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Show Page Two - The Pyramid - April 28, 1993 Lions elect new officers THE VIEW FROM HERE MT. PLEASAN- T- Karen Kowalski was named president of the Lions Club at the April 14 meeting. Each tree valuable Mt. Pleasant City will try once again to replace damaged or missing trees along State and Main streets as part of the citys Arbor Day observance. Its a commendable effort to maintain the atmosphere which was the focus of a $500,000 Main Street project a few years ago. Unfortunately, not everyone appreciates the beauty of the citys Main Street or understands the value of each tree planted during the project. Vandalism has taken its toll in spite of repeated plantings e and the of downtown Mt. Pleasant has the appearance of a smile with a few teeth missing. Trees that remain from the original planting will soon be in full bloom. Replacement trees will need a few years to establish themselves before the fragrant blossoms appear. Wouldnt it be nice if they all could bloom this year? They cant, but if we are all careful, some year they will. This years tree planting is under the direction of the newly organized Shade Tree Commission. But even though volunteers are doing the planting, replacement trees cost money, and cities do not have an inexhaustible supply of funds to continue replacing trees year after year. Its true that an insurance settlement from an accident which destroyed one tree will be used to purchase the replacement, but those broken off by vandals have no magic pot of gold waiting in the wings. Ultimately taxpayers will foot the bill for future tree replacements if the vandalism continues. And at some point in time, the city will have to decide if it can afford to be accountable for the thoughtless actions of others. We urge young and old alike to take pride in this beautiful city. Trees are our gift to the future. They add not only beauty, but are a healthful way to clean the air. We commend the city for its willingness to guarantee this legacy for us and our children. We also appreciate the volunteers of the Shade Tree Commission who have agreed to preserve this valuable resource. However, it is up to each one of us to ensure that the efforts of these individuals last long enough to be appreciated by the next generation. tree-scap- Letters Selfish few exchanging kids health for money Dear Editor: After reading last weeks Pyramid I agree there needs to be a public outcry concerning Moroni Elementary School. How could any North Sanpete citizen even consider putting their children in that stinky burned out building and risk destroying the health of those children. I have been in the Moroni Elementary School after the fire more times than I would like. It stinks! The smell is not just unpleasant but so strong that after working awhile I need to go get fresh air before I go back in to continue working. There are wooden beams in the hall and ceiling areas that are burned black like charcoal. The bricks are black. The walls are black. All the black stinks! cleaned books and supplies from my classroom. It makes my kitchen stink. After breathing it so long it starts to make me sick. Now consider being in a whole building like that. Ive had experience with insurance companies, etc. If something isnt fixed just right theyll say, "It looks OK to me. Ive done my job." I might not be satisfied but they are. This could happen to the I have- Sanpete's Leading Newspaper THE PyRfllMD (USPS 365-58- 0) Published Weekly at Mt. Pleasant Utah. 84647 49 West Main Street Telephone: FAX: 462-21- 34 462-24- 59 Publisher Martin Conover Koleen Peterson ...... Managing Editor Editor Penny Hamilton Lynda Grover Office Manager SUBL 'RIPTION RATES i Advance) $18peryear-50- C per copy $21 per year outside Sanpete County ( Correspondents Moroni, Barbara Gordon ... 462-21Ftn. Green. Jessie Oldroyd . 445-34436-88Wales, Colleen Lamb Dean O'Driscoll Snow College Send change of address to The Pyramid, 49 West Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, Ut 84647. Second class postage paid at Mt. Pleasant, UT and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: school if it were cleaned and restored. Can we risk the health of our children for the sake of a few dollars? One good lawsuit against the school district because of a sick child could cost the district the money it could have used to build a new school. Considering the rest of the bond, common sense would tell you this area is growing. Every house in Fountain Green and Fairview is full and new houses are being built. Where there is population growth buildings must be provided to educate the children. The high school was built for 550 students. There will be 750 students starting school this fall. Where should the principal put the extra 200? I think the students deserve better than to be crowded and shuffled around. I believe the majority of the people in this area think so too. Should we let the voices of a few determine the actions of the majority? All the towns have supported each other in the past and. thats why we have new schools in Fairview and Spring City. We need to support each other again, sign the petition and get a new bond. Or are we too selfish and that we cant spend a few dollars for the good of all? I believe thats how America became a great nation, by being concerned for others. Annette Hansen Fountain Green According to Steve Benton, secretarytreasurer, other officers include: Everett "Bud" Sparks, first vice president; Lloyd Taylor, second vice president; Boyd Brothersen, third vice president; Robert Leffert, tailtwister; "Woody" Love, lion tamer; James Carlton, two-yedirector, and Ed Monk, one-yedirector. Demos to hold confab MANTI The Sanpete Democratic Party will hold their annual convention Thursday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m., at the District Court Room in the County Courthouse. According to County Chairman Kris Christiansen, new officers will be elected. All county Democrats are urged to attend. MT. PLEASAN- T- From time to time we receive unsigned letters from our readers. Although they may contain pertinent views to important issues we cannot publish them. One such typewritten letter was received this week regarding North Sanpete School Districts proposed building program defeated recently by 21 votes. TJe letter was postmarked "Mt. Pleasant," but we have no idea who may have written it. If the author wishes to have the letter published, he or she must be willing to sign his name. We will hold the letter until next weeks paper in case the author wishes to reveal hisher identity. It has always been the policy of this publication to print only those letters which are signed. Tell Rep. Hinchey to jump off a skyscraper ar Past president is Jon Schuh-manSteve Benton, Ray Jensen and Jim Carlton were the nominating committee. New officers take office July n. Responsible citizens rely on facts, not opinions be cleaned and restored, it is still 31 years old and has many problems. There was no room for a library and a mobile unit was being used.. Would it be a better use of the insurance money to add some with it and build a modern, safer school with one more room for a media center? Wouldnt it last years and years longer? Scott Glauser said in his letter to the editor that repairing the school was not an option at the board meeting, but actually it was very much discussed. Not one Moroni parent, faculty member or board member wanted that option and made it known. Its easy for Mr. Glauser to take the easy, cheap way out because his children dont attend and he Moroni Elementary wouldnt be risking their health. We have children and faculty who have serious asthma and respiratory problems who deserve a clean, healthy school.Even though restoring the building may appear to be the easy, least costly way out of this situation now, it may be a band-ai- d solution and end up costing a great deal more in years to come. We agree with the school board in their decision to demolish part of the building and build new. Our school board has worked many long hours trying to come up with a solution and they dont receive anything for their extra efforts except the satisfaction that their decisions are what is best for the children. They dont like to pay taxes and neither do we, but our children are our future. Are we gong to them by making them go to a possibly unhealthy building in Moroni, an obsolete school in Fountain Green, or crowd them in already overcrowded classes in the middle and high schools. Or are we going to pay a few extra dollars a year and give them the conditions which will enhance a quality education? Lets be builders of our childrens future education. Sign a petition, attend public meetings, or call your board member and show that you care. Moroni Elementary PTA Moroni Elementary Faculty and Staff Dear Editor: There has been much discussion about the recently defeated school board bond election and what should be done with the Moroni Elementary School. We should all appreciate the freedom which allows us to express our ideas and opinions in public forums and through the press. It is also our responsibility as citizens to seek out the facts and not rely only on the opinions of others. Last week it was stated in the paper that Utah Disaster Kleenup could restore the school to "a healthy environment" for the sum of money the district settled on with Division of Risk Management. Before accepting this as a viable option we should consider the following: First, the state fire marshal said, "You ought to strongly consider building new. You may have problems in later years." He said that he had been to several schools restored which still smelled of smoke. Second, several schools in our state have restored schools damaged by fire and have had problems later. Third, the gym, stage, and kitchen received minimal smoke damage and will be kept. They were cleaned and supposedly "restored to a healthy environment" but after only a few months they smell of smoke again and the walls are starting to darken. Fourth, Utah Disaster Kleenup took several truckloads of bookcases, desks, chairs, TVs, VCRs and other school equipment from the burned school to be cleaned with a special ozone treatment to remove toxic smoke chemicals. They said they would be as good as new. To our dismay, many items returned still reeking of smoke. Some of the TVs and VCRs, which were all purchased recently, quit functioning shortly after being returned. The bookcases and desks, which were costly to clean, are still old and scratched. New ones could have been purchased for a little more money. Is that similar to our whole school situation? Fifth, even if the school could fire-damag- - fire-damag- ed short-chan- ge interesting that they are supported by Midwest beef pro- ducers who can raise cattle on grassy plains. Some BLM range areas will feed one cow per 100 acres. More than 75 percent of this state is under the control of the federal or state government and should remain under the multiple-us- e plan that has served us well for many years. I would dare say most of New York is privately owned. Wilderness advocates are not true environmentalists, even though they are billed that way. They are nothing more than obstructionists with no intelligent plan or reason. But they have something most of us in the west and the backing of the eastern media. These groups dont really care what happens to people or to our western Wilderness Utah environment. They file lawCoalition getting Rep. Maurice suits forcing ranchers, sawYork, to mills, mines, and other compaHinchey, nies out of business. It doesnt push through its 5.7 million acre wilderness program? matter that wilderness advocates lose most of the suits as Most of us in the western and individuals states know the answer. companies These groups are mainly cant endure years of being out funded by eastern liberals who of production waiting for the have no concept of life in the court process. west and whose ultimate goal There is really no way to is to take, control of it for be in harmony with wilderness themselves. advocates $s their way is the Utahs congressional dele"only way." Utahs congressional delegation is supporting a 1.4 million- - acre plan, which in gation should tell Rep. Hinmy opinion, is still too much chey to jump off the nearest land tolock up. skyscraper and take his tiny Easterners are brainwashed minority, of noisemakers with from th time they are little him. The media should also kids watching "Bambi" into is all here out we do recognize that these people are believing ' no- longer' "news" and are a buck. rape the land Some actually believe that nothing more-- i than - boring we could feed millions Of "repeats." The radicals should we be if planted oppressed people ignored as only a tiny group cares about their narrow views thousands of acres of wheat in Utahs west desert instead of anyway. That was obvious from the last election when grazing cattle and sheep . on those lands. Others are so Utahns sent their champion naive as to believe the Grand advocate, Wayne Owens, back to private life, or back to Canyon is the result of whatever it is he is now stirFarmers and ranchers have ring in. done more to preserve the land It took a lot of guts and than any other, group. In an work to win the West. It hard ranchers force to off attempt will take the same effort to the land, some groups want grazing fees raised. It is keep it. When you think of New York, what is the first thought that comes to mind? Skyscrapers, crime, dirty streets jammed with people and vehicles? People who have been to New York say it is a large state and that there are many and beautiful uninhabited areas. If we envision in our minds what we perceive New York to be, then what are the first thoughts that a New Yorker would perceive about the western states. Chances are, looking out from their high rise to a continued mass of traffic and buildings, they would have no vision of how much empty space and open lands there are in the west. Yet, with this gross lack of knowledge easterners have about the west, why is a ar 100-sto- ry lack-mo- ney w . - e - over-grazin- 4-- H g. youth plan summer events MANTI 4-Youth wishing to participate in the State Junior Youth Conference June 21, 22, and 23 in Logan need to have their applications to Joyce Ryan at the county extension office no later than today, April 28, according to a news release. Conference costs will include room and board. Planned activi H ties will provide opportunities for youth to increase their and to encourage continued participation in the program. Enrollment is limited to youth ages 12 and 13. Applications for the Space Camp will be available at the county extension office after May 1. Participation is limited self-estee- m 4-- H 4-- H Sanpeters demonstrate own brand of democracy by Becky Bartholomew A poor, itinerant newspaper worker, I was sitting in last Wednesday morning for our news editor, who was taking a ' well-deserv- ed Letters must be signed by Koleen Peterson vacation. Wednesday morning, of course, the weeks Pyramid comes out. Local post offices open about 8:30 a. m. and by 9 many subscribers have read much of the issue. At 9:04 the first phone call came in. I contended. "Good moming-Pyrami- d," An irate female voice disagreed.' "Who wrote the article about Moroni schoolhouse?" remodeling the bumt-oI became instantly defensive. Not having our editors savoir-fair"One of the staff," I answered reluctantly. "Which one?" "Well... our editor writes most of the news articles." the caller demanded, naming our intrepid, editor. "Yes, but..." Click. The next call came at 9:08. "Good morning Pyramid," I answered, less assuredly. there?" another indignant female voice demanded, "Is editor. our again naming "Im sorry, shes off for the week." "Well, Im not surprised. When she didnt have the decency to school." sign that article about remodeling the burnt-o"But it was just a news article. She writes almost all the news articles." ut e, long-sufferi- ?" ng so ut "Well, tell her shes an a." Click. I was beginning to wonder what Sanpete democracy is made of when a third caller identified herself and made her comment directly and courteously. I dont quite know what to make of the calls. They demonstrate that how one says something is just as important as what one says. But simple courtesy isnt the issue here. The real issue is, what is a newspaper for? Is it an organizational newsletter, existing merely to publicize the views, information and experiences of one group? Or is it a institution, the fifth column of free government, bound to report all the facts and events it can, and to represent as many citizens and views as possible? Surely its the latter. And when such an institution is missing in a community, that entity begins to lose its tradition of an informed and reasonable citizenry. When newspapers are newsletters, dissenting views do not get heard. Alternate opinions and options do not get considered. And soon someone or some group gets overlooked, bypassed, cheated, even abused by the dominant faction. The Pyramid printed two articles last week dealing with the Moroni schoolhouse. Both were news articles, which often lack bylines, unlike opinion articles, which are signed except in rare cases. One article quoted a school board member as saying other1 districts and the state fire marshal warn against restoring a bumt-obuilding. The other cited a contractorbidder as saying he could adequately restore the old building. A reader might agree with the school board member. But its good to hear the contractors assessment, too. Every decision entails risk, and knowing all the facts leads to better choices with less error. Im very glad the Pyramid was willing to report the contractors viewpoint. I get uneasy when one faction insinuates that its imprudent, improper or immoral to listen to anyones side of the story but theirs. As for the phone callers, Voltaire expressed it: "I may disagree with everything you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." Id just feel better if you didnt say it anonymously. near-sacr- ed ut 4 Hi |