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CARING FOR THE LAND? It was inspiring to hear of the volunteer group NEST and their success at finding red tree vole nests — voles being the main food source for the threatened spotted owl — in the Trapper logging sale in the McKenzie River watershed, Eugene's source of drinking water. Despite having already sold Trapper — to Eugene's own Aaron Jones' Seneca-Jones Lumber — the Forest Service is required to "take a serious look at credible new info." Not only should these substantial findings of nests be taken into account, but the fact that the FS surveys found zero nests where volunteers have found 30 suggests the FS surveys to be grossly inadequate. On these grounds alone, the Trapper sale should be canceled and the entire process of FS surveying should be subjected to intense scrutiny. So far as logging to "mimic fire to help researchers better understand the role of fire in forests," here's an idea: How about the FS visit any of a number of recent burns throughout Oregon's forests to collect their "data." Seriously, is anybody fooled by the claim to log in our remaining 5 percent of native forests for "research purposes"? Legitimate fire research would include leaving the burned organic matter in the forest for soil enrichment and would not have a profit motive. I don't think I'm alone in saying that it's time the Forest Service start taking its slogan "Caring for the Land and Serving People" seriously. Johnny VanHerwaarden, Eugene
BREAKING RANKS Rep. Peter DeFazio told us at his Aug. 21 town meetings that he will continue to vote for Iraq War supplemental funding bills, wasting enormous amounts of our money to support murder. Several of us were there to tell him that his votes are unacceptable, but DeFazio wasn't listening. He wanted to tell us "how Congress works." Congress clearly is not working, and neither is he. Twenty years in Congress have made DeFazio as arrogant as Joe Lieberman. I've never voted for a Republican in my life, but in November I'll be voting for DeFazio's opponent, whoever that is, as the only way to send a message. Lynn Porter, Eugene
TORREY'S ETHICS OK, please correct me if I'm wrong, but when Jim Torrey was mayor of Eugene, didn't he and his rich buddies buy a bunch of land out on West 11th Avenue? Then didn't they use their positions in city government to lure Hyundai/Hynix to Eugene with huge corporate subsidies? And then didn't they re-sell this suddenly valuable land for insane amounts of profit? Am I the only person who sees this as a total abuse of power? Am I the only one who views this as an incredible violation of ethics? Or did this just "not happen" the way that G.W. Bush "never lied"?
James Peplinski, Eugene
EDITOR'S NOTE: As we recall, Torrey's apparent conflict of interest was investigated in this case, but technically he was not in violation since he was not the only party to profit from this development. Oregon's ethics rules are among the weakest in the nation.
A-BOMB: LOWER CASUALTIES Nate Krusi (8/17) fails to appreciate the truth in Jerry Ritter's (8/10) letter. War and atrocities don't take place in a vacuum. Memory is of value to establish why we fight. In 1945, America was feeling less than charitable toward Japan: Death tallies in Korea and China approached 20 million; rape of Nanking; Bataan death march; inhumane treatment of POWs; prostitution of thousands of women for "comfort." If you invade, abduct and kill your neighbor, you can expect a disproportionate response. A disproportionate response could have been all-out invasion of Japan. Based on what occurred in Iwo Jima and Okinawa, the result would be huge casualties. A disproportionate response could have been to continue with traditional fire bombing. More people were killed in one night in Tokyo with fire bombs than were killed with the A-bomb. Continued firebombing would result in large casualties. A disproportionate response could have been to starve Japan into submission. Their merchant fleet had been sunk. Starvation would take time and result in tremendous casualties. The chosen disproportionate response: Drop the bombs and provide Japan a "face saving" excuse to surrender. It was an immediate end. It killed thousands, but it may have saved millions. General Forrest remarked that "War means fighting and fighting means killing." Once we have crossed the Rubicon, the rest is just detail. Certainly it is best to be slow to anger, and we all hope that what we hold dear to us is never threatened. There is value in memory, prediction of behavior, negotiation and action. Warren Walsh, Eugene
WHO IS THE ENEMY? "We've met the enemy and it is us," said Pogo. An estimated 20,000 humans die daily from preventable disease and starvation. As if there wasn't enough violence, death and suffering in the world (for example: AIDS epidemic in Africa, starvation in Darfur, vicious killing in Iraq and Afghanistan), now there is another war in Lebanon and Israel-Palestine. Who's to blame? Depends on whom you ask. Here are a few of the usual suspects: weapons manufactures; arms dealers; war profiteers; politicians willing to send our children to kill and to die, young people willing, persuaded or coerced into violence; the fearful; the covetous and greedy, that is: those who desire control of others' resources; those who gain power by taking others' property or assets; last but not least, us, the public, who willingly acquiesce, approve and finance a war machine that can take life so casually, as if it were some kind of "reality" TV. For the desensitized public, distanced from the horror, the reality of war is sanitized. Just a few missiles and bombs falling on your own house or a few of your own family ripped to shreds could change such an insulated perspective. People of professed "religious faith," whether Christian, Jewish or Muslim, often claim that this or that war is necessary because God says it is. Or we "must kill them before they kill us." Or "better to fight them over there than here." Jesus said "blessed are the peacemakers." Perhaps they realize there is no there, only here, and no them, only us. Tom Hinkle, Springfield
AGHAST, ME HEARTIES Debra Merskin, in her opinion piece (8/24) about pirates, is apparently aghast that pirates are celebrated these days. She wishes we would consider how awful pirates really were. Good grief. I hope Ms. Merskin has weightier things to work on at her UO post than this. Of course we all know that pirates were mean and killed people. So what? We don't want to be real pirates. We want to have some fun, see a good movie, ride on the Disney ride and swashbuckle around the house. We don't need some know-it-all, which Eugene is absolutely full of, to tell us that our fun is somehow wrong. I suspect that Ms. Merskin is one of those folks who protest the selling of toy guns and soldier toys each Christmas. Do us a favor. Leave us alone. We're just playing. Arrrrrrrrrgh! Randy "No Beard" Kolb, Eugene
PLUNDER, MY ASS Oh come on, lighten up! Pirates are cool. Nathaniel Embry, Eugene
PERS HIPOCRISY Lane County residents should be aware that the proposed Lane County income tax fully exempts all PERS retirement income from this tax. This is spelled out on page 29, under "Item 4.522 Deductions" of the PDF document titled "A Proposal for Funding Public Safety." See www.lanecounty.org/incometaxordinance.htm Regarding this particular matter, we ought to expect better from the Lane County commissioners who themselves are public employees. They are charged in their actions to fairly represent, seriously consider and equitably balance the interest of all Lane County residents, not just those of public employees. To be fair to all county residents, either all retirement income should be subject to this tax, or if any retirement income is to be exempt, then all retirement income from all sources, public, private and otherwise, should be exempt, not just that retirement income received by Oregon's public employees. Whether you are retired or not, whether you are a public employee or not, this one extremely inequitable provision should absolutely justify your "no" vote on the currently proposed Lane County income tax. John McVickar, Eugene
GOT FLOOR? I never thought I would be so consumed with floors, but then I became a dancer. Dancing requires several things, one of which is a floor to dance on. While some things may be practiced in a tiny apartment, full out dancing on a good floor is a necessity for ballroom competitors. My dance partner and I began taking ballroom dance seriously six months ago. Since then, we have become dance floor seekers. Wherever there is an affordable floor, we are trying to get in. We have used everything from gymnasiums to smooth cement at the bottom of staircases. Honestly, we are not criminals, but I feel the general public is suspicious as they pass by us in the corner of some hallway with our dance manuals in hand. If you are reading this and you are one of the onlookers, I promise I don't want to rob you, I just want to practice my heel turn. For those who are unfamiliar with ballroom, a heel turn is what I may spend the rest of my dance career working to perfect. All kidding aside, my partner and I need practice space. I hope that this might spark someone's interest and they will contact me with the location of the perfect floor, but if that does not happen then maybe I will have at least entertained some and related to fellow dancers who face the same question: Got floor? Julia Petewon, comejaime@yahoo.com
MISGUIDED VIOLENCE Scientists agree that global warming is real, caused by human activity and may have devastating consequences. The Bush administration, however, has intentionally confused the issue and misled the public. Significant progress against global warming will not occur so long as the far right controls our government. Bush said he would never sign the modest Kyoto treaty and he has made no commitment to environmental protection. With the military disasters in Iraq and Lebanon, the conservatives tell us that we are already in WW III and urge us to continue the slaughter by attacking Iran. Their misguided violence diverts huge resources from the issue of global warming, despite recent events in Britain demonstrating that the war on terror is most effectively fought with police and intelligence. A mass political movement is our only chance. The sacrifices we make now will pale in comparison with those with which we will otherwise burden our children. Those of us who are not already doing so need to step up to the plate. I suggest that we form affinity groups of six to 10 people and meet twice a week, once to plan and once to peacefully but assertively communicate our message in public spaces. No one wants to spend our time this way, but let's be clear that recycling and riding bicycles by themselves will not do it. With courage and determination, we may be able to avert the greatest cataclysm in history. Chuck Areford, Eugene
SMOKY HAZARD How are you feeling this month? If you're like me, every August you just don't feel so good — scratchy throat, runny eyes, low energy, headaches. To me it is not a mystery, only because I have become aware of a practice that completely changes air quality, weather, visibility and health in the Willamette Valley every summer from the end of July until October: field burning by grass seed farmers. These farmers burn up to 60,000 acres a year and what goes up in smoke is not only the remaining grass on their fields but also the pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers that have been applied on those fields and with all of that our quality of life. Many people are not aware of what is happening. They attribute the coating of soot on their cars and windows to dust from dryness. They attribute the haze and cloudy mornings to a change of weather. Others will say, well, it's a lot better than it used to be when you could barely see across the road. In 1991 the amount of acres that could be burned went from 250,000 to 60,000. But the fact remains: this practice affects the air we all breathe. There are alternatives but they require purchasing additional equipment to turn over the soil or to cut the remaining straw. In fact farmers are given tax credits of up to $60,000 per farmer to encourage these alternative practices. So not only are you being forced to breathe poison air, but you are subsidizing these polluters as well. The other day I climbed Spencer Butte and had a 360 degree vantage point of the Willamette Valley. It looked like a war zone, with multiple mushroom clouds billowing from the valley floor to the atmosphere. I could smell the smoke and was surrounded by a blanket of smoky haze. You can call the DA complaint line, 686-7600, but really the only solution is to change the legislation. Call or e-mail your state lawmakers. E-mail me and let's see if we can organize around this issue to protect our health and our quality of life. Dana Vion , Springfield, viondana@comcast.net
BUSH WAR CRIMES Benjamin Ferencz, a former chief prosecutor of the Nuremberg Trials and a chief architect of international law regarding war crimes, recently stated that "an unprovoked or 'aggressive' war is the highest crime against mankind." Continuing, "a prima facie case can be made that the United States is guilty of the supreme crime against humanity, that being an illegal war of aggression against a sovereign nation." He also recommended that George Bush should be tried along with Saddam Hussein for war crimes. In lieu of Ferencz's statements of Bush war crimes, a history of murderous U.S.-sponsored dictatorships in Central and South America and the cauldron of fire and death which is now Iraq, one can see why a majority of the world's population are galled by George Bush and Condoleeza Rice strutting around like rock stars for "democracy" and lobbying for intervention in Cuba and Venezuela, especially after the shady failed coup attempt with twice democratically elected Chavez. Ironically, Venezuelan and Cuban achievements in education and health care, in many categories, are superior to those in the U.S., so let's stop worrying about Castro and Chavez and focus on our own nation's health. A good start would be to confront this administration's criminality in areas such as war profiteering, unabashed assaults on the U.S. constitution, the accruing of $10 trillion in national debt, neglect of veterans, garish incompetence with Katrina disaster relief and the systemic usage of torture in U.S. detention facilities around the world. Gerry Rempel, Eugene
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