 6 at Lord Leebrick. See www.eugeneweekly.comfor those and other letters.
CODDLING KALI'S If you value the community resource that Mother Kali's has been for 28 years, I urge you to tell any faculty members you know how urgent it is for them to place their textbooks there for spring term. At least two-thirds of Mother Kali's annual income comes from textbook sales in October, January, and April. All the women involved on both sides of the current conflict are good people and strong feminists. Whatever mistakes they may or may not have made, it makes no sense to boycott a store that has been fostering feminism and progressive movements all this time and take the money to a large institution or a chain store or an online behemoth. Progressives must learn the difference between an ally who is not living up to their hopes and ideals and an enemy to vanquish. If we do not, it is suicide, and Bush and his cronies win by default. There were factual errors in the EW articles, and I'll write about those later. But if you wait to try to figure out all the details of who is right and who is wrong about what, or just withdraw until the dust settles, the store will be bankrupt by fall. General political rhetoric is not helpful when the rent is due. If you are concerned, give the board and the union specific, practical, affordable suggestions; urge both sides to mediate; help them find a good mediator; then go buy a book at Mother Kali's. Today. Lorraine Ironplow, Mother Kali's Board member 1979 - 2002
PRIMARY COLORS The current primary voting schedule does not, in my view, give voters in states with later primaries any voice or choice in the selection process. For example, by the time Oregon's primary comes around, the Democratic candidate will have long ago been chosen. Sure, one can always write in a candidate of their choice, but beyond making a statement what is the point? I can understand why many would be apathetic and disillusioned with this system. Having said this, I still will most definitely vote because I see voting as both a privilege and a responsibility. In other countries I read that people have fervent political discussions in the pubs and streets, and in other countries people risk their lives and even stand in line all day just to get a chance to vote. Shouldn't we all have an equal opportunity to pick the candidates of our choice in the primaries? Wouldn't a much shorter nationwide primary season serve us all better? It could even be publicly financed to eliminate the fear that special interest groups or corporations were simply buying access. The rules of the debates and questions to be asked could be decided by the people and not the two mainstream parties. After all, the politicians are supposed to be working for we the people. All primaries or caucuses would be on the same day, just like the general election. My guess is that the controlling two parties are too afraid of surprises. At present early surprises (the people's choices) can be squelched by throwing lots of money and smear campaigns at them, thus assuring desired results of a safe mainstream chosen candidate. I truly feel these changes could return power back to the people as it should be in a democracy. Then just possibly the disillusioned might find their way back to the ballot box. Tim Boyden, Eugene
DO YOUR DUTY To Lane County commissioners: Here is a synopsis of the problems with Lane County's policies concerning "lot line adjustments," legal lots and the road dividing one tax lot into two or more "legal" lot scam. Please, please, please bring these practices into compliance with Oregon land use law. We don't have county policies that differ with state law when it comes to speed limits on I-5 where it passes through Lane County, so why do we continue to flout state law when it comes to land use law? It is clearly within the scope of the duties and responsibilities of the Board of County Commissioners to ensure compliance with the law of the land within Lane County. It is abundantly clear that these strange county policies exist only for the benefit of the few at the expense of the many. Please exercise your authority and instruct our Land Management Division to cease and desist these behaviors. Lane County's own land use hearings official has found these practices to be against state law. Do we only pay attention to his decisions when they agree with what developers want to do? Commissioners, do your duty. Norm Maxwell, Rural Lane County
WORTH A SHOT The County Animal Welfare Task Force wants to have local veterinarians report pet vaccinations to the health department or Animal Control. Some vets say they are too busy to have their clerk fill out a form. Lucky them, if they have so much business in this economy. Many states now do this, so if Fido bites somebody, there's one single number to call to check if the victim needs rabies treatment. This is a health and safety issue. A few vets say there is a confidentiality problem. This is a dodge. If Joe Hacker is so bored that he passes up the banks, eBay, porn sites and the Pentagon, and goes after pet vaccination records, and he finds out you have a dog, what's the worst case scenario? He sends you some spam or junk mail for cents off dog food or dog treats. Do you hang yourself? No. You use the coupon or you trash it. Besides, this info is already obtainable through other sources. Security is addressed in the language of the new code proposal. Bite victims should not have to wait and wonder what is going to happen to them. Robert Spencer, Springfield
CENSURE GEORGE I call upon citizens of Oregon to implore our Senators Ron Wyden and Gordon H. Smith to censure President Bush for misleading us into war. From his first days in office, President Bush was planning for war with Iraq. Having made that decision, the president and key members of his administration, ran a campaign of misinformation, hype and hysteria that led America into an unnecessary war. Before the war, Bush was repeatedly told there was no definitive evidence that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. He knew Iraq was not a nuclear threat. He knew there was no Iraq connection to 9/11. Iraq posed no imminent danger to the U.S. There was no case for a pre-emptive war. Yet he relentlessly led us into a war that has cost 500 American lives, left 3,000 seriously injured, countless innocent Iraqis dead or seriously injured, and wasted tens of billions of dollars. Our senators must act to censure President Bush. Kathleen Epstein, Eugene
Good Production Spinning Into Butter, the current production of the Lord Leebrick Theater Company, is clearly a gem. The play is provocative and fascinating, and the acting is superb. That makes on wonder why the EW review (2/19) found fault with it. The reviewer is put off by the fact that Simon, a black student at a Vermont college whose agony is at the center of the plot, is never seen on stage. Is that discrimination? Absolutely not, because the theme of the play is about how whites react to blacks. Seeing Simon in the flesh wouldn't have added any meaning to the plot. Nancy Hopps, who has the lead role of Sarah, delivers a powerful and Realistic performance as an academic dean struggling with mixed feelings toward minorities. She comes across as a real person, not a character. One wonders what reviewer Kaukab Jhumbra Smith's prejudices are in panning this powerful exploration of the contemporary conflict over diversity and prejudice. Arnold Ismach, Eugene
After reading your critic's review of the play Spinning into Butter, I wondered if we both saw the same play. What I saw was a well-crafted and intriguing play and a superior production that I have learned to expect from the Lord Leebrick Theatre. Nancy Hopps gave a fantastic performance in a very complex and difficult part. I'm sure that the original New York performance of Rebecca Gilman's play could not have been done better. I am constantly amazed at the high level of acting on the local level, and I hope the public will give this play the chance it deserves. We should be thankful for such a great theater like Lord Leebrick. Juliana Keiser, Junction City
FEEDBACK I picked up a copy of the 1/29 edition of your excellent paper to find two letters to the editor that sent me out of my mind with contempt. Diogenes Laertius must have had these letter-writers in mind when he wrote, "Against stupidity, the gods themselves do strive in vain." The first letter was from a man who wants no euphemisms for the term "abortion." While it's my personal belief that we men have no business commenting on abortion, which is a decision that women have the right to make for themselves, I feel compelled to write about my own experiences with abortion. Back in the '60s, when I was a teen and abortion was illegal, women died in this country everyday because they had no access to safe abortion procedures. Girls from my high school "disappeared," only to return in a few years with an infant and a heap of social scorn. They were handicapped by an unwanted child that kept them out of school, made it difficult to find a decent partner, and usually left them in what sociologists call "the permanent underclass." Make abortion illegal and the blood of untold women (and the unborn life within them) will be on the hands of the anti-abortionists! Regardless of what you may think, an embryo is not a viable human until it can exist without the assistance of medical devices. The right of pre-existing life (a pregnant mother) trumps that of possible life (a lump of protoplasm capable of becoming a human). And if you don't want abortions, then start adopting unwanted babies or support contraception. Until anti-abortionists do so, they are merely telling, "A tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." The other letter was from a Bush supporter who doesn't seem to mind that the pretext for invading Iraq was based on poor intelligence. The fact that Bush included it in a nationally televised speech makes him either a liar or a fool. Take your pick. And I hope the letter writer has lots of grandchildren to pay off the huge national debt the Presidunce is creating through his inept fiscal bungling. In the meantime, the rich get tax breaks that don't "trickle" down, unemployment is getting worse as more jobs are outsourced to foreign countries, most of our countrymen have little or no health care, our schools are impoverished, our national infrastructure is crumbling beneath us, but we have billions of dollars to spend in Iraq on no-bid contracts to Bush's corporate campaign supporters! What's wrong with this picture? Yeah, Saddam was a bad guy, but so are the monarchs in Saudi Arabia (who have been secretly funding the terrorists), the mullahs in Iran (who will probably take over Iraq once the U.S. is gone), the nut in power in South Korea, and the white-separatists in America. The world may be a better place without Saddam, but our country will be better off once the Three Neo-Stooges, Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld, are out of power. Bush no mo in 2004! Pete Giberson, Eugene
LET'S EVOLVE Even with the advent of the 21st century, it's amazing that there still remains a handful of angry people from every race, culture, and ethnicity that seem to mount a career on pitting one race or ethnicity against another, and in the process, spreading fear, division and hate. This is counter-productive to our common goals of Civil Rights, Unity and Peace, as well as the worthwhile promotion of the human race. It seems that our often tragic history is full of examples of injustices, both real and imaginary. If we constantly relive the past, in the role of eternal victims, then we stand to lose focus on the glorious future of all humankind that I believe awaits us all. Our destiny lies in our ability to overcome our petty differences, fears and intolerance. After all, we all come from the same higher power, whomever or whatever you hold that to be. So let's evolve and take the responsible path and adopt a more positive outlook working together, if not for our sake then perhaps for future generations. This is not only the intelligent way, it's the only way. In this way global peace might be obtained. So in our hearts lets resurrect the spirit of great visionaries of the last century such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., President John F. Kennedy, and his future thinking brother Robert F. Kennedy. With this in mind I wish global and eternal peace to all my brothers and sisters of the human race. Tom Bush, Eugene GONE AWOL Two soldiers went AWOL. One, my brother, was drafted by the Army in 1969. The medical deferment papers from our family doctor were torn up in his face. His wife gave birth to his son while he was in basic training. After a weekend visit to see his baby, my brother decided to go AWOL. Three months later, heeding the advice of our congressman, he turned himself in. After three months in the stockade he was sentenced to one year work release duty, scrubbing the napalm burns off of soldiers at the Houston military hospital. After serving his time, he was given a honorable discharge. The whole time my brother was in the Army he never received any pay. The other soldier, my president, fearing the draft enlisted in the Texas Air National Guard. Even though he scored the lowest passing grade he was vaulted to the head of a year and a half waiting list. After four years of flying around Texas, he requested a transfer to Alabama, which did not have any planes, to help his father's friend running for U.S. Senate. The request was delayed and he was grounded for missing his annual flight physical and drug test. He was ordered to a different Alabama unit and never showed up. After more than a year AWOL, he claims to have returned to his Texas unit to do duty time. He decided he did not want to miss the fall schedule at Harvard and requested and got an honorable discharge eight months before his service was scheduled to end. Michael T. Hinojosa, Drain SPENDING ON FIRE President Bush is not this country's savior. His spending is the highest in several decades. His plan for illegal aliens is treasonist, and he should be impeached for this. According to a poll on MichaelSavage.com, 11,148,816 people out of 12,020,696 votes do not want to legalize illegal aliens. This poll has been on going since Dec. 10. The cost of his plan for illegal aliens will cost American taxpayers an estimated $345 billion over 20 years. This is just an estimate. It will most likely cost much, much more. President Bush wants to go to the moon and Mars. This is estimated to cost $1 trillion. He gave Africa $15 billion for AIDS. The cost of rebuilding Iraq will cost $87 billion. At least this is what he asked Congress for. He should spend this money here in America to help our citizens. And I do not mean that the money should be given to NASA. He has alienated his conservative and Christian base. President Bush is stealing from the American taxpayer to fund the "One World Government" plan of his father. This man scares me. Do not vote for him again. Actually to save this country, we should impeach George Bush right now! W. Joe Lyon, Eugene WOBBLIES Technology is about as old as humanity itself, but it has been accelerating with us since the Industrial Revolution. In this age of omnipresent computerization, we find ourselves ruled by the trinity of politicians, businessmen and technologists. We live with what Wilhelm Reich called the emotional plague. Our lives are so determined now that they are over-determined. Eugene is an oasis in this trinitarian Amerika and world. I've heard Eugene called leftist, but more accurately it is a staunchly liberal small city with some sporadic leftism in it. But the city of Eugene establishment is not exactly in sync with the spirit of Eugene. Of course the law is regressive everywhere, but in such an exemplary little city should the homeless be in violation of the law for sleeping in parks? And should I get into trouble if I spit in a gutter or use "profane" language in the Eugene Station? Violence we don't need; conversely, to borrow from Ionesco's Rhinoceros, we don't want people turning into rhinoceri, or conformists. An informed Whitaker source tells me the Eugene anarchists are still in WTO-riot shellshock. The Eugene Wobblies seem far more interested in organizing meetings than in anarchosyndicalism. Intermittent counter-determining tactics are needed: clowning, satire, buffoonery, subverting, passive resistance, civil disobedience, negation, unmasking, stealth tactics, Rausch (intoxication, ecstasy), aid, mutual aid, employing Ollier's "drum" or "Arab telephone," being Aquarian, and solidarity of students with workers and the poor. Power to the people! Paul J. Green, Eugene OUR PRECIOUS Here's a brainteaser for all fans of The Lord of the Rings films. Take out a dollar bill, flip it over and stare at that pyramid thing on the left. What do you see? A giant glowing eye on top of a tower! Now remember what the initial logo for the Bush administration's total information awareness program looked like? Basically that great seal image towering over the globe with a searchlight shining out of the eyeball! You guessed it — the big evil eye of Sauron and the dark forces of Mordor are firmly in control of the U.S. military industrial complex, FBI, CIA and prisons and are brutally searching for ultimate power and control. That would also mean that we little people who refuse to participate and aren't yet mind-controlled are responsible for the defense of the forests, the water, the air, the climate and the right of self determination around the world. Our task is also to melt their symbol of power — not a ring or one all-destroying weapon — but the concentration of wealth represented by corporate control and organized crime. The very least that one can do is to vote out the Bush administration this year. Keep in mind that Congressman Kucinich looks like the heroic Frodo while Senator Leiberman resembles Gollum. Anthony Willey, Cottage Grove
HUMAN PAWNS How easy it must be for the swollen heads in Washington, D.C., to move human pawns around on "their" global chessboard when their own positions are soft and secure, their stomachs full and the money keeps pouring in. They will spend millions on their re-election campaigns just to inform we, the people, that the country is broke. How can the government be broke when the government prints the money? Our leaders do not find solutions to the problems; they create the problems and then ask for more money to form committees to look into the issues and address concerns relevant to the needs of the special interests that are telling the politicians what to do. That an evangelical Christian leader wants to be known as the War President sets a new level for irony in political discourse. That the wealthiest nation in the history of the world won't feed and house its own poor is an unjustifiable disgrace in a democracy; under the despotism of an avaricious ruling class it is just business as usual. Douglas McDougal, Eugene
MANY VICTIMS The discussion and accompanying neoconservative furor over Mel Gibsons movie The Passion of The Christ is an ominous indication of where the U.S. is heading, spiritually speaking. Were Christs final hours any different than the lives of other innocent people the Romans and the Pharisees murdered and crucified in the name of fealty to the Emperor and keeping the peace? What about the Christian Crusaders massacres of Muslims? Columbus massacre of the Arawaks? The Puritan witch trials? The Holocaust? The innocent Iraqis who are being killed by the U.S. Army and their Muslim opponents? All were slaughtered with Gods blessing. What sort of God is this? If Jesus died for our sins, then so have they, and millions of others through the ages. Humanity rarely, if ever, creates a God with manners and morals superior to itself. Christ was a rare man, indeed, but his teachings have been followed by some in a twisted, barbarous fashion. Will our modern-day Pharisees of the Evangelical Apocalyptic Millennialists determine who will live and die for the status quo, with the blessing of the Justice Department as Pontius Pilate? Mr.Gibsons film will not change this. It will, indeed, exacerbate it. I do not plan to watch it. Either we are all the chosen people, with the same right to strive for a peaceful relationship with the Divine, or none of us are. Perhaps we deserve the latter situation, and the consequences thereof. According to the recently leaked Pentagon report on climate change, it seems we just might get it. Michael Anderson, Oakridge
LETTERS POLICY: We print as many letters as space allows. Please limit length to 250 words and submissions to once a month. All letters are subject to editing for length and clarity, and must include address and phone number. E-mail to editor@eugeneweekly.com, fax to 484-4044, or mail to 1251 Lincoln, Eugene 97401.
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