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This letter is in response to Mr. Mansfield’s concerns of House Bill 45 and his association of the bill with the White House. I would ask those concerned with the bill to please take the time to actually research it themselves. I believe certain elements of the bill may come to light quickly.

The first thing one might notice is the Bill has no co-sponsors, which of course essentially guarantees the fact that if it even survives committee where it currently resides, it cannot pass. This isn’t surprising, seeing the sponsor of the bill is Bobby Rush, who even by government standards is a wing-nut, lunatic who no one will listen to, even those of his own Party. It’s unclear what sort of leap of logic allows Mr. Mansfield to feel he was “betrayed” by the White House and the new president with this bill other than by party affiliation.

At the very least it displays unfounded Internet-driven paranoia. At worst, it conjures up guilt by association-type hatred of the McCarthy era.

Peter Gallagher
Trout Lake, Wash.

Facts vs. anger

Mr. Cliff Mansfield looks to be all worked up again. If he would simply turn off Glen Beck and Sean Hannity and open a newspaper he would see that House Bill 45, the Blair Holt Bill, is nearly dead because 65 House Democrats (including Oregon Democrat Kurt Schrader) signed a letter put forth by the NRA expressing their committed opposition to the bill.

Assuming that somehow HB 45 passed the House, it would die a quick death in the Senate because of pro gun-rights Democrats like Sen. Tester, Sen. Begich, Sen. Feingold, Sen. Webb, and yes, even NRA member Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

If Mr. Mansfield is really so concerned with Congress restricting his gun rights he should write a check to Sen. Reid’s campaign to make sure he stays the Senate Majority Leader instead of a more liberal Democrat.

What bothers me about Mr. Mansfield’s latest diatribe is not his strong opposition to gun control reform but rather the angry way in which he tries to articulate it.

Mr. Mansfield does not make a single factual assertion supporting his position that President Obama wants to take his guns away and instead relies on ad homonym like “Democrats will always want to eliminate your gun rights,” and “Obama and his sycophants are willing to sacrifice our Supreme Court-proven freedom to possess firearms.”

Citing the Supreme Court holding in DC v. Heller that the 2nd Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm for private use actually hurts his position! Even if President Obama wanted to take away Mr. Mansfield’s guns (and he has repeatedly stated to the contrary) he could not constitutionally do so.

Two weeks ago a man killed three cops in Pennsylvania and himself because he claimed that President Obama wanted to take away his guns and impose a totalitarian regime, coincidentally the same argument Mr. Mansfield makes. I’m quite certain Mr. Mansfield rejects such abhorrent behavior, but he needs to be careful using such extreme rhetoric. It is perfectly fine to have strong views about gun control reform; it’s not fine to articulate them in such an angry and inciting way.

Nels Johnson
Salem

‘Dress’ kudos

On April 4 this community came together for an event called “Dress for Less” and we wanted to thank everyone involved who made it a huge success.

The idea started just eight weeks ago and it has been requested to become an annual tradition for our town. There were so many involved in making the event happen, but here are just a few: Hood River Valley Christian Church, Curves, Hood River Valley Christian Church Thrift Shop ladies, Shortt Supply, Silverado, Georgette Jones, Lucy’s Informal Flowers, 12th Street Dry Cleaners, Marjorie Byrne CPA, Scott and Lynne Rich, Your Rental Center, and the many ladies who fixed, sewed, and cleaned dresses behind the scenes.

We also want to thank those who helped set up and take down the day of the event. We have never had a crew of such hard-working people!

Thanks especially to the Hood River News and RaeLynn Ricarte for getting the word out with such a great article. The joy on girls’ faces made it so worth doing. It’s encouraging to know that in hard times people and community really do come and work together to help others. Stay tuned for next year when we start collecting for the event again and SAVE YOUR DRESSES!

Chris Keith, Jessie Page
Hood River

Airport hearing

I would urge Geoff Moore (Our Readers Write, April 11) to take his own advice and attend the public hearing on Wednesday, April 22, concerning the Hood River Airport Master Plan.

If he does he may be surprised to find that there are no plans to lengthen the runway at the Hood River airport.

Actually, the citizens of Hood River do benefit from having an airport just like we all benefit from the bridge even if we do not use it.

Gennaro Avolio
Hood River

ANOTHER VOICE

By GLENN HARRIS

What better time to celebrate National Library Week (April 12-18) than during the current economic woes?

Don’t want to have to pay for good books to enjoy? Go to the library.

Looking for free entertaining CDs or DVDs? Go to the library. Need to use a computer but can’t afford one right now? Go to the library.

Want to read the latest magazines or newspapers from all around the country? Go to the library.

The theme of this year’s National Library Week is “Worlds connect @ your library.” What makes the library unique is that you have librarians (real human beings!) to help you make those connections, to help everyone find and interpret the information they need to make a difference in their lives. From early childhood learning to help for small business owners, the library can be a vital resource for people of all ages.

The Hood River County Library, for instance, circulated 78,575 items to 16,070 registered users in the twelve months ending in September, 2008. They answered 30,888 reference questions, provided 68,212 hours of public computer use and wireless connection, offered seventeen adult programs and 255 children’s programs. That is a lot of help for a lot of people.

We should also remember to honor the other libraries – school libraries, academic and specialized libraries. They all contribute to our society’s storehouse of knowledge and thus our well-being.

It would, in addition, not be overstating the case to say that libraries are essential to democracy. As then-Senator Barack Obama said in his keynote address to the American Library Association Annual Conference in 2005, “...libraries remind us that truth isn’t about who yells the loudest, but who has the right information.” Nothing could be more important for the preservation of our way of life right now.

And Mr. Obama’s thought can also remind us that while it is true the World Wide Web contains a world of information, the Internet offers immediate access to all the misinformation on the planet as well – with no librarians to help you sort the wheat from the chaff.

Wikipedia (an on-line, user-generated encyclopedia) is very popular and can be helpful, but that authoritative-looking article you just read might have been written yesterday by the 12-year-old Goth kid down the block. You never know.

Finally, never let it be forgotten that the library is fundamentally a safe place to be, for all ages, races, and classes to learn, to connect with new information and old truths. That, too, is very important in this day and age.

Your local library, by the way, is not immune from the pressures of our economic climate. If you agree that the library is an important resource, please do all you can to help. Contribute books, CDs, DVDs, or — best of all — money. Join the Friends of the Library.

Volunteer to help with inventory, cleaning books, whatever. You won’t regret it. You’ll be doing yourself and your neighbors a great service.

Glenn Harris of Hood River is President of the Friends of the Hood River County Library, a volunteer group that helps the library with programs and book purchases.