Background: Originally published November 1, 2006. This is another hybrid column with multiple topics. This was a week when all of the news seemed sad or distressing.
This past week was one of the most depressing weeks I've had in years. No, it wasn't because Jane Wyatt, the actress who played Mr. Spock's mother on Star Trek, passed away. There was enough other sad news locally to fill the week, personally, professionally, and politically.
OCUMPAUGH MEMORIAL
On a personal note....A public memorial service for 15-year-old Daniel Ocumpaugh was scheduled this past Saturday at the Oakland High School gymnasium. Daniel died in a dirt bike accident the previous Friday, while he was riding a dirt bike on trails near Metz Hill Road. It was just three years ago that Daniel's older brother, Lance, was injured when he fell on to concrete while stacking hay. Also, an uncle of Daniel's died in a drowning accident years ago, while he was an FFA student in high school. The Ocumpaugh family certainly deserves all of the support and compassion the public can offer as the family mourns their latest lost.
SPRINGFIELD NEWS CLOSES DOORS
On a professional note....After 103 years, the Springfield News published its final edition Friday, October 20th. I must admit that I never read the newspaper during the seven-odd years that I lived in the Eugene-Springfield area. As I recall, I only stepped inside the building one time: Three years ago I delivered the North County News spread sheets one week up to the Springfield facility, which printed the Sutherlin newspaper at that time.
The Springfield News ceased publishing the North County News earlier this year, when the business shut down their Springfield printing presses and laid off their printing staff. In its final days, the Springfield News was published up the freeway at its sister newspaper, the Albany Democrat-Herald. Company officials said dwindling advertising revenue was responsible for their demise.
The newspaper ditched its paid circulation list (4,211 subscribers), and became a free publication distributed through the mail. But that effort to increase advertising revenue also failed. In the end, all of the staff had to look for work elsewhere, including Editor Stacy Stumbo, a former News-Review reporter.
When a city more than twice the size of Roseburg can't supports its own weekly newspaper, it makes one wonder the future of newspapers in general. Hopefully, the residents and businesses of Sutherlin will appreciate what they have in the North County News and support their local paper before it's too late..??..
OAKLAND'S HALLOWEEN TRICKS
On a political note....Oakland's dirty politics have once again made front page news (the front of City/Region section) of the Eugene Register-Guard, Wednesday, October 25th. Some unidentified person mailed a circular to Oakland residents with the following statement: "There are only two choices for Mayor, Nanci Staples or Wayne Harger. Choose one. There are no other choices."
When I first opened the letter sent to my family at post office box 3, I quickly dismissed it. I'd seen much worse political tactics employed in past Oakland campaigns by mudslingers who like to hide in the shadows. In the past, vehicles have been vandalized, yard signs have been repeatedly stolen from some homes, scandalous letters with no return addresses were mailed to households, and letters to the editor were printed that I considered to be libelous.
No, indeed, this year's election has seemed pretty tame when compared to the past. The anonymous "there are only two choices" letter barely caused me to raise an eyebrow.
However, some newcomers to Oakland who were unfamiliar with how nasty local politics has been in the past, were shocked to see the "there are only two choices" letter. Not only were the viability of the four mayoral candidates (Wayne Harger, Jackie McCarty, Frieda Smith, Nanci Staples) put into question. But so was the return address that the return letter-sender chose to put on the envelope: 106 Locust is a vacant storefront (formerly the Oaks Cafe) next to the Oakland Tavern.
According to the Register-Guard article, people have questioned the Oakland Tavern staff, wanting to know if they had sent the letter. Never mind the obvious fact that there is NO street mail delivery service on Locust street, so 106 Locust doesn't even exist as a mailing address.
The Register-Guard article also claimed some unknown persons had started a rumor that Oakland police reserve officer Mark Wilson was running a write-in campaign for mayor, something that Wilson vehemently denies. All of this finger-pointing and suspicion might be considered funny if it weren't sad. I personally believe there are one, two, or three families in Oakland who are responsible for all of this anonymous mudslinging. While many Oakland residents have become politically involved over the years, there's only a select few who are cowardly enough not to identify themselves before beginning their mass mailings.
I don't believe the mean-spiriting mailings affect the outcome of an election. They simply reflect poorly on Oakland, especially when it becomes news for the Eugene newspaper. Fortunately, the election will be over next week.
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