Letters to the Editor

On Feb. 4, 2008, the San Francisco Chronicle ran a story in which the following was stated:
"Beginning in 1999, the government has entered into a series of single-bid contracts with Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) to build detention camps at undisclosed locations within the United States. The government has also contracted with several companies to build thousands of rail cars, some reportedly equipped with shackles, ostensibly to transport detainees."

Andy High, director of government affairs for the Central Oregon Builders Association, wrote a piece published in the "other" newspaper on Jan. 13. Andy claims that COBA continually gave warnings to the city council going back to perhaps 2005. In mid-2006 COBA claimed awareness that new home starts were declining and "warned jurisdictions" to reflect that in future budgets. Their warnings failed to get the city's attention. I think I am correct in saying that when you're in the middle of an unprecedented boom, you don't want any negatives coming your way! I'll accept what COBA says about its many warnings because I can't prove otherwise.
COBA suggests that the slowdown in new home construction was because of the "market," for one reason, and the increased cost of doing business with the city, for the other. Okay, I agree with the "market," but the other can be challenged. The increased cost of doing business with the city came about by "growth out of control"! The city was in a crisis mode of two steps forward and one back. COBA failed to warn the city of the severe consequences of that. But why would they?

Amnesty International, famous for their efforts defending the human rights of terrorists and criminals everywhere, are now, with the full support of the Source, weighing in on the subject of TASER use. The premise is that TASERS are the primary factor in hundreds of deaths among those unfortunate enough to have been Tased. The reason for the use of force is conveniently sidestepped in all but the most sensational of cases.
Over 200 people have died within a two-hour window of being hit with a TASER. However, medical examiners (aka the experts) determined TASER use to have been the primary or secondary cause in only 23 of those cases.

This past Sunday’s concert at the Tower featuring bluegrass legend Del McCoury was something that I had been looking forward to all winter.Bend rarely gets such a performer in town, and as Del mentioned, he had to "cross about 16 mountains to get here.
While Del and the boys put on a fantastic show Sunday, I have to say I was extremely embarrassed for our "vocal" Bend crowd. As Del usually does, he asked for requests halfway through his show. Immediately there were requests for songs as audacious as "Rocky Top" and Bill Monroe’s "Uncle Pen," among others. And even when Del mentioned that he had played "Uncle Pen" every night that he played with Bill Monroe and was kinda tired of it, he was challenged with a comment that he has had "50 years to get over it."

Each week The Source highlights a letter that stands out from the rest of the mailbag. We're rewarding those who put a little more effort, thought and passion into their missives with a $25 gift certificate from Dinner's Ready. This week's winner is Bob Jeremiah who points out what he sees as the disturbing similarities between George Orwell's dystopian vision and our all-too-real world. Thanks for the letter Bob. You can pick up your gift certificate at our office, 704 NW Bond, anytime this week. Bon Appetit.
It is hard to believe that the year 1984 happened 24 years ago.
George Orwell's story is a powerful and relevant metaphor for the informed (brainwashed?) world we now share.
1984 depicts a world where torture is condoned or ignored, war is peace, ignorance is strength and freedom is slavery. Officially controlled messages of terror from external threats and reports of imperialistic conquest pervade the news.

The occupier of the White House gave his final State of the Union address and is now tantalizingly close to retirement, where he can ride around the Crawford "ranch," crashing his bicycle instead of the economy, whacking weeds instead of people. This fake cowboy and his fraudulent administration have pistol-whipped the American public for so long that his final efforts to fleece us sound somewhat ordinary, like a song sung so often that the lyrics relate a lilting logic, no matter the words spoken.

Just wanted to drop a line and say I really enjoy reading the online version of the Source.
I am a Bend resident stationed overseas in the U.

Wow, Charles Sweckert's letter is a difficult one to reply to because it's so rhetorical – no facts, just questions.
Military recruiters have a place they can recruit; it's called a recruiting station. They have no business preying on our junior and high school students.
I think it is important that those of us who are supporting the troops by working for peace have organized peace vigils for five years in Bend, while the pro-war fanatics want to send our children off to two wars based on nothing but lies.

As The Bulletin searches high and low to find political columnists who mirror the local newspaper's incredibly conservative viewpoints, it probably needs to be pointed out what a fine job they have done with their addition of Bill Kristol. This is his most recent insight (Sunday, Feb.