By Vern Holmquist
Well, on Tuesday Nov. 6, 2012 we witnessed the demise of the GOP. Voters have shown we still live in a democracy – government by the people. We defeated the bold bid to turn our country into a Corporate State populated only by stocks and bonds.
We have proved that Americans are still concerned with the welfare of the human race and that no matter how you twist it, you can not draw blood out of an investment portfolio (in spite of that bad Supreme Court ruling).
On another note, I recently had the pleasure of meeting a young lady at a party in her honor who really restored my faith in America. She had just finished what I thought would be far beyond a lady of her physical stature, but then, looking into her wide open brown eyes, I felt she was capable of doing whatever she made up her mind to do. Yes, It took great courage and a fantastic determination to walk the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mexican border to the Canadian border covering 2,660 miles in five months carrying a back pack which must have weighed at least half of her weight. She met the challenge. The young lady’s name is Dorothy Brown-Kaiser.
Dorothy’s love of nature and her concern for our earth’s environment makes her a natural in her work as an interpretive park ranger in Silver Falls State Park. (Her story is on page 18.) With the Dorothy’s of our nation we are in good hands.
Music lovers, I’ll let you in on a little secret, it must be a secret as very few of you seem to know about it. Now, if you like innovated jazz/rock music a little on the loud side, drop by Mac’s Place in Silverton on Sunday nights. There’s a weekly jam session that has been going on for nine years and brings out some of the best musicians in the state.
This is music money can’t buy because this is true jam session. These guys are playing for their own enjoyment, playing it their way. There’s true innovation and you never know who is going to show up, maybe half a dozen or a dozen. They are all there to strut their stuff cuz they want to. It’s a real, undiscovered treat.
