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WE KNOW THE ANSWERS On a bright and terrible morning five years ago 3,000 lives were lost in a series of instants. Three thousand souls were robbed of life, far sooner than imagined possible. Three thousand dreams were ended as dreams inevitably are, abruptly and completely. How pliable the future must have seemed that fine blue day — until it refused to budge. The eternity that appeared to them to exist did not exist after all. No matter how they coaxed or bribed or pleaded, the future insisted it did not know them. Why. Why. Why. They don't have any question marks because we already know the answers. The unthinking and self-satisfying answer is that they died of hate, sacrificial lambs on the alter of our "values and freedoms." Such nonsense. Mass murder requires as motive much more than an adolescent jealousy of the uptown rich kids and their too cool "way of life." The answer we know, deep within our denying depths, is that they died for the very reason that we don't understand why they died. We don't understand the wider world and the 95 percent of humanity that lies beyond our shores. We don't understand foreign cultures and histories, creeds and ambitions. Our knowledge of other peoples is largely limited to the prices they charge for the luxuries and trinkets we no longer choose or know how to make. We don't understand, and we simply don't care to. Five years on, let us work to improve our understanding. Let us work that the world might one day come to see us as we see ourselves, a decent and responsible nation. Let us honor the dead three thousand in this way, and no longer by repaying their deaths tenfold. Let us carry on, but down a very different course. Todd Huffman, Eugene
URBAN AGRICULTURE I spent the weekend in Elkton, population 200, firing rifles with my uncle and picking pears from his neighbor's trees. I went to visit him because I wanted to see again what he had created: a small plot of land transformed into a personal farm, with dozens of chickens and goats, geese and a cow. Fruit trees sprung around a garden growing a variety of delectable things, with every shed and pen constructed to include a drainage system designed to collect rainwater. My uncle, his wife and his little daughter all live on this farm and fear what may happen to urban people who may be taking some of the necessities for life for granted. We the people of Eugene like to think we are the greenest people in the greenest state but that isn't nearly enough. We must do much more to give this city a chance of thriving in the 21st century. Sure, it means driving less, but we also need to grow more vegetables and trees that produce food. We can do these things in our gardens by ourselves, but with cooperation, we can transform our parks and public spaces into community gardens. Look at any newspaper and you can see that our world is heading into a very uncertain future. We must do what is right and get moving on an urban agriculture program. Time is ticking and there is no time to waste. Micah Olson, Eugene
BEGGING FOR HANDOUTS The entitlement mentality in this community never ceases to amaze me, especially when it comes to demanding control over real estate that was bought and paid for by someone else. We all know that control is what liberals worship, all the while begging like televangelists for handouts for their tax-exempt organizations. Indeed, Eugene is probably the most religious city in America, if you catch my drift. Lately, there has been chatter coming from the religious preservationist types who insinuate that the Wildish family has only extracted resources from our bountiful state and not given anything in return. Well that there, folks, is 10 pounds of bull butter in a five-pound bag. I propose that anyone who wishes to voice similar sentiments, to first qualify their position by informing the rest of us how many hundreds of millions of dollars in payroll checks, taxes of all sorts, equipment purchases and charitable donations their family has contributed to Oregon over the last half century. We are all waiting. No, I am not related to the Wildish family or company in any way. But if I were, I would not deed a square inch of riparian vegetation to the ungrateful and greedy preservationists. Don Richey, Eugene
WHO'S INVASIVE? Recently I came across an article in EW (8/10) describing the trapping and killing of the "invasive" nutria in and around the UO campus. It did disappoint me though I didn't take much note of it. However, after I read a few letters that came in, my interest was sparked. One letter pleaded for sympathy for the nutria. Another called for their extermination. That particular letter went on to describe how because the nutria are not native to this land, they are destroying it by simply eating, which to that specific writer was apparently justification enough to advocate the senseless killing of living things. The letter got me thinking about other species that are most likely not native to this wonderful area and in turn are destroying it. In the course of these thoughts, only one species came to mind as being the most "invasive." This species seemed to destroy more of this Earth than any other animal known to mankind. It is overpopulating, exploiting and flat out destroying this great planet that we are so innocently trying to call home. Its effects are so apparent that they can be seen in nearly all regions of the globe. What is this terrible species you may ask? None other than the infamous Homo Sapiens. Can't we all just get along? Wesley Curtis, Eugene
GOOD FOR KIDS I would like to express my sincerest support for Vicki Walker in her re-election to our state Legislature. I have known Vicki for 10 years and she is the legislator that I most trust to preserve and improve the quality of our children's education and health care. She's always been there for us and I've never known her to be too busy to listen to her constituents. She bravely stands up for children whatever the odds. When we've expressed concern about the future of our kids' health, she's proven yet again that she's the hardest worker for kids in our Legislature by crafting a specific plan to make sure all of our children have access to health care. She has the courage to stand up and fight for the money that our school system needs to ensure that our schools can stay open for the full year school year. She's had the strength to fight against teacher lay-offs and the resulting increases in class sizes. She won't let anything or anyone compromise our kids' educational opportunities. I'd like to thank Vicki for her willingness to continue to protect our kids. Bonnie Ullmann, Springfield
ONLY BILLIONS It would be good if you put an editor's note at the bottom of letters that make such large errors in facts as the letter that Dennis Shine wrote that was printed in the Aug. 31 edition. Yes, there was a budget surplus when Bush took office and there is a huge deficit now. It is measured in billions, not trillions (a trillion is a thousand billion). To get the real facts, which are bad enough, go to federalbudget.com and then peruse the many links they offer. The other figures in Dennis Shine's letter seem accurate. Robert McGlauflin, Eugene
IS EW UNIONIZED? Thank you for a very interesting and well-crafted piece (cover story, 8/31) on unions in the local area. Since you brought up the topic, I thought I would see if EW staffers are unionized and how their wages and benefits compare with other workers. Does your staff have medical benefits and if so what is the employee contribution?
George Predko, Eugene
EDITOR'S NOTE: EW is not unionized; however, we do pay competitive wages and sales commissions, and we provide an extensive benefits package. The company currently pays 65 percent of basic health insurance premiums and 100 percent of dental, vision and alternative care premiums.
IN THE FACE OF DOOM Debra Merskin's article (8/24) about our cultural fascination with piracy left me wondering if pirates display the extreme bravado which some of us wish to possess in the face of doom. I have read that humanity is in the midst of a great paradigm shift in which our culture is dying, and we may arrive at that point where nothing works any more, no effort avails us, and unexpected things happen. We prefer to avoid that abyss, yet we see it coming. We could panic, and obsess on old solutions that don't work any more. We could become depressed, suicidal or even homicidal. I see this happening now, panic-driven homicide on a global scale. The love affair with piracy is perhaps a defense against the awareness of the horror we face. We have no safety net, no love, no real community, no real trust at the United Nations or in our halls of Congress, only hopelessly tangled conflicts of interest. It makes sense to build a net. The Campaign for a Department of Peace is a space for people to experiment with faith in others, courage with heartfelt convictions, and surrender to the overall process. This is what it takes for a small group to make the DOP a reality, and this is the reality the DOP will make for everyone. Peter DeFazio has co-sponsored the House bill. Gordon Smith and Ron Wyden need to be given the opportunity to bend history in a new direction. Raise your voice. David Hazen, Eugene
TOSSED INSERTS Why does the staff at EW feel it OK to litter the entire city with discarded advertising inserts? And advertising, no less, which usually tries to manipulate people into buying addictive and/or self-destructive substances? It is people who throw out the inserts near the bins of the Weekly, and for this the Weekly should take responsibility.
David A. Caruso, Eugene
EDITOR'S NOTE: On weeks when we have inserts, we send out a crew to clean up and recycle the leftovers. Don't want the inserts? Please leave them in the red boxes.
LUSTY WAYS Slanderin' pirates, be ye now (Debra Merskin, 8/24)? Takin' a shot at us scalawags for our lusty and boisterous ways, and at others fer appreciatin' us a wee bit too much fer yer likin'? Well, if it's "revered thuggery" ye be in disfavor of, mayhap ye can take equal aim at ye "Holy" Bible as well, with its highly praised genocides and unquestionin' acceptance of slavery and oppression of women. Or if ye shy away from critiquin' that vicious tome, for fear of offendin' yer fellow straight-laces, then ye could always point out that ye so-called "legitimate" sea-farers of that day were just as blood-thirsty as any sea-wolf: Flogging, for instance, were not the invention of buccaneers but a form of discipline carried over from ye "noble officers and gentlemen" who commanded ye tall ships. Or would ye rather have a go at ye little kiddies, when they dresses up like wee goblins and devils and sech? Can there be much more evil than goblins or devils ... well, outside o' ye current administration, that is? My recommendation t' ye, perfessarrrrr, would be instead of knockin' our wild, carefree lifestyle, don yer own wench costume, hie ye to yer nearest pub, and drink cup after cup o' grog, even bellow out a bawdy sea-chanty or two. In other words, cut loose (or cutlass). Have a "good time" — I'm sure you've heard of it. Or sech be not t' yer likin', then maybe bowl after bowl of bran would be more useful. Eyarrrrrr! Bill Smee, aka Cap'n Crusty, Springfield
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