Frustration and appreciation
Karen Henry
Jefferson City
Dear Editor:
As long time subscribers to the News Tribune, my husband and I were somewhat frustrated the paper was not being delivered in our rural community for numerous, consecutive days. In the past, our delivery service has been great. Following daily phone calls to report non-receipt, we are confident the problem has now been resolved. We want to thank each staff member who listened and responded to our calls. In addition, we appreciate that columns from Sen. Mike Bernskoetter and Rep. Dave Griffith are now being published in the News Tribune. Thank you for providing news coverage for our community!
Climate Kids’ federal court case to be heard again
Theresa Sullivan
Jefferson City
Dear Editor:
I first read about the Climate Kids of Eugene, Oregon, in 2015 and their lawsuit against the U.S. government for continuing to use of fossil fuels. My reaction was this was appropriate for who will be most affected by the devastating effects of climate change: our children and grandchildren. Kelsey Juliana is the lead plaintiff so the case is known as Juliana v United States. In her home territory, wildfire season was so intense. Inhabitants were advised not to go outside. Particulate matter in the smoke was a severe danger to health.
Even the federal government now acknowledges in its response to this lawsuit that the effects of climate change are already happening and likely are to get worse. “The government has known for over 50 years that burning fossil fuels would cause climate change. And they don’t dispute that we are in a danger zone on climate change,” said Juliana recently on 60 Minutes.
The government is not denying that climate change is increasing the risk of loss of life and the extinction of many species along with increases in hurricane intensity, frequent intense storms, heavy precipitation, loss of sea ice and rising sea levels. The military is aware of the effects climate change will have on food scarcity and mass migrations.
Julia Olson, an Oregon lawyer, began constructing this case eight years ago. Her documentation shows that during President Johnson’s administration, the government issued a report in 1965 that talked about climate change being a catastrophic threat. Olson has 36,000 pages of evidence to be used in court. This lawsuit claims the executive and legislative branches of government have proven incapable of dealing with climate change.
The Trump administration, which is now defending the case, has made every effort to keep it from going to trial. They don’t want to go to trial because “…they will lose on the evidence that will be presented in trial,” Olson states.
This case goes to trial in June, 2019, in Portland.