Letters to the Editor 08/17/2022

Roundabouts are the right choice

To the Editor:

In response to Ross Flavel’s letter last week about roundabouts in Sisters, his suggestion of a one-way couplet in town was thoroughly reviewed, and rejected, during the 2008 TSP update.

Unfortunately, major upgrades to our roadways with a state highway designation take years (decades?) to complete and during that time the town has doubled in population. This leaves those who arrived after the public process, which included many open hearings and town halls, wondering why we didn’t consider other options. The short answer is we did, and the multiple roundabouts were the best solution to move traffic thru town, and increase livability for locals as well.

During the TSP update process, we discovered that 80 percent-plus of the traffic coming through town was heading to/from the Valley and had no desire to stop in Sisters. When the roundabouts are complete, that traffic can run through the alternate route (Locust/Barclay) and not clog up our city streets. This will also make the experience for those that do stop in town much more enjoyable, as they won’t be fighting clogged intersections. The dreaded zigzag to cross Cascade could become a relic of the past!

Once this process is complete, my hope is that the City will petition the state to move the Highway 20 designation onto the alternate route. That returns Cascade to local control so we can close down the street for holiday events, parades, or maybe every Sunday host music and arts right in the middle of town. The Quilt Show has shown us (except for this year) what an amazing experience downtown can be without all the traffic.

Carey Tosello

Border or plunder

To the Editor:

We see the passage of a bill that expands the IRS by 85,000 agents. Where is the plan to increase the staffing of our beleaguered Border Patrol?

It is now obvious that the government party is far more interested in pulling money out of the pockets of the American people than securing our border against hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens and tons of deadly drugs.

Larry Benson

Kudos to Cityyyy

To the Editor:

Every city has issues that need resolution over time. Lack of affordable housing; water availability and conservation; and managing growth seem to overwhelm the conversation and are all important issues. In that regard, I wanted to give credit to the city staff and commissions and councilors regarding recent announcements and pending improvements to our city that may not get the credit they deserve due to these other overriding issues.

First, the award of $5 million for the second roundabout. This will be a tremendous improvement to traffic flow and safety on Cascade once the roundabout and traffic diversion program is completed. Yes, it will be another two years to complete, but that timing is much better than originally thought.

Second, the ongoing riparian work at Creekside Park will no doubt improve and protect a real showcase treasure for the City.

Third, the expansion and improvements at our campground are commendable and it has really made a big difference in the appearance and livability of this asset. I call it an asset because it brings valuable tourists into town for a very reasonable price and contributes significant dollars to our City budget.

Fourth, the new playground at Village Green park has been a great success, and whoever coined the idea to relocate the old equipment to the campground should be applauded. Lastly, the completion of Well No. 4 was no doubt a huge success as stated in a previous article. Many people don’t realize how dedicated our paid staff and unpaid volunteers are to improving this great city.

Chuck Ryan

Why such animus?

To the Editor:

Unlike my usual habit of scanning The Nugget to locate the math squares, sudoku, and crossword puzzles, today I decided to spend more time reading the news and columnists. I came upon The Bunkhouse Chronicle, “Dark Matter” (August 10) column by Craig Rullman.

As I read I started nodding: Yes, I, too, enjoyed amazing visits from monarch butterflies while serving in the U.S. Navy, stationed in Monterey, California. I nodded again: Yes, I am concerned about all the challenges of beekeeping, as my son does in his community garden in Stirling, Scotland.

Then I nodded off — “Theory of Everything” — unifying moments of surfing and fly-fishing — half-dozing until I was startled by the juvenile (except for that big word “obsequious”), demeaning reference to Dr. Anthony Fauci.

Why such animus?

Bob Norin

Organ donor awareness

To the Editor:

There is a little-known treasure in Sisters, Oregon. Fifi Bailey retired from being a longtime postal carrier in Camp Sherman and a current small business owner, Fifi’s Hauling Service, in Sisters. Lately, as she is nearing retirement from her businesses, she is starting a new venture: The O.D.A. Project, Organ Donor Awareness.

Organ donorship, an option on the Oregon driver’s license, is still underrepresented in the state, and Ms. Bailey’s latest mission in social awareness and responsibility is to bring the awareness to the forefront.

One of her ideas is to have the organ donor option on the license to be an “opt out” option rather than an “opt in” selection on the license application, thereby increasing the percentage of likely donors and having state endorsement of a recognized need.

To change the existing system would require a letter-writing campaign to the governor’s office or a signature collection campaign to bring it to the attention of the legislature, then to the process of presenting it as an initiative to the voting public. The idea originated when Ms. Bailey donated one of her kidneys to her son, who needed the lifesaving donation. As a member of the donor community [she gained] a new awareness of the constant need for donations and the potential to save the lives of 17 people per day. There are currently 105,772 individuals on the waiting list for organ transplant in the United States.

As Oregon is a national leader in many social issues, Ms. Bailey supposes the constituency in Oregon would be receptive to the suggestion.

To promote the nonprofit, the O.D.A. Project, Ms. Bailey is hosting a fundraising event, a flea market at her residence in Sisters at 572 S. Fir St., each weekend in August. She is accepting donations of a variety of household items, project supplies, children’s supplies, and toys for resale at her fundraiser. While cash is also accepted as a donation, she encourages the public to stop by, hear the story of her vision, and browse her collection of treasures to repurpose in a new setting. She can also be reached by phone for an appointment to volunteer, browse and shop, donate, or simply hear the story of the vision of the O.D.A. Project at 541-419-2204.

Chris Patrick

Election fraud

To the Editor:

In regards to Scott Bowler’s column about election fraud:

He tells his readers that they need to be open-minded and seek evidence to a claim of election fraud. Well, I am happy to provide some of that evidence.

People on the left (and some on the right) who are disparaging those of us who believe the election was stolen by stating this case has been in over 60 court rooms and not one has ruled in favor of Trump. Actually, the courts ruled Trump did not have standing in their respective court and therefore Trump was not allowed to present his evidence. If the courts would allow this evidence to be heard, here are some of the many compelling facts they would hear.

During the election there was a lady in Fulton County, Georgia, who closed her voting station to the public and then rolled a suitcase full of ballots out from under her table.

The documentary “2000 Mules” has video footage and cell phone data showing individual people making multiple trips to multiple ballot boxes.

The first Black President, Barack Obama, outperformed Biden in almost all Black areas except in the swing states (Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Georgia).

The statistical chance of this happening is drastically less then one percent.

In Wisconsin, nursing homes had an average of 95 percent voter turnout; 100 percent in many of them.

Trump won the four swing states, Iowa, North Carolina, Florida, and Ohio (nobody has won those and lost the presidency in over 100 years).

Trump also won 18 of 19 bellwether counties, which is statistically close to impossible as it gets.

The documentary “2000 Mules” demonstrates a correlation between specific non-profit organizations and mule traffic to multiple ballot boxes. There are also thousands of affidavits people have signed under the penalty of perjury claiming they witnessed voter fraud, including in Wayne County, Michigan, where 28 percent of the votes were “misplaced or destroyed” (however that happens).

The fact that no national media has debunked these facts reinforces my belief that these facts cannot be debunked. Because of their hostility toward Trump and his MAGA agenda they are willing to look the other way even bully Americans, much like the emails on Hunter Biden’s laptop of the Biden family directly receiving money from China, bring it up and you will be silenced on all major platforms.

I am the Sisters Republican Precinct leader and while trying to get out the vote I have found several people on the list from the Deschutes County election clerk whom I have known to have moved away years ago, and they could very well receive ballots this next election. The laws we have ensure our elections cannot be secure. I would argue that the opportunity for voter fraud in our elections in Oregon and across the country are the key feature, not an unintended symptom. As the saying goes, “there are no conspiracies but there are no coincidences.”

I invite Mr. Bowler and any other cynics to the showing of “2000 Mules” at Aspen Lakes Monday, August 22 at 6:30 p.m.; it will be shown free of charge, and I would love to hear what you think. The drink of your choice will be on me!

Eric Bilderback, Republican PCP

The Chicks in Bend

To the Editor:

The Chicks took the stage under a full harvest moon and the crowd rose to its feet and never sat down for a full two hours. They sent so much love to The Chicks that all those wounds from rotten ex-husbands shoulda been healed.

It was full-on, well-deserved adoration. They were a dream team of three, singin’ of hard times with hard men and politics way too left for Texas. They never stopped and took the crowd higher to a crescendo of “Earl’s Gotta Die.” It was love at first and last sight.

Stella Dean

FBI raid

To the Editor:

I’ve written to the editor previously about our state’s current leadership bringing the FBI in to investigate a candidate running for office in Central Oregon, simply because he was demonstrating his/our First Amendment rights in the objection to the overreach of state and local government officials during the pandemic.

I joined the candidate’s campaign team after the Bend Bulletin ran articles of false “opinions” against the candidate from those wanting to keep the public from knowing the dollar amount of federal emergency funds that was the motivation behind the mandates and enforcing them.

The local media sources refused to mention the emergency funds that the state government agencies and schools were receiving even when the public records were sent to them.

The Bulletin continued to run smear articles against the Republican candidate.

I helped the campaign team by requesting and paying for public records from city, county, state, and federal agencies. Some were transparent in the requests; yet, many were not, including certain law enforcement agencies, city councils, our district attorney’s office, and the FBI. I have the emails to prove what I’m saying.

This past week, we saw yet again the weaponization of the FBI for political means by the raid of President Trump’s home less than 100 days until the midterms. The left-leaning media is not printing the truth again. This is too important! We can’t stand by and watch one party (and the media that support them) demonize the other party this way. Are we to have free elections anymore?

Every nonaffiliated independent, libertarian, and conservative voter must answer loudly at the voting box in November. We must stand up and say, “Not on my watch.” We must stand up for our Constitution, Bill of Rights, and the rule of law. No matter if you personally like or dislike those who are being attacked this way. Get out and vote. Vote these people out of power before it’s too late.

Valerie Troyer