Typewriter

It’s all a matter of trust

Two questions trouble me. Do I trust my elected officials to solve a community problem, and do I trust my profession’s research sources.

Can I trust how government solves the problems associated with our houseless residents?

Can I trust Artificial Intelligence (AI) in chatbots to answer my questions correctly? Chatbots are incorporating AI so they can better answer our questions.

A global industry exists to interfere with the information in chatbots’ conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies monitor websites to see if Russia or China is using AI to create “false realities.”

When you are injured and you call 911, do you trust help will come? Of course. But in the world of AI and chatbots, can you trust a non-human to answer your question accurately and not share your question with others.

Malicious “smart software” is more prevalent these days. IT executives are calling for the delay of AI that is more “intelligent” than what we use now.

The biggest community issue is houseless neighbors. It’s a complicated social, medical, communal and governmental conundrum.

For me it is as opaque as how AI improves chatbots.

Can we trust the city of Bend and Deschutes County’s public announcements telling us how tax dollars address houselessness?

Is Bend using its neighborhood associations to explain how government and nonprofits are coordinating their programs, and enable the houseless eventually to be self-sufficient?

— Tim Conlon, Bend

Porter demonstrates service

As a retired police chief, I know a bit about Central Oregon Community College. Recently, I spent months under contract studying COCC’s Campus Safety & Security program, providing COCC leadership with recommendations for improvement.

Through that COCC lens, I view Jim Porter as an excellent candidate for the COCC Board Zone 6 board director.

I’ve known Jim for better than 30 years. Jim is a U.S. Air Force veteran and served Bend Police Department for decades, retiring as police chief. Jim now dedicates his energy toward solving Central Oregon’s homeless crisis. Jim is all about community service, commitment and transparency. Jim’s ethics and integrity are beyond reproach.

Jim is fiscally responsible, understands policy, and he knows how to set goals and objectives to achieve desired results. COCC has been a key part of the lives of Jim, his wife, Maria, and their two daughters. All of the Porter family have been students at COCC, and Jim previously was a faculty member.

I can think of no one candidate better suited and qualified to serve on the COCC board. Please join me in voting for Jim Porter for COCC Zone 6 board director.

— Jim Ferraris, Powell Butte

Mental health screenings are a thorny issue

Many people believe that gun violence isn’t the fault of guns, but of mentally ill people.

Their answer to gun violence is two-fold: 1) Invest more money in mental health; and 2) Arm more people with guns, especially by hiring armed guards at schools and even churches.

Following this logic, there should also be armed guards hired to protect every shopping mall, movie theater, grocery store, parking lot, workplace, street, even every birthday party in the country.

But how would that have prevented the shooting of the teenage boy in Kansas City who simply rang the wrong doorbell, or the death of the 20-year old woman who drove up the wrong driveway in New York, or the shooting of the young high school cheerleader in Texas who tried entering a car she mistook as hers — shot while apologizing?

Could the homeowners and the car owner, feeling so threatened by these young unarmed people, actually have been mentally ill? If so, then perhaps the ultimate solution to gun violence would be to screen everyone in the nation for mental illness, all 330 million of us — compulsory mental health tests for the entire nation — followed by mental health treatment for all who need it.

It is a small price to pay to keep government off our backs and protect our freedoms. Is that the answer? Or do we need more guns? Should everyone be armed? Would that make us less fearful and trigger-happy?

— Clyde Thompson, Bend

Kina Chadwick for school board

Why am I voting for Kina Chadwick for Bend-La Pine School Board of Directors Zone 7?

I have had the privilege of volunteering alongside Kina to uplift youth voices and encourage youth engagement in our community and in their schools.

Kina is dedicated to growing the experience of belonging among youth in the Bend-La Pine school district and they have donated countless hours showing us that. Kina shows by example that building community where all voices matter is an important use of all of our time.

I look forward to seeing Kina continue to build relationships on the Bend-La Pine School Board while creating space for change and challenging current barriers to belonging for students, parents/caregivers, teachers, and all school staff.

I believe Kina will work to support school staff to meet educational goals as well as embracing difference, diversity and multi-generational inclusion. Thank you Kina for running for school board and offering us more of your time, expertise and experience.

— Renee Goin, Bend