Letters, letters, letters

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 Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned.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 readers:

As the election nears, passions run high. But letter writers need to avoid personally attacking others for expressing an opinion.

Example: "My guy is good because he believes xxx and your guy is bad because he has done yyy," is good political debate.

Saying "You are a slime sucking, bilge drinking, liberal (or) right wing ignoramus for not supporting my guy," is not productive. And, we will not publish it. From either side. About McDonald's or the presidential race.

Thanks,

Eric Dolson, Editor

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To the Editor:

For the most part I enjoy reading your newspaper, however, I am sorry that no one in your company can step forward with the other side of politics. Week after week I see your liberal, democratic (sic), pompous cartoonist bash our President Bush!

President Bush has done a lot more for our nation than given credit for unlike the ex-president Clinton who would rather attend a golf game than give the ok for our pilots to take out Osama Bin Laden when we had him. NOW REALLY... Who's fault is 9/11?

When will your newspaper put something out that is for all its readers not just the democrats (sic)?

Sincerely,

Tonett Malar

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To the Editor:

Thank you for responding to Mr. Williams' letter.

One point that I would like to reemphasize is that the American people and their representatives were sold a bill of goods by the President and his administration. We were led to believe that Iraq posed an imminent threat to every man woman and child in this country and that inaction would spell certain doom for us all.

Well that didn't really turn out to be true. So now instead of a bill of goods we just have a bill. I'm not saying that it was or wasn't worth the cost. That debate will be mired in political debate for at least the next four months. What I am saying is that in the days leading up to the war we were bombarded by facts that turned out to not be solidly rooted in reality.

The people of this country are forgiving. Mr. Bush, follow Prime Minister Blair's lead one last time and take responsibility for your actions. Ask us to accept that you are fallible and that you have learned from your mistakes so that they are never to be repeated.

You want to be a Commander and Chief, well as one of your predecessors would say "The buck stops here."

Brandon Howard

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To the Editor:

Thank you Bruce Williams for stating what many of us think and feel about Iraq, the war and our President (The Nugget, Letters to the Editor, August 4).

We are shocked at the editor of The Nugget in his response. It was vitriolic and inaccurate and did not demonstrate editorial responsibility.

Albert and Ruthmarie Simonds

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To the Editor:

I totally agree with Dolson's answer to Bruce Williams' letter (The Nugget, August 4).

From "YES" magazine, Spring 2002, some facts:

1. In 1990, Iraq had the best education and medical system in the Arab world.

2. In 1998, UNICEF estimated that 500,000 Iraqi children had died because of sanctions.

3. U.S. defense intelligence locates water systems for bombing, causing people to get sick and die.

I believe the Iraq war is immoral and I am ashamed of U.S. actions. "YES" magazine has many facts that could make a person cry.

Gilbert Staender

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To the Editor,

Hats off to The Nugget and to the Sisters community for generating such a lively dialogue.

The exchange last week between Bruce Williams and Eric Dolson is the stuff democracy is made of. We've lived in many communities over the years and none has a better editorial and letters-to-the-editor section than The Nugget. What an awesome achievement for a small weekly.

Secondly, in answer to Graham Miller's letter, we'd like to say that lots of us think there's a whole lot to like about John Kerry. He has a calm and stable mind; he cares for the well-being of everyday citizens; he has a wide knowledge of history and international relations; and he's open-hearted and open-minded toward the people of other nations.

These are all qualities that the United States and the world greatly need in our next President. We look forward to his election.

Bill and Jane Stevens

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To the Editor:

Regarding the letter Graham Miller wrote last week, he is right that it will take more than hatred of George W. Bush to ensure John Kerry wins. And there is plenty to like about John Kerry. "How do we count the ways?" There are many.

For starters, consider the environment, a topic of immense concern to Oregonians and one which gets little attention in the national media. John Kerry is winning the endorsement of environmental groups because he has consistently fought for clean water, clean air, healthy forests and protection of fish and wildlife resources.

He has the highest rating of any congressman by the League of Conservation Voters. Furthermore, he has been endorsed by 48 Nobel Prize-winning scientists and is committed to restoring the role of science in forest management decisions.

Science has been shunned by the current administration on virtually every topic you can consider from global warming to energy conservation in favor of large corporations standing to make a quick profit, leaving future generations holding the bag.

Kerry's position on the environment is one of many reasons that I like and will vote for him in November!

Linda L. Davis

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To the Editor:

Graham Miller would like to know what it is about Kerry that we Democrats like. The list is as long as the list of things that we don't like about George Bush but I will limit the list to a representative few:

1. Kerry deals in facts, sees problems and advances answers for them and does not argue with unsupported assertions to bolster a radical agenda.

2. He can and will restore American credibility and respect in the world by cooperation, consultation, and respect, the bases of diplomacy, which the present administration has chosen to replace with bullying and bravado.

3. He will lead a global effort to stop nuclear proliferation, a dangerous crisis which the Bush administration has stimulated by opting out of the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and announcing its intention to develop small nuclear devices which could be used on battlefields thus assuring an escalation to nuclear war.

Kerry will also stop the ridiculous deployment of an anti-missle defense system which is admittedly non-functional and for which the high speed rocket boosters necessary for its success haven't even been developed.

This, by the way, along with the Iraq invasion, stimulated the build up of North Korea's nuclear program and a declaration by China that it would increase its nuclear arsenal.

4. Kerry's environmental record is excellent. The Bush administration has waged an unrelenting war on the environment, is allowing increased air and water pollution, has trashed the Kyoto Accord which all other major industrialized nations approved and is allowing destruction of the few remaining wetlands. Kerry will reverse this activity.

5. Kerry will save the Social Security system rather than destroying it. By diverting a large proportion of Social Security funds to private investment Bush's plan will make it impossible for the system to pay its remaining members who would be the most in need of it and would flood the investment market with money, leading to highly overvalued stocks and very likely, an enormous stock "bubble."

6. Kerry takes health care seriously and will initiate a real plan to bring adequate health care to all. Rather than supporting the inflated drug costs of today he will negotiate affordable drugs for all patients. These are only a sampling of the reasons that make it vital to replace George Bush with a thinking president.

Philip Blatt M.D.

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To the Editor:

There has been a lot of negativity to the McDonald's coming to town in the past few weeks. I, for one, think that adding a fast food restraunt will be a good thing for Sisters. Maybe not a McDonald's in particular, but another type would be nice...

We certainly do not need another pizza joint, we have a sub shop and multiple sit down diners that offer a similar type menu and such, but no fast food drive throughs.

Yes it will bring jobs, and increased revenue to the city, and open the door for other fast food diners... which is not all bad. Some would make it, some not. Besides, wouldn't you be surprised to find out that others may not have wanted your business to be here? Think about that!

I would hope that other fast food shops would give Sisters a look and opt to build. We could use a good alternative to the offerings at the exsisting restaurants by something different coming to town.

The drive into Bend or Redmond isn't always convienent and is relatively time consuming, especially in the warmer months when lots of tourists are here.

We have limited space to build anything in and around Sisters which will slow a lot of big industry from coming to town. We should be more concerned about how to manage the traffic more than how to stop a McDonald's from moving in.

I, for one, avoid downtown Sisters in the summer months, because of the traffic. I would like to see a stop light go in to help solve the problems of how to get across the main street in the busy season and stop the speeders when school is on at Locust Street and Highway 20... but that's another discussion.

When all the available building space is all used up, there will be no reason to complain about the kind of growth we have anymore, but will bring up other issues of how to build the community.

We all have the right to try. So let's give McDonald's a break; happily greet them, and if it fails because of no business..well... so be it.

T. Anderson

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To the Editor:

I am going to keep this letter brief because I personally believe that there are more important topics today than the possibility of Ronald McDonald making a residence in Sisters.

I find it humorous that many of the letters I have read have cited that a fast food franchise will cause Sisters to grow and lose its "sense of home."

I have some horrible news for everyone; Sisters has been growing, is growing and will continue to grow with or without the comfort of the "Happy Meal."

It is time to realize that Sisters doesn't exist in a bubble and it will grow and change along with the rest of the world.

If you're against McDonald's, exercise free will and don't eat there.

Luke Seile

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To the Editor:

For once I agree with a letter Carl Yee wrote -- regarding the dumping of telephone books on our roads, (The Nugget August 4.)

Unfortunately such dumping isn't the only problem, especially for those of us who live on Fryrear Road. For years garbage has fallen or blown off improperly secured loads of trash headed for the Northwest Transfer Station (fancy name for dump) and litters Fryrear Road.

A few years ago, after several complaints to the appropriate county agency, I was invited to attend a meeting of the county commissioners to voice my complaint.

The meeting was an eye-opener. The full commission wasn't present but I particularly remember Tom De Wolf and Dennis Luke, plus a couple of others whose names escape me.

The commissioners were about as interested in my complaint as they might have been had I brought up the conundrum of dark matter as it relates to the development of black holes in space. They mostly sat around smirking, ribbing each other and telling inside jokes that of course were not fathomable to me.

I got the impression that I was watching that famous Monty Python skit. "Wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more..."

The commishes did promise to send out a clean-up crew periodically but of course the phantom crew never materialized.

So when the garbage gets too deep, I and some neighbors trudge up and down Fryrear Road with plastic bags picking up the refuse.

And we will probably have to do so in perpetuity.

R.T. Tihista

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To the Editor:

I think it's painfully obvious to everyone that as U.S. Postal rates have gone higher and higher our postal service has become more and more lackadaisical.

For the past two plus weeks my mail has been delivered later and later each day.

Wednesday, August 4, there was no mail delivery at all.

When I called the Sisters Post Office, 549-0412, and asked why, I was told, "Because Hap Taylor and Sons wouldn't allow us to deliver."

I think it's sad that one of our once most dependable services has become so languid that Hap Taylor and Sons have become so prestigious that they can stop the U.S. Mail.

Earl Richards

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To the Editor:

Most of the technical work is done on the irrigation for the SOAR ballfields. Next comes the grunt work.

Everyone is invited to work out in the hot sun installing sprinkler heads and backfilling trenches. We will be out there every Saturday before 8 a.m. until the job is done.

Bruce Berryhill

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To the Editor:

There is so much negativeness in the world right now, I would like to share a story about our neighbor Helen "Seth" Sether. I will call it "A light in the window."

A couple of years ago, Seth put electric candles in her windows. I commented how I liked seeing the light in the window so she left that one up.

It has become a signal to me (to) know if she's up and all right or that she's home if she goes out in the evening.

This last February we had a traumatic thing in our lives. My husband lost his right leg above the knee.

During the first few days I was totally devastated, so she offered to go to the hospital with me.

I couldn't sleep and went into the kitchen and there was the light in the window, letting me know she was up and ready whenever I was.

She is a wonderful friend and neighbor, not only to us but many of you.

Barbara Frattini