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OFF TO A BAD START I am deeply disturbed by the new City Council's first actions. Where was the citizen involvement in the decision on a 7-1 vote (thank you Betty Taylor) to re-establish tax subsidies for big corporations who relocate or expand in Eugene? Had such a proposal been publicized enough to elicit real community dialogue, our new (and returning) councilors may have been educated on the various studies that show this type of economic stimulus does not benefit taxpayers or a liveable community. Without citizen input, it is only business as usual downtown, regardless of how much kinder or gentler the new rules will be. Had the Council taken its time in establishing priorities, it might have considered the recommendations by the 2002 Citizen Charter Review Committee. Among these were — surprise — increased citizen involvement in city governance. Also recommended were an independent city auditor, an in-house legal counsel and instant run-off voting. Couple these priorities with establishing an external police review board and a living wage ordinance for city employees, a corporate responsibility code and a green building ordinance for the city, and suddenly we have a populist (as in popular with the people) City Council agenda. And as for economic stimulus, a little creative dialogue would serve the voters better than a dogmatic belief in tax giveaways. Trey Burns, Eugene
SMALL POND In response to Shyrra Adams (3/10) I have to say, as always context is everything. When I suggested in my interview that minority youth leave Eugene, it was in this sense: "If you were born here, get out and see the world. The world is bigger than Eugene. Come back if you want to. Stay and fight the good fight if you want to." Eugene is a perfect laboratory in which to study and engage both individual and institutional racism in battle. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Rosa Parks all had intact, diverse, and complex communities of color in which to organize, engage, and renew themselves. There have been free people of color here since before Eugene was founded, and all during its history to the present. Every time a geographical community of color began to form in Eugene, either by legal or illegal discrimination it was broken up quite deliberately. Though discrimination became illegal, it still remains profitable and continues, preventing community. Obviously a sense of community has to be developed in other senses than just a 'hood', a barrio or the block. In Eugene we've proven there are many ways of engaging civil rights struggle without a geographic center, just as there are symbolic and tangible victories (street and school names, leadership), and continuing issues. I love the land here. I've raised my children here. I own property here. Eugene's small pond is predictable after 20 years. My home is the ocean. A luta continua — the struggle continues. Mark Harris, Eugene
HELL RAISERS While the majority at EW are settling into the la la land of "sex, drugs & rock-and-roll," a bunch of old guys are raising hell. I guess by the age of 65, the allure of the familiar triad is replaced with a concern for the people and the inheritance passed on to future generations. Give a listen to these recent comments: Frank Pitz in the Online Journal, age 67: "We white progressives need to become angrier, we need to reach out in true togetherness to the minority and oppressed community in Bush's America and get mad as hell. Maybe we even need to bust a window or two, or three; forget that old aphorism about 'catching more flies with honey than vinegar,' we have been laying out the honey for years and haven't caught a damn thing." West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd, age 84: "We, unlike Nazi Germany or Mussolini's Italy, have never stopped being a nation of laws, not of men. But witness how men with motives and a majority can manipulate law to cruel and unjust ends ... Yes, we believe in majority rule, but we thrive because the minority can challenge, agitate, and question. We must never become a nation cowed by fear, sheep-like in our submission to the power of any majority demanding absolute control." Martin Litton (EW, 3/10), age 88: "If you sit down with your enemy, it's crazy. I don't mind being ignored, hated. I think we're in desperate straits. The Earth is dying, and we don't want to even recognize it." So if the choice is between getting mad and raising hell with the government and with ourselves, or conjugating with new bodies, acquiring an illegal smile, and pounding out some good tunes, my question is, what choice? Comfortably-sedated Americans will always choose the easiest path offered to them. Just don't Bogart that joint, my friend. Robert Simms, Eugene
NOT GONZO Maybe you should start editing taste. When I breezed through the latest issue of the paper (3/3), I was perturbed at the crass nature of the Hunter Thompson depiction committing suicide. This irreverent, senseless, cartoonish drawing is not what I call "gonzo"; it's what I call immature, disrespectful, ignorant, and what you've been brainwashed into believing is acceptably PC. Michael C. Cleereman, Eugene
PROTECTED SPEECH As a card carrying member of the ACLU, I would like to respond to Max Weiss's concerns (3/10) about the recent addition of Date Girl column in the Weekly. I may not agree with either Max's opinion or the Weekly's need to print thought-provoking articles, but both opinions must be protected. The most important of our civil rights is the right to speak your mind. Even if you are the only one who believes you, your right of opinion must be allowed. Whether it's the American Nazi Party petitioning a permit to rally in Skokie, Ill., to the civil rights movement to the protests in recent decades, positions need to be valued and protected. The point here is that if anyone is silenced then we are all censored. To all present, I am not espousing total acceptance but rather the right to exam all points of view. With protected rights comes respectful responsibility. Your right also comes with circumstances that will unfold as you choose. For most these choices come and go with each decision you support. For Max, there are several choices he can make. He can rip the pages he has issues with. He can try to sway the readership to his way of thinking or he can relish in the notion that all opinions are valued and respected. The Weekly and/or The Register-Guard should have freedom to print and pursue ANY line of potential newsworthy events or position they deem worth publishing. Date Girl is provocative, racy and raunchy with an in-your-face point of view that isn't everyone's cup of tea. For Max I respect his concerns and I am grateful he is willing to share them. He at the same time should respect and support everyone's right to a different point of view. George G. Brooks, Eugene
FLUORIDE FOLLY In response to Leslie Weinstein's letter "Dental Tragedy" (3/17), her assertive statements concerning fluoridation remind me of many similarly emphatic "facts" delivered to an uninformed and gullible public by the Bush regime. Long on certainty, short on truth.The fact is, surveys from many countries around the world, including the U.S., comparing fluoridated vs. non-fluoridated areas show that dental decay is not only no better where fluoride is used, but is sometimes worse. The initial "studies" back in the 1940s that allowed this toxic by-product of the fertilizer and aluminum industries to be put in our precious water systems were so outrageously biased and bogus it's hard to believe they were taken seriously. But then, think "Clear Skies" and it becomes all too clear. Government by, for and of the corporations is nothing new. Fluoride proponents are currently trying to add this non-FDA approved drug to much of Oregon's drinking water. For more information about the dangers of fluoride (and the mercury, lead, etc. in the actual material used to fluoridate), check out www.slweb.org/50reasons.htmlor www.keepers-of-the-well.org.Or read The Fluoride Deception by Christopher Bryson. There is never a good time to ad toxic waste to our water. Get informed, and then get active. Once it's in our water (and us), we'll probably never get it out. Richard Baynton, Eugene
KUDOS TO EW I wanted to thank you and your staff for the excellent coverage of the annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (3/3, 3/10) and other environmental issues. Your coverage portrayed well the broad range of exciting topics and conveyed these topics well to the readership. I also applaud your article on Marianne Dugan, Lauren Regan, and Brenna Bell. These women are true unsung heroines who work tirelessly for human and environmental rights, but don't get enough recognition. It has really become apparent that the Weekly is doing some excellent investigative journalism, such as the Baxter plant cover story (2/3), that is being avoided by other local papers. I commend you and your staff for becoming a true forum for community issues, and other media that is avoided by the mainstream outlets. Jonathan Evans , UO School of Law
BAD CHOICE Freudian Slip was dismayed to read the Date Girl column (3/10) in which she replies to someone who writes about severe psychological problems. Freudian Slip chose to sponsor Date Girl because we had found the author to be a fun, lighthearted and even-handed dating advisor. (Her column has appeared in Seattle Weekly for several years.) Since EW has a choice of several Date Girl columns to run in any given issue, we were surprised and disappointed that the editors chose to run that particular column. Our deepest apologies to Eugene Weekly readers. Lisa and Norman Read, Owners, Freudian Slip
TIME TO PAY UP I really hate to say this, but I told you so about the Legislature's illegal action to terminate the cost of living adjustments for PERS retirees. The Supreme Court stated that the legislators did not just bend the rule of law; they broke it. It has been true for a long time in the U.S. that a contact is a contract. Once made, one party to it cannot unilaterally alter it without the other party's agreement. And, you know, those tough guys and gals in Salem didn't ask for the agreement of the PERS retirees. What they did was to make a clean break with the rule of law and take the money. Now the PERS Board needs to figure out what to do with the $1.5 billion they squirreled away knowing that this day was coming. First on the list better be to pay back what they took or they will face additional legal action. Gerry Merritt, Eugene
DAM IT ALL Fact: Most rivers in the U.S. run from north to south. From the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico, the water will drop approximately 3,000 feet. If one was to go up north — perhaps even up into Canada — and dam up the tributary streams of the U.S. main rivers, these dams would be small in width but built as high as possible. At its maximum height the water would be siphoned over (east or west) to a tributary of a different major river — and the water would end up in a completely different part of the U.S. (i.e. to the Colorado River). It may be necessary to pump the water over some higher obstacles, but the distance to pump would be reduced because of the height of the dam. And it may be possible to generate enough hydro-electric power from these dams to operate the pumps. Frank Skipton, Springfield
LOST TREASURE I recently read about a woman helicopter pilot whose Blackhawk was downed in Iraq by a rocket propelled grenade. She lost one leg and part of the other. I guess her bikini days are pretty much behind her. An estimated one in five soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan will have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It is incurable. I know firsthand. At this writing, 1,487 American military personnel have been killed in Iraq. Another 120 have died in Afghanistan. More than 11,000 have been wounded. They've lost limbs, eyesight, hearing, organs, teeth and some have been so facially disfigured they will not leave the house. Some are on ventilators until infections and atrophy kill them. Paraplegic. Nice. This most unnecessary war has been draining our treasury and the treasure of so many young lives lost. If you see a burgundy-colored Tempo that displays the KIA and monetary cost, that would be me. I want everyone behind me who'd rather play video games or be self-indulgent otherwise to know the Bush administration has blood on its hands. Greg Hume, Creswell
EYEING CANADA An open letter to the president: Mr. Bush, when you went to Canada there were millions of protestors against American policy. I bet that made you mad and embarrassed that not everyone loved you. You should attack Canada for its natural resources, its differences, and its bad attitude. One reason to invade Canada is for its forests, minerals, metals, land mass and energy. An example of natural resources Americans can consume daily is fresh water from the Canadian Rockies. We could also invade for oil, which would lower the price for gas and boost your ratings. It would be a lot easier than going halfway around the world for oil. If states like California ever run low on energy, we could take it from the Canadians! The Canadian government is different from ours, Mr. Bush. They have a Parliament, which is so old school, while we have a Congress. Those Canadians are always trying to borrow our sports. Also, many Canadians speak French, which I am sure confuses you, Mr. Bush. Why don't they all just speak English like you do? Another reason to invade Canada is their attitude toward American people. Even though they look like us, they may not think like us. They even talk funny. If they don't like us, we shouldn't like them. This could also be a reason to produce weapons of mass destruction. I suggest we send the U.N. to look for WMD. If we don't find them, then they are probably hiding them. Mr. Bush, please attack Canada. They don't like us and we don't like them. Damon Gnojek, Eugene
IN HONOR OF HATOON Her dignity and those hurt by her death would like to represent those suffering from either a lack of social skills or what is commonly known as "mental illness." Although labels such as these can be damaging because of the myths already surrounding them, they are even more damaging to the mental health of those diagnosed with them. Phrases such as "one who hears voices and sees visions" have been widely abused, seemingly by those who created them. The point is, can we as a community be a little more sensitive in what we say about others in our "small talk" conversations? Does anyone care about the feelings of those lonely listeners bored enough to listen to them? Those who have no steady clique or sorority to fall back on? It is sad that we sometimes forget so quickly what we have said so superficially and thoughtlessly that these lonely listeners such as Hatoon will never forget. The unfortunate tragedy is in the tendency of those talkers to say, "I don't know what you are talking about." While this may be the truth, could we as human beings pay more heed to the content of what we are saying in our everyday conversations? Lara Daskivich, Eugene
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