Wake up, Hermiston

It is time we wake up and take notice that the type of government we have in Hermiston is keeping the truth from the citizens and telling us what they want us to hear.

First off, crime in Hermiston has not gone down over the last 10 years. The chief of police has been placating the city council with his statements and facts that are not true.

Hermiston has one of the highest crime rates for a city of its size in Oregon and is higher than 52 percent of the nation. That is by no means an improvement.

The City Council finds this shocking and is fully supporting a police chief that has gotten the city sued twice, and now we the people of Hermiston are under investigation for a third time.

This mass exodus of police that has occurred in the last 10 years is only credence to the things that are going on right under the surface. 

Transparency is something that all democratic governments should be practicing. We are paying a police chief in excess of $100,000 a year and he is creating hate and discontent among the very people that are protecting this city. Uniformed police have one of the hardest jobs that there is to perform, and lacking the support of your leader only makes this harder.

The city council and the mayor need to wake up and take notice of the things that are happening in this city.  I myself find it shocking that they are unaware of things like this.

We have sand in Hermiston, and lots of it. I believe there are a number of  council members, including the mayor, who have their heads buried in it.

Wake up Hermiston. Change is coming, a storm is brewing and the sand is just about to blow away.

JOHN F. KIRWAN HERMISTON

Good things happening

There are still many good things happening in the Hermiston area. The?Umatilla County Fair was a great success. I dont think I have ever seen the fairgrounds so clean each day.

A huge atta boy to the Hermiston High Color Guard for their award for their Go Green project.

I?would also like to thank all those who helped build the beautiful fence at Riverfront Park for an Eacle Scout merit badge. They did a wonderful job.

BOB SEVERSON HERMISTON