Disappointed that more people aren’t vaccinated

I am amazed as I visit with people and read about the turnout for COVID-19 vaccinations. I understand some amount of hesitancy but with all of the information available about the vaccines, I do not understand why more people are not getting them. I believe they don’t understand how safe the vaccines are. Until enough people are vaccinated, the virus will be here with us. I surely don’t like that idea.

Linda Miller

Baker City

Grateful for City Council’s support of school measure

I want to thank the Baker City Council for their support of the Baker 5J School District’s bond measure. This bond measure does a great job of addressing some urgent maintenance and security issues at our schools as well as finally getting a cafeteria at the middle school. It leverages matching funds from outside the district to get the most bang for each property tax dollar. This has been a long process with many hiccups along the way, but I am glad that Superintendent Witty, our School Board, and volunteers have continued their work to identify needs and balance that with what we can afford. Our children and students are such an important resource and must have our support as a community to achieve their best results. I hope that you join me and the Baker City Council in voting yes on Baker School Bond Measure 1-108.

Loran Joseph

Baker City

The great disorder over the Idaho-Oregon border

Upon crossing into Idaho on I-84 there used to be a sign reading Idaho is too great to litter. I used to joke the sign should read: Idaho is too illiterate to be great. The joke hit home, however, when a Greater Idaho leaflet landed in my mail, claiming that I’d be better off if I was an Idahoan; it would be effortless, I wouldn’t even have to move, they would simply elasticize Idaho’s boundary and stretch it around Oregon’s more desirable acreage and call it good. That done, I’d supposedly be happy with the lacking infrastructure; why, for example, waste good tax money filling in those unattended potholes that a kid could fall into and never be seen again? What’s an unlicensed 4-wheeler for anyway?

No, I live in Eastern Oregon and hopefully will continue to do so. Besides, I wouldn’t be caught dead driving around with license plates that champion Famous Potatoes. It’s true Eastern Oregon is often overlooked by Salem or that we have to apologize for Portland’s behavior — but that’s no reason to surround us by Idaho. Besides, Idaho is moving here and already is taking over.

Fortunately, there are alternatives. If I want the Idaho experience I can always move to Douglas or Josephine counties and watch old episodes of Duck Dynasty. Or, seriously, why not physically move Idaho farther away. Ship it to the Middle East; plunk it down right between the two other “I” countries, Iran and Iraq. There, it wouldn’t be such a tempting distraction and, it would at least give a mask-less Ammon Bundy something to really whine about. Meanwhile, I’m happy living here with Eastern Oregon’s present borders, values and laws. And should I begin speaking disparaging words about my home on this range, I’ll create a new movement. I’ll call it Greater Hawaii. That’ll fix everything.

Whit Deschner

Baker City