Letters to the Editor 03/14/2018

To the Editor:

To clarify the misreading of my previous Letter to the Editor:

I support "Butte" as the best alternative for our roundabout art as I stated here previously. It echoes the colors of our forests, the shape of cinder cones, the experience of driving among ponderosas - even the "field iron" of homesteads and ranches. At no point did I mean to suggest that the roundabout art should resemble a high tech bicycle or anything else, as one respondent implied.

Sisters aspires to be a town known for art. We have a world-renowned residency here, and there are rumors of another. This is an opportunity for us to step up to the current art world rather than to present ourselves exclusively as a venue for local genres and safe choices.

It really comes down to what art is. The Impressionists were roundly derided for their ground-breaking work in the 1860s because it was new and no one had seen anything like it before. Now they are among the most-loved artists ever.

"Art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes visible." - Paul Klee, painter.

True art pushes limits, explores ideas and materials, transforms the tried and tired into evocative, imaginative forms, and encourages thought and discussion; "Butte" does all this. The big-city/small-town dichotomy is false. Thoughtful, expressive, meaningful art is at home anywhere and everywhere.

And if selection depends on the artists being local, that should have been a strict requirement in the Call for Entries. Artists don't make pots of money, and we spend unbelievable amounts of time and energy - uncompensated - to submit proposals to selection committees. Art should be judged on its merits, never on where the artist lives.

Joellyn Loehr

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To the Editor:

I attended the meeting Wednesday night at City Hall where people voiced opinions on whether we should have retail marijuana stores in Sisters. I didn't hear once the effect that it has on families. I know that in a lot of circumstances pot smoking leads to worse drugs. I lived through one son who graduated to meth and ended up loosing his children. It took him two years to straighten out his life. Another lost a really good job when he failed a drug test. I know of a few families that right now are truly struggling with what it is doing to their children. Just because it's legal doesn't make it right.

We have alcohol available to any or all of our children. We all know someone that alcohol has effected their lives. I had an alcoholic grandfather and I was always careful what I drank until I just quit, not wanting to ever put my children through that. How many people has alcohol killed on our highways. Do you realize we have more breweries in Central Oregon than churches? It might be legal, but it doesn't make it right.

Anything addictive and abused hurts families be it cigarettes, alcohol or drugs. We hear a lot about being responsible when we drink, but many aren't. There are all kinds of laws that are supposed to make people responsible, but all you have to do is look through the "news of record" to see that many don't care. Just because it's legal doesn't make it right.

I realize that the majority of people are responsible. Lord knows that I am far from perfect, but I believe that in adding this business to our city if one child or one family is hurt, that is one too many!

Shirley Miller

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To the Editor:

Ohm, my Gauss! Blazing circuit-breakers! Watts going on?

I was shocked by the current transmission from CEC's Ruralite magazine. The cover story was a high-voltage static discharge that appeared to burst straight from the Committee to Re-elect Congressman Greg Walden.

It blew my fuse.

Please, CEC, no politicking! Just focus on keeping our power on.

Greg will not be getting my volt.

Bob Norin

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To the Editor:

As I reported last month, the Sisters School District has begun work on updating its mission and vision.

A series of stakeholders meetings is being organized to get input. Our community involvement and feedback in this process is critical. We have two community/parent sessions scheduled. The first session will be held on Monday, March 19, 5:30 p.m. at Sisters Elementary School. Immediately following the community feedback session, at approximately 6:30, we will be hosting a tour to celebrate the facility remodel supported by our capital improvement bond.

The second community/parent sessions is scheduled for Wednesday, March 21, 12:30 p.m. at the Sisters School District Office. If you are unable to attend either of these sessions, please visit the district webpage, ssd6.org or go directly to https://goo.gl/forms/PmcIHVl4mdwcpNBS2 to take a brief survey that will help provide us direction in this process.

Enrollment did grow slightly again this month as we start to prepare for budget season.

Our next Sisters School Board meeting is April 11, at 5 p.m. at the district office. These are public meetings and offer a great way to gather information on the great things happening around the school district.

Curt Scholl

Sisters School District Superintendent