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Letters to the Editor, Aug. 9 Tuesday Aug 9, 2016 at 12:01 AM We see you What Cynthia and Bill at OSF are intentionally failing to see, as communicated in their letter addressing the OSF "boycott" of Shakespeare Books reported by the Tidings, is that the community’s level of rage toward the company’s actions right now is not just some knee-jerk reaction to the word “boycott” or to a snappy “Entity v. Entity” headline. We are upset because we actually can read full sentences, and paragraphs and even pages. We can read the atrocious quotes from the executive director admitting that OSF asked a curator of a clearly marked banned books display to hide a book from sight. We can read the scolding letter written on official OSF letterhead outlining said curator’s failures to comply with OSF's demands and bluntly stating the consequences. And in the aftermath of OSF getting caught behaving with such childish entitlement — and missing the point of the very nature of the movement to confront and discuss banned books with the bravado of Donald Trump looming over a taco bowl professing his love for Hispanics — we read the comments from the OSF official Facebook page making excuses when they should have been apologizing. And then the appalling letter to the editor decrying the festival's victimization at the hands of the press — with those nasty direct quotes and those unfair dissenting opinions from educated and significant community figures — we read that, too. We see you. And we don’t like what we see. Aubry Hollingshead Ashland Share housing ideas Affordable housing has hit a crisis point in Ashland and our state. We are losing so many valuable families who can no longer afford to live here, attend our schools and add their strengths to our community. The Ashland Housing and Human Services Commission, Unite Oregon and the Interfaith Social Justice Coalition are sponsoring an important step for local positive solutions with an Affordable Housing Community Forum from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 10, in the Gresham Room at Ashland Library. We will share information about the many positive tools we can use to address this crisis right now. We can fully fund our Ashland Housing Trust Fund, which is in existence but without a dedicated source of funding. Many local communities have been successful in leveraging local funds (1 to 9) for creative affordable housing. Bend is a good example. We will get information about new legislation recently passed or being planned for the coming legislative session, and we will look at what can be done in positive ways to address our homeless in our city. Please come and share your ideas and join others in making these solutions work for us. Rich Rohde Ashland Sambo was a hero I remember reading "Little Black Sambo." To the then-7-year-old, it was a sweet story about a little boy who cleverly outwitted some hungry tigers. That was impressive to me, as I had seen a scary tiger in a zoo. Furthermore, those fierce golden tigers were transformed into a pool of sweet yellow butter, somewhat believable to a farm girl who helped churn butter. And the boy was rewarded with a pile of yummy, butter-laden pancakes, a treat I also loved. So flash ahead half a century (or more!) and I wondered if I had a faulty memory of the children's story. I visited Shakespeare Books and asked to read "Litttle Black Sambo." Nope, my memory seemed to be intact. The book (originally published at 49 cents) retained all of its charm. The kid was still a brave and resourceful hero. Trish West Ashland It's a boycott To OSF, a boycott is a boycott. When you say "that OSF would decline to do business with her in the future," Your words. That is a boycott. If I see a play at OSF and am offended, it does not mean I will boycott all other plays. A book shop should challenge and inform us. That is what Shakespeare Books & Antiques is doing. Phil Loveless Ashland