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Show A6 Wednesday, September 5, 2007 Vernal Express nimnoini Op o r I N I 0 N Horrors of fire seen firsthand Dear Editor, Earlier this summer we watched, listened to and read about the disastrous Neola, Farm Creek fire -the devastation and horror of it. On Monday, Aug. 13, as the pictures in the Standard two weeks ago showed, we witnessed and experienced the horror and shock of a lightning-caused fire bearing down on our, and many of our neighbors homes in Fruitland. When people say that large, fast-moving fires sound like a train, they do; that flames in pinion and cedar trees are huge, they' are; that flames in sage brush can exceed 30 feet, they can; that flames can travel faster than you can imagine, they can. When all of this was happening, my wife and I were dragging and hooking up hoses to all weather hose bibs, knowing that it was probably useless and feeling quite helpless. Here they came in force: friends and neighbors. There were people from Heber City to the east of Tabiona Point and Highway 40. Most we knew, some we didn't, doing anything they could. Thank you Vernon Baum and Bud Young for bringing your tractors and making mak-ing fire breaks. Thank you Jana Sweat and family for your help. Thanks to the owner of Gas & Grub for the bottled water. Thank you Mike Young for offering your equipment and anythingyou could do to help. Thank you good neighbor, Earl Haggard and family. Thank you Brenda Johnson and all the wonderful people we didn't know. To our good neighbor who wanted to help but physically couldn't, thank you Jackie for your prayers. Thank you Fruitland, Tabiona, Duchesne, the Ute Tribe and various support systems. You were all very quick, professional and just awesome. When it looked as if about all we were going to save were our family picture albums - which are many as Jana will testify to after helping carry them out of the house - the fire, with all of its horror, was over, with the help of the various fire departments and Mother Nature. There just isn't anything much better than good neighbors and friends. My wife and I are extremely grateful. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Bon and Virginia Sweat Fruitland h i jay rr i i PlffMEWWKJRV THWrVGAR... SPORTS BETTING 2007 Support new rec complex ' It's as American as apple pie and the Fourth of July. A father takes his son afield to do some male bonding and teach his boy the manly art of shooting a rifle. All too often it involves gathering a cardboard box full of cans, empty bottles and a broken kitchen appliance and going to someone else's property when the owner isn't around. When they are done shooting, they leave behind a layer of broken glass, shredded metal, empty cartridge boxes and fast food containers. The boy has just had one of the best times of his life which he will remember fondly forever; and when he grows up, he'll take his boy out and teach him to shoot. So is passed from father to son a bad idea: "My dad did it and so did grandpa, so it must be the right thing to do." We live in a state with vast amounts of open spaces, yet there are very few areas set aside for shooting. A landowner sees shooters' trash appear on his property. He cleans it up, but it appears again and again. So the landowner reluctantly decides to spend thousands of dollars and many hours putting in fences, locked gates and "No Trespassing" signs. So where do you go to "sight-in" your rifle for hunting season? As far as I know, there isn't a proper shooting range available to the public in all of Duchesne County. Who would want to be responsible for cleaning it up? Uintah County, however, does have a proper public shooting range, recently constructed as a part of the new Buckskin Hills Recreation Complex. Already in use are a law enforcement training range, a cowboy action shooting range sufficient suf-ficient for state or national class competition, and a combat pistol range which is beyond world class. Concrete shooting benches will soon be installed at the 100-yard public range, the 300- and 600-yard ranges and the cowboy's 1,700-yard "buffelr" gun range. Power and water are being brought in and a house has been obtained for a permanent perma-nent on-site caretaker who will primarily protect the facility from vandalism. Large parcels of land are available for future construction of any conceivable shooting sport facility. In consideration for the commitment of funds (county, NBA, and donations), machine work, man hours and volunteer time, the county commissioners who authorized the project, the county sheriff who has participated from the beginning, and the many serious, dedicated individuals, groups and organizations who have helped plan and design the facility are all in agreement that one of the primary goals is to keep it clean, keep it looking nice and continually improve it. Don't bring bottles to Buckskin Hills. Instead, bring the wife and children. See what's at the Buckskin Hills Open House, Sept. 15 from noon to 5 p.m, 5.1 miles east of Vernal Avenue on 500 North. David Boender Roosevelt JURRIUS LOSS BAD FOR llTES Dear Editor, It's not that I want to be political, in fact I hate politics. The truth is John Jurrius hasn't been able to do bis job for the last three months! John announced at the Ute Tribe quarterly meeting last Thursday that he will be turning in his resignation the first week of September. Following his announcement, he left the meeting and 300-plus people very angry walked out in support of John Jurrius and the Financial Plan. There was a near riot because of the council's negative attitude toward John Jurrius and the non-support of the Financial Plan! Business Committee Chairman Curtis tried to continue on with the agenda, but when he saw all the people leaving he decided to end the meeting. There was only a little handful of people left in the meeting! The BIA Police had to be called in to keep the peace! During the short meeting, Scot Anderson from DG&S Law recommended that the Council not settle out of court in the lawsuit filed by Luke Duncan and Ron Wopsock, he stated that they were confident that they were going to win the case. 300-plus people cheered and applauded. Bear Stearns Representative, John Hazee and Dolan & McEniry informed the people that OST was not properly handling the Ute Tribe's money. Curtis tried to defend OST and informed the people that the council was not going to withdraw the 504 and 506 funds , this is in fact contrary to the Financial Plan Referendum, and they were booed for that decision. After John Jurrius announced his resignation, the crowd demanded that the council either resign or be recalled! John Jurrius, the man that has the intelligence to negotiate million-dollar deals is leaving! He was quite an asset to the Ute Tribe! Has any person or leader in all the history of the Ute Tribe been able to help their people in such a dramatic way? Chairman Curtis needs to read the Constitution and know that majority rules, this is called democracy! All this time he has just been listening to the minority. mi-nority. It was evident that day, that the "majority" supported John Jurrius and the Financial Plan, when they all walked out of the meeting! Don't you know that the people want the Financial Plan? It was voted in and became law. Maybe you need to do your homework a little more! Kinsey Jenks Fort Duchesne SCHIP NEEDS TO REMAIN LAW Dear Editor, Ten years ago, the health and welfare of our children took a major leap forward with the enactment of the State Children's Health Insurance In-surance Program, or SCHIP This program provides a vital source of health-care coverage to children whose parents work but cannot afford af-ford or are not offered health insurance. SCHIP has reduced the number of children without health insurance by more than one third. But on Sept. 30, the program will expire. The U.S. House of Representatives Represen-tatives and the U.S. Senate recently approved separate SCHIP bills amidst presidential presiden-tial veto threats, but they now need to negotiate to arrive at a consensus. The reality remains that for too many families in Utah, a quick trip to the pediatrician-even for common child hood ailments like runny noses, coughs and earaches - is usually out of the question ques-tion due to the cost. And while SCHIP, covers nearly 52,000 Utah children, more than 88,000 remain uninsured, the majority of whom are eligible for coverage, but not yet enrolled. en-rolled. These kids desperately need health insurance to stay current with well check-ups and immunizations that help prevent illnesses and injuries, not to mention costly and unnecessary visits to the emergency room. At a time when 9 million children remain uninsured - more than the total number of kids enrolled in the first and second grades in U.S. public schools - Congress must take action to renew and adequately fund SCHIP Insuring our kids, those currently cur-rently covered and those who are eligible, is the right thing to do. Dr. Jeffrey C. Schmidt President American Academy of Pediatrics, Pedi-atrics, Utah Chapter Sandy, Utah Fundamentalism a problem in religion To the editor, HowmanywatchedCNN's six-hour series "The Warrior Gods"? It was an in-depth look at fundamentalists in three areas of the world. Orthodox fundamentalists fundamental-ists in Isreal and the Middle East, Muslim fundamentalists fundamental-ists throughout the world and the fundamentalist right and anti-abortionists in America. CNN called the last segment "The Rise Of The Religious Right" and it reminded one of the rise of the Third Reich Tribe is not party to suit Dear Editor, ..,,,! For the hundredth; and hopefully last, time Ron Wopsock Wop-sock and Luke Duncan are not, and never have, sued the Ute Indian Tribe for so much as a dime. Their lawsuit seeks damages of up to $20 million from John Jurrius, Susan Hammer, Maxine Natchees, Roland McCook, Sr., Smiley Arrowchis, Richard Jenks, Jr., Chet Mills and Wayne Nordwall as individuals. The tribe is not, and never has been, a party to the lawsuit (which begs the question, "Why is the tribe paying Scot Anderson, Chuck Kaiser and Jon Tjornehoj to represent repre-sent individuals accused of whether intended or not. The constant refrain heard from these religious revolutionaries was "We shall never give up." With that in mind it is highly unlikely that you will ever know many of these fundamentalist foot soldiers and anti-abortionists because of their strict code of silence and secrecy. Are fundamentalists in the Middle East any different than the fundamentalists in America? Ron Lowe Santa Monica, Calif. Senator against fed's oil, gas bill Dear Editor, As the state Senate representative repre-sentative for eastern Utah's District 26, 1 am writing to call attention to the energy bill now being debated in Congress. Two versions of the bill have passed, one from the House and one from the Senate. Sen-ate. Both contain provisions that would do severe damage to domestic oil and gas exploration explo-ration right here in Duchesne and Uintah counties by adding add-ing layers of new regulation and restriction. The House version adds insult to injury by adding billions of dollars in new taxes on domestic production. As a Republican, I sometimes some-times disagree with our congressman, Jim Matheson. But on this issue, I must congratulate him for voting against both new restrictions on domestic fuel production and on the new taxes. Rep. Matheson put the interests of his own district ahead of party affiliation, and deserves credit. It is possible that Sen. Orrin Hatch, who also voted against the Senate bill, can yet affect the final legislation as the two houses reconcile their versions of the bill. We must call upon him to use his considerable influence to preserve jobs here in this state, and encourage further independence from foreign oil and gas. The western region of the United States, and especially Utah, contains immense reserves re-serves of oil and natural gas that can contribute greatly to the stability of our energy supply. We should make the utilization of these resources a top priority. Tapping these reserves would help lessen our over-reliance on foreign energy imports. Someday we all hope that alternate forms of energy will replace some of our need for oil, but in the meantime we cannot afford to ignore what is right before us. I support environmental and technological advances such as alternative fuels; eastern Utah's potential energy reserves re-serves can be an important bridge between that time and now. . Easing America's energy problems will require the development of a dependable, depend-able, balanced energy supply that incorporates plentiful amounts of all types of fuels, including both foreign and American oil. Sen. Kevin Van Tassell Vernal Got A Beef? Tell it to the Vernal Express. White a letter to the Editor! conspiring to violate tribal expelling them from the members' civil rights?") Tribal Business Committee If anyone is in a posi- and prohibiting them from ,tion to know what Ron and0iieMg reefccjaoB Jfjjnply. t. i-iUke are aslung tor in their because they astodquestions lawsuit, it is me. I drafted the complaint and was the lead attorney on the case for its first two years. I have not charged Ron or Luke a dime because, in representing represent-ing them against retaliatory actions taken in violation of their right to freedom of speech, I have been performing perform-ing a public service: I have been representing all tribal members who seek answers to questions involving their government. Ron and Luke are asking that the individuals whom they allege conspired to violate their civil rights by that Mr. Jurrius refused to answer be held accountable for their actions. The tribe did nothing wrong: individuals indi-viduals did, according to the allegations in the complaint, and Ron and Luke are asking that those individuals be held accountable. Scot Anderson, who allegedly al-legedly is an attorney representing rep-resenting the tribe, was present at last week's meeting meet-ing when tribal members (mis)understood him to say that Ron and Luke were suing su-ing the tribe for $20 million each. Arguably, an attorney who represents the tribe had an ethical duty to correct some of the people's misunderstanding mis-understanding and squelch ,the rumors. Apparently, Mr.' Anderson tailed to fulfill the' duty that he owes the people1 who are paying his legal fees. My suggestion is that tribal members call Mr. Anderson An-derson at his Denver office (303) 892-7383 and ask him, directly, if Ron and Luke are seeking so much as a dime -or$20million-oranyother sum of money from the Ute Tribe. If he tellsyou anything but, "No. They're seeking damages from the individuals individu-als named as defendants in the lawsuit," he's not being honest. Sandy Hansen Vernal Public Forum - Letters to the Editor What is your opinion? The Vernal Express welcomes letters from its readers concerning any subject pertinent to the Uintah Basin. There are no restrictions on contents, if in good taste and not libelous or vindictive. Letters may be edited for length. All letters must be submitted exclusively to the Vernal Express and bear the full name, signature, phone number and address of the writer or writers. Letters for the sole purpose of expressing thanks to individuals or groups will not be printed in this forum. Submissions may be mailed to 54 N. Vernal Ave., Vernal, UT 84078; faxed to 435-789-8690 or sent by e-mail to editorvernal.com The name or names of the persons submitting letters must appear on all published letters. Letters express the opinion of the writer or writers and are not necessarily the opinion of the Vernal Express. Airport Concerns Editor, I am greatly concerned about what I'm reading and hearing regarding our Vernal Airport. My youngest grandson, 9 years old, enjoys going and looking at aircraft. Now, however, I read and hear of "raids," "clearing" pilot lounge areas, bringing in biting K-9 dogs. I have a longtime understanding that K-9 dogs are brought on scene under suspicion of contraband or a fugitive or a body. Is the suspicion centered cen-tered around the FBO whose building is pictured in your paper? I have an inactive commercial com-mercial pilot license and for many years was chairman of the airport board. I often frequented the building you picture. In my many years of flying and as chair of the airport air-port board, I was never aware of the FAA requirements expressed in your paper. Accordingly, I suggest a statement is due the public from the county attorney or the county sheriff or even the county commission. Please let us know what is going on. Stan Anderson Vernal I DOfMT CARE WHAT THEY SAID AT THE OFFICE ,THE FIRST 5AFTY RULE OUT HERE IN THE OILFIELD ISftONT ME5S WITH JUNIOR.! |