Americans at least deserve to have a fair election

I’m frustrated and discouraged. As a conservative Republican in a, sadly, liberal Democrat state I’m typically disappointed on Election Day. However, this presidential election is significantly different and way beyond disappointing. I’m among the 77% of Trump voters who see a fraudulent process. Yes, I’m aware that the Trump legal team has been dismissed in 59 of 60 lawsuits but I don’t understand how these suits can be so blithely dismissed without a fair hearing.

Aside from the compelling arguments made by the Trump legal team, there have been witness after witness describing what they saw as fraud, or at least very questionable acts. Also, people reported that they were victims of fraud when they showed up to vote but were told they had already voted. A man stated that he had hauled a trailer loaded with ballots from New York to Pennsylvania. Republican poll watchers were forced to leave polling locations. One state mailed out 1.8 million absentee ballots but received and counted 2.5 million. Dead people voted. Experts have provided amazing information about the questionable accuracy of Dominion voting machines. All of these issues needed to be thoroughly and honestly investigated and given their day in court. And the arguments that recounts have been completed are superfluous: recounting fraudulent ballots doesn’t prove anything.

I understand that some people don’t like President Trump. I understand that the media want him out of office and that there have been constant efforts over the last four years to remove him. I understand that Democrats never accepted his presidency and also attacked him like the liberal press. Somehow an American means of fairness needs to overcome the prejudice against President Trump and convince me and others that the election wrongs will be investigated and right will prevail. I may not like, but can certainly accept, a Democrat president if fairly elected. It would take great effort to convince me Biden’s election was fair and that he is fit for the office given his, and his family’s, reported business ties to communist China.

I don’t agree with all of President Trump’s style, opinions and actions but, overall, he has achieved very good results for America. At the very least, he deserves fairness.

Jim Carnahan

Baker City

We support the Oregon Trail Restaurant owners

To Dave and Sandy McGuire and the staff of the Oregon Trail Restaurant, thank you. We appreciate what you are doing for your staff as well as the community. You are not just paying wages, but also providing an outlet for social interaction, and contributing to the local economy. Every dollar spent in a business goes around seven times, so you are helping to keep other businesses and staff stay afloat. It is a sad statement about Baker City that there are people that won’t mind their own business and run to tattle-tell on local establishments that are trying to do their best. It was not always that way. Once upon a time, the community took care of its own. Hold the line — we have your back.

Doni and Craig Bruland

Baker City

What would letter writer have done about COVID-19?

In the Tuesday, Dec. 22 edition of the Herald, Gary Dielman’s letter to the editor begins with the statement “The Trump administration’s ineptitude in dealing with the COVID-19 virus has led to the avoidable deaths of over 300,000 U.S. citizens, soon to surpass 400,000.”

That’s a pretty bold statement and leads to the question: “Tell us Mr. Dielman, how would you have dealt with that situation, armed with the scant knowledge about this virus available when it first raised its ugly head?”

Sig Siefkes

Baker City

Protecting our rivers crucial for our future

I have experienced gratitude, peace, and moments of joy over this most difficult year by spending time on the Eagle, Powder, and Grande Ronde rivers. These rivers are not only beautiful, but essential to our way of life.

I was born and raised in Prineville and am grateful to now be raising my own family in Baker City. I’ve spent many years of my life working in the woods as a wildland firefighter and educator, and am privileged to have explored some of the most remote stretches of our public lands. I now recognize the importance of those experiences, and see the value of these wild places, through the eyes of my daughter.

Our wild rivers and natural places around them are the lifeblood of our community. Some think of Eastern Oregon as an empty sea of sagebrush, but it’s so much more. Not only do wild rivers offer a necessary respite from an increasingly wired-in world, but they are home to wildlife and the source of our clean drinking water. Millions of Oregonians including those of us in places like Baker, La Grande, and Pendleton depend on our public lands for their drinking water.

Currently, less than 2% of our state’s rivers are protected. These rivers, upon which our communities depend, deserve greater protection. I encourage Senator Wyden to introduce legislation to protect our state’s Wild and Scenic Rivers, and hope the rivers of eastern Oregon are well represented. As the world changes, it’s critical we act quickly and boldly to protect what we cherish about rural Oregon — solitude, sustenance, and joy.

Sarah Cuddy

Baker City