Harmless? (“Cinders Everywhere,” The Bulletin, Feb. 22) The cover article claimed “experts” say they’re harmless; however I strongly disagree. The “experts” cited in the article were a local doctor and police officer. Hardly a deep body of research to conclude that a product distributed ubiquitously across the landscape is harmless.
Cinders may not be harmless to the many who drive around in their enclosed boxes of steel, but they do cause harm. Bicycle commuters must navigate the cinders on the road and breathe in the dust from the parade of autos passing by. Additionally, the pulverized dust from cinders severely damages bicycle parts. Regular commuters find the bearings in their wheels fully disintegrated from the dust, requiring costly replacement. Runners and walkers must take great care with almost every step. A slip on cinders is just as bad as ice.
Our fragile High Desert watersheds are negatively impacted with transport of cinders during melt-offs from roads into riparian habitats. Localized area quality problems are certainly created for people, animals and plants as dust flies around. Even The Bulletin cover photo demonstrated this, showing a worker sans air mask in a cloud of dust being blown around.
More thorough research should have been done before a conclusion of “harmless” was bannered across the paper. “Harmless” is a strong and absolute descriptive word that directly indicates no ill effect. Clearly this is not the situation with cinders.
Chuck Arnold
This article appears in Feb 28 – Mar 5, 2008.
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Welcome to winter in Central Oregon. Show some personal responsibility and be careful on ice and cinders. If you cannot stand the cinders, go south.
Jed,
You aren’t addressing Chucks point, just attacking him. Re-read his letter. His argument is that it is irresponsible to call something “harmless” when it clearly isn’t. His examples of harm were more extensive than you implied with your “be careful on ice and cinders” comment. Like he said, the fact that the clean-up guy in the picture was wearing a dust mask is a good indicator that a less stong word that “harmless” should have been used in the headline.
Brian,
You are right. There is probably nothing that is harmless so we should ban the word because people may not be able to think for and take care of themselves.
Jed, the problem isn’t with people slipping on the cinders — it’s with people inhaling the cinder dust, which (according to The Bulletin) is as fine as talcum powder. Dr. Coutin is my own allergist and I think he’s a fine physician, but I can’t quite believe that inhaling that stuff isn’t harmful.
How do you propose we should deal with it? Stop breathing?
HBM:
AS with most of your posts you just totally “Miss IT”. This is about taking responsibility for yourself. If the dust bothers you stay inside or wear a mask. Do not rely on a newspaprer or the government to tell you what to do or not do.
“If the dust bothers you stay inside or wear a mask.”
That is arguably the most asinine statement I have ever read in a post on this site, and that’s saying a lot. I don’t see any point in trying to carry on a discussion with somebody of your mentality — if “mentality” is the right word for it.
Hey Jed,
I agree with you-we should all take full responsibility for ourselves. I merely am saying that calling cinders harmless was not accurate.
Typical HBM/liberal media. If you don’t like a comment just start name calling. I wear a mask when I help buck hay to protect me from the dust. I see no differance between hay or cinder dust if it bothers you. I guess I am just stupid.
Chuck: I agree, but nothing is totally harmless.
Jed,
Why is there so much hostility and anger in every one of your posts? I’ve found that when I take personal responsibility for my comments (by using my last name), it tends to lead to a more intellectual and adult debate.
Brian: I did not know there was any hostility or anger in my posts. I just call them as I see them. You know what they say about assuming something??
Girls, please!
Guess what, I’m a chick who bucks hay AND deals with the cinder dust all winter. I also am asthmatic and take some precautions, but I have always wondered about the accumulation of cinder dust. It was put on the roads by man. Dust in hay is a natural by-product. (Yes, I raise some hay). Maybe I don’t know what I am talking about, but the build-up of red cinder dust just seems unnatural and unhealthy. I’ve lived in the Northwest my whole life and can handle driving on snow and ice, no problem, without the red spray. If the city would just plow when it starts melitng, that would help a lot.