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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters to the Editor, Feb. 11 Comment DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News Throwing RVTD under the bus I find it ironic that while the Oregon Department of Transportation is sponsoring a campaign at Southern Oregon University to drive less, options for these same SOU students to use public transportation will be severely limited due to the Rogue Valley Transportation District’s eliminating bus service on Saturdays, as well as eliminating transportation after 7 p.m. Let's not throw RVTD under the bus! We already have due to the voters turning down the request for tax increases last November. While we do need to find other sources of funding, through no fault of their own, the staff at RVTD is government paid and couldn’t campaign for this increase. I propose a blue-ribbon advisory committee. Presidents of the university and college, hospital directors and all the mayors in the Rogue Valley should come on board, and I guarantee a host of volunteers could restore and improve service. After all, look what all the volunteers accomplished establishing our library district. We do get help from the Legislature and government sources for funding this service; however, I believe that transportation in this valley of 250,000 is fundamental. The ridership is manifold and includes students, those who wish to reduce harming the atmosphere, as well as employees of all our institutions, hospitals and libraries. And anyone who voted against the RVTD tax last year had better think twice. There will come a time when all of us won’t be driving, and who knows — the property owner who voted against this increase may be going to the doctor in Medford and sitting next to me! We need to get this bus service restored, and to think outside of the box to make it happen. Wendy Eppinger, Ashland A vaccine overview Because Ashland has a higher than average percentage of unvaccinated children, and because there is general concern about the related increase in the number of measles cases in America, I think the following accurate information from The Economist of Jan. 31 should be shared: “The measles vaccine, now combined with those for mumps and rubella, is safe and effective. Yet some parents believe the opposite and refuse to vaccinate their kids …They reflect a rise in anti-vaccine sentiment funneled by misinformation and pseudoscience. "…it is not just the anti-vaccine crowd who have suffered: …infants … too young to be vaccinated have caught the disease, along with a handful of vaccinated people (in some the vaccine does not produce a strong immune response). "Like those infants, thousands of frail and sick Americans cannot be vaccinated. They are generally protected from measles and other preventable diseases by what scientists call ‘herd immunity,' whereby a large vaccinated population forms a fence around those who are susceptible, keeping diseases away. People who choose not to get vaccinated also benefit. But in communities where anti-vaccine sentiment is strongest, the fence is falling down. "… skeptics tend to cluster in certain parts of the state where vaccination is far from the norm. These include wealthy and well-educated areas. "Parents who skip vaccines are often portrayed as pampered fools swayed by conspiracy theorists. Some swear by debunked studies — like one linking the measles vaccine to autism — and dodgy alternative medicine ... But parents rarely opt out of all vaccines. Many are overwhelmed by the large number of vaccines now required for young children, so they choose to limit or delay the jabs. "That is still risky behavior. Paul Offit, a doctor at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, often hears parents worry about vaccines. He notes that most of them have never seen the 14 diseases for which the government recommends vaccination. ‘In the end,' says Dr. Offit, 'people don’t get vaccinated because they don’t fear these diseases.' In other words, vaccines are a victim of their own success.” I hope this report is useful to some of your readers. Jack Altman, Ashland DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Feb. 11, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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