The Courier
News Breaking Down the Walls
It takes long time to build a wall. Each row of bricks must be carefully laid and cemented to a foundation to keep it from falling over. And, even after it is finished, it must be maintained to keep the ravages of weather and time to a minimum. It might seem easy enough to tear down such a structure, but it takes more than a big hammer to take down a well built wall. It often requires heavy equipment, teamwork, and most importantly, it usually takes the steadfast commitment of one individual. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan delivered his famous “tear down this wall” speech in Berlin to challenge the Russian government to take down the wall which had been built in 1961. His statement, which at the time was mostly ignored by the American media, eventually led to the destruction of the Berlin Wall in the 1990’s. Of course, not all walls are constructed of brick and mortar. Some wall are made out of our social and economic differences. Humans are always dividing themselves into groups that share certain similarities - ethnicity, intellectual achievements, financial success, physical differences, etc. - and crossing those barriers is far more difficult than breaking through a concrete wall. Last week, the Camas School District hosted a “Breaking Down the Walls” event to help students learn how to build trust between each other. The main idea of this program is: it’s hard to hate someone once you know their story. Sharing one’s story is not without risks, but the act of opening up
about the things that make us who we are can lead to great opportunities. Principal Nathan Whittle said this program had a great impact on students in American Falls when they did this a couple of years ago. He is hoping for the same sort of results in Camas County. However, for a program like this to be truly successful, it needs to impact parents and adults outside the walls of the school as well. One of the analogies used by the presenter, Stu Cabe, was the story of the frog and boiling water. Throw a frog into a pot of boiling water and he’ll jump out. Put a frog in cold water and slowly heat it up, he’ll boil to death. Stu’s point was that some of us are the type of people who turn the heat up on others. Some call it teasing, others call it bullying. Either way, Stu said to the kids and teachers, “Don’t be the one who turns up the heat, be the one who turns it down.” The news media is full of “journalists” who are turning up the heat, often for reasons that benefit no one. If you are on facebook or twitter, you have “friends” who are constantly trying to heat up political discussions with ignorant remarks. Every community has its group of busybody gossips who are always stirring the pot. If we want our children to learn how to bridge their social/economic differences, then we adults need to set a better example. So, the next time someone on facebook attacks your liberal/conservative/religious ideologies, just turn the heat down (or turn the other cheek). Sometimes the best answer to such things is no answer at all.
News from the Heart of Idaho Camas • Lincoln • Gooding
November 22, 2017
Vol 41 ~ Num 47
2017 Gooding Gobbler Thanksgiving Day
You are invited to Huff & Puff in this year’s annual 5k walk/run Gooding Gobbler starting TOMORROW morning at 8:00 a.m. at the North Valley Academy - 906 Main in Gooding. Registration begins at 7:00 a.m. $25 for ages 13 and up, $10 for ages 6 to 12, and 5 and under run FREE! There will be medals and cash prizes for the winners. The proceeds from this year’s run will go to the Gooding Fire Department. A BIG thank you to all our fire fighters for being there when we need them. BlueFire Wilderness Therapy is sponsoring the beanies (hats) for this year’s race! BlueFire and Kathy Rex have been huge supporters of the Gooding Gobbler and many other community events and projects. After the run there will be a beverage bar to help you re-hydrate along with muffins. So, there are no excusses to staying home. Questions... call Emily Garybeal at 539-1235.
Legacy In Stone:
Discovering Ancient Flintknapping in Idaho
The Herrett Center is proud to host the public premiere of this documentary focusing on flintknapping, the ancient process of fashioning stone tools, the world renowned Simon Clovis Cache and flintknappers like the College of Southern Idaho’s Jim Woods, professor of anthropology. Local residents Jim Paxton, Al Frost and Jim Woods teamed up with film producer Mark Bork to produce the 54-minute documentary about flintknapping and the discovery of what is known today as the Simon Collection. Estimated to be 12,000 years old, the Simon Collection is a cache of over 30 Clovis points that resides in the Herrett Center’s permanent collection. Legacy In Stone was shot entirely in locations throughout continued on page 4...