The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Deschutes County treasurer

To the Editor:

I’m Bill Kuhn, and I’m running for the nonpartisan position of Deschutes County treasurer. The County collects revenues of over $650 million a year, and that money is managed by the County treasurer, who has responsibility for the management of cash, all banking relationships, and the investment of County funds. The work requires a leader with significant financial expertise and a clear understanding of our community’s priorities and needs.

The funds collected by the County go to programs that serve the public in healthcare, public safety, economic and community development, and special service districts.

And the better the money is managed, the more resources that are available to provide those services.

It’s a job where experience counts.

As the former Bend president of First Interstate Bank, I oversaw six branches in the Bend and Sunriver area, along with a commercial banking team.

I also directly supported Deschutes County with its depository and lending needs.

As a result, I have a detailed knowledge of the County’s finances and operations.

That’s why I’m running for this office.

It gives me an opportunity to use my experience in a way that will serve the community I love.

This experience will help our county to grow, while preserving the track record of strong financial stability Deschutes County has established over many decades.

I’m not a politician, and it matters to me that this office is nonpartisan. But it is an elected office, so I’m writing to ask for your support. I hope you’ll be sure to vote, and to work your way down the ballot to the section for Deschutes County treasurer, where you can fill in the bubble next to my name. I look forward to working for you. Bill Kuhn is a candidate for Deschutes County treasurer.

You can learn more about me and my supporters at http://www.billkuhn4treasurer.com.

Bill Kuhn

Keep Sisters City Council nonpartisan

To the Editor:

This election Sisters has four highly qualified candidates for City Council. The City Council positions are by tradition nonpartisan. The Council deliberates, debates, and reaches consensus on key community issues. Unlike other elected offices in parts the state we do not have an ‘R’ or ‘D’ or ‘I’ after our names on the ballot, nor do we consider that when we work as a council. We do not hide our party affiliation, nor do we flaunt it. Ask any one of us what our political views are in a personal conversation, and we will gladly share them.

Unfortunately, many of you have received information from the Deschutes Democrats suggesting that you support a particular Council candidate based solely on party affiliation. A party- line approach has no place in our Council elections. Three of the candidates have policy statements in the voters pamphlet. One candidate, Sarah McDougall, entered the race late and was unable to get a statement into the pamphlet. You can learn about Sarah at Facebook.com/SarahForSistersCityCouncil. Read about all four candidates carefully and make a decision based on what you have read, or contact any of the candidates directly if you have questions beyond what is available in print.

Sisters deserves a carefully considered Council, without regard to party affiliation or politics. It is why Council positions are nonpartisan and should remain so.

Nancy Connolly

City Council Candidate

To the Editor:

I am writing to ask you to vote for me, Sarah McDougall, for Sisters City Council.

My husband, cats, and I chose Sisters as our home for the same reasons as many of you who moved from somewhere else and those of you who were raised here and stayed. This is a special place. There is access to a large variety of outdoor spaces and activities where we can find a sense of peace. There is also a fierce sense of community and small town that we do not want to lose.

While I have been watching City Council meetings and studying issues for several months, I started knocking on doors to talk with more people in our community. This is a task that has rewarded me with many thoughtful conversations and the honor of meeting neighbors in a few areas of town. To all of you who have answered your doors, or taken time from yard work to speak with me, thank you for sharing your day. It has been truly lovely to meet you.

The concerns I’ve heard about most were rapid growth and how it is affecting housing prices and quality of life, continued water availability, and separate concerns regarding speeding and pedestrian safety.

I will not pretend that I have all of the answers. However, I am confident to say that I will take the time to break down these issues and work with our experts to understand where improvements can be made. I will also listen to you to hear what other topics are important to you.

I know growth is painful and sometimes undesirable. However, I’m a realist and believe that our best course of action is to recognize that it will continue and put the strongest efforts toward ensuring our infrastructure continues to be upgraded and that our policies and plans have clear guidelines on how we choose to grow so that we do not lose our sense of community and home.

I spent my career in IT working in roles as a computer programmer, project manager, systems analyst, and many others as needed. I have a background in analyzing issues to understand where small changes can be made to make systems resilient. I have a robust volunteer resume that shows my dedication to spending time helping my community be stronger.

I would appreciate your vote of confidence on the ballot. Please reach out with questions or comments to [email protected]

Sarah McDougall

Spiritual battle

To the Editor:

The definition(s) of darkness in the dictionary include “absence of light or illumination; absence of moral or spiritual values.”

America over the past six years has been consumed within a spiritual battle like never seen before; with the end results seeming to remove all connection to God and our founding principles (Ephesians 6:12, John 3:19).

All are free to reject the Bible and God’s truth, but most with a “conscience” will agree there is evil and good in our world that affect behavior. Created not as robots, but humans with free will, the spiritual battle is for our minds. Who we listen to matters. From our Creator’s perspective all have sinned (Rom. 3:23). I would suggest however that many are unknowingly possessed by Satan’s power over their mind that ranges from the subtle (Isa. 5:20-21) to undeniable evil, such as the recent shooting at the Safeway store in Bend, and numerous school shootings in the past years even more horrific.

The current spiritual battle within escalated dramatically when Trump announced running for president with two key objectives: “Make America Great Again” and “Drain the Swamp.” You can figure out yourself which one caused the level of hate and targeted destruction of a person and his family that has been ongoing 24/7 to this day, can’t you? It surely wouldn’t be “Make America Great Again” would it? The list of who, what, and when is almost infinite in describing what I believe is an insatiable lust for power of the darkest kind.

Maybe Lenin, acknowledged as pure evil, can summarize what is going on: “We must be ready to employ trickery, deceit, law-breaking, withholding and concealing truth…We can and must write in a language which sows among the masses hate, revulsion, and scorn toward those who disagree with us.”

Thankfully I believe time, common sense, and light/illumination (not from fake news — or maybe is?) is finally shining on the darkness of the spiritual battle in America. Matthew 6:33.

Jeff Mackey

Supporting Emerson Levy

To the Editor:

Here in Central Oregon, we have an opportunity to be represented by a pragmatic leader who shares mainstream values, and to keep extremist views out of the Oregon State House. To have Emerson Levy in the State House of Representatives as our District 53 representative would mean we’d have a true “representative.”

Emerson is focused on making people’s lives better by addressing the basic life issues, such as: housing, broadband, and available clean water. Her motivation comes from her deep commitment to a safe society. In this nationally perilous time for democracy, we need to trust our State legislature.

Her opponent, Michael Sipe, has demonstrated his alignment with the extreme right-wing that have caused so much division. Given the jarring rhetoric published by Sipe regarding the 2020 election, the January 6 insurrection, and his difficulty separating church and state, he has disqualified himself to be trusted as our state House representative. We would not be well served by someone who serves his own rigid and irrational beliefs rather than the constituents he is supposed to represent.

Thankfully, we can count on Emerson to make decisions in support of people and communities, not corporations or ideologies. Emerson’s character can be seen in her efforts to ensure children’s safety and her respect for an open and fair dialogue in a free, democratic society. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden have endorsed Emerson. Please join me in voting for Emerson Levy as our new state House representative in the upcoming election. Thank you.

Monica Tomosy

Bad planning

To the Editor:

It’s a shame that two meetings took place on the exact same date and time, the town Hall Citizens4Community “Houseless in Sisters” at the Firehouse and City of Sisters’ public hearing on the new Sunset Meadows Development at Sisters City Hall, both on October 20 at 5:30 p.m.

Which one do you attend when both are so important to those of us who live in and care about Sisters, the one that breaks your heart or the one that just makes you shake your head at how ridiculous a new housing development is when we all know it will only add to an already stressed traffic problem and diminishing water supply?

Reading the articles in The Nugget October 19, “Laird closing up shop,” “Challenges of forest-dwelling,” “Public hearing set on new housing,” and “High rents” makes you realize that all the talk about affordable homes in Sisters is not about affordable at all, yet we need those to pull workers in who support our small businesses and to help people like the Blair family, who have jobs but can’t find affordable housing. The Sunset Meadows development will be expensive to move into, there is no doubt about that. Do we need to build yet another development somewhere else to house these workers?

The Woodlands development got citizen support because of the affordable housing label put on it, and now we find out those homes will start at $500,000; is that affordable? This puts a lot of stress on Habitat for Humanity to get affordable houses built. We already know affordable apartments are a joke unless the renters can get assistance from the government. The rents remain high in Sisters, and I don’t see those coming down.

I only wish it were possible to be in two places at once, but it isn’t.

Linda Warnholtz

Vaccine

To the Editor:

In the October 19 issue of The Nugget, Gary Hickman, RN presented an emotional smear response to my well-referenced commentary on mRNA vaccination concerns. Not once did Mr. Hickman use scientific data to argue my references. He relied on highly politicized government agencies supporting the lucrative vaccine market. Sorry to report, Gary, after having COVID, against my better scientific judgement, I took two doses of the Pfizer vaccine. My wife took the Johnson & Johnson product. She made the better decision. The only mistake you found in my commentary was a typo! After which you politicized the source.

Fact: Biden said the pandemic was over. He then extended emergency-use authorization for the experimental mRNA vaccines. Why? There have been no long-term studies on the new Moderna vaccine. None. Why did Pfizer seal its records on the testing of its vaccine for 75 years? Why can you not hold Pfizer or Moderna responsible for serious vaccine complications? The truth is trickling out through freedom of information lawsuits.

Please challenge my references with scientific studies and data. Challenge the American Heart Association researchers who found the spike proteins to cause cardiac muscle hypertrophy, remodeling, and to be intensely inflammatory. Challenge the Thai study and the growing number of doctors and nurses around the world with safety data.

I am respectful of your RN degree. I believe it is the most valuable two- to four-year degree attainable. Taking a poke at my degree was stupid on your part. It took me 12 years to complete my DVM, board-certified specialty credentials, and become a tenured associate professor of veterinary medicine.

By the way, did you know the highly vaccinated director of the CDC just tested positive for COVID? The editor of The Nugget should be commended for allowing this freedom of speech platform for open debate.

Wayne B. Schmotzer DVM

McDougall for City Council

To the Editor:

I urge all of my Sisters friends and neighbors to vote for Sarah McDougall for City Council. She isn’t in the Voter’s Guide, but she’ll get my vote. I met Sarah when we worked together on the Sisters City Parks Advisory Board. The Parks Master Plan update was part of the “to-do” list, and Sarah reached out right away to see how she could help.

As a new resident, she visited all of the city parks, read the very detailed parks plan, and was quickly up to speed. I appreciated Sarah’s commitment to regular meeting attendance and she was always prepared to offer thoughtful insights to board discussions.

Sarah and I recently met again at a C4C Community Builder meeting, which she regularly attends. Once again, I was impressed with her insights and willingness to step up. Since moving to Sisters, Sarah has

volunteered her talent and time to several organizations and taken a thoughtful look at various ways to participate in her new community.

I’m encouraged to see such a dedicated and talented individual committing her skills and passion to work for the City of Sisters as its newest Council member. I’ll be voting for Sarah McDougall for City Council and I urge you to do so, too.

Dixie Eckford