The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer's name, address and phone number. Letters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not necessarily shared by the Editor. The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters submitted to the Editor. Letters should be no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned. The deadline for all letters is noon Monday.

To the Editor:

As I sit here and read the article "Activist group sues over Metolius project" I get more angry by the second.

It seems to me that the people who have the most concerns in this matter have agreed that this project needs to be done.

I wonder how these people that don't live anywhere near Camp Sherman would feel if a fire broke out and, God forbid someone died because the lawsuit they filed wouldn't allow the thinning of the forest to reduce the chance of a big wildfire breaking out.

They seem so eager to use the legal system I have to wonder how they would feel if that same legal system came back to haunt them if someone does die because of a wildfire.

I sincerely hope that as things grind through the legal system that no lives or property are lost.

Gary Pepperling

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To the Editor:

Brad Boyd's petition to create an "alternate route" around Sisters using the Brooks-Scanlon road will have a very negative impact on anyone living in the northwest and southwest sections of Tollgate.

Boyd proposes that a 10-mile, 45-mile- an-hour route along the back side of Tollgate will allow people to "meander" around Sisters. He states that the alternate route is longer, so I assume he feels that this will discourage heavy traffic. This is a flawed assumption.

Boyd's proposed alternate route would actually create a bypass for a major State Highway. Highway 20 is the only major highway to Central Oregon from Salem and Eugene and a major route for commercial truckers.

This proposal is a bypass, not a scenic route. Large campers and semi-trucks traveling through the area will be more likely to use the proposed bypass routinely because they can go 45 mph and not have to stop for anyone, rather than 20 mph and have to stop several times (on a good day) for pedestrians in Sisters.

This will create a horrible environment for the affected Tollgate residents. This traffic will be both noise and air polluting, day and night. This proposal will also impact those residents who currently use the Forest Service land for jogging, walking their dogs and bicycle riding -- requiring them to cross a major highway, again, one that will not require traffic to stop for them.

And lets be realistic, if you post a 45 mph limit you will be lucky to keep the speed down to 55 mph.

I urge all Sisters businesses to boycott this petition in deference for your Tollgate customers and if you have already signed the petition, to remove your name.

Nancy Buffinton-Kelm

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To the Editor:

It is time to rob Peter and pay Paul! Paul being Sisters' taxpayers.

The recent embarrassment of the missing $ 1.9 million from the new high school's accounting and building controls and the finger pointing must make students wonder.

The board's explanations are weak. So when does the head chopping begin?

As the former President of the School Board, Heather Wester, once said on another matter, "something stinks."

Her comments were about a $22,500 "donation" from three local developers including a senior member of the School Board (The Nugget, November 28, 2001). The excuses and finger pointing occurred then as well -- but again Mr. Swisher was at the center of the matter -- when he explained how he used his own discretion in the handling of the designated funds.

Mr. Keeton was quoted on the same issue (The Nugget, December 5, 2001) "We've got to think of a better way to do our business, guys, ...this kind of stuff will kill us."

Returning all of the estimated $1.9 million in bond interest to the taxpayers was supported by Ms. Wester and Steve Keeton -- two board members continually concerned about costs and their responsibility to taxpayers. Ms. Wester, an excellent chairperson, resigned in the middle of her term. Mr. Keeton and Ms. Wester were usually the "2" in most 3 to 2 votes.

The Deschutes County Voters' Pamphlet (special election): March 12, 2002, Measure 9-3, stated "...The School District has PLEDGED to return virtually ALL of the interest money to you, reducing the annual tax assessment."

Who stated this? Both Heather Wester, Chair; and Glen Lasken, Vice Chair!!

No wonder kids are confused about the word "integrity" and "public figures." Mr. Swisher has moved on, with a "Geez what did I miss." (The Nugget, December 17, 2003).

Misleading statements in a voters' pamphlet and inaccurate cost controls from paid staff professional staff need consequences.

Mel Bryan

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To the Editor:

In response to June Forsyth's Letter To The Editor of March 24, 2004, regarding her condemnation of Israel's recent assassination of Yassin, stating that Israel has no concern for human rights and no intent to ever make peace, I ask her this: If it were a member of her family who was killed by suicide bombers, would she still feel the same? I think not.

I would also like to ask her what her feelings are on our assassination plans of Osama Bin Laden. It is too easy to condemn others when the problem is not in your own backyard.

Chuck Rich

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To the Editor:

P.S. to my letter in the February 25 issue, a rebuttal to Froma Harrop's February 18 column. You inserted in my letter that Froma's column was "on stem-cell research."

It was not about that. Her point was to discredit the opinions of people who are against cloning, by attempting to make them look backward and uncaring about people suffering from diseases that cloning is touted to promise a cure for. She misrepresented the stand of the President and millions more of us against cloning as being against stem-cell research.

She told us that we might as well give up and accept cloning because that train is moving and we aren't going to stop it. In her effort to discredit the validity of our point of view concerning cloning, Froma mentioned our opposition to the teaching of evolution and to abortion and euthanasia.

The connection between those subjects is the value of human life, or rather the de-valuation of it when viewed as merely being evolved.

If we consider it to be an evolutionary accident, then we can experiment with it, use it for our own selfish purposes, or dispose of it when it isn't convenient or up to the standards of whoever is in power.

The amazing design in even the simplest single-cell creature belies an accidental origin. Irreducible complexity is only one of many problems for those who choose to believe in the evolutionary world-view.

The creation world-view is that we are here for a purpose, each human life valuable.

Many countries around the world have, or are in the process of outlawing cloning. I hope the American public are astute enough not to believe everything they're fed in the news, and care enough to dig deeper and find the whole truth, reinforcing a world-view that really cares about people.

There are websites, books and programs that have a wealth of solid information, as opposed to those with just a political agenda.

Lorene Richardson

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To the Editor:

I want to express my thanks to all of the students at Sisters Elementary School who participated in the Jump Rope for Heart event on March 11.

We had about 300 students participate with about 120 students raising money for the American Heart Association. A big thumbs up to our fantastic Sisters community for your financial support. You helped raise just over $9,000.

Sisters Elementary School will receive a $400 "thank you" gift certificate from the American Heart Association to purchase equipment for our P.E. department.

Ray's Food Place and about 35 additional parents helped make this event a great success; we couldn't have done it without you!

A special hats off to the following students who raised $200 or more: Zachary Hannemann, Marcus Arends, Shannon Fouts, Andrew Dyer, Maclayne Diener, Lauren Heckmen, Emily Corrigan and Zachary Lusby.

Thanks again,

Kathy Kemper-Green