Letters to the Editor 12/02/2015

To the Editor:

The KZSO frequency fiasco is a perfect illustration of Murphy's law.

An article in the October 28 edition of The Nugget ("KZSO loses its frequency," pg. 1) alluded to KCOE's interference "... with communications for air traffic into Redmond airport." Unable to reconcile how a commercial FM station could interfere with aviation communication, I spent hours researching KCOE and frequency assignments in the FCC database and discovered the answer.

KCOE-FM's interference at 106.5 Mhz had to do with transmitter siting on Powell Butte. The interference appears to be due to a bizarre coincidental gremlin in the nearby FAA radio site. Though the FAA admits it will have to address their problem, in this case their authority trumped the FCC's, forcing the FCC to suspend KCOE's testing and requiring KCOE to change frequency from the frequency the FCC reserved for covering Terrebonne. Links to public correspondence between KCOE and the FCC: http://bit.ly/1Rf0Iod and the technical "smoking gun": http://bit.ly/1OoiKDF that the problem is in the FAA equipment.

What needs investigation is why the FCC originally assigned KZSO the "reserved" frequency for Terrebonne coverage at 106.5 since other frequencies were available. After I mapped FM channel allocations for our area, it appears there are any number of frequencies which could have been assigned to KZSO. It is also unclear why 94.9 Mhz was assigned when KCOE claimed 106.5, when 94.9 appears to be the last available commercial station frequency in our area, making it the only alternate frequency for KCOE. Why hasn't the FCC assigned a frequency for KZSO that can only be used by a translator or LPFM station after their fiasco?

For clarification, Sunriver Broadcasting Corp. is not in Sunriver, Oregon. Its address is in Bend and has owned KCOE from its 2012 inception. Any connection to Terrebonne is a FCC political euphemism; KCOE has no presence in Terrebonne that can be discerned from FCC records.

Why does Terrebonne have a "reserved" commercial FM channel and Sisters does not? How does a "Sports" station serve the Terrebonne community? Why doesn't KCOE have some presence in the Terrebonne community? Why did the FCC assign two commercial FM station slots to KZSO, a LPFM station that can be preempted by any commercial station? Are there any other LPFM stations that have been preempted in our area?

Dean Billing

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To the Editor:

"Christmas or Christmas Day (Old English: Cr?stesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed most commonly on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world." - Wikipedia.

"We are close to Christmas. There will be lights, there will be parties, bright trees, even Nativity scenes - all decked out - while the world continues to wage war. It's all a charade. The world has not understood the way of peace... The whole world is at war." - Pope Francis, November 19, 2015.

"Join us for the annual Christmas Parade. Theme this year is 'Red, White & Blue Christmas.' A tribute to our [United States] military men & women." -  Sisters Oregon Chamber of Commerce website 2015

"A war can be justified, so to speak, with many, many reasons, but when all the world as it is today, at war, piecemeal though that war may be - a little here, a little there - there is no justification, and God weeps. Jesus weeps." - Pope Francis.

While we deeply honor the sacrifices of our veterans, Christmas is not a holiday that should be used to celebrate any warriors, American or not. Christmas celebrations (and parades) should all say: "Joy to the World, Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men."

Gary Miller,

Bill Miller (World War II combat veteran)

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To the Editor:

Many folks in Sisters Country, including me, are so appreciative of the city's foresight in the creation of our Fir Street Park for it's many uses in our community. We are grateful for the volunteer Kiwanis builders, the support and sponsorship of so many other service clubs, the artists who decorated the amphitheater, Paul Bertagna and Andrew Gorayeb who took the risk of hanging ornaments and lights, and the organizers of the annual lighting ceremony.

However, while nearly all these efforts have worked to be inclusive to all local and visiting folks, I think the Chamber dropped the ball! By imposing a Christian-based prayer at the start, you turned an open community event into a religious ceremony, which automatically excludes non-Christians. The history of the Christmas tree includes all sorts of uses and meanings, but it has evolved to being a symbol of light and joy in today's world, certainly not exclusive to Christians.

Everyone celebrates Christmas in different ways, regardless of personal spiritual or religious preferences, and the ceremony should honor and accept this diversity. As a City function, one could invoke the "separation of church and state" factor as well.

Please rethink next year's lighting to be truly inclusive and welcoming, without a mandatory religious design. Incidentally, many words have been written about the beauty of this season, in prose and poetry, and would serve as lovely openers that exclude no one.

Wendie Vermillion