Star News Top Stories

November 19, 2009

Riegert: Hello, I’m a responsible hunter
"I've followed a wounded animal to this land. Can I enter to try to end its misery?"
I've heard one too many horror stories associated with statements like this to be silent any longer. If ever asked, I'd answer with something like this.
"Responsible? If you wounded the victim you claim to have followed here, which would be the most likely case, instead of killing instantly, then you would appear to me as irresponsible. The 'hunter' part seems correct, though increasing millions of us hunt, but have never carried or no longer carry weapons. Even if you were able to prove your claim about someone wounded entering this land instead of simply lying in order to gain entry, I'd deny permission not only because you may be irresponsible, but also because this has become unconditional sanctuary. All who come pay the ultimate compliment and will be allowed to die or recover without further pursuit or terror. They'll not be betrayed, as you'd not want to be betrayed if you are ever in their place.
So instead of giving permission, I suggest laying down the weapons and picking up the heart we're born with and that responds unconditionally to those usually regarded as 'something,' rather than 'somebody' and 'someone' as they are . . . responds to the misery and death they get from us. See how it is to carry that around when there's no more turning away. Maybe the 'sissies' you've seen aren't at all weak as it seemed. Farewell."
There. Some of you just took 100 percent of your FDA-recommended daily allowance of jibberish, courtesy of one of those annoying, bizarre, eccentric "animal people."
— Michael Riegert, Medford

Writer remarks on legacy of those who pass on
When folks came to Barrow, Alaska, they often visited with elder Sadie.
Chris and I have learned a lot about local history in this area of Wisconsin in the past year, following our move from Alaska. It is always a pleasure to spend time with elders and younger folk and learn about logging, downtowns, local baseball teams and so much more.
In Barrow, Alaska, we learned so much from the Inupiat Eskimo elders.
During my first trip (in 1969) from Anchorage to the far north on a community planning project, I had a quick lesson in weighing my words.
Attending a city council meeting, I outlined in some detail the purpose of my visit, and how small towns like Barrow could benefit from a comprehensive plan.
After the meeting, one of the elders on the council came over and thanked me for coming. “But remember one thing Earl,” he said. “In our culture, we believe that every time a person speaks, they lose a part of their brain.” I thanked him and from that point on, I kept my speeches to a minimum.
The Inupiat people rely on elders to help pass on their history and values. One elder that we learned a lot from was the late Sadie Brower Neakok, who passed away several years ago, well into her 80s.
I met Sadie, the local magistrate, for some 20 years, during my first trip to Barrow. She told me how, at first, she held court at her kitchen table in her little house near the Arctic Ocean. “I’d tell the kids they’d have to keep quiet because mom was working,” she said.
She said there were a number of cases where people drank too much and got into a fight. Sadie said she tried to talk to those folks: “There were so few people in Barrow, and being mad at each other wouldn’t help.”
She helped me to understand Inupiat values like cooperation, sharing, and avoidance of conflict. In addition, even well into her 80s, she always had freshly baked bread each morning in her kitchen. “My grandkids say they really enjoy my bread,” she’d say with a smile.
Chris would bring her into KBRW often during my morning shift, so we could chat about her life growing up and Barrow through the decades. As her health started to get worse, she couldn’t come over in person, so I’d give her a call and we’d cover a variety of topics on the air, including the big flood in Barrow back in the early 1960s when some friends ran a heavy chain around her house and anchored it, so the house wouldn’t wash into the ocean.
The last time I saw Sadie was just before our vacation to the Midwest. She was quite weak, so I just talked to her about various topics, including her trusty old sewing machine and her bread. I held her hand and said we’d be leaving on vacation the next day. In a soft voice she said “Have a nice vacation.” She was always thinking of others, even when she was very sick.
— Earl Finkler, Medford

PETA representative asks for those who see abuse to report it
The case of the Fitchburg teenager who is accused of trying to kill another teen at her home by stabbing her with a knife — and who reportedly admitted to previously killing birds, strangling squirrels, pulling apart frogs, and trying to hang a dog — may perfectly exemplify the link between cruelty to animals and interpersonal violence (AP story).
Animal abusers are cowards who take their issues out on “easy victims”— and they rarely limit their cruelty to other species. Psychiatrists, criminal profilers, and law enforcement officials have repeatedly documented that young people who are cruel to animals often turn that violence against humans. Cruelty to animals appears in the histories of all our nation’s serial killers and tragic school shooters.
If you know or suspect that someone is abusing animals, please report it to police and humane authorities immediately — for the safety of animals and the entire community. Visit www.HelpingAnimals.com to learn more about the animal-human cruelty link.
— Martin Mersereau, director emergency response team for cruelty investigations department of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Norfolk, Va.

Walkers travel to Atlanta to raise money for cancer research
Can you imagine a world without breast cancer? It's not a fantasy. Let yourself envision that world. The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Three-Day is a 60-mile walk for women and men who want to make a personal difference in the fight against breast cancer. Participants commit to fundraising, training and dedicating an entire weekend to the cause.
Each step we took over the 60 mile event in Atlanta brought us closer to ending the disease forever. MHC Walk Four Life is a team that began this amazing journey last year at the Chicago event with 13 members who raised over $42,000. This year on October 22, two of those members, Kari Mueller and Caroline Neumueller, went to Atlanta, Ga. and raised over $4,600. Much appreciation goes out to family and friends for their help and support. Corporate sponsors, Fred Gelhaus Dentistry, Memorial Health Center, Peterson Concrete, 10 Acre Glass Rocks, Shane's Outfitters, Sova Insurance and Timberland Improvements helped surpass the team's goal.
There were 2,200 walkers in Atlanta, with almost 300 of those being breast cancer survivors. The Atlanta event alone raised over 5.6 million dollars to help with the fight against breast cancer, funding critical research, education and community health programs. Each year there are 15 events throughout the United States. Kari and Caroline would like to participate consecutively in all of them. They will take the team MHC Walk Four Life to walk 60 miles in Minnesota next year. Anyone is welcome to join. If you don't think you can walk, crew members are always needed and are a huge part of the success for each event.
Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever. In 1982, that promise became Susan G. Komen for the Cure and launched the global breast cancer movement. Today, Komen for the Cure is the world's largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Thanks to events like the Komen Race for the Cure and the Breast Cancer Three-Day, the organization has invested more than $1.2 billion to fulfill its promise, becoming the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world. For more information about Komen for the Cure, breast health or breast cancer, visit www.komen.org or call 1-877 GO KOMEN.
We walk because we can. We walk for our mothers and grandmothers, daughters and sisters, cousins and friends. We walk for anyone who has ever been diagnosed with breast cancer. We walk for all families, past or present, who have dealt with the devastations of this disease. We walk for all survivors who have or are still enduring endless treatments. And we walk for anyone who may be diagnosed with breast cancer in the future. We walk because we would like our children and grandchildren to never have to. We walk because everyone deserves a lifetime.
— Caroline Neumueller, Medford

Barack Obama has created nothing but division and dissent
Since he became our supreme ruler he has only disturbed the peace, our country is in a state of unrest, strife, and ennui. Obama doesn’t lie he implies, he misdirects, he misleads so fluidly and incessantly that he puts transmuting eloquence into mere slickness. His presidency is shaping up as a tragedy for America and the world. Pray for December 21, 2012.
— Gerald Gums, Santa Ana, Calif.