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Show im' tfi3lsrif"i m iiat nf nMtiwia yiC'" ' W'Tirr f nr 'rr m Tim g g m m'rnmiTwiii'm fKfniMMma M ft A2-Th- Thursday, Sept. 5, 1991 Times-Independe- d Letters to the Editor Community Comments By Sam Taylor Letters to the Editor have been hot and heavy the past few weeks, and some of them have been pretty nasty. That point was made clearly by Moab resident, Sumner Patterson, in a letter appearing on this page. Mr. Patterson, who has admittedly only been a resident of the community for a year, warns about guarding against an "Us versus Them" mentality, splitting the community into warring camps. I ut couldn't agree more. after an absence of When I returned to Moab in the five years, I found it had grown from around 1,000 to something estimated at 8,000. With that kind of an influx, being a "native" wasn't a But historivery big deal. We were simply outnumbered and knew it. incally, Moab had always been a community that welcomed and volved newcomers. We even had a lot of fun with it. Since most of our newcomers were from Texas and Oklahoma, we almost had to learn to speak like them in order to communicate. We had a saying in those days, and it worked well: "When first arrive, you're on probation for six months. After that, we exyou pect you to get involved and help make this town go." We carried that one a little further by bragging that by the a time person had lived in Moab for five years, he could safely be considered by all as a native. And involve them we did. Moab and Grand County have just as many boards and committees as a metropolitan area. There just don't have as many good people to fill all those slots. Newcomers have rarely had trouble gaining elective office if they had talent. Of the many community newspapers that cross my desk each week the Park Record is one I look forward most to getting, and not shares just because my daughter works for the sheet. The community fun to and it's many of the problems and challenges faced by Moab, compare. Currently, however, the community has split into two unfortunate camps because of its population makeup. Since Delta Airlines has made Salt Lake City its western states hub, several hundred Delta families have moved into Park City to make their homes. Its quicker to Salt Lake International Airport from Park City via Interstate 80 than it is from many parts of Salt Lake Valley, and the living conditions are a whole lot more wholesome. Recently the airline, and its Park City families came under fire in an unfortunate column in the Record by one of its staffers. The Letters to the Editor column have been filled with angry, hurt replies, most from Delta folks and members of their families. It's unfortunate, and may cause a split that could last for years. Let's not let that happen in Moab, even though we might have a greater potential for division than many other communities. Thank you, Mr. Patterson, for your remarks. It doesn't bother me a bit that you are a native of Missouri. What counts is that you are a resident of Moab and a resident by Choice! sjt Sometimes I can't get all hummed up over news about criminal strike force operations. One example is the one this week where officers of the State Narcotics and Liquor Law Enforcement Agency raided the Iron County Fair at rarowan, busted a handful of little old, men and women, and confiscated a tremendous $500. The problem? Fair organizers were allowing $2 pari mutual bets on their horse races. One officer bought a ticket for two bucks and won ten dollars on the race. Shocking! Criminal! The proceeds from this terribly criminal action were going towards fairgrounds improvements, and there were no other sources of funding. I sometimes wonder if we've got too many people in government with not enough to do. mid-195- 0s - The Times-Independe- (UPS 6309-200Entered as Second Class Matter at the Post Office at Moab, Utah under the act of March 3, 1897. Second class postage paid at Moab, Utah 84532. 0) Official City and County Newspaper Debra Gwinn Ron Drake Dorothy Anderson Jon Walker Assistant to Publishers Sales, Production Circulation Backshop Times-Independe- only on the grounds that they are not a "Native." An example of this are the letters reader that put down the who only said she was told that there are cows in Arches. I wish the readers who criticized her on the grounds she wasnt a native, would take a vehicle to Dalton Wells and drive into Arches from the east through Willow Flats. There are no fences to keep the cows out, only boundary markers. You don't have to be a rancher to notice the evidence of cows and if you see them and report them to the rangers they will be removed. Are the cows run in the park on purpose? No. Can they get in? Yes. I personally didn't agree with everything she said, but that doesn't mean I have to discredit her with words such as "eastern" and "nonnative." While discussing issues it would be nice if we made our point based on facts and quit the destructive "non-nativ- name calling (native, environmentalist, extremist, non-nativ- nt allegedly showed up on his doorstep. A few quick calls to Denver confirms that none of the groups there e" door-to-do- or canvass in the Denver or Moab area; neither is Earth First!. In fact according to Earth First's! headquarters in Arizona, they are not operating a canvass anywhere in the United States, including Brooklyn. I worked with canvass operations for four years prior to moving to do gooders, easterns, WALUers, Bikers, etc.). I dont think those using these tactics would like their sons or daughters living in other states or communities treated in this manner. Thankfully most of the fine people here are not into this type of behavior. My wife and I have been very lucky to already have many fine friends who have accepted us into the community where we hope to spend the rest of our lives. Sincerely, Sumner Patterson 1081 N. Kayenta Dr. Dear Editor. I feel compelled to respond to the letter appearing in the Aug. 29 edition of your paper by E. J. Mayhew. Mr. Mayhew lambastes the DWR for using words like: "may, could. maybe etc. Apparently he feels Arbitrary? Maybe. But it's our policy. And back to the issue of freedom of the press. Freedom of the press means that the press is free of governmental control. Well, we have plenty of governmental controls, but compared to many parts of the world, the press in American is really quite free. Freedom of the press doesn't mean that readers contributors have the right to demand that whatever they wish be printed. I think the most succinct illustration is a letter I had to write recently, as did not appreciate the arrogant attitude of your telephone call this morning. Enclosed are tear sheets of the ad you claim did not run and of the article which appeared regarding your presentation to the Chamber of Commerce, which you also inferred we did not carry. "Regarding the item you brought in regarding (subject deleted), I did not find it pertinent to newspaper readers in southeastern Utah and chose not to run it. You seem to think you are in a position to demand that anything you might wish be run in this newspaper, and you are altogether wrong. The decision on news and editorial content of this newspaper rests solely with, the editors and publishers, of which I am one, and you are not. "I also genuinely suggest that you get some training in politeness and telephone skills." I don't usually have to come on that tough, thank goodness. "I in donated motel rooms, with friends or simply camp out when visiting other cities. Canvassers do, however, provide a valuable service: they counteract the dangerous untruths and misinformation that people like Mr. Mayhew cling to. If a canvasser should show up at your door, take three minutes to listen to their message. If you agree with what they say, help them with what they ask. If you do not agree, simply say "I'm not interested, I would like you to leave. If they do not leave immediately, call the police: a quick response is assured. Sincerely, Thomas M. O'Keeffe 491 Cliffview Dr. aft We like to run letters to the editor, and we run a lot of them. Guidelines here, in addition to the above, are that they not be libelous or slanderous, that they be in good taste (as determined by us), and that they not run on too long. We have, on occasion, chosen to shut off a particular subject, and we have told one writer or another that enough is enough. Mostly, we haven't had a bunch of complaints, so the gudlines must be about fair. aft In fact, when it comes to pets. I'm an awful softie. A visitor stopped by midmoming Wednesday, with the following item, for which there was no other spot left: "Lost Cat. Charcoal grey long hair. Brown flea collar. Neutered male. Lost end of Powerhouse Rd. Please call collect after 91 (305)232-6896- ?4(n S6oev- - fact. '91 Salute, suit the volunteer's nity can offer. As a Seekhaven volunteer, personnel will be learning problems of the homeless and the various aspects of domestic violence, as they relate to the victims. Education in crisis intervention, rape crisis, legal problems and victims' rights will be an integral part of the volunteer training program. A few hours of your time can provide a great service to the community and those families who are facing family crises, for a volunteer application, please call 259-222The volunteer training will be held on Sept. 20 through 22. $16.50 Green River, Grand & San Juan $24 per year outside area $5 discount for persons 62 and older upon request for 52 news filled issues your mail once a week local news TV guide special features lots of advertising 9. n P.O. Box 129, Moab, UT 84532 Times-Independe- schedule. Seekhaven deeply appreciates the time and services that the commu- Name . I Phone Castle Valley man died of wound gunshot On Grand Saturday, Aug. 31, County Sheriffs deputies responded to the residence of Paul V. Kunz, 26, in Castle Valley. Mr. Kunz died of a gunshot wound, apparently according to Chief Deputy d, I enclose $16.50 or $24 for one year n check or $32 and $47 for two years Doug Squire. His body was discov- ered by a neighbor during the late afternoon hours. Investigation into the tmt'er is onlinu'n - Vetenam,! to-- September 1 3, 1 4 & 1 5 Walker Field Soon, Volunteer hours can be flexible to Times-Independe- nt r.Mail to: ." more comfortable making bold proclamations of absolute certainty even though they have little basis in sis. The JLujDSjcrj.be Now! By Adrien Taylor follows: Moab. Canvassers usually receive meager pay for long hours of thankless work. They are never sent to other cities "all expenses paid." environmental groups simply do not and will not have the financial resources of the large corporations that they fight. Canvassers typically stay e, Trails t columns. is currently looking to hire"demonstrators. What they are attempting to hire are activists or canvassers. The Sierra Club is not currently operating a' Seekhaven Family Crisis and Resource Center is seeking volunteers from the community to help provide support services for families in cri- your hometown in jjpeash He mentions that the tax base in Grand County has shrunk. The front page article in The (July 11, 1991) states that the sales tax use receipts in 1990 were only 3.7 below the all time record of what they were in and 213 1970. He then insinuates that this alleged "drop" is caused, in part, by environmentalists of the type that Volunteers needed at Moab Center Read All About Address He further gripes about bicycle tracks while ignoring the fact that this very activity would be banned in years. Since I was raised in Missouri do I have to go back there before I can express my ideas and opinions? That is not what this country is all about. It is very disturbing to see , Putting out a newspaper every week of the year is a challenging job challenging and rewarding. The challenge part has mainly to do with the usual meaning of the word, being that there are challenges. These are many, but the one I am particularly referring to this week is the challenge we receive from time to time from a reader about our editorial policies. We were challenged this week about our policy which says "We don't run poetry." Every newspaper has editorial policies, and these have nothing whatsoever to do with freedom of the press. One of our policies, which has been in place for many, many years, is that we don't run poetry. Period. It was a tough one evolving, but when faced with one too many "Ode to a Little League Mother" (facetious name I don't know that such a poem was ever written, but it's an example' of some of the things weve seen) from a reader who fancied himherself a poet, we had to bring the policy into being. The bottom line is that if a readercontributor wishes to share hisher poetry, it can be done through the advertising columns, but not through the editorial 259-774- Samuel J. and Adrien F. Taylor Publishers and Editors The the proposed WSAs. ' ft apparently overrun with bighorn sheep who wandered blissfully through the old cemetery as well as oil drilling sites. What he fails to mention is that it is precisely this type of iniruMun that has driven them to the brink of extinction. Published Each Thursday at 35 East Center Street, Moab, Grand County, Utah 84532. Postmaster: Send change of auumss to: The Times Independent, P.O. Box 129, Moab, Utah 84532 5 1 or FAX (801) (801) In to contribute to the community where I have chosen to live and pay taxes. I was raised in Ferguson, Missouri, but have lived in Wyoming for most of the past 30 non-nativ- es 4 Lets examine the facts, since Mr. Mayhew adamantly suggests that we do so. To begin with, he mentions that in the 1940s the Moab area was nt 259-752- visitors to wilderness areas citing the fact that river users must abide by these rules. Yet, he ignores the fact that the river receives an annual visitation of 650,000 (page A4, T-- I, Aug. 29) while none of the current or proposed wilderness areas receive even a fraction of this type of traffic. people discredited Many He suggests a number of restrictions and regulations be placed on Dear Sam, It is sad that the issues in the community seem to come down to the destructive "Us" versus "Them" attitude. Sometimes the "Us's" are the natives and the "Them's" are the whether they live here or somewhere else. I have only lived here one year (have read the two papers for three years) and would like to know at what point I will be able cvit& t&e Grand Junction, Colorado excitement FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 4t 9t tin. 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Schedule subject to change Air Show tickets available at SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 15 '9t : City Market Stores The Hobby Hut West Star Aviation 10:00 am - Gates Open 12:30 pm - Show Time Admission: Adults - $7 in advance $9 at gate day of show Youths (ages 7 12): $4 in advance $5 at gate day of show Children ages 6 & under admitted free Grand Junction Chamber of Commerce Office Walker Field Airport Office -- Proceeds of Air Show '91 benefit St. Mary's Cancer Center & Effective Min Parents Project NO REFUNDS All NO RAIN CHECKS Military Aircraft made xmibk by a (rant fro NO COOLERS Sund.tr.nd Aviatio. |