Thanks, firefighters
I was raised the daughter of a volunteer fireman and have strong memories of the fire siren going off and plectron radio sending out the call for help. Dad and many others would race to the station to go battle the fires.
Until the day it was my family on the other side of that call was I fully able to feel the gratitude and immense appreciation toward our community volunteer firefighters. On the morning of Jan. 13, the call went out — house fire. The county was under a blizzard warning with temperatures hovering around 8 degrees, with strong east winds and blowing snow, but still the volunteers showed up. They were fighting the weather conditions as much as the fire. Water hoses were freezing, slowing the flow of water. Firefighters were sitting on the ground spraying water while a comrade would sit behind holding them from blowing over and all the time ice forming on everything. For hours, cold and wet, they fought on.
Going out under all kinds of conditions to help a neighbor when that call comes, these are the men and women who truly make our community. We need to support them in any way we can because none of us can know when that call for help will be ours.
Thank You!
Deborah (Murphy) Swyers and family, Hood River
Appreciates service
We write to praise the Public Works Department of the City of Hood River. Upon our request, their snow plow crew promptly removed a large berm comprised of ice sheets which had been removed from our street and piled in the entrance to our driveway. We had called with some urgency, as we needed to drive out to get food. The crew did their job capably, professionally, and with good attitude.
David Hupp, Hood River
'Peace upon you'
I’m writing because my heart breaks to see how war damages the lives of human beings. What is the point of destroying humans to gain control of anything? We came to this world empty handed, and we are leaving empty handed. I cannot fathom a moral framework that excuses wars of all kinds.
As someone who has experienced the trauma of living through war, my heart still aches for the people who were killed, injured, traumatized and wounded for life.
As a Muslim, I stand for peace, and I am opposed to killing.
Islam is my religion. It means peace, stands for peace, it promotes peace, and it teaches peace. That is Islam. Anything that destroys life, kills, and involves violence in any way is not Islam.
The greeting in Islam is “Alsalamu alaykoum” (peace be upon you) and is what Allah established between Muslims, so that whenever they meet they greet each other with the word “Salam." This gives the greeters safety, comfort, and peace.
Therefore, for Islam it is always peace that takes precedence over war and fighting, unless required as evidenced by verses of peace in the Quran. (The Quran, Ayah al-Hajj, The Pilgrimage, 22:39.)
Permission “to fight back” is “hereby” granted to those being fought, for they have been wronged. And Allah is truly most capable of helping them prevail. Considering this verse along with 13 other verses from the Quran, they show that Islam does not promote starting a war — even with disbelievers. It strives as far as possible to make sure that war does not take place.
Verses 5:32-33: have been quoted to denounce killing, by using an abbreviated form such as, "If anyone kills a person, it would be as if he killed the whole people, and if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.”
As a result, we exist in this life to live, and we must live in peace, and believe in the humanity of all people no matter what their faith or ethnicity.
Peace be upon all of you.
Ibtissam Salman, Hood River
Funds are a game-changer
The recently announced $200 million INFRA grant for the Hood River Bridge replacement is a game-changer for people on both sides of the river. As a local resident and business owner whose company serves customers in both Oregon and Washington, I am profoundly grateful to Sen. Ron Wyden for his tireless advocacy on behalf of funding for rural infrastructure and ultimately for securing this essential funding. Hood River relies on this crossing not just for moving people across the river, but also as our sole source of natural gas, and nearly all our broadband internet connections! This investment not only promises a safer, more efficient bridge but also closer connections between our small cities and a brighter economic future for the entire Columbia Gorge.
Lach Litwer, Hood River
News affects us all
I don’t agree that letters to the editor should be siloed into only “local” matters (Your Voice, Jan. 24). How can you segregate such things? What happens here, or anywhere actually, in these supposedly United States, can affect us all.
One example is the recent grant of $200 million dollars for a new, much needed Hood River-White Salmon bridge. The money comes from the bipartisan infrastructure bill that President Biden signed into law in November 2021. What a great example of how local communities can benefit when the national parties work together.
I wish we would see more of this, locally, statewide, and nationally.
Jennifer Ouzounian, Hood River
Bentz denies problem
Several weeks ago, Rep. Cliff Bentz sent many Oregonians an alarming message about the potential removal of the four Lower Snake River dams. The best science and scientists have finally decided that the only way to prevent the extinction of salmon runs on the Snake River is to remove these four dams. Rep. Bentz's message opposed dam removal, claiming that electric utility rates will skyrocket without them. That’s arguable, given that the dams only produce about 5% of the electricity sold by BPA and this small amount can be replaced.
But rather than argue about the facts, I responded to Rep. Bentz asking him for his proposals to save the salmon, given that the status quo isn’t working. Not surprisingly, I never received a reply. Too often politicians oppose the proposals and initiatives offered for many of today’s pressing problems (climate change, gun safety, environmental protection) but fail to present alternative solutions. They deny the problem, or the science behind the problem, or they claim that it is too expensive or intractable to fix. In fact, Rep. Bentz is now sponsoring legislation to prohibit federal funding for dam removal studies. This sounds like an attempt to both deny and silence the science.
Dam removal will require changes and that will not be easy for all those involved. However, proponents of dam removal have committed to developing workarounds for the challenges imposed on electricity production, navigation, and irrigation prior to moving ahead. The issues can be resolved equitably but it calls for everyone to be at the table. Rep. Bentz should step up and get involved solving the problem rather than trying to derail it.
Tim Mayer, Hood River
Weekly peace vigil Fridays
It is the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, and my heart is heavy.
The slaughter of millions of innocent children, women and men in the 1940s showed us the ugliest and most horrific side of what humans are capable of when they are fed steady diets of fear and hatred. It is a heartbreaking and cautionary piece of our collective history.
In the years since the Holocaust, the cry of “never again” has been proclaimed by many throughout the world. People of diverse faith traditions, nationalities, and political affiliations have vowed to stand up, speak out and do all in their power to stop the slaughter of civilians, lest fear and hatred ever again take hold of our hearts.
In the past 100 days, the Israeli military, with the support of our tax dollars, has killed more than 25,000 people, including more than 10,000 children. Many more are starving or buried under rubble, and the death toll from disease is mounting. The vast majority of the buildings, hospitals, houses and schools in Gaza have been destroyed.
One of the worst truths of the Holocaust is that it is still possible for genocide to take place while the world watches, and it is still possible for good people to remain silent.
I stand now, with Jewish friends and leaders and those from many other faith traditions, to call on President Biden and our elected officials to do all in their power to bring about an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. A political solution is the only path to true peace and security for the people of Palestine and Israel. The time for “never again” is now.
Until a ceasefire is in place, we will gather on Friday afternoons at 4:30 p.m. at Second and State streets in downtown Hood River to say “never again” and demonstrate our commitment to peace with justice for all. This is a peaceful event for those of all ages. Please join us.
Rev. Vicky Stifter, Hood River
Not better
Do the political gangsters who believe in the sacred "only way" truly believe in it even when it comes to the most difficult situation?
Let's see. I am assuming "the only way," as we have been instructed through several letters, is that voting is the answer to all of life's problems. Decisions are made according to the majority of votes. Seems reasonable. In 1948, the United Nation countries of the world voted on an important issue. The right of the Jews to establish a place to live in their ancient homeland. All the nations of the world voted, including the Muslim nations. The Muslims voted no, but the majority voted in favor of the Jews and gave them permission to establish a homeland on the land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. Soon after, the Jews told the world they were going one better and created the nation of Israel. The losing Muslim nations that surrounded Israel attacked her, even though they gave honor and trusted in the "only way." Five Muslim nations attacked Israel from all sides and they were soundly defeated in this War of Independence.
The world used the "only way" and decided that the Jews and Muslims would live according to international law on the same land. The Muslims said no. The Muslim says no Jew is allowed to live on Muslim land, nor is Jew allowed to govern a Muslim.
I suggest that "the only way" is one of dishonesty and fraud. Is it right for the liberal gangster to denounce and protest the existence of Israel since the "only way" was used to allow their existence? Now you turn on the "only way," ignoring the sacredness of it because it does not fit to your hate and bias attitude? I can not think of a more cowardly and dishonest behavior than that of an American voter who protests against Israel. The liberal gangster screams for diversity and all inclusive for everyone but Jews and Israel? My point? Abandon this fraudulent dishonest system for "the better way." Watch this next hateful election.
Gary Fischer, The Dalles
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