Timing Not Coincidental
I just finished Rene Gonzalez’s Viewpoint (EW, 1/30) where he relates multiple instances of racist harassment at work just a day after Donald Trump took office. As he rightly observes, the timing was not coincidental. Oftentimes, such hate lives in the shadows. However, Trump and the make America hate again movement has methodically erected a permission structure where people feel emboldened to display it in public.
The first step in addressing such harassment is to call it out. That takes both conviction and courage. So thank you, Mr. Gonzalez. It’s folks like you that lift our community up by making us aware. Please know, the vast majority of Eugeneans support you.
Howard Newman
Eugene
A Community Forum from HCAO
Have you had or do you know someone experiencing excessive delays in obtaining doctors’ appointments, surgical procedures or even treatment at the emergency room?
Would you like to find out what actions have been taken, are being taken, and possible future actions to increase our access to quality healthcare?
Well, there is a group of community volunteers that have organized the second city wide healthcare forum to offer the public the opportunity to engage in this issue. It will be March 1, 2 pm to 4 pm at the Willamette Christian Center, 2400 West 18th Avenue. Plus, the NAACP is providing a Healthcare Fair from 11 am to 2 pm.
Panelists include our Lane County Health and Human Services director, a state senator, our fire chief, one of our hospital staff nurses, one of our representatives, a member of the Universal Health Plan Governance Board and a president of a health care rights organization.
Lane County offers one of the most beautiful areas in the country from the Cascade Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, with rivers supplying us with drinking water and fishing holes, plus hiking trails, skiing areas as well as county, state and city parks. We have made a great investment to make it a great place to live. It takes a healthy community to keep it vibrant. We need public healthcare and better access to quality healthcare, to maintain the investment we have made and protect the natural resources we have been given.
A healthy community is a productive community.
Lou Sinniger
Health Care for All Oregon Lane County Chapter,
Elmira
Trinity Still Serves
While some people remain upset about the closure of Trinity United Methodist Church and the congregation losing their place of worship (EW, 11/14/2024), I want to highlight the continued and new uses of the building that bring me joy. First, I briefly offer my opinion that the largest factor was their declining membership and lack of members (not just folks who attended or donated money) volunteering to fill the minimum organizational structure required by the UMC. Many members had volunteered for decades in many positions and were no longer able or willing.
Trinity is still very active in filling the needs of our community:
Egan Warming Centers operates at Trinity. The recently remodeled kitchen allows for the cooking of food and the ability to serve dinner and breakfast to the clients. Prior to the remodel, the stove and ovens couldn’t even be used for heating foods and the industrial dishwasher had become unusable.
Friends in Service to Humanity (FISH) continues to operate, providing food boxes and supplies to needy families. A preschool continues to use classrooms and the playground. An acupuncturist, artist and personal trainer continue to rent space. The Lavender Network, serving the LGBTQ+ community, recently started using the building.
So you see, the Trinity building continues to serve the community and beyond.
Michael Peterson
Eugene
Make Eugene Breathable
I agree with Randi Briscoe’s letter in Jan. 30 Weekly (“Choking on Emissions”).
We are killing ourselves slowly or maybe not slowly. I am sitting in my living room at six in the morning and I can smell fumes. Automobiles fill the air with CO2. My last panel showed that my CO2 is high.
I’m not near a freeway, although they’re all over the place now, and I actually have a dwelling to hopefully protect me. There is air pollution from the trains and all the airplanes that are almost continuously flying over our heads now. I remember when the planes took off and landed with a circuitous route which avoided the city. Now it goes directly over my head.
Automobile emission control is needed. California instituted it over 20 years ago. People are also burning wood both for warmth and recreation in the city — my throat gets clogged by the smoke. We actually have many devices that could help with these problems like heat pumps which could be subsidized by grants. Change the airplane paths. Think about the poor little babies that are being born into this dangerous soup. Let’s make Eugene a city we can breathe in and be healthy!
Jean Denis
Eugene
Think Creatively
I am not a native Oregonian, but I chose Eugene as my home, and it has been a love story ever since. I like to think of myself as Eugene’s number one fan, and for good reason. This city reflects the values I hold dear: beautiful parks, an amazing library and a strong investment in arts and culture. These are the very things that make Eugene special, not just for me, but for so many who live here.
I know our city is facing tough budget decisions, and I urge our leaders to listen to the voices of those advocating for the services that make Eugene a place worth calling home. I’ve seen firsthand how deeply these services matter. As a volunteer at the Eugene Public Library, I watched people from all walks of life find safety, knowledge and community within its walls — especially young people. One of my favorite moments was always seeing children take just a few steps inside before breaking into a run toward the children’s section. That kind of joy, that sense of belonging, is priceless.
Eugene is a city that prides itself on creativity, and I encourage our leaders to bring that same spirit to the budget process. I know they are working hard to minimize cuts, but I urge them to support the full spectrum of services that make our community strong. These investments aren’t just numbers on a budget — they are the heartbeat of our city.
Kelly Johnson
Eugene
Include Me Out
Please tell me the name of Rene Gonzalez’s coffee shop so I can avoid it at all costs (EW, 1/30). Not because I would feel intimidated by the lowlifes who apparently infest it, but because his bosses are obviously too timid to step forward in his defense and tell the sleazeballs something along the lines of “stop abusing my barista, asshole, or get the fuck out.” Until that’s accomplished they can, in the immortal words of Sam Goldwyn, include me out.
Mike Kopf
Eugene
ONLINE LETTERS
‘Safety Here’
These are dangerous times. You, like me, may be feeling impotent in the face of the blizzard of assaults on democratic and individual rights. Here’s a little idea:
Put a candle in your window (one of those nifty battery-operated ones for safety), silently signaling your resistance and determination to oppose these wrongs. And, if you are willing and able to actually welcome someone being threatened, add a sign that says, “Safety Here.”
Others may join you. I hope so.
MB Barlow
Eugene
Shen Yun was ‘Breathtaking’
On Saturday afternoon, I attended the classic Chinese dance troupe’s performance Shen Yun at the Hult Center. The performance was breathtaking.
After the show, I went online to learn more about this dance troupe and the practice of Falun Gong, a form of Qigong. The article in Eugene Weekly (online, 1/24) referred to a New York Times investigative piece describing the cult-like lifestyle of this dance troupe, including abuses experienced by the dancers.
I’m so grateful I did not stop there. Searching further online, I found a 1.5-hour video that was an interview of a New York City man and his experience with Falun Gong and Shen Yun. This man described a beautiful practice that profoundly altered his life for the better, and the lives of his children who eventually attended the Falun Gong school. For more details, you can find the video on YouTube. My B.S. meter indicated this man was an honest broker sharing his true and positive experiences. Additional research confirmed that the NYT “investigative” piece is severely tainted. The CCP has been working for years to discredit the Falun Gong practices and practitioners as it threatens their political agenda.
Please, EW, don’t accept The New York Times as the final arbiter of truth. Your article misinformed readers and could end up instigating protests to future Shen Yun performances in our community. These ancient Chinese dances are a gorgeous contribution to humanity. Celebrate their preservation and the talented artists who put on this show.
Carolyn Gsell
Eugene
Don’t Forget the Beer
Let’s talk avocados. I am one of the avocado toast people. It’s a fast, easy, simple breakfast. I started loving avocados as a child delighted by guacamole and chips! Then in my 20s I decided to go on a raw food diet and ate only raw nuts, fruits and vegetables. That lasted until grad school, and if I felt light-headed, I’d eat an avocado.
Now I try to eat about half raw foods and half a variety of what can be called “real food.” Almost all of the avocados I buy are from Mexico, and Donald Trump just put a 25 percent tariff on Mexican products. That means we will have to pay more for our Mexican avocados. Mexico will get fewer U.S. orders, but we will pay more at our stores. Mexico is the top grower of avocados in the world.
Oh no, just thought of my favorite beer!
Deb Huntley
Eugene
Another Vote for Muñoz
I am a student at North Eugene High School and I want to share my opinion about Nain Muñoz’s resignation that is being denied.
I believe that the Eugene School District should allow Muñoz to stay as the principal. I believe this because from what I’ve read in an article and from what I’ve seen he is a good principal. Not only is this my opinion but also the opinion of many of the staff here at North. Clair Wiles, a teacher, said, “He is an amazing principal. He’s still our principal, and has really connected with so many of our kids and our families and our teachers.” Another teacher, Brandy Wormdahl said, “Right away, you just see how he connects with kids. It just comes as second nature to him. You can always tell whether someone was good in a leadership role if your highschool kids know who the principal is.” This shows that people care about him.
In the end, I hope that the school district changes their mind and lets Muñoz stay as a principal. Students, staff and families want the same.
Yulissa Jimenez
Eugene
Merkley Can Do More
On Feb. 2, I attended U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley’s town hall meeting and was extremely disappointed.
The last two weeks of Donald Trump’s executive orders have shown me that now is a time for action, and my expectation was that the senator would be able to give information about how to proceed.
What I heard was what is happening now and what he has done in the past; a campaign speech in a time of crisis. He told us it was up to citizens to protest, to make calls to “suburban representatives and senators in purple states,” and that we need to do the research to identify those people.
I am going to his local office Monday to let his local staff know how extremely disappointed I am and ask that they take on the task of identifying those people we can call. Sen. Merkley and his staff should be in a better position to compile such a list, and it seems to me they are employed by us to help the community.
They have names, addresses and emails as we were asked to sign in so it would be easy to share the information which people could share. Perhaps this list could be published in the Weekly.
Wende Hitchcock
Eugene
Just Nauseating
Laura Ingraham’s show on Fox this week — “Divided Loyalties are Poisonous to our National Purpose” — nauseated me. Watching her smirking as she delivered hate-filled messages with images of public figures demonized for opposing the President’s plan to “rid the country of threats.”
This week, the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust reminded us how the genocide began: “On assuming power in 1933, the first people the Nazis targeted for arrest and imprisonment were political opponents.” By January 1937, the power of the dictatorship was absolute, in Adolf Hitler’s own words to the Reichstag: “May we not speak of a revolution when the chaotic conditions brought about by parliamentary democracy disappear in less than three months and a regime of order and discipline takes its place, and a new energy springs forth from a firmly welded unity and a comprehensive authoritative power such as Germany never before had?”
Our transition in the U.S. has been just as swift, becoming increasingly brutal this week in Donald Trump’s first days in power. The only difference is that it’s happening here and now, not in Nazi Germany — we know from history what the consequences of Hitler’s rhetoric were.
People like Ingraham would exchange diversity for an Orwellian group-think, exactly the opposite of what we need as a society to survive. Stand up to this tyranny at all costs, at all times, in all places.
John Tietjen
Corvallis
It’s Groundhog Day Everyday Now
The groundhog day analogy is perfect for the ridiculous but serious onslaught of executive orders from the White House (EW Slant, 1/30). Not complying with these “tools of oppression” is an excellent idea.
There are many ways to do this, from speaking up to those in our circle, to writing letters to those who represent us in Congress and to the editor (thanks, EW, for the forum), to joining a group like RESULTS, Indivisible or other organization working for equality for all, ending hunger and poverty and bringing hope.
Calling those who represent you at 202-224-3121 (U.S. Capitol switchboard) is an easy way to voice your opinion. Remember, the tax legislation is coming up, why not ask your representatives and senators to focus on the people this time, instead of the wealthy. Renewing the expanded Child Tax Credit would be a good start. And the SNAP program is a proven way to battle hunger, but it needs to be open to all who need it at a level that can truly put an end to hunger in the richest country in the world.
With our voices raised we can make it so and right the wrongs of these oppressive orders from the president.
Willie Dickerson
Snohomish, Washington
We All Must Pay
Can you get water out of a rock? No. The taxpayer is a rock, and you cannot get any more taxes out of the taxpayer, but the government at all levels keeps coming up with new taxes.
The president brags he pays no taxes and he is not the only one. Corporations don’t pay taxes. The church pays no taxes as a nonprofit, and at one time not involved with the government. Separation of church and state, but not anymore. In Europe, churches are taxed.
We all know about “taxation without representation.” Why not turn it around: “Representation without Taxation.” The separation of church and state is no longer, so why should the church have a voice? It has nothing to lose and all to gain, and it costs them nothing. Their voice will affect the taxpayer, so why not tax the church. Representation should only come if paying taxes.
None of our laws are “chiseled in stone.” The laws were appropriate to the time they were created. Times change and so should the law.
We are not going to properly solve our problems unless the society as a whole contributes.
We pay a tax on a tax. We pay a Social Security Tax, and then are taxed when you receive it. We get a “kicker,” and we pay a tax on the “kicker.”
We all pay or no one pays. It is just that simple.
Steven Hunnicutt
Eugene
A Terrible Lesson to Learn
It would be a horrible lesson for President Donald Trump to learn if he could break Mexico and Canada. Where he, if encouraged, would go next is an open question. But the challenge to China is different because China has a degree of social discipline unheard of here in America.
What this translates into is that the people of China can take a far greater degree of economic suffering than the people of America are willing to take — which is an edge in this kind of battle. It would also hit hard at those very small towns like Cottage Grove and working class men and women that comprise a significant part of Trump’s base.
Leo Rivers
Cottage Grove
Good Question
Recently, Donald Trump proclaimed: “A man’s assertion that he is a woman is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member.” Besides being nonsensical, this statement leaves me wondering why the Commander in Chief would be exempt from these requirements.
Dan Dizney
Eugene
Serenity, Not Fear
Reeling after the inauguration, I have sought ways to feel peaceful and empowered. Though Donald Trump, admittedly, has a great deal of power, his power is decidedly not limitless. I have gone so far as to make a list of those things over which he has — and will never have — any power as it brings me peace to think of it this way. I would like to share my partial list with you in hopes that it may bring you some peace and hope as well.
He does not control the rising and setting of the sun. He does not control the phases of the moon. (Did you see the recent crescent moon hanging like a lantern in the southern sky?) He has no power over the hooting of the owls near our house — a mating pair! He does not control the light in my husband’s eyes nor the beating of my heart. He has no power over the stars or the constellations, including the Big Dipper and the North Star, which has been a symbol of freedom for so many. (Have you seen bright Venus in the western sky these last weeks?) He does not control the call of the wild geese flying in their ancient migration over our house. I do not wish to live in fear, and it brings me peace to think of it this way.