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Show Page 2 The Ogden Valley news Volume XXVI Issue I February 15, 2020 The Ogden Valley news Staff: Shanna Francis Tel: 801-745-2688 Fax: 801-745-2688 Cell: 801-791-4387 E-Mail: slfrancis@digis.net Jeannie Wendell Tel: 801-745-2879 Fax: 801-745-2879 E-Mail: crwendell@digis.net crwendell@msn.com Opinions expressed by advertisers, columnists or letters to the editor are not necessarily the opinions of the owners and staff of The Ogden Valley news. guidelines for Letters to the Editor Letters should be 300 words or less. Letters must be signed and the address of the writer submitted. The Ogden Valley news reserves the right to edit or decline printing of any submissions. Announcements Sought As a community service, The Ogden V alley n ews will print local birth, wedding, obituary, anniversary and missionary farewell & homecoming and Eagle Scout announcements free of charge. We invite residents to send their announcements to: The Ogden Valley news PO BOX 130 EDEN UT 84310 If you would like your submitted items returned, please send a stamped, selfaddressed envelope. The Ogden Valley news , while respecting all property received, will take no responsibility for lost or misplaced items. Please remember to keep a copy for yourself. Invitation for Articles The staff of The Ogden Valley news welcomes the submission of articles by our readership. We invite you to submit local historical accounts or biographies, articles pertaining to contemporary issues, and/or other material that may be of interest to our readers. We also invite you to submit to the paper, or notify the staff of local events. Awards that have been earned by the reader, family members, neighbors or friends are also sought. While the staff of The Ogden Valley news invites the submittal of information and articles, we reserve the right to select which material will be considered for publication. All material, to be considered, must be submitted with the full name, address and telephone number of the person submitting the material. The OgdenValley news’liability on account of errors in, or omissions of, advertising shall in no event exceed the amount of charges for the advertising omitted or the space occupied by the error. The Ogden Valley news does not endorse, promote or encourage the purchase or sale of any product or service advertised in this newspaper. Advertisements are the sole responsibility of the advertiser. The Ogden Valley news hereby disclaims all liability for any damage suffered as the result of any advertisement in this newspaper. The Ogden Valley news is not responsible for any claims or representations made in advertisements in this newspaper. The Ogden Valley news has the sole authority to edit and locate any classified advertisement as deemed appropriate. It also reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Note: The contents of The Ogden Valley News are copyrighted. To protect this publication and its contributors from unlawful copying, written permission is required before any individual or company engages in the reproduction or distribution of its contents, by any means, without first obtaining written permission from the owners of this publication. The deadline for the OVN March 1 issue is February 15. Letters to the Editor Deer Causes Accident on North Ogden Divide Dear Ogden Valley News, I first want to tell you how much I LOVE The Ogden Valley news. I recently noticed the article about the boulder that came down off the hillside on the North Ogden Divide. I am adding another story about a recent accident on the Divide. We were coming up the Divide recently when a deer came up the side of the mountain and over the railing. It hit the passenger side of the car and dented in the passenger and front side of the car. The door did not open very well. It has now been over a month since we have been waiting to get it fixed. I think from now on we may go up the Canyon. Thank you again for The Ogden Valley news. Linda Tolman, Liberty Romney: Poor Judgement & Agenda Mitt Romney was the only Republican in the U.S. Congress to vote in favor of Impeachment and removing President Donald Trump. In interviews, he repeatedly cited having to follow “his conscience.” A good Christian article on following one’s conscience suggests the following steps leading up to prayer: • Study, as decisions of conscience begin with “knowledge.” • Seek other’s experiences, as wisdom is carried by others who have knowledge of an issue. The impeachment facts were presented over several months. There are 197 Republicans in the House and 53 Republicans in the Senate for a total of 250 Republicans. Every single Republican in the House and every single Senator, except Mitt, disagreed with the facts and Constitutional basis for impeachment presented by the Democrat House Impeachment Managers. Somehow, 249 Republicans were wrong about the facts and Constitutionality, but Mitt alone was right—along with partisan Democrats. It goes against rationality and credibility. He said in interviews after the vote that he kept his decision making to himself. Mitt does not come to the Senate as a wise, Constitutional scholar like Mike Lee and others. Yet, somehow, he had more experienced wisdom than 249 other Republican opinions. Here is a more likely alternative on why Romney alone voted with the Democrats. His public appeal to conscience masks two things: First, exceedingly poor judgment around facts and wisdom. Second, his lingering “Never Trump” agenda. He has been obsessively opposed to this President since the 2016 election. Let’s not forget. Mitt’s record from Massachusetts through the impeachment votes demonstrates he is certainly no conservative and sits on the extreme left wing of the Republican party in the U.S. Senate. His vote really isn’t out of step with who he is if one digs beneath the façade he continues to present. Even Utah’s Republican delegation strongly disagreed and expressed disappointment with him in interviews immediately after the vote. If Romney had any conscience, he would resign from the U.S. Senate; hopefully, the Republican Party in Washington and Utah will encourage him to do so. Regardless, Utahans are all the more wiser about Mitt, and will hopefully send Mitt packing in four years. We deserve better. Jim Vetter, Liberty Senator Mike Lee, Please “LEAD” the Job We Hired You to Do Congress must be drained of weak party Senators and Congressmen/ladies who put personal interests and party interests before America’s interests. I know, strong words, but they say make your main point up front. Today, with a strong President in office, who at the moment is likely to be re-elected, a strong Congress that’s up to the task of serving as the counterweight intended in America’s constitutional architecture of “checks and balances” is not only important, it is essential. Our President demands his staff be populated with yes-men/ladies. By all accounts, he always has. And those who do not play ball his way are unceremoniously dispensed with. Though I try to reserve judgement on this, such behavior is a problem for “lots.” But I will try not to dwell on those now. I am trying to not make a judgement about the President here, I’m just stating the selfevident facts that you all already know. And, I am not suggesting a leader must surround him/herself with opposition and bend to the opposite extreme of yes-men/ladies; that would be ridiculous. We have seen the castration of America’s National Security apparatus (Bolton, etc.), the loss of our key generals (McMaster, Kelly, Mattis, etc. etc.), the evisceration of our diplomatic apparatus losing one Secretary of State and one Ambassador after another. All this, and much more, as our elected officials in Congress generally appear impotent and not up to the task of doing their job, turn a blind eye, and who do little, nor voice precautionary concern, with any real fortitude—I assert the reason being for fear of losing their jobs. This, some call, the process of draining the swamp. And this, in and of itself, is not entirely unhealthy, i.e. replacing career Washington D.C. old guard and getting some new, strong blood in there. I totally support the idea. However, we risk having a second-term President that goes too far. A President that lobbies to populate Congress and the Executive Branch with yes-men/ ladies, and not experienced, level-headed, free-thinking Americans motivated to do what’s right for America first, as our founders intended… you know, that inconvenient little “oath of office” thingy. Today we have two parties that compete for power, not to do what’s right for America first, but to preserve their jobs and their parties grasp on power first. Dismissing this as normal is unhealthy acquiescence. Remember, the U.S. Constitution makes no mention of political parties. This current Congressional environment lends itself to the weakening, and irrelevance, of our Congressional bodies—the Senate and House of Representatives. I can’t support either of them. Therefore, it is essential to finish clearing the metaphorical “swamp” of weak party minions that blindly follow the President’s and Party’s orders and fail to serve America as our founders intended. America needs “leaders” in Congress who are unafraid to stand up to a strong President—leaders with the integrity to always put America’s interests first, and when necessary, say no! Yes, even if it costs them their jobs! Maybe President Trump is not unhealthy for America at all. As the President toys with and antagonizes the Congressional party status quo - whom he has complete contempt for whenever opposed, and possibly entirely by the accident of simple-minded, serendipitous, bullheaded leadership, the President plays Congress as his sock puppets (fun phrase - I enjoy the insult for some reason). He’s revealing the parties for what they’ve become. He’s removing the false veil of altruistic competency that hides self-interested motivations for the sake of their party’s, and personal, re-election fortunes, before America’s interests. Am I too harsh? Do not blame President Trump for his actions; blame Congress for their inactions. So today it is not too early to ask ourselves, in the midst of the ongoing impeachment trial, is the forthcoming 2021 election to fill the Utah Senate seat Mike Lee currently occupies in need of a change, a reset, new blood? Today is the time to begin asking ourselves, is Senator Lee the right man for the job? I will say upfront, that I have never met Senator Lee and I expect he is a good family man and good person. But, I also ask, can we do better, do you deserve better? And so, in these times where the U.S. Congress suffers from one of its lowest levels of veteran representatives, and Congress is stacked with legal clerks who have never started or built a business, created jobs, or deployed to the combat zones at the tip of America’s spear, maybe, just maybe, it’s time to say, I deserve better. I’ll do that job, with integrity, and put America first. Oh, and as always, folks, if my occasional editorial is off target, or particularly offensive, and you need to come down to The Mad Moose, kick my butt, and set me straight, please come and do so. Uhhh, just not too hard please (maybe a little discretion too… “kick butt” was kinda metaphorical, I bruise easy). I always welcome and encourage your thoughts, especially when they diverge from mine. Find the full text of this abridged editorial at <www.utahbullmooseparty.com> Colonel Mike Seguin - U.S. Senate 2021, Owner – The Mad Moose Café Eden |