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in 1937
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Letters to the Editor
(Editor’s Note: Views and commentary,
including statements made as fact, are
strictly those of the letter-writers.)
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* * *What’s next? Lumber mills called WMD?
From William Reid
Cave JunctionHoly cow -- I can’t believe what I read in last week’s “Illinois Valley News” that some “anonymous” group is complaining about Rough & Ready Lumber Co. and its co-generation project.
Here we have a forward-thinking company trying to install what will probably be a state-of-the-art system, and some “anonymous” Luddites are up in arms.
I can’t wait for the next move by these “anonymous” folks. Perhaps they will convince the government to declare that chain saws and lumber mills are weapons of mass destruction. Then all the displaced workers who are earning a family wage job can go be tourist guides for the eco-tourists who will surely flock to our valley.
The basic concerns of “anonymous” are air pollution, noise pollution, traffic, increased logging, economic impact on tourism, etc. People cause these problems. Perhaps “anonymous” will be the first to move out of the valley and help reduce the problem.
My second point is what is there to discuss? Last time I checked, Rough & Ready was a private company that did not have to answer to me, you or “anonymous.” They do have to answer to their customers and various governmental regulatory agencies regarding certain aspects of their business. Being a good neighbor, Rough & Ready has been involved with the community in the past.
When the Oct. 3 forum takes place, I hope that “anonymous” does not arrive via a vehicle that was produced using materials that were mined, or a vehicle powered by petroleum. I hope that their house was not constructed with wood products. Heaven forbid that they might have electricity at home.
Hope they don’t burn candles in their cave home; might cause some pollution.
DeFazio military votes belie ‘friend of vets’
From Evelyn Anderson
RoseburgCongressman Peter DeFazio likes to portray himself as a friend of veterans, but as a veteran myself, let me say exactly what DeFazio has done for us.
He has consistently voted “No” on defense appropriation bills from 1991 to 2004 (but when his voting record was challenged by Jim Feldkamp in the election year of 2004, he voted “Yes” on HR2658.)
He voted “No” on HR4546, which was for military pay raises. On Wartime Military Appropriations, HR 1588, his vote was “No” while U.S. troops were in combat. He voted “No” on HR 2115, which would allow cargo airline pilots to voluntarily carry firearms in the cockpit.
He introduced and voted for his own amendment, HR2216, to reduce by $24.5 million in U.S. Air Force operation and maintenance funding for aircraft logistics. Fortunately his bill failed. Most of the bills he votes against pass in spite of his vote.
These examples are just a mere fraction of the military defense appropriations that are voted on in Congress. But, for him to portray himself as a friend of the veterans is disingenuous. His votes are consistent with the Liberal Left and against the military.
I am voting for a combat veteran, Jim Feldkamp, in November. All this information is available on the Internet.
‘Supporting the military and stupid decisions’
From Darlene Kirby
Cave JunctionCongress is poised to cut $7 billion of the $14 billion military budget for brain injuries. Brain injuries are called the signature injury of the Iraq war.
So much for supporting the troops.
And what about that Israeli “Trophy” that seeks and takes out more than 90 percent of RPGs? Too bad Raytheon is such a
friend of the Pentagon. It’s going to take them at least five years to build one for our military. How many needless casualties does that equal?Why aren't we buying the Trophy now?
Then there’s illegal immigration. Employers love cheap labor, and they are the reason so many illegal workers are in America. They have refused to do the necessary checks regarding Social Security numbers, etc., and are rarely fined for ignoring the law. I would like to know if all the money these employers, big or small, deduct from the paychecks of these illegal workers has gone into the Social Security and Medicare accounts.
Knowing that the workers are illegal and will never collect, has the money remained in the pockets of these employers? Has there ever been an audit?
Illegal workers can't collect SS or Medicare if the agencies check and verify their status. I am assuming that they are as diligent with everyone as they were with my husband and myself. I guess we can consider the illegal workers contributions to both systems a substantial gift.
Our good luck may be short lived. It seems farmers are now having a problem finding workers to plant, nurture, harvest and process our numerous agricultural products. What will people do when they go into the markets and cannot find what they want? Or, if they do find what they are looking for, and it costs them $$$$$ because there is no more cheap labor.
Kinda’ like cutting off your nose to spite your face?
Fear and loathing in America: I’ve read that fear is easier to sell than truth in America. What does that say about Americans?
Doesn’t it just rankle you a bit to realize that this administration thinks we are stupid? Why is an old video of pre-911 attackers and Bin Laden so entertaining that it is run over and over again on every TV network from morning to night?
Perhaps more importance should be directed to the present and the deaths of our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan? They are now a significant number, near or exceeding the deaths of 9-11. Fearing Al Qaeda, fearing other terrorist attacks, etc.?
Yes, we should all be wary and diligent. But to be scared into voting and going along with a government that has only perpetrated the formation of more and more terrorist groups by invading Iraq in a war of choice is beyond my comprehension. Then to add insult to injury, because I disagree with their choices, I am called a Nazi, a fascist, a communist or unpatriotic. I find myself loathing these people more every day.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt said it best: “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”
The entire Bush administration and all of America should read an article written in 2004 by Dr. Laurence Britt, a political scientist, on the 14 Points of Fascism. It can be found on the Internet.
This country is headed in the wrong direction. We need to change the course -- not stay the course.
City of Cave Junction needs its own police
From John E. Luerding, Staff Sgt./U.S.Army
GermanyOnce again I come to work, sit with my steaming cup of cappuccino, log onto the computer, click on the link for the “I.V. News” and letters to the editor to get my weekly dose of laughs.
In this week we have two complaints of crime, one presidential bashing, one story about getting back to hugging trees, and the series is ended by lessons taught by a natural disaster, which took place almost 4,000 miles away from our beloved community of Cave Junction and Illinois Valley.
Being a huge fan of history I’d like everyone to hop on my time-travel machine and go back to the days where man was treading upon Earth with his leathered feet and carrying a club over his shoulder. Here we must learn that before humanity ever had to worry about a T-Rex tromping through the woods 3,000 miles away, he had to think of home first.
How best to make it livable and secure so that we could live in peace and have little fear of roving bands of raiders and killers. Lesson #1. Worry about your back yard first.
Now let’s move forward a few thousand years. Ah yes, men adorned in red capes, brass-and-leather suits of armor, and helmets topped with a fine line of fur which stood tall. Romans.
These guys gave us many advances in technology and math. They weren’t created overnight. Hence the phrase, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” It took hundreds of years and many wars for the Roman Empire to reach its peak. And, as all empires, it crumbled in less time than it took to build.
Lesson #2. Attempting to deal with too many things and not focus on one issue at a time, and resolve said issue, will only result in half-hearted attempts which ultimately will spell our failure.
This goes for electing officials on false promises and passing propositions such as a new jail for criminals when you don’t even have a properly staffed sheriff’s office or city police force. Simply put, fewer police means less criminals caught, means millions of dollars spent for a jail hardly used.
Way to go folks. That’s like buying a car and not knowing how to drive.
What I’m attempting to bring to light here is to inform our community -- one I hope I can return to in the very near future -- that folks voted for their city council. The populace voted for concrete, bricks and iron bars, knowing that their city police and sheriff’s office are under-staffed.
Voters of Cave Junction and Illinois Valley constantly complain about the infiltration of crime and drugs. Yet they balk at having to spend the money for increased manpower for the sheriff’s office or creating an active city police force for Cave Junction.
Sure, everyone would start seeing penalties for speeding and other traffic violations. Sure, they might even feel like they were being harassed at times if stopped by a police officer because they strayed across the dotted line on the road.
But people should realize that it’s better to have that and know that their safety and that of the others around them is being looked after by an active police department. Or would they much rather continue bickering and complaining, and vote down any measure that would reinstitute a police department for Cave Junction?
City council members who refuse to bring in a police department can be voted out. People can get representatives on the council who will worry more about the safety and security of Cave Junction.
Continue to shy away from such changes, and I can only say that we reap what we sow.
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