Saturday, July 26, 2014 THE NEW MEXICAN
OPINIONS
The West’s oldest newspaper, founded 1849 Robin M. Martin Owner
Dignified mourning in Netherlands
T
he Netherlands fell silent Wednesday. Only the tolling of church bells disturbed the silence. It was a day of national mourning, the first since the death of the country’s beloved Queen Wilhelmina some 50 years ago. In late Bill Stewart afternoon sunshine, Understanding at EindYour World hoven airbase, military air transports arrived from Ukraine, carrying the first 40 coffins of the 298 people who died when Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was shot down, apparently by a surface-to-air missile fired by Russian-supported Ukrainian separatists. The silver sound of a single trumpet broke the silence as it sounded “Last Post,” the traditional British (and in this case, Dutch) military call to signal the end of the day. A crowd of officials, led by King Willem-Alexander, Argentina-born Queen Maxima, and the prime minister bowed their heads as the coffins were carried with military precision from the planes to the waiting hearses. The gleaming black cars then moved slowly from the airbase to make the 60-mile journey to the Dutch military base at Hilversum, where the grim work of identifying the bodies would be carried out. Some 193 people out of the 298 killed were Dutch citizens. This was indeed a bitter blow to the Netherlands, a small country of 16 million people, rich in history and long a symbol of quiet stoicism as it struggled to stem the often angry waters of the North Sea. The countryside is rich and green, its flat landscape crisscrossed with canals, dotted with windmills whose sails were now stopped in tribute, the whole protected by
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Robert M. McKinney Owner, 1949-2001 Inez Russell Gomez Editorial Page Editor
Ray Rivera Editor
ANOTHER VIEW
State slow to act on bridge deaths The Taos News
G Holland’s enduring dikes. It is a country of extraordinary social liberalism, yet matched with a penchant for personal restraint. It was that restraint that was on display this week as the long cortege made its way from Eindhoven to Hilversum. Thousands of men, women and children lined the way, either on the green verges of the highway, waiting on overpasses or pulling their cars to a halt on the other side of the four-lane highway and getting out to pay their respects. There were no angry shouts or demonstrations. Instead, there were only tears as the people of the Netherlands silently threw flowers onto the hearses, or quietly clapped a sad and respectful welcome home. It was an extraordinary, heart-rending display of emotion by a nation not generally given to such displays. Finally, the actions of the Dutch people were a lesson in dignity to us all. No matter the display of indifference if not outright barbarism by the separatists in their handling of the remains of those killed, the Dutch redeemed us all by
their dignified behavior. We were ransomed by their good sense and restraint. It should be noted that not all Ukrainians who lived near the crash site behaved badly. Not all robbed the victims of their few remaining belongings. Many brought flowers to the site. Many were terrified by the rain of debris on their village. It is the armed separatists, who in their utter indifference to the fate of the victims, trampled on the wreckage and the bodies of the dead. And it is the separatists on whom we must concentrate our anger and our determination to put things right. One can only wonder what President Vladimir Putin must think of his protégés. Or does he care at all? One can only wonder, too, at the sheer inhumanity of this event and those responsible. It may well be that those who fired the missile were unaware that their target was a civilian airliner. But their actions in the immediate aftermath speak volumes of their lack of discipline and, ultimately, of their thuggish characters. It is their lack of shame, their lack of
character that ultimately will destroy them. The bodies continued to come home during the week, and the people of the Netherlands continued to mourn. Others, too, continued to mourn, for the Netherlands was not alone in its grief. There were victims from the United Kingdom, Australia and Malaysia itself. And as the bodies came back to the Netherlands, still more bodies were being found in and around the crash site. As the world continues to mourn, we might well remember the lines from Laurence Binyon’s poem “For the Fallen,” as indeed they are among the fallen: They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them. Bill Stewart writes about current affairs from Santa Fe. He is a former U.S. Foreign Service officer and served as a correspondent for Time magazine.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Comment on ‘cultural game’ unfounded
A
rdeth Baxter’s column (“Who was here first? It doesn’t matter,” My View, July 6) states that there is a “cultural game” played by Hispanics and Native Americans against Anglos, in which we have the feeling that we are “better than everybody else” because of our long lineage in New Mexico. It would be interesting to find out how she came to the judgment that these cultures harbor such an attitude. In the Hispanic culture, we are cognizant of the fact that in our ancestry, we carry the blood of many cultures, including Anglo. She placed an unfair and unfounded assumption on these cultures. Because of her admitted shallow roots, she admonished native New Mexicans for living in a “womb-like family homestead.” Living in the land of your birth does not mean we are oblivious to the rest of the world, and it certainly does not make us simple-minded minions. We welcome those who come to live in our state. Understanding and respect should be shown toward all the cultures that make up this diverse and wonderful state. Diane Gonzales
Santa Fe
Amend Constitution The Supreme Court should not be making decisions that are contrary to
our way of government and should not engage in partisan politics. The current court’s interpretation of the Constitution is one that gives all power to the corporations and wealthy of this country and disregards that women are equal under our laws. We need to amend the Constitution to overturn the Citizens United decision. Scott Pittman
Santa Fe
Pastoral outreach A group of Santa Fe’s Hispanic pastors are to be commended for their remarkable event at the Santa Fe Rodeo Grounds last weekend. Some 1,200 people filled the arena each night to make this one of Santa Fe’s best-attended events. The presentations included live Christian music with Santa Fe and California groups. Revivalist Hector Delgado, former pop artist from Puerto Rico whose career spanned two decades, was the featured speaker. Those attending heard a message of love and redemption that could change lives forever. The well-organized event was the result of 10 Santa Fe pastors who came together with hundreds of volunteers from Santa Fe and the surrounding area. The event was an answer to countless prayers, including weeks of prayer by a
MALLARD FILLMORE
Section editor: Inez Russell Gomez, 986-3053, igomez@sfnewmexican.com, Twitter @inezrussell
24-7 prayer chain. Santa Fe has been enriched by this remarkable effort, and our visionary pastors are to be commended. J.D. (José) Vasquez
Santa Fe
Grand experiment A letter to the editor, (“Subject possibility,” July 14) from Don Hoffman, reads, “Possibly those who find their country untenable and enter our country possess a culture that rendered their country undesirable.” Why did The New Mexican publish this nonsense? In the first place, what does “possess a culture” even mean? It sounds stereotypical and xenophobic to this reader. Second, all who ever emigrated to the U.S. (including Don himself or his ancestors) did so because they found something in their former place of residence undesirable. This country is by no means perfect. However, for countless millions of people, it has been a place to reinvent themselves and to forge a better life. This collective desire is what has made the United States the great nation it is today. Without immigrants — past, present and future — “the grand experiment” would be a grand failure. Steven Fisher
ov. Susana Martinez was in Taos on Monday to tout the state’s efforts promoting tourism through the New Mexico True ad campaign. But one harsh truth about New Mexico is the Río Grande Gorge Bridge, an attractive destination for those who want to jump to their deaths. And the state hasn’t done a thing to stop it. During the past 20 years, more than 115 suicides have been reported at the bridge. Many of the people came here from out of the area. The bridge presents too easy a way to die. Ask Curly O’Connor, who watched as her son jumped over the bridge’s railing despite his family’s attempts to stop him. Cooper Beacom’s death April 29 was the second this year. O’Connor has since founded the Gorge Bridge Safety Network to spur a process that faltered years ago. In 2009, the state Department of Transportation came up with four designs to possibly deter suicides at the bridge. A study was completed. Nothing happened. Four years ago, we urged the state to take action when the bridge was set for a $2.4 million project to replace bearings between its steel piers and columns. Our suggestion was to raise the railings and design them in such a way tourists could still take in a view of the gorge below. Nothing happened. What continues to happen is that people take their lives. And our local firefighters endanger their own lives hiking 650 feet to the gorge’s bottom to retrieve the remains. Will building barriers at the Gorge Bridge end suicide in Taos? Of course, not. But the state could make the bridge a less accessible spot for would-be jumpers, and spare first responders the hike that’s become all-too-familiar. Gov. Martinez told a reporter Monday she wouldn’t mind something being done at the bridge as long as it keeps people safe and doesn’t prevent people from “seeing what Taos looks like.” So the cynics among us likely will agree nothing will happen yet again. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The state can look to other places that have had similar problems with bridges. In San Francisco and Seattle, it took the dedication of advocates to motivate change. And hopefully, spurred by a mother’s love for her son, the state will be prodded to finally come up with a solution.
The past 100 years From The Santa Fe New Mexican: July 26, 1964: Washington — Americans are consuming peanuts and peanut products at a record volume. The Agriculture Department reports the quantity used for food purposes during the 11 months ending June 30 totaled 782.2 million pounds, well above the 748.2 million pounds used in the like period a year earlier. Most of the increase over last year was in the consumption of peanut butter. July 26, 1989: A New Mexico public employee union said Tuesday that state prison employees and some hospital workers are owed at least $10 million in unpaid overtime. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union will go to court if the Corrections Department and the Health and Environment Department do not pay the money, said Bill Lopez, director of the union.
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