Letters in the Editor's Mailbag.Byline: The Register-Guard CORRECTION (ran 6/25/03):A letter from Eugene resident Alice Parman in the June 24 Mailbag contained editing errors. The letter, which carried the headline "Police overreacted to protest," should have read: "Some eyewitness observations of the June 14 demonstration in support of Jeff Luers Jeff "Free" Luers is an environmental activist from Los Angeles, California, currently serving a twenty-two year prison sentence for arson. Recently, on February 14, 2007, The Court of Appeals ruled that Jeff Luers' sentence will be revisited, with a possible 15 years taken off : There were fewer than 100 demonstrators; there seemed to be about 50 cops, and police fired beanbag bean·bag n. 1. A small bag filled with dried beans and used for throwing in games. 2. A small folded bag filled with lead pellets, used as ammunition in a stun gun. 3. guns at people who were standing on the sidewalk. I saw this at Seventh Avenue and Polk Street Polk Street is a street in San Francisco that travels northward from Market Street to Jefferson Street. It's attractions are the See's Candy flagship store at California Street, and is usually cleaned every Saturday by the neighborhood organization. around 1 p.m. As a taxpayer, I found the over-reactive police presence extravagant and wasteful. As a citizen, I was shocked and infuriated in·fu·ri·ate tr.v. in·fu·ri·at·ed, in·fu·ri·at·ing, in·fu·ri·ates To make furious; enrage. adj. Archaic Furious. by the police action." Police overreacted to protest Some eyewitness observations of the June 14 downtown demonstration in support of Jeff Luers: There were fewer than 100 demonstrators; there seemed to be about 50 officers. Police fired beanbag guns at people who were standing on the sidewalk. I saw this at Seventh Avenue and Park Street around 1 p.m. As a taxpayer, I found the over-reactive police presence extravagant and wasteful. As a citizen, I was shocked and infuriated by the police action. ALICE PARMAN Eugene Stand up to pornographers Comments by the owner of the X-rated store near a Springfield youth facility that his business would bring upstanding customers to the area would be laughable, if not for the danger to our children. Research shows the correlation between exposure to hard-core pornography and violence and abuse by sexual predators. Not long ago, Coos Bay Coos Bay (k  s), city (1990 pop. 15,076), Coos co., SW Oreg., a port of entry on Coos Bay; founded 1854 as Marshfield, inc. 1874, renamed 1944. citizens launched a grass-roots initiative when an X-rated
store located by an elementary school elementary school: see school. . But the concerned citizens were
no match for Oregon's largest pornography dealer, who bankrolled
the defeat of the ballot initiative.
When big money interests target the areas around our neighborhoods, schools and youth centers, the protection of our children and communities is at stake. Ironically, we can regulate or zone practically anything else except protecting our children - an Oregon distinctive of shame, since many communities across the nation legally restrict these facilities under the U.S. Constitution. No other Oregon industry is given such a free ride. Our state's laxness not only puts children at risk, but our already strapped public finances as well, increasing our liability exposure to victims' tort claims. If no one will challenge our state constitution on this issue, then we should exact a high price from those who put our communities at risk - by public outrage, political activism and massive city licensing fees fully justified by the liability exposure. I appeal to our officials to show leadership on this matter. MICHAEL J. KRONING Winchester Keep centennial memorial As a native Oregonian, I have been blessed over my 63 years to participate in many wonderful local heritage events including the year-long sojourn of the Oregon Centennial The Oregon Centennial was the 100th anniversary of the U.S. state of Oregon. Festivities where held throughout the state. The major attractions were at the Oregon Centennial Exposition in the Kenton neighborhood of Portland. during 1959. As I was an impressionable teen-ager heavily involved in the centennial observances at that time, I am to this day moved to remember that early education in the legacy of my home state whenever I travel Centennial Boulevard. Now it seems that a few people are, for shortsighted short·sight·ed adj. 1. Nearsighted; myopic. 2. Lacking foresight. short  sight political
goals, willing to remove from us the only memorial to Oregon's
centennial readily available to express the legacy of local native
Oregonians and longtime Eugene residents with a knowledge and respect
for local history.
I must say that I have been to Montgomery and Selma and have traveled the Freedom Road. I have spent considerable time in quest of the great good that Martin Luther King Jr. did. I have been forever touched by his goodness and the transformation of the American people An American people may be:
Surely there are any number of better ways to give long overdue recognition to this gracious and respectful man besides a plan that attempts through political coercion to not only compel Eugene to ignore a positive aspect of its history but undermines the affairs of its neighbor Springfield, as well. Please reconsider. NICK SNYDER Eugene Council provides entertainment To those of us who view life's absurdities through the lens of humor, the Eugene City Council has become an endless source of entertainment. STEPHEN H. WRIGHT Eugene Support sustainable agriculture sustainable agriculture n. A method of agriculture that attempts to ensure the profitability of farms while preserving the environment. Quality Northwest federal forests are being conserved through preservation, restrictive environmental regulations, sound science and evolving forest management that uses natural disturbance regimes, diverse rotations and, above all, a veneration for all forest values. Forests are among the most renewable resources on Earth. The use of wood encourages the growing of trees that ensures that forestlands will not be converted to other uses. Ninety percent of the deforestation deforestation Process of clearing forests. Rates of deforestation are particularly high in the tropics, where the poor quality of the soil has led to the practice of routine clear-cutting to make new soil available for agricultural use. occurring in the world is from urban and agriculture expansion. Forests are not inert, they are born, they grow and they die. Agents of forest change include fire, insects, disease, wind and, yes, humans. If forests are not paved over or converted to farmlands, they will regenerate as they did following the last ice age. Forests, depending on resource objectives, may be grown on extended rotations to achieve an array of objectives. To maximize biological diversity, grow and harvest a forest - in lieu of hemp hemp, common name for a tall annual herb (Cannabis sativa) of the family Cannabinaceae, native to Asia but now widespread because of its formerly large-scale cultivation for the bast fiber (also called hemp) and for the drugs it yields. . Large tracts of wild lands and old growth forests should be cherished as an important part of our culture. Large tracts of well managed biological diverse forests that provide amenities and commodities should also be cherished. Step beyond the evangelistic rhetoric by visiting the most productive resilient forests in the world to view the creative ideas that are being implemented. To strike a blow for the world's forests, support sustainable agriculture and forestry and urban and family planning family planning Use of measures designed to regulate the number and spacing of children within a family, largely to curb population growth and ensure each family’s access to limited resources. . MONTY WILSON Blue River Centennial Parkway? Someone owes us the name Centennial. Since it is wrong to rename an existing street, I propose a solution for this backwards town. Name the West Eugene Parkway The West Eugene Parkway was a proposed re-alignment of Oregon Route 126 through the western parts of Eugene, Oregon and its suburbs. Highway 126 through western Eugene currently runs along several surface streets (including West 11th Avenue); this route is well-known in the Eugene "Centennial." GARY SHERMAN Eugene Torrey provided leadership You'd think the Eugene City Council was voting on the death penalty. Not to belittle be·lit·tle tr.v. be·lit·tled, be·lit·tling, be·lit·tles 1. To represent or speak of as contemptibly small or unimportant; disparage: a person who belittled our efforts to do the job right. the importance of the decision by the council to rename Centennial Boulevard for Martin Luther King Jr., but the vehemence behind the opposition to the proposal is puzzling and disturbing. The "something rotten in Denmark" (editorial, June 19) that Councilor coun·cil·or also coun·cil·lor n. A member of a council, as one convened to advise a governor. See Usage Note at council. coun Gary Pape smelled was Mayor Jim Torrey doing the most important part of his job: providing leadership. Pape's insinuation INSINUATION, civil law. The transcription of an act on the public registers, like our recording of deeds. It was not necessary in any other alienation, but that appropriated to the purpose of donation. Inst. 2, 7, 2; Poth. Traite des Donations, entre vifs, sect. 2, art. 3, Sec. of backroom back·room n. or back room 1. A room located at the rear. 2. The meeting place used by an inconspicuous controlling group. adj. 1. dealing suggests the mayor had a self-serving interest in aiding the reversal, when it clearly was the opposite: Torrey was trying to prevent a disastrous division in our community from a high-impact decision by some shortsighted council members. With Oregon's long history of racial discrimination, in law and community action, this step is an important statement for our community to make. While King was not a saint, he was a visionary. He was a black man, but his vision of freedom and civil rights was for each of us. Aside from helping to curb the eroding sense of well-being for many of our citizens of color not of the white race; - commonly meaning, esp. in the United States, of negro blood, pure or mixed. See also: Color , interracial in·ter·ra·cial adj. Relating to, involving, or representing different races: interracial fellowship; an interracial neighborhood. couples and their offspring, this decision is an important statement on behalf of every member of our community, whether they know it or not. I appreciate Torrey's leadership on behalf of his constituents. HARRIETT KESSINGER Eugene Military a viable option In reference to Pete Mandrapa's June 10 guest viewpoint about military recruiting in high schools: In 1985, my son, from the day after graduation, received numerous phone calls from all of the military branches. Obviously, they had no trouble acquiring a list of graduates then. Mandrapa thinks high school students are not capable of considering the military as a career option - do they suddenly acquire great maturity and intelligent decision-making on the day they walk out of their high schools for the last time? We allow "Career Day" representatives from various organizations and potential employers, as well as recruiters from different universities and colleges. Why is not the U.S. military an equally valid option for young people, particularly those who have no clear and immediate goals - or those who wish to take advantage of the assistance available for a future education, by which time they are more mature and ready for specific direction in their lives? I personally would much prefer to see young people develop some skills, some discipline and a work ethic work ethic n. A set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence. work ethic Noun a belief in the moral value of work while defending our country rather than see them hanging around the streets, aimless and possibly looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. trouble. LINDY lin·dy or Lin·dy n. pl. lin·dies A lively swing dance for couples. Also called lindy hop. [From Lindynickname of Charles Augustus Lindbergh. BROWN Eugene An unjust transfer of tax burden Contingent upon Adj. 1. contingent upon - determined by conditions or circumstances that follow; "arms sales contingent on the approval of congress" contingent on, dependant on, dependant upon, dependent on, dependent upon, depending on, contingent approval of a 10-year property tax exemption by the Eugene City Council, developers propose to build 30 to 40 condominiums near 13th Avenue and Olive Street. This proposed tax-subsidized development is intended to increase the population living in the depressed downtown district soon rather than in a few years. Buyers, paying $200,000 to $450,000 each for these condos, are far from impoverished, and their collective tax exemption will cost other taxable property owners more than $1.5 million. Asserted to be necessary because of high land values, this market-distorting tax exemption would inflate downtown property costs. The $1.5 million cost of this tax exemption will be shifted, as preempted tax reductions, to other taxable property owners in the same tax district, including a significant number who are poor. Twenty-one Lane County taxpayers lost their property last year because of unpaid taxes first owed in 1998. Additional foreclosures will appear in following years. As of Nov. 30, 2002, 818 tax accounts were paid in trimesterly installments or, for other reasons, were delinquent over the intervening years before 2002. Perhaps 20 percent of all taxpayers are on the brink of insolvency. The bottom 20 percent of Oregon income taxpayers paid an average of $147 in the year 2000 on an average taxable income Under the federal tax law, gross income reduced by adjustments and allowable deductions. It is the income against which tax rates are applied to compute an individual or entity's tax liability. The essence of taxable income is the accrual of some gain, profit, or benefit to a taxpayer. of $1,940. Accelerated condo construction causes an unjust and ruthless transfer of the tax burden from the rich to the poor. RAY WOLFE Eugene |
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