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http:// --> Weather Forecast Ashland, Oregon HOME Archive Backpage Business Classifieds Columnists Contact Us Forum Hot Topics Local Issues Most Viewed Nation & World Obituaries Online Games Opinion/Editorial O-Zone Photo Galleries Place an Ad Rate Card Readers Polls Revels Real Estate Guide Shakespeare Special Sections Sports Subscribe Valley & State Video Weather Etcetera --> Movie Preview --> Hottest Galleries: October 29, 2008 Letters to the editor Letter Submissions ALL SUBMISSIONS for the Opinion Page should be e-mailed in text-only format to [email protected] . Please include your address and a daytime phone number where you can be reached. All submissions should be followed up with a phone call by the author to confirm authenticity. Please call 482-3456 x225 or x223 to confirm your submission within 48 hours of sending it. Letters: Submissions are limited to 250 words and may be edited for content and clarity. Letters are given priority and published as soon as possible. Letters At Length and Guest Editorials are published as space permits. Letters At Length: Submissions are limited to 400 words and may be edited for content and clarity. Guest Editorials: Submissions are limited to 500 words and may be edited for content and clarity. Local residents only are encouraged to submit guest editorials on local timely issues. All editorials must include a tag line at the bottom of the submission that informs readers of who the author is and how long he or she has lived in Ashland. The Tidings gives priority to letters on local and regional topics of current interest. It seeks to encourage thoughtful, well-reasoned leters and to discourage personal attacks, repetitive messages and personal disputes. Form letters are not published in the Tidings, nor are letters identified as having been published in other local publications. New low for Ashland politics Democracy Together has stooped to lies and selected sound bytes. I looked up the Mail Tribune article referenced in their "A clear choice" political advertisement. It said that Lemhouse does not use a "standard police method," instead, "he immediately goes 'nose to nose' roaring in the face of a rowdy drunk." Here is exactly what the paper printed. You decide the true story. "'You guys are a bunch of bastards,' a Medford man tells police officer Greg Lemhouse at 4 a.m. on the porch of his Peach Street residence. "Swaying back and forth and reeking of liquor, the man tells the cops to take a hike. Now. "Lemhouse — responding to a report of a 911 hang-up call made from the man's studio apartment — is not amused. "He doesn't want to leave until he is sure that a victim is not trapped or injured in the home. "'Hey, you called us. Why?' Lemhouse asks. "'Go away. Get out of here before I make you,' the man shouts, jamming his face an inch away from Lemhouse. "Lemhouse responds by going nose to nose. "'I am an officer with the Medford police and you will stand down! You will step back, now!' Lemhouse roars in an excellent imitation of a drill sergeant. 'Step back, now!' "The man, startled, backs down. Dissolving into a fit of giggles, he allows police inside his home." He [Greg Lemhouse] handled the situation correctly. Ashland deserves better than Democracy Together's half truths. John Jory Ashland Progressive, sustainable elude common meanings A recent Tidings editorial sums up with, "Ashland prides itself on being a progressive community," (Oct. 24) and concludes by gently chiding council members for proferring ineffectual efforts for the homeless. The Tidings' assertion puts me in mind of our last local campaign cycle two years ago. P[p]rogressive was the word of the day. But as it evolved, we had no common local usage we could agree upon. Indeed, local politicos who had been so-labeled by supporters and detractors alike declined the epithet, preferring instead to be seen as being too philosophically agile or politically subtle to be so easily caged by a single word. Sustainability is the current in-vogue word, with the same undefinable "I know it when I see it" quality to it. It is the central plank in several local candidates' platforms. I have heard it repeatedly referred to in all of the candidate forums and have been handed several printed pages with Venn or vaguely manadala-like diagrams purporting to show how sustainability is schematically achieved. It sounds desirable, but I have yet to hear anyone put forth a definition that the rest of us can examine for local fit and reliability. During fat times, well-intentioned but wishful thinking can be sustained for awhile. These are demonstrably not fat times. We must carefully examine all of our assumptions, especially our supposedly commonly-held ones, before asserting communal values that could lead to implementing misguided policies. John Gaffey Ashland Thanks Cate Hartzell, but I like Greg Lemhouse I believe that Greg Lemhouse is the best choice for City Council, position No. 3. I would like to thank Cate Hartzell for eight years of hard work and service to the city. It is now time for a new voice to be heard. It has been suggested by some that the fact that Greg is a Medford police officer is a negative thing. I look at having a young, thoughtful family man with a background in public safety as a positive addition to the council. I voted for Eric last time around in his close race with Greg and, despite his lack of experience, Eric has done an excellent job for us. Greg may be more conservative than most Ashlanders, but it is healthy in a democracy to have good, solid people with different viewpoints. Please join me in voting for Greg for Ashland City Council. Pete Toogood Ashland I like all the candidates, but John's my choice I am supporting my friend John Stromberg for mayor. John and I started at opposite ends of a few issues. We started meeting over a wide range of issues over the past two years. Our purpose for these discussions was to find a way to get our community to work together and build a sense of trust. John has proven to me he has the ability to listen actively, hear people from the different sides of an issue and help make decisions that are for the common good. I would tell you honestly I like just about everybody running for mayor. In some ways I wish this field was spread out a bit to the other seats because there are good and capable people throughout the field. The fact that John stands out in this fine field says a lot about John's readiness for mayor. John has provided a lot of leadership on a variety of issues throughout Ashland. Much this was done behind the scenes in a manner that was dedicated to results, not to who gets the credit. A friend of mine, who supports another candidate, said something to me worth repeating here, "John has a tendency to listen to too many people." Let us hope the next mayor of Ashland has this ability. Along with the ability to lead and make decisions, maybe, just maybe, we can get this community moving forward and working together. I urge you to vote for John Stromberg for mayor. Dennis Slattery Ashland Vote Joe for justice and compassion on the bench When I served as Court Advocate for Victims of Domestic Violence, Joe introduced himself as an attorney committed to nonviolence and compelled to provide free services to those in need. True to his word, he advised victims of domestic violence with restraining orders and with complex divorce, custody, child support and landlord/tenant issues during my two-year tenure. As a practicing attorney for 24 years, Joe refuses campaign contributions from lawyers to avoid conflicts of interest if elected. He has presided over jury trials and family law matters as a Pro Tem Judge, and over the past four years has heard hundreds of trials and arraignments as Justice of the Peace. He will hold offenders accountable and make crime victims whole, while using 12 years experience as a mediator to call for diversion and intervention when warranted. Vote for justice and compassion. Vote Joe Charter for Circuit Court Judge. Holly East Ashland A lesson in local referendum responsibilities Saturday's Tidings (Oct 25) carried a letter from Kindler Stout titled, "Art Bullock will restore local democracy," referring to Art's plan for the city to conduct quarterly referenda on possible political actions. Unfortunately, Art's plan has three insurmountable difficulties: 1) getting a large enough response to continual quarterly referenda to feel that Ashland's political leadership has heard from a cross-section of residents, 2) because of that low participation, the ease for a small organized group to "game the system," and 3) the difficulty (and cost) of making sure that those who vote are aware of all of the pros and cons, the tradeoffs, the costs and the consequences of their "yes" or "no" responses. The reason that local, state and federal democracies have evolved from town meetings to representative government is that those many dimensions of a political decision require serious deliberation, rather than knee-jerk reactions, to hopefully produce valid and lasting results. Having said that, it is very useful for the political leadership to learn how residents in various circumstances feel that proposed city actions might impact them — so it's very important that cities make it easy for residents of all circumstances to express those concerns. Ashland has devoted an unusual amount of expense and effort to doing that by establishing and staffing 26 citizen committees, commissions and boards to act as places where citizen concerns can be heard, deliberated and transmitted to the mayor, city council and city administrator. In addition, Ashland's elected and appointed officials are unusually open to direct communication with Ashland's citizens. Still, Ashland's democracy can be improved. The Ashland League of Women Voters conducted two pilot projects on "Improving Ashland's Democracy," that resulted in recommendations — that should be considered by the city and by SOU's Office of Community-Based Learning — concerning the marrying of direct and representative democracy in Ashland. Constraints on achieving that are illustrated by the results of two polls that came out at the time LWVA was doing its pilot projects. One poll said that residents only trusted political decisions that were made by their friends and neighbors, the other said that residents would devote no more time to civic activity than to using coupons while shopping. Any realistic plan to marry direct and representative democracy must deal with those constraints. Hal Cloer Ashland Save the Halloween gore for later in the evening, please As the Ashland Halloween Parade quickly approaches, I've been busy outfitting my daughter, Rosalee, 3, and son, Mateo, 6 months., with their costumes. I can't wait to escort my fuzzy blue monsters down Main Street with faces peeking out of their "scary" monster hoods. The parade is always one of the cutest events of the year, but there's one thing that always annoys me. Why do adults feel the need to attend the children's parade with an ax lodged in their skull and blood dripping down their face? Last year my daughter (then 2 years old) was very uneasy at the sight of a "scary man" wielding a large knife. What's wrong with these people? It's a children's parade. Punk Rocker — yes. Space Alien — yes. Ghost or Witch — yes, yes. BUT "Man with burned flesh dripping from his charred body" — NO! Can you spare us the blood and gore at three o'clock in the afternoon? Halloween is a great time to enjoy all the sick, twisted, horror you can muster up, but do it somewhere else ... maybe later in the evening perhaps? Sarah Jane Nelson Ashland George Kramer: thoughtful, well-informed As a participant in Ashland's planning process, I have been continually frustrated by the current City Council's inaction and lack of vision. We need more effective leadership. This is why I am supporting George Kramer for mayor. I volunteered to work for George's campaign before I ever met him personally, because I was so impressed by his measured, thoughtful, visionary presentations to the Planning Commission. As he demonstrated repeatedly, George understands the value of public process that leads to a constructive outcome. I believe that George Kramer will prevent the council from becoming mired in endless, circular, self-aggrandizing debates that undermine the public's confidence. Instead, George will provide the focused leadership that is required to enable council and staff to develop and implement a strategic plan for Ashland. With clear direction and thoughtful leadership from George Kramer, the Planning Commission — and other city agencies — will make consistent, well-informed decisions that enable Ashland to address the economic and environmental challenges they lay ahead. Please join me in supporting Kramer for mayor on Nov. 4. Pam Marsh Ashland Tom Frantz: Ashland needs this dynamic leader We need a new kind of leader in Ashland. That's why I'm voting for Tom Frantz. Tom is dynamic and positive. He and his family have lived in Ashland for more than 30 years. He loves Ashland and understands it's unique needs. He has the kind of personality that it takes to unify and bring people together, indeed, he has the kind of personality that inspires people to achieve great things. Tom is a can-do guy — the best Ashland has to offer in these confusing and chaotic times. He is someone we can trust to not get embroiled in petty disagreements. He will get the job done. Tom for mayor! Mary Brooks Ashland Doug McGeary: The most obvious choice for judge The obvious choice for Circuit Court Judge is Doug McGeary. As a lawyer with a long and distinguished career, he has helped countless people within our community. He understands our values as a man who is raising his own family here. I know him personally to be a man of the highest integrity who will work hard to ensure we maintain the quality of life we all enjoy. I hope you'll join me in voting for Doug McGeary, Jackson County Circuit Court Judge, position 6. "Granny Dollar" Peterson Ashland Pete Belcastro: good fiscal leadership for Ashland Pete Belcastro is the independent, fiscally responsible representative we need in Salem. For too long we have witnessed partisan infighting that ends in gridlock. The politicians have taken the path of least resistance. They increase spending and then claim they have addressed an issue without doing the heavy lifting of working through to the best solution. They throw money at the problem and call it a solution. Pete won't allow that to happen. While he knows it takes adequate resources to carry out policies and programs, he also doesn't believe that spending every cent the taxpayers send to Salem truly addresses our needs. In fact, he knows the best solutions are the innovative solutions that don't require raising taxes or increasing fees. He doesn't believe in taking tax money out of the pockets of the people of Oregon to make up for a lack of leadership. Dave Dotterrer Ashland Peter Buckley: dedicated leader for Ashland in Salem Peter Buckley's dedicated work in Salem has earned him a leadership role, which puts him in a crucial position to promote and further progressive legislation. He helped create a Rainy Day Fund to stabilize state budget and reduce bond-market interest rates, extended civil liberties, provided Oregonians with better health care coverage and improved land-use planning laws, As chair of the Education Committee he helped to get bills to improve school nutrition, improve mentoring for new teachers and increased access to higher education. His performance and accomplishments in Salem amply deserve his reelection. Pete Belcastro, his only opponent, is a familiar figure in the area, long active in community work. He has conservative support, but public interest would be better served by his continuing these commendable efforts without displacing one of the most powerful voices for good government in Salem. Lue Anne and Harry L. Cook Ashland Advertisement: Advertisement: Partners: Security Cameras & Systems Advertisement: Copyright © 2008 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved. 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