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Redmond Won’t Ban Confederate Flags
The Redmond City Council decided against a resolution that would ban the flying of “hateful symbols”
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By Jack Harvel
By a split margin, the Redmond City Council this week chose not to consider a resolution that condemned symbols of hate in public parades. The issue came up after a Confederate flag was flown in the Redmond Chamber of Commerce’s Fourth of July Parade.
Councilor Ed Fitch proposed a resolution, which condemned symbols of hate like Nazi and Confederate flags,
to be considered at the next month’s council meeting. One Redmond resident spoke against the resolution during the public comment section of the meeting on Aug. 10, arguing that the float did not portray the flag positively, and that it illustrated the United States overcame the Confederate forces to maintain what was, at the time, a divided nation.
Two other people sent letters that were supportive of the three councilors who pushed for the resolution.
“I believe that it is important for the Council to come out with a strong statement of condemnation, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people,’” Colleen Shearer wrote to the council.
Fitch said his reason for promoting the resolution was not to criminalize flying the flag or to condemn the float, but to avoid honoring racist symbols. “The Confederate flag is to be remembered but not honored, and that’s the distinction,” Fitch said. “When we have our community parade we do that to honor, to honor our nation, to honor our community and to honor ourselves. That’s what it’s all about and when you put flags like that in a parade the symbol is to honor that flag.”
Redmond Mayor George Endicott said his opposition to the resolution was solidified after speaking with veterans on the topic.
“I made up my mind after attending a function at the Veterans of Foreign Wars post on Saturday evening,” Endicott said. “Every person who approached me reminded me that we fought in combat to protect our freedoms; this included the right to protest, to take stances contrary to others and to speak in ways that are unpopular. Every person felt the right to free speech overrides any feelings of emotional turmoil.”
Councilor Krisanna Clark-Endicott said her role in the City Council isn’t to dictate public thought or have any jurisdiction over the parade.
The vote to add the resolution to the next agenda failed by a margin of four to three, with Councilors Clifford Evelyn and Jon Bullock joining Fitch in supporting the resolution.
Courtesy Redmond City Council
The Redmond City Council opted not to add a resolution condemning “symbols of hate” in public parades at its Aug. 10 meeting.
Big Fire Fully Contained
With the quelling of a major fire, air quality in Central Oregon expected to improve
By Jack Harvel
An air quality alert from the National Weather Service expired at noon on Monday, bringing an end to a hazy weekend of unhealthy air quality in Central Oregon. Temperature drops are expected from the high 90s of the weekend into the 70s by midweek.
Fire officials hope the lower temperatures and increased humidity will improve visibility and air quality but warn that fires are still just a spark away.
“We are at our highest level of industrial fire precaution levels. So, no firewood cutting, no anything with an open flame,” said Jean Nelson Dean, Deschutes Forest public affairs officer.
The Middle Fork Fire in Lane County ignited under these circumstances and is currently burning on over 9,000 acres and is only 7% contained. On Aug. 10 Oregon Gov. Kate Brown invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act in response to the Middle Fork Complex Fire.
“As we are in the middle of another very challenging fire season, now is a good time for Oregonians to make a preparedness plan and get 2 Weeks Ready,” said Brown. “A good first step is to sign up to receive emergency notifications by visiting oralert.gov. I encourage all Oregonians to understand wildfire risks, pay attention to fire restrictions and be sure to check in with friends and family members who may need help to get disaster prepared.”
The Middle Fork Fire continues spreading as the Bootleg Fire, for a time the largest fire in the United States before being surpassed by California’s Dixie Fire, reaches 100% containment. The Bootleg Fire raged for 39 days and torched over 413,00 acres before reaching 100% containment this week. The Dixie Fire was burning on nearly 570,000 acres as of Monday, according to CalFire. Another big fire, the Grandview Fire near Sisters, burned over 6,000 acres in late July and is now 100% contained.
Courtesy Inciweb
A plume of smoke rises over the Middle Fork Complex Fire in the Willamette National Forest.
Noticias en Español Guardia Nacional Asignada para Afrontar el Aumento de COVID
Por Nicole Vulcan / Traducido por Jéssica Sánchez-Millar
La gobernadora Kate Brown está enviando miembros de la Guardia Nacional a los hospitales de Oregon para ayudar a los trabajadores de cuidado médico de primera fila que asisten a los pacientes que luchan contra COVID-19. Para comenzar, la gobernadora asignará 500 miembros de la Guardia Nacional a partir del 20 de agosto, los cuales ayudarán con gestiones logísticas, como el manejo de materiales y equipo, así como ayudar con las pruebas de COVID-19 y otros servicios. Más de 20 hospitales a lo largo del estado podrían recibir apoyo de parte de esta nueva asignación, anunció el 13 de agosto el despacho de la gobernadora Brown. Con el tiempo, la gobernadora asignará hasta 1,500 miembros de la Guardia Nacional para combatir la ola de aumento. El hospital de Bend St. Charles Health System estaba programado para el 20 de agosto para comenzar a recibir ayuda de unos 72 miembros de la Guardia Nacional.
“Esta mañana recibí la triste noticia de que hay 733 habitantes de Oregon internados en hospitales debido a casos graves de COVID-19, incluyendo 185 habitantes ubicados en unidades de terapia intensiva,” comento Brown en un comunicado. “No puedo enfatizar lo suficiente la seriedad de esta crisis para los habitantes de Oregon, especialmente para aquellos que necesitan de atención de emergencia e intensiva. Cuando los hospitales están llenos con pacientes con COVID-19, es posible que no haya lugar para una persona que necesite de atención después de haber tenido un accidente automovilístico, un ataque al corazón u otra emergencia.”
“Sé que este no es el verano que muchos de nosotros imaginabamos con más de 2.5 millones de habitantes de Oregon vacunados contra COVID-19. La cruda y frustrante realidad es que la variante Delta ha cambiado todo. Delta es mucho más contagiosa y debemos actuar ya.
“Pasaremos por todo esto de la misma forma que lo hicimos antes: juntos. Así que, por favor, si ha estado esperando vacunarse, vacúnese hoy. Las vacunas son seguras, eficaces y están disponibles. Y cuando este en público, use el cubrebocas. El uso del cubrebocas es una forma simple y eficaz para que todos nosotros ayudemos a disminuir la propagación de COVID-19.”
Brown emitió un nuevo mandato sobre el uso del cubrebocas en los espacios interiores, el cual entró en vigor el 13 de agosto, con el esfuerzo de ayudar a los hospitales por el aumento de los pacientes atendidos por COVID.
“Los datos muestran que seguimos a semanas de encontrar el punto máximo de casos,” anunció el director ejecutivo de St. Charles Joe Sluka durante una conferencia de prensa el 13 de agosto. “Esa es la mala noticia. La buena noticia es que ya sabemos cuál es la mejor forma para salir de esta pandemia y es por medio de la vacunación de más personas, por el uso del cubrebocas en lugares públicos y con lavarse bien las manos.”
“No tengo una agenda política. No estoy tratando de frenar su libertad o controlar su vida de ninguna manera. Simplemente estoy tratando de evitar que se enferme la gente, que mueran y que dependan de atención médica hospitalaria, las cuales ya está en crisis.”
El 13 de agosto, los hospitales de Oregon alcanzaron un número record de hospitalizaciones por COVID durante tres días seguidos, teniendo a 733 personas hospitalizadas con COVID-19. En St. Charles Bend algunos pacientes están siendo internados en la sala de emergencia hasta que esté disponible una cama en la zona para pacientes con COVID. El sistema de salud también canceló las cirugías electivas lo que resta del año para así afrontar la crisis actual.
National Guard Deployed to Manage COVID surge
Governor announces new measures to support hospitals around the state
By Nicole Vulcan
Gov. Kate Brown is sending National Guard troops to hospitals around Oregon to help frontline healthcare workers who are treating patients battling COVID-19. To start, the governor will deploy 500 National Guard members starting Aug. 20, who will help with logistics like handling materials and running equipment, along with helping with COVID-19 testing and other services. More than 20 hospitals across the state could get support from this new deployment, Brown’s office announced Aug. 13. The governor will eventually deploy up to 1,500 Guard members to battle the surge. St. Charles Health System’s Bend hospital was scheduled to start receiving help from about 72 Guard members as soon as Aug. 17.
“This morning I received the grim news that there are 733 Oregonians hospitalized with severe cases of COVID-19, including 185 in intensive care units,” said Brown in a release. “I cannot emphasize enough the seriousness of this crisis for all Oregonians, especially those needing emergency and intensive care. When our hospitals are full with COVID-19 patients, there may not be room for someone needing care after a car crash, a heart attack or other emergency situation.”
“I know this is not the summer many of us envisioned, with over 2.5 million Oregonians vaccinated against COVID-19. The harsh, and frustrating reality is that the Delta variant has changed everything. Delta is highly contagious, and we must take action now.
“We will get through this the same way we have before: together. So please, if you have been waiting to get vaccinated, go do it today. Vaccines are safe, effective, and widely available. And, when you go out in public today, wear a mask. Masks are a simple and effective way for all of us to help slow the spread of COVID-19.”
Brown issued a new mask mandate
for indoor settings that went into effect Aug. 13, in an effort to help hospitals deal with the surges in COVID patients they’re now experiencing.
“Our data shows that we are still weeks away from the peak of this current surge,” St. Charles’ CEO Joe Sluka announced in a press release Aug. 13. “That’s the bad news. The good news is we already know the best way out of this pandemic, and that’s by vaccinating more people, wearing masks in public places and practicing good hand hygiene.
“I have no political agenda here. I am not trying to curb your freedoms or control your life in any way. I am simply trying to keep people from getting very sick, from dying, and from needing care in our hospitals, which are already in crisis.”
Oregon’s hospitals hit a record number of COVID hospitalizations for the third day in a row on Aug. 13, with 733 people hospitalized with COVID-19. At St. Charles Bend, some patients are being “boarded” in the Emergency Department until a bed in a COVID unit can open up. The health system has also canceled elective surgeries through the end of the year to manage the ongoing crisis.
—Joe Sluka
Photo courtesy St. Charles
In response to the current COVID situation, St. Charles Health System announced August 15 that it had set up a drive-through testing center in the back of the parking lot of its building at 2600 NE Neff Road, as seen here. St. Charles also opened an urgent care in the Bend East Family Care building—at the same address as the testing center—and encouraged community members who don’t need an emergency level of care to use the urgent care clinic rather than going to the Emergency Department of St. Charles Medical Center. Both the testing and urgent care facilities are open from 8am to 4pm daily.
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