Letters in the Editor's Mailbag.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Kids truly helping kids

I appreciated Bob Welch's April 7 column "Hands off kids charity." As a parent of a Mr. Spartan contestant at Marist High School, I understand the controversy. I am proud of my son, the other contestants and volunteers from Marist and all the other schools for the energy that goes into making these pageants a success through fund-raising, creating awareness and enhancing school spirit. The experience is a true lesson in community service, commitment and learning to work as a team with others.

The Mr. Spartan Contest raised over $36,000 for the Children's Miracle Network. It was five months of hard work. Some people would believe this is excessive, but the students set their own goals. This experience made my son a better person and will leave a lasting impression in his life of how important that it is to help someone else and work together towards a common goal. It is truly "Kids Helping Kids."

CYNTHIA GUENTHER Eugene

Both hospitals needed

Mckenzie-Willamette Hospital provides extraordinary care. It does so despite its size and lack of corporate cash flow. Since its inception in the 1950s, it has been loved by the people it serves and by its community. Neighbors are friends. Patients are happy. Even their families seem to relish the atmosphere.

Maybe it succeeds because of its size. People don't get lost in the shuffle. Employees interact well, Managers are out on the floors. CEO Roy Orr keeps everyone informed. Nurses feel valued, and have more cheer to give.

When I think of Sacred Heart, now called PeaceHealth, I am reminded that scenic views and marketing strategy can't produce the same result. You can't buy extraordinary care with corporate funds. It has to be hard-wired into a system with good hearts.

This area needs both hospitals. Each has an important niche. Goliath doesn't need to smite little David. Speaking as a McKenzie-Willamette employee, there's room for both of us!

LESLIE NOXON Eugene

Walking without fear

The recent acrimonious Mailbag exchanges regarding unleashed dogs leads one to wonder if the reason for leash laws is fully understood.

To his family, Sweetie-pooh is a loving, lovable big puppy. To a small child or frail elderly person, Sweetie-pooh is a total

stranger, a large unguided missile of unknown intentions. This does not make for an ideal encounter.

There are areas in Eugene developed purposely for dogs to meet their friends and frolic unleashed. Surely the general public should be able to enjoy walking without fear.

ELEANOR ROGERS Eugene

Read pesticide labels

In his April 10 letter Tom Kerns states that Eugene and Springfield should ban private use of pesticides, and that pesticides are risky and can cause health problems. I hope I can clear a few things up. Most sprays in yards and gardens are not pesticides, but herbicides. Also, most over-the-counter herbicides and pesticides homeowners buy do not come with complete labels. You need to read the entire label and follow the directions to the letter.

It is a felony for a pest control operator to not use each pesticide according to label instructions. Our labels tell us where we can and cannot spray. If the label doesn't specifically say we can spray a product in an area, we cannot do it. Most homeowners do not read the label and follow the directions. They mix the products stronger than they are supposed to and won't use proper safety measures. If the wind is blowing hard, they should adjust their sprayers so the chemicals will not drift. We are concerned with the environment, and also with our clients' health. We ask if there are any allergies and, if requested, we fax material safety data sheets to clients or their doctors.

Have you ever seen an inner city youth with no eyebrows? Often this is due to cockroaches eating them while they sleep. Imagine a world where pests and rodents go unchecked. We would be overrun in a few years' time. When used properly, these pesticides, while not the total answer, are a very good tool in the battle against unwanted pest and vermin.

The local pest control operators who are members of the National Pest Management Association and Oregon Pest Control Association that I have met are and are among the most informed and active in the industry.

DAVID LARSON, President

Cheetah Pest Control, Inc. Eugene

Too many lawsuits

I am profoundly sorry about the injuries that Nancy Jodoin suffered to her left hand (Register-Guard, April 9). The severing of the tips of three fingers by a retractable cord leash must have been a terrible and painful accident. But Jodoin's decision to file a lawsuit over this unfortunate incident makes me wonder when people are going return to having some sense of responsibility for their own actions instead of trying to find a way to blame someone else for their every misfortune.

In this case, it seems that either Jodoin's inability to control her 75-pound labrador, or her failure to keep her fingers out of the leash, led to the amputation of part of her fingers. It would also seem that any type of leash or cable could have led to the same outcome. Why should a manufacturer be responsible for someone else's apparent error?

I guess as long as we continue to be blessed with more attorneys per capita than any other nation in the world, we will continue to have people chasing the few people left after the ambulance chasers are finished. The bottom line is that there is no free lunch, and all the rest of us pay the price for those who continue to seek the free lunch.

BOB McFARLAND Eugene

Driven by desperation

The occurrence of yet another horrifying suicide bombing, even as the Israeli army claims to be "dismantling terrorist infrastructure," makes it clear how utterly ineffectual such military operations are. Suicide bombers are driven by a desperation more profound than that of a typical soldier and will exist long after the Israelis have massacred all the Palestinian soldiers, police officers, militants, and, indeed, anyone with a gun and the will to resist their illegal occupation of Palestinian lands.

The United States needs to recognize the current Israeli military operation as what it is - not a war against terrorism but pure and simple Arab-hunting.

MARK POST Eugene

Protect remaining forests

U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth has said it's time to update the Northwest Forest Plan (Register-Guard, April 9), but he fails to consider any other interests besides the timber industry's, which helped get him into his top position. The overwhelming majority of citizens in the Northwest are opposed to logging away our last precious native forests. Continuing to log old-growth and mature forests and roadless areas will not fix the forest plan. It will only make things worse by destroying the forest and bringing on the wrath of the public, which supports protection of forests.

The recent cancellation of the Eagle timber sale should act as an example. The Eagle Creek area, adjacent to the historic Old Baldy Trail and the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness, is the roadless watershed that provides drinking water for several Portland suburbs. The sale was a symbol of what is wrong with the federal timber program. After 11 years of controversy and public outrage, the sale was finally cancelled. Areas such as Eagle and other controversial sales such as Winberry, Clark and Blodgett (all within a short drive from Eugene) should be permanently protected from the chainsaws.

The solution that will end the controversy is to protect our remaining old growth, mature and roadless forests and begin investing in restoration that will yield sustainable jobs, healthy forests and strong rural communities.

LEEANNE SIART Eugene

Temples destroyed

I just want to express my appreciation to The Register-Guard for being fairly balanced in its coverage of the crisis in India. The Register-Guard was, to my knowledge, the only media outlet to mention that in the 1500s, the Muslim ruler Babar destroyed the original Ram temple of Ayodhya. He then built a mosque on the site.

Unfortunately, this was a common practice of the Muslims, who did the same thing to many churches in Europe. In India, this practice was carried out to the extreme. In virtually every part of India there are no major ancient Hindu temples left. Yet in the parts of India that remained free of Islamic rule, such as Orrisa in southern India, the ancient temples are numerous and the culture is still vibrant. In Hinduism's three most sacred towns - Ayodhya Rama, Mathura Krishna, and Kashi Shiva- all the ancient temples have been destroyed and replaced with mosques.

Hindu activists intentionally chose Ayodhya for their temple campaign because the Ayodhya Mosque had not been in use for 50 years. It is high time the Muslims treated others' Meccas the way they demand we treat their Mecca.

VRIN PARKER Eugene

Let family subdivide 

I am a neighbor of the Johnson family on Paradise Drive in Junction City. They want to divide their 20-acre property into 5-acre parcels.

Most of the neighbors live on 5-acre lots. All the neighbors I know of, except one, are comfortable with that division. The person who is complaining lives on a 4.3-acre plot, yet she doesn't want the Johnsons to divide their property.

The county has already rezoned this property to a category that allows 5-acre divisions. At no expense to herself, the complaining neighbor arranged for LandWatch Lane County to appeal the Johnson's case to the Land Use Board of Appeals. This is a waste of time and county taxpayers' money, and it forces the Johnson family to pay legal expenses. It doesn't seem fair to me.

Former Lane County Commissioner Harold Rutherford was the previous owner of this land and testified that the land was so poor agriculturally that he was unable to even get his seed back when he planted it.

I wish the LandWatch people would go bother someone else, and leave the Johnsons alone.

RITA HOLTE Elmira

CAPTION(S):

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