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SUBJECT TO PERSECUTION Regarding the Viewpoint on wild wolves by Jeff Long (121/4): As a biologist who appreciates the ecological value of wolves in their natural habitat, I would like to offer my counterpoint to the position that wolf populations should be artificially established in Oregon. My concern has to do with whether this would be in the best interests of the wolves. While nature lovers such as Jeff Long and I enjoy hearing and seeing wolves on our outdoor excursions, the unfortunate reality is that persistent fear, ignorance and prejudice regarding wolves remains despite efforts to educate the public. Consequently, wolves will continue to be persecuted. Much of the wolf's original habitat in Oregon has been lost to logging and ranching, limiting the size of the territory in which they can hunt without encroaching upon lands that have been claimed by humans. When wolves encounter humans or their livestock, they are likely to become the victims of hate crimes. Let's face it. They will be shot, trapped and poisoned, regardless of any laws that have been enacted to protect them. Long gone are the days when the Pacific Northwest was a pristine wilderness and wolves played an important role in the ecosystem. Declining populations of top predators such as wolves, grizzly bears and mountain lions parallel the growth of human populations and the consequent destruction of natural habitats. More adaptable predators such as coyotes and black bears have not been as adversely impacted by human population growth. In fact, when humans alter the environment, they may create new opportunities for some species such as rodents and the coyotes that prey upon them. Associating coyotes with widespread livestock predation does them an injustice similar to what has been inflicted upon mythologized wolves and sharks. It is a misrepresentation of facts to state that wolves are important to Oregonians. From what I can tell, most Oregonians are perfectly happy to limit their experience of wolves to the Discovery Channel. Armchair naturalists may enjoy the image of wolves roaming free in Oregon, as long as those wolves don't end up in their backyards. For those of us who desire a more personal encounter with wolves, hiking and camping in the Canadian Rockies offers that opportunity. Let's not perpetuate our anthropocentric tendencies by thinking only about what we as nature lovers would like. Instead, let's focus on what would be best for the wolves. Mike Skolnick, Veneta
SMUG ADDICTION Caroline Cummins exhibits foolish pride in her article "Fuelish Pride" (12/23). Smug biodiesel car owners and their supporters are ignoring the real problem: their addiction to cars. All cars — hybrid, electric, biodiesel or gas-guzzling — contribute to urban sprawl; all cars demand asphalt-paved roads and parking lots; and all cars require polluting and resource-depleting industries for their production and upkeep. Peter Gelman sums up the situation in Oregon Cycling Magazine (April 2003): "Soon we will see traffic jams of automobiles that don't use oil as fuel; so what? A vision of millions of Americans driving even solar-powered cars is a vision of people disunited, solitary, debt-ridden, obese, and bleary." Robert Simms, Eugene
DISMANTLE BASES Even many of those who opposed the war in Iraq from the beginning feel that the U.S. owes it to the Iraqis to maintain a military presence until Iraq is "pacified." This argument (sometimes expressed as "we won't cut and run"), would have merit if it were accompanied by plans that would allow the Iraqis to prepare for real freedom. Such plans should include an admission that the contracts giving control over resources and reconstruction to foreign investors were made illegally and should be nullified at a specified date (an occupying power has no right to sell or lease the resources of the occupied country); the plans should include a deadline for dismantling the 14 U.S. military bases in Iraq, and they should include a date for pulling our troops out. True, Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi has begged the U.S. to keep its troops in Iraq. However, there is no evidence that Allawi represents the will of the Iraqi people. More importantly, now that we have reached a point where neither the Iraqis nor our young soldiers can tell friend from foe, the U.S. military in Iraq has itself become a destabilizing force. We cannot undo the mess we made in Iraq, but without plans for reparation as outlined above, neither the Iraqis nor the rest of the world will believe that the U.S. cares about their welfare or about democracy in the Middle East. Jette Foss, Eugene
JUST ONE THING After reading the interview with Mark Harris (12/23), I can only think of one thing to say: Without racism, we'd have no need for diversity trainers. Jim Johnson, Eugene
A FEW MORE THINGS Mark Harris (12/23), like many black people including Jessie Jackson, is in the Race Industry. They can only talk about race and nothing beyond. It is their livelihood. Of course there is racism in Eugene, but the tiny population of black people in Eugene blows everything out of proportion. The black community in Eugene is the most self-segregated community that I have ever seen. They don't participate in the whole community of Eugene, and they only get upset when a member of that industry, e.g. Cortez Jordan, cries about racial profiling. Black people are being killed in Portland and Harlem, not Eugene. Jerry Harris, Portland
PUZZLING Thank you, EW, for one of my most enjoyable Christmas presents, though perhaps not intentional. I love diagramless crossword puzzles. In the 12/23 issue you laid out this week's Jonesin' Crossword clues with last week's grid. It took joyful hours to guess the answers and reconstruct the grid. Yes, EW, at least two of the best things in life are free! Jim Wood, Eugene
ROAD WORRIES As if holiday traffic wasn't enough on Coburg Road! I witnessed the stop-and-go traffic and a huge exodus of cars on to Coburg Road because of another accident on Beltline. I understand there are accidents on Beltline almost daily, especially during the holidays. Beltline has proven to be an unsafe highway that should be first for highway funding in Lane County. Sections of Highway 105 will be partially closed in 2005 for repairs. This will add additional traffic on Beltline and demand slower speed limits until we can invest in the needed improvements. If you've experienced accidents or stalled traffic on Beltline and you want safer travel, please call your city and county elected officials. Meanwhile I plan to avoid Beltline. I also plan to speak up and urge safety as first priority for road building funds — not more money spent on the $180 million boondoggle of West Eugene Parkway. Ruth Duemler, Eugene
OFFENSIVE MESSAGE As a whole, "The 700 Club" is a relatively harmless "show" with born-again testimonials, featured hard-luck stories, and recommended health care advice. But it is the Pat Robertson news segment spins that offend so many of us. The man has an agenda. He portrays the Christian movement as a still-persecuted first century minority clinging on to faith that faces total extinction from heathens, liberals, and progressives (ie. the Romans). He is pro-war, defender of corporate dominance, and hardly, if ever, mentions civil rights. One wonders why we never hear the passage: "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter heaven?" Perhaps because it would reveal what those who stand behind this ilk are in store for. Pat is on a crusade to stop those who would keep the church and state apart. The remedy would be to enact new laws and change the Constitution to appease the heavens. Remember that Pat was on the front lines demanding impeachment for Clinton's sexual indiscretion and first to accept and then forgive Bush for misleading us into a war with Iraq. Mortals like Pat Robertson, Jerry Fallwell, and the like are soiling the good name of Jesus by playing armchair politics within their bully pulpit media outlets. I recommend that everyone tune in to the first 10 minutes of the "700 Club" to see this abomination for yourselves. Notice the subtle gay bashing, the willingness to destroy people and things, and the defense of all things Republican. Love only pops up when the donation drive clicks in. Woody Woodmark, Eugene
SHEER MADNESS I recently learned that the IRS has given a tax deduction to a man for his sex change operation. This is wrong and the IRS has unwittingly become a pawn in the hands of the homosexual agenda. Reputable psychiatrists and therapists understand that the gender identity disorder known as gender dysphoria is a mental problem — not a condition that warrants drastic and life-altering surgery. Dr. Paul McHugh, the distinguished service professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University recently wrote a lengthy article in First Things (11/04) about the practice of sexual reassignment surgery — and called it "collaborating with madness." He convinced Johns Hopkins to stop doing all sex change operations because physicians and psychiatrists are realizing that this is a mental illness that needs therapy — not surgery. By giving a tax deduction to a sexually confused man who thinks he's a woman, your organization is collaborating with madness as well. This person should have received psychiatric help, not the surgical mutilation of his body! The decision will encourage other sexually confused men and women and even teenagers to choose surgery instead of therapy to cure what is a mental condition! Please have this decision reversed immediately! Billy Gruwell, Springfield
ROOT CAUSES It is time that we start to address the root causes of global instability. Fighting global poverty, hunger and disease helps make the world more stable and secure. Helping people help themselves provides a way to find real solutions to these problems. Nearly half the world's population lives on less than $2 a day. Every day nearly a billion people go to bed hungry; 30,000 children die from preventable illnesses; and another 5,000 children become orphans due to HIV/AIDS. And yet the U.S. currently spends a mere 1/10th of 1 percent of the U.S. annual budget on humanitarian assistance. The U.S. can and should lead in contributing to the development of more stable and self-reliant societies. These efforts are central to promoting peace and greater security at home and abroad. Development programs have worked effectively in the past three decades to help cut infant mortality in half, increase the life expectancy rate from 46 to 63 years and increase the number of children in primary school from 48 percent to 78 percent. We can and must do more. I call on our government to help fight global poverty, hunger and disease by making a commitment to spend at least 1 percent of the annual budget on humanitarian and development assistance. Lou Enge, Eugene
SIMPLE SOLUTION The past year has witnessed major national wins and losses. The Republicans won by retaining political power in the November elections. The Democrats won because they are not stuck with the losing battle for a democratic Iraq. On the domestic front, we've been losing the battle for our health, with obesity assuming epidemic proportions. We've been losing the battle for our environment, with more animal wastes dumped in our water supplies. And, we've been losing the battle for our soul, with more and more animals subjected to factory farm and slaughterhouse atrocities. Amazingly, each of us can do a great deal to turn this around with one simple New Year's resolution. A resolution to replace meat and dairy products in our diet with wholesome, delicious, vegetables, fresh fruits, beans, and whole grains. With every supermarket featuring a large variety of soy-based veggie burgers and dogs, deli slices, ready-to-eat frozen dinners, ice cream, and soy milk, it's got to be the easiest resolution we will ever keep. Edward Newland, Eugene
OVERLOOKED STUDIO It was with surprise and some dismay that we read your article "Layin' Down Tracks" (cover story, 12/16) and found no mention of our studio, Project One Audio. It's a little hard to understand how we got overlooked since we've been in operation since 1986, longer than any of the studios mentioned in your article, contrary to Jeff Olsen's statement that Don Ross Productions and Gung Ho are the only studios that started before him that are still open. It's even more confusing since the "local musician" you quote, Bill Shreve, was one of the original owners of Project One and was hired by us as a studio musician about a year ago. It becomes most distressing when we start hearing from current clients wondering if we're still in business based on comments in your article. While we specialize in post-production for film, video, radio and multimedia, we also do recording, mixing and mastering for musicians. We've had the pleasure of working with Eileen Hemphill-Haley, Debbie Diedrich and Rich Glauber, among many others. I'm sorry that this article didn't display the level of attention to detail and completeness that we've come to expect from Eugene Weekly and hope you will correct this oversight. Denny Conn, Gus Russell, Spence Palermo, Project One Audio
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