OCR Text |
Show Viewpoints The A-19 Park Record. Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, September 14-17, 2019 editorial When it comes to engagement, Christensen needs to do better O letters to the editor Event was a page-turner Change the discussion Editor: The board of the Friends of the Park City Library would like to thank the community for once again making our Annual Labor Day Weekend Used Book Sale a great success. Each year the Friends of the Library raises funds that enrich library offerings and services. Our book sale is our major fundraiser, and we couldn’t do it without you! We would particularly like to thank those Park City workers who hauled a year’s worth of donated books from the first to the third floor of the library building in record time, all the volunteers who answered our call to help with the sale, Park City Film for generously allowing us to use whatever we needed, Wasatch Bagel for breakfast goodies, and to KPCW and The Park Record for all the publicity leading up to the sale. Our next event is the Annual Author Luncheon on Oct. 16 at Silver Lake Lodge. Leslie Miller, local author and editor of “Reimagining: A Place for the Wild” is our featured speaker, with “Reimagining” writers Wendy Fisher, Kerry Gee and Erin Halcomb. Tickets are available at our library, or online atParkCityLibrary.org. Memberships to the Friends of the Library are available on our website. Editor: We need to change the discussion focus around gun ownership to accountability. Like guns, vehicles can also be lethal — intentionally or accidentally — when used by the untrained or otherwise impaired operators. Just like guns, vehicles don’t kill, the drivers do. How about we assign responsibility to those who own guns in the same manner required of owners of vehicles? Anyone who wishes to acquire/own a gun can do so under the following conditions: (1) reasonable background check; (2) obtain a license that requires a passing knowledge of current gun laws and an operating proficiency test, including eye examination; (3) register the weapon; (4) proof of insurance. The cost of insurance would be linked to the lethality of the weapon, the premiums calculated by underwriters as happens with all insurance products. After all, we demonstrate driving proficiency before we are given a license; we must register a car and when we sell it, transfer the title of the vehicle to the new owner; and, we must have proof of insurance (at least liability in nearly all states). As with cars, when a weapon is found “missing,” the owner would report the absence to the police, which would limit the liability of the owner. And, yes, just as cars are stolen and used for nefarious purposes, so will guns be stolen and used for criminal intent. This process is consistent with existing systems and the insurance industry will be thrilled to create all the necessary underwriting to make sure the owner is properly insured. For those who choose not to register and insure their weapons, when such weapon is used, the liability will fall squarely on the people allegedly owning the weapon. So, keep the guns. Make certain they’re locked up and kept away from children and any unauthorized persons. Gun manufacturers can keep making guns and bump stocks, the NRA can still advocate for gun ownership. Everybody wins and accountability can be the discussion. Jean Daly and Ann Whitworth Friends of the Park City Library book sale co-chairs The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Alexander Cramer Ryan Kostecka Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor............. Jeff Dempsey Photographer .........................Tanzi Propst Liana B. Teteberg Park City Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production ........................Chelsea Babbitt community-wide event and we are excited to put all proceeds back into local nonprofits via ongoing service projects. Special thanks to our sponsors: UPS Store of Park City, Blakemore Real Estate, Jed’s Barbershops, Brad Dicks Family, Park City Coffee Roasters and Olsen Electric. We couldn’t have done this event without you! Thank you also to Park City Sunrise Rotary and Park City Rotary for being so welcoming to our new chapter. Julianne Rosen-Carone Park City Twilight Rotary president Missed the mark Editor: Well, you almost got it right! The People’s Health Clinic is highly successful because of the voluntary contributions of time, effort and donations from a community that understands the value of the endeavor. Wishing to replace that with government-run health care is contrary to the purpose. It works so well because we want it to, not forced to via taxation. Someone wiser than I predicted government health care as having the efficiency of the postal service and the compassion of the IRS. Our system here is the envy of many. Change something else! Howard Carrey Park City Circulation Manager ............. Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ......... Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Advertising Director ........... Valerie Spung Advertising Sales ................... Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lindsay Lane Sharon Bush n Thursday, members of Summit County’s Statehouse delegation were at the Park City Library for a gathering put on by a nonprofit aiming to get Utahns involved in the political process. Though the general legislative session is months away, every opportunity residents have to interact with their lawmakers is important. It was disappointing, then, that Sen. Allen Christensen and Rep. Logan Wilde were not in attendance, especially in light of the primary purpose of the event: to discuss how constituents can make their voices heard on Capitol Hill by engaging with their elected representatives. While it was regrettable that Wilde, whose district covers Summit County’s East Side and the Snyderville Basin, wasn’t there, the absence of Christensen was particularly conspicuous. Few of his constituents in places like Coalville, Jeremy Ranch and Summit Park, though, would call it surprising. Since assuming office in 2005, Christensen, a North Odgen Republican, has too often been a scant presence in Summit County, his interaction with voters here sporadic at best. That’s a contrast to our other lawmakers, who by and large have made an effort to be visible in the community. That includes Wilde, who has shown up to public events here on a number of occasions since taking office in 2017 and, despite not being at Thursday’s event, relayed answers to some attendees’ questions through Rep. Brian King via text message. When asked by The Park Record why he was absent, Wilde said his son was receiving a Cub Scout award Thursday evening. Christensen, on the other hand, said only that he checked his calendar and discovered he had another appointment. He declined to clarify further. It’s certainly possible Christensen’s prior engagement Successful debut Editor: The newly formed Park City Twilight Rotary would like to thank the community and its great sponsors for a wonderful turnout for the Bark City 5k with almost 150 runners, walkers, strollers and pups on Miners Day. It was our first For the record Vote for Becca Editor: I have lived in Park City for 18 years. I met Becca Gerber during my first winter while I was working at Bad Ass Coffee. Becca would come in with her big, welcoming smile was, in fact, pressing enough to warrant skipping the gathering. Without an explanation, it’s hard to say. But one thing that is certain is him no-showing at an event designed to give voters facetime with their lawmakers wasn’t exactly out of character. For constituents, it would have been a most opportune time for Christensen to make an appearance, given the confusion surrounding the Medicaid expansion plan he sponsored this year to override Proposition 3 and drastically cut the number of Utahns eligible for health care compared to the voter-approved plan. The legislation has since blown up in lawmakers’ faces, with the Trump administration signaling it would decline to provide a waiver necessary for the program to work despite repeated assurances from Christensen and other Republicans, who said that step would not be a problem. Alas, any voter who wanted to press Christensen on the issue — or any other matter — left the forum with no more answers from him than they had before the event. To be clear, the problem is not that Christensen’s views don’t line up with those of a large chunk of his constituents in Summit County, who skew more liberal than voters in the rest of his large district. The same dynamic is at play for Wilde, Rep. Tim Quinn and Sen. Ron Winterton, all Republicans who have relied on voters elsewhere to win their seats and whose voting records have left many locals unsatisfied. They’ve been visible figures in Summit County nonetheless. Christensen’s constituents in Summit County, too, deserve a representative in the state Senate willing to make a good-faith effort to engage with them and seek out their input. On Thursday, Christensen had an opportunity to do just that. It was unfortunate, but unsurprising, that he failed to take it. and her contagious, positive personality. We were fast friends. Meeting in our early 20s I feel we grew up together. Watching Becca’s passion for Park City issues and her drive to keep locals living local is so encouraging to me. People like Becca Gerber will ensure that we will continue to have a community amid constant change. It is easy to feel dismayed when seeing the building, development and corporate entities that are now here. We need people like Becca who know what Park City WAS and will work hard to ensure that we hold onto that. Change is imminent, but we’re still here! We can keep Park City’s community alive. Becca Gerber has worked for Park City, striving to keep our goals and objectives on the forefront and will continue to do so, fueled by her passions. A vote for Becca is a vote for Park City. Alisha Niswander Park City Cows are no conundrum Editor: A recent letter made some interesting points regarding the cows on the McPolin Farm. Most of the writers’ objections to cattle grazing are based on industrial agricultural practices that underpin most of the production of protein, vegetables and fruits in the U.S. What’s happening on the McPolin Farm is much different. I have over 40 years of experience managing Western landscapes for wildlife, livestock and environmental health. I know that if a ranch supports healthy soils, the foundation to eco-system function, it will be more dynamic, productive and profitable. Plants use their leaves to harvest the sun’s energy through the process of photosynthesis. They use this energy for their growth and this process is the basis for nearly all life on earth. All plants have evolved with disturbances that can dramatically stress them by removing their leaves; like hail, insects and grazing. In fact, this stress is essential to the production capacity of plants and plant communities. The cycle of plant stress followed by ample time for plant recovery and growth is similar to how athletes manage their training (balancing exercise with recovery) to increase their capacity and improve their performance. Large ruminants like giraffes, bison, elk and cattle have unique synergies with plants and particularly grass. Ruminants have four-chambered stomachs that can derive nutrients from the plants they graze and in return the manure they produce feeds the soil microorganisms that feed the plants. Gardeners are familiar with the benefits of manure to hold water and provide nutrients that increase plant production. The same beneficial microorganisms in humans are in healthy, well-functioning land and cattle. The cattle grazing on McPolin Farm are nourishing themselves and the landscapes they are grazing. This interaction between land and animal is a virtuous and regenerative cycle. What’s happening on the McPolin Farm is not industrial agriculture: These cattle are moved frequently allowing the land they leave to rest, recover and grow stronger. It will boost the soil’s ability to sequester carbon, allow the soil to hold more water and create more biodiversity. I’m pleased to see that these cattle are being managed in a way that reflects natural systems so that McPolin Farm is increasing its capacity and resilience. Gregg Simonds Park City Photos by Jeff Dempsey Asked on Main Street Are you buying an Ikon Pass or an Epic Pass this year? Abby Barrett Park City “I have an Epic Pass. We live right up the street (from Park City Mountain), so it makes sense to have one. But I want to get an Ikon Pass, too. It’s getting big! I just need to save money first.” Cindy Nettleingham Park City “We’re going with the Epic Pass. My husband is in the Air Force, and with the military discount, it just makes sense. We get a good deal through there.” Kyle Vaughn San Clemente, California “Neither. My wife and I have a 2- and a 4-yearold, so our trips up to the mountains have changed drastically. We only ski one or two days a year now. A pass doesn’t make sense.” Lauren Komanski Salt Lake City “My husband and I moved to the area two years ago. This year we got Ikon passes. Last year we did Alta (Ski Area). We’re exploring all our options.” See these photos and more by following The Park Record on Facebook.com/parkrecord and Instagram.com/parkrecord |