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 Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned.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 the Editor:

It's amazing that McDonald's needs to take out three half page, color ads to convince our community that the company actually contributes to the well being of society. Nugget -- November 17, Pg. 9 -- "I can see opportunity"; pg. 11 -- "All I need is a chance"; pg. 13 -- "I'm unstoppable"; all three pages -- "I'm lovin' it."

What's that all about?

Fortunately, many of our hometown businesses need not resort to such extreme measures. The citizens of this community know how much our local businesses give and give and give to the school district, non-profits and the less fortunate in this town.

Shame on you McDonald's for thinking you can outdo them with your glitzy advertising.

While I'm on the bandwagon:

The code states that drive up/through/in facilities need to conform to all of the standards. Please go to City Hall, get a copy of the development codes and read them before insisting that folks are acting on wrong information. Ms. Edward's letter to the editor last week contained accurate information. City council will review the development's application on December 9 and will be taking public testimony at this time.

The McDonald's development, which includes a convenience store and gas pumps, violates our city's codes. No matter how many wonderful ads they place in our paper that will not change. McDonald's is flexing its advertising budget muscles before it's even here. Can our local businesses compete?

Sincerely,

Marie Clasen

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To the Editor:

In his letter on November 17, Mark Kershner makes the assumption that feeding children some McDonald's food will lead to life threatening childhood diseases, necessitating a stay at Ronald McDonald House for their parents.

I wonder where he gets his nutritional information? I didn't know that leukemia was caused by Happy Meals. I also didn't know that burgers and fries could, for instance, make a child need surgery for curvature of the spine.

A friend's child needed this surgery in a hospital far from home, and Ronald McDonald House met the need.

If the bottom line of McDonald's is profit and they spend some of that profit helping the communities where they operate, then I think it's just fine to have them in my back yard. I'll bet when they are up and running, every fund-raiser going on in Sisters will visit the manager of the McDonald's store.

I unfortunately got waylaid at the post office on the day signatures were being collected by the anti-McDonald's contingent. Not being able to resist the doleful look on the petitioner's face, I signed. I regret that and wish they would remove my name. I have no wish to be aligned with people who are showing the kind of arrogance that Mark Kershner spouts.

Kathryn Godsiff

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To the Editor:

My husband and I have just returned from a five-week, 9,000-mile trip across America.

One of our goals was to avoid large cities and see small towns and rural life.

We were awed by the natural beauty of our country, but also saddened to see what has happened to too many areas. Town after town has lost their sense of identity. Strip malls, fast food restaurants, abandoned cars and sprawl have made it hard to distinguish one town from another.

Towns that once had character are now completely devoid of it.

Driving back into Sisters, we felt very fortunate to live in a special place of beauty and individuality. As citizens of this community, we need to strive to maintain this feeling, to encourage our neighbors to be better caretakers of the land and take pride in where we live.

Luckily, we seem to live in a community where many of our citizens are already aware of this, but lets not become complacent.

Let's always strive to make Sisters the best it can be, while still filling the needs of our neighbors.

Judy Kershaw

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To the Editor:

Barney Howard's letter of November 17 trying to justify studded tires illustrates the mind set of those who will ignore a conclusion based on sound scientific evidence for their own limited experience. It is quite like a person saying that they have smoked for 40 years and haven't gotten cancer so the evidence that connects smoking with cancer isn't valid.

No damage to the roads? The states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Maryland have banned studs for that reason. Also Germany, Holland, Belgium, and Ontario, Canada have banned studs for the same reason, they tear up the roads.

Winter accidents in Ontario actually decreased the year studs were banned. Safety does not go down without studs as Howard implied.

Studded tires were not invented for our winter travel. Studded tires were invented in the '50s for use in racing cars on the lakes in Scandinavia and that is where they shine, on polished ice. However in real world snow and unpolished ice conditions they do not have any advantage at all.

Howard doesn't have to write his Senator or Representative to get them to believe as he does, because Gene Whisnant is like him and believes, without valid evidence, that studs are safer in his opinion and Ben Westlund would not respond to my e-mail or to a telephone message on this topic last year.

That is why I tried to give some objective information to those who are not aware of the better choice in winter tires. To choose non-studded snow tires is also being more taxpayer responsible.

Sincerely,

B. Graham

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To the Editor:

Sisters High School and the Sisters High Leadership Class would like to give our deepest and warmest gratitude to the community of Sisters for their attendance at the annual Veterans Day Celebration.

Your presence at this important function meant a lot to the school and to the hearts of others in the community. Thank you for your service to this great country and the effort you put in to making this community great.

Nicole Sonnier, Maureen Broadbent, Scott Barton, Rose Slavkovsky and Chelsea Platt