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Riders should be licensed to ride e-bikes

I completely agree with Richard Alleger’s letter “Manage e-bikes differently.” E-bikes are motorized vehicles just as electric cars are. They must be “driven” by certified riders, registered and licensed. Children who acquire them must demonstrate they understand that while the bikes are great fun, they can pose a significant danger to themselves and to others.

I had one and found riding it exhilarating — until I nearly hit a child who didn’t hear me coming. It is simply unacceptable that we are allowing youngsters to endanger not only themselves but also people of all ages walking on sidewalks, enjoying our parks and play areas or driving appropriately down neighborhood streets. Anyone who suggests “let children be children!” on this issue should take a spin on an e-bike so they grasp how this motorized fun can be hazardous.

Having young riders participate in a certification, registration and licensing process would underscore for them the importance of riding their bikes appropriately. What a great civics lesson! But parents and guardians must own management of this process — not our schools.

I too am tired of dodging reckless kids who clearly expect even elderly dog walkers and mothers with strollers to step aside so they can whiz by on sidewalks and crosswalks. I’m also tired of admonishing these kids and feeling like an old crab. Let’s not let this new technology get completely out of hand. Let’s not wait until more children get hurt.

— Deborah Goodall, Bend

Congress: Pass the Malheur CEO Act!

I am the leader of the local chapter of the Great Old Broads for Wilderness. Great Old Broads for Wilderness is a women-led national grassroots organization that advocates for the preservation of wilderness and wildlands.

Our chapter, the Bitterbrush Broads of Central Oregon, are proud to support Sen. Ron Wyden’s “Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee Act.” This bill has been negotiated over many years among many different stakeholders. It has produced a rare consensus for conservation legislation and should be enacted into law.

The senator’s proposal would protect Oregon’s rugged and remote Owyhee Canyonlands, designating more than 1 million acres as wilderness. The legislation would require that land uses such as livestock grazing conserve and restore the long-term ecological health of the land, while also supporting new opportunities for sustainable economic development in southeastern Oregon.

If you have never been to the Owyhee Canyonlands, it is a very special hidden gem of Oregon, and I would encourage you to check it out. Where you go there to camp, hike or raft, it is a tranquil, quiet and wonderful part of the state that many have overlooked. The area is strikingly beautiful, has a huge diversity of birds and wildlife, and simply deserves permanent protection. Please join me in thanking Sen. Wyden for the Malheur CEO Act and encourage him to promote his bill in Congress.

— Mary Fleischmann, Bend

Chavez-DeRemer should provide evidence

This past week, U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Happy Valley, joined her Republican colleagues in voting to formally censure fellow House member Adam Schiff. Chavez-DeRemer justified her vote by declaring that Schiff misled the American people in managing the first of the two impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump.

What Chavez-DeRemer did not do was to provide any specifics regarding Schiff’s alleged misconduct in her statement. That is likely because she has none. Schiff, on the other hand, methodically laid out compelling evidence of Trump’s misconduct, both in withholding Congressionally authorized arms support for Ukraine and at least tacitly approving his campaign’s transfer of domestic polling data to Russian operatives.

Rather than “mislead the American people,” Schiff clarified for those who would listen that a would-be autocrat presents an existential threat to democracy.

If anyone misled anyone it was Chavez-DeRemer, who boldly alleged wrongdoing by a fellow member of Congress without a scintilla of evidence to support her allegation.

— Rob Brazeau, Bend

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