Thursday, 6.4.15 ON THE WEB: www.yankton.net views VIEWS PAGE: [email protected] PAGE 4 Press&Dakotan The Press Dakotan

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CONTACT US OPINION OTHER VIEWS PHONE: (605) 665-7811 (800) 743-2968 NEWS FAX: US-China Are In (605) 665-1721 ADVERTISING FAX: (605) 665-0288 WEBSITE: Rough Waters www.yankton.net PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE (June 1): The is ––––– faced with a troublesome question: Is it willing to challenge Chinese SUBSCRIPTIONS/ ambitions in the South China Sea to maintain a posture of excep- Writer’s Block CIRCULATION tional military dominance in that part of the world? Extension 104 Any willingness to do so must be measured not only in terms of CLASSIFIED ADS national pride, but also in opportunity costs at home, taxpayer money Extension 108 that could be spent instead on U.S. infrastructure, education, health [email protected] care, housing and other domestic needs. The Caretakers NEWS DEPT. The reality is that China, as it grows in economic importance, Extension 114 including in its favorable trade balance and the holding of more than [email protected] $1 trillion in U.S. debt, will seek to expand its influence in its region SPORTS DEPT. of the world. In particular, especially given the importance to it of Extension 106 both exports and imports, it will be interested in expanding its sea Of Our Democracy [email protected] presence. For all of its ambition, though, China spends only about 10 ADVERTISING DEPT. percent of what the United States does on its military. BY WILLIAM KERR not vote for individuals but just “X” the party box Extension 122 Against that backdrop, the Chinese are seeking to reinforce their For the Press & Dakotan imply that the party knows best! The more people [email protected] claims to the Spratly Islands, rocky outcrops in the South China Sea, who do not check the issues and the candidates, BUSINESS OFFICE by dredging and building installations there such as lighthouses and You’d think there was another election com- the more our democracy is vulnerable to being Extension 119 a runway. Chinese neighbors Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and ing up soon, instead of November 2016, by the totally undermined. [email protected] Vietnam also claim parts of the Spratlys and are looking to the United amount of pre-election activity going on already. If we are to have an economy that benefits all NEW MEDIA: States to defend their interests. So, then maybe it’s a good time to put in a of our citizens, we all have to do our share. Yes, The U.S. military is carrying out air missions over the Spratlys, to I said “our share.” To keep our country running Extension 136 word or two about our system of government. It the annoyance of the Chinese, to defend their neighbors’ and Ameri- is the toughest ever invented to keep on track to on an even keel that benefits us all, we have to [email protected] can interests there, although the latter are difficult to define. pay attention to what our elected officials do and COMPOSING DEPT. benefit all of its citizens. All of the others (mon- There is always the risk of an accident or a military confrontation archy, dictatorship, communism, the- what they stand for, and elect those Extension 129 occasioned by U.S. flights over the Chinese sites. But are the gains ocracy) are easier to manage because who will do the best job for all of us; we [email protected] worth, first, the financial cost of carrying them out and, second, the fewer people are involved in making must un-elect those who disappoint us. risk of conflict with the Chinese in their own region? the decisions, probably because those It’s also our job to keep our elected of- * * * It’s becoming harder for the Pentagon to make that case. decisions usually end up being made to ficials aware of what we want, especially render the most benefit to the few who when they seem to be out of touch MANAGERS make them and their friends. with the majority of our citizens (which Gary L. Wood ABOUT THIS PAGE You might have noticed that our many past polls have indicated). We Publisher government seems to have drifted have to pay attention to what is happen- The View page provides a forum for open discussion of issues and ing and how they respond and let them Michele Schievelbein almost dramatically in that direction interests affecting our readers. Initialed editorials represent the opinion recently. (Well, not totally recently, but know how we feel about their work, and Advertising Director of the writer, but not necessarily that of the PRESS & DAKOTAN. slowly since President Reagan’s time.) William suggest what we think are better ways Tonya Schild Bylined columns represent the view of the author. We welcome letters on For a democracy to continue on to do things. That is our job and our Business Manager current topics. Questions regarding the Views page should be directed to track benefiting all of its citizens, all of KERR responsibility in a democracy. Kelly Hertz at [email protected]/. its citizens must be participating and We are not now doing our job, our Tera Schmidt doing their share. We had that situation share of the work, to keep things going Classified Manager when President Franklin Roosevelt on an even keel benefiting all citizens Kelly Hertz IN HISTORY was elected, along with a Democratic Congress, and assisting those in distress. Those of you who Editor which together subsequently pulled the country are not voting are poor citizens indeed. And, when By The few individuals.” Justine Henin-Hardenne together to overcome the depression, prepare for you don’t vote, you are not entitled to complain James D. Cimburek Today is Thursday, June 4, the 155th beat Mary Pierce 6-1, 6-1 to win the World War II, win it and build a new prosperity for about anything our legislators do — or don’t do. Sports Editor day of 2015. There are 210 days left in the French Open women’s singles title. year. Five years ago: On his third personal all. More recently, our government seems to have If you aren’t aware of these things or don’t Beth Rye Today’s Highlight in History: On trek to the Gulf disaster, President Barack drifted back in the direction of those making the think they matter, read up on history. Those Digital Media Director June 4, 1940, during World War II, the Al- Obama said that he saw some progress decisions having little concern for the working who do not learn from history are condemned to lied military evacuation of some 338,000 in fighting the enormous oil spill but that people who do the actual labor of keeping this repeat it. Some person of note said that and it is Kathy Larson troops from Dunkirk, France, ended. it was “way too early to be optimistic.” The still true. If you like the freedoms we still have, Addressing the British House of Com- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commis- country going. Benefits for children, veterans and Composing Manager mons, Prime Minister Winston Churchill sion announced a voluntary recall of 12 the elderly especially have been reduced in order thank a veteran. If you want to keep them and have not been voting, get your fanny in gear, find Sarah Lynde declared: “We shall fight on the beaches, million U.S.-made “Shrek” drinking glass- to give more income tax discounts to the rich. we shall fight on the landing grounds, we es sold by McDonald’s which were found The worst part is that the majority of our out what the different candidates stand for and Circulation District Manager shall fight in the fields and in the streets, to be tainted with cadmium. Fourteen- how well they put their words into action, and we shall fight in the hills; we shall never year-old Anamika Veeramani of North citizens have contributed directly to that trend surrender.” Royalton, Ohio, won the Scripps National by not having their say about how things are to vote. Remember, when you vote, you are only On this date: In 1783, the Montgolfier Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., correct- be done. That is, they have not voted. When a responsible if those you vote for perform badly. brothers first publicly demonstrated their ly spelling the medical term “stromuhr.” president can be elected by less than 25 percent When you don’t vote, you are responsible for * * * hot-air balloon, which did not carry any Death claimed postmodern author David every candidate who performs badly. And, when passengers, over Annonay, France. Markson, 82; legendary basketball coach of eligible voters, the stage is set for a minority DAILY STAFF In 1784, opera singer Elisabeth Thible John Wooden, 99; and Jack Harrison, 97, to elect their candidate and subsequently control you don’t vote, you dishonor every veteran who Reilly Biel became the first woman to make a non- survivor of the Great Escape plot by Allied the country. fought to keep our freedoms. Freedom isn’t free. Cassandra Brockmoller tethered flight aboard a Montgolfier hot-air prisoners in World War II. When our forefathers put together this form Remember ... balloon, over Lyon, France. One year ago: On the second day of Brandi Bue of government, they were responding to the rule It is the soldier, not the reporter, who gives you In 1892, the Sierra Club was incorpo- a visit to Poland, President Barack Oba- freedom of the press, Rob Buckingham rated in San Francisco. ma held up the nation as a guidepost for of the few which they had experienced in various Caryn Chappelear In 1919, Congress approved the 19th neighboring Ukraine as it sought to fend “old countries.” Their intention was to have every It is the soldier, not the poet, who gives you Randy Dockendorf Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, off a pro-Russian insurgency; later that eligible voter help run the country. freedom of speech, Jeannine Economy guaranteeing citizens the right to vote re- same day, in Brussels, Obama attended Do we have to get all the way back to rule by It is the soldier, not the local organizer, who gardless of their gender, and sent it to the a meeting of the Group of Seven major gives you the freedom to demonstrate, Jeremy Hoeck states for ratification. industrial nations, with the pointed exclu- the few before the majority will wake up and begin Sarah Lynde In 1939, the German ocean liner MS sion of Russia from the gathering. A gun- participating? Do we have it so good that we don’t It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who gives you Nicole Myers St. Louis, carrying more than 900 Jewish man fatally wounded three Royal Canadi- care what the politicians do? Or, which ones get the right to a fair trial, Robert Nielsen refugees from Germany, was turned away an Mounted Police officers and wounded elected? Why do we continue to allow our govern- It is the soldier who salutes the flag, serves un- Diana Smallwood from the Florida coast by U.S. officials. two others in Moncton, New Brunswick, der the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, In 1942, the World War II Battle of Canada. (Justin Bourque was convicted ment to skirt our laws and rob our Social Security David Stephenson Midway began, resulting in a decisive of the shootings and sentenced to life in Trust Fund ($2.8 trillion and counting) and expect who gives you the freedom to burn the flag. Cathy Sudbeck American victory against Japan and prison.) Baseball player, manager and we will all get a fair deal? That’s what you who (Author Unknown) JoAnn Wiebelhaus marking the turning point of the war in the coach Don Zimmer, 83, died in Dunedin, do not vote imply by not voting. And you who do Brenda Willcuts Pacific. Florida. Carrie Underwood won her third In 1944, U-505, a German submarine, straight video of the year at the CMT Mu- was captured by a U.S. Navy task group sic Awards with “See You Again.” * * * in the south Atlantic; it was the first such Today’s Birthdays: Sex therapist Kathleen Parker Published Daily capture of an enemy vessel at sea by the and media personality Dr. Ruth Wes- U.S. Navy since the War of 1812. The U.S. theimer is 87. Actor Bruce Dern is 79. Monday-Saturday Fifth Army began liberating Rome. Musician Roger Ball is 71. Actress-singer Periodicals postage In 1954, French Premier Joseph La- Michelle Phillips is 71. Jazz musician An- niel and Vietnamese Premier Buu Loc thony Braxton is 70. Rock musician Dan- paid at Yankton, South signed treaties in Paris according “com- ny Brown (The Fixx) is 64. Actor Parker Dakota, under the act of plete independence” to Vietnam. Stevenson is 63. Actor Keith David is 59. BYJenner’s KATHLEEN PARKER Coming-OutTo put it bluntly, the former Party Bruce and the In 1972, a jury in San Jose, Califor- Blues singer-musician Tinsley Ellis is 58. March 3, 1979. © 2015, Washington Post Writers Group latter Caitlyn have been media personalities-for- Weekly Dakotian nia, acquitted radical activist Angela Da- Actress Julie Gholson is 57. Actor Eddie vis of murder and kidnapping for her al- Velez is 57. Singer-musician El DeBarge hire for most of their existence. Is it really appro- established June 6, 1861. leged connection to a deadly courthouse is 54. Actress Julie White is 54. Actress WASHINGTON — It wasn’t quite “Call me priate to elevate Jenner to such heroic and adjec- Yankton Daily Press and shootout in Marin County in 1970. Lindsay Frost is 53. Actor Sean Pertwee Ishmael,” but “Call me Caitlyn” made a whale of tival heights as “bold” and “courageous,” when Dakotian established April In 1986, Jonathan Jay Pollard, a for- (TV: “Gotham”) is 51. Tennis player An- a splash. many people will conduct their own 26, 1875. mer Navy intelligence analyst, pleaded drea Jaeger is 50. Opera singer Cecilia One could hardly find a news channel the struggles privately, and, indeed, courageously? Postmaster: Send guilty in Washington to conspiring to de- Bartoli is 49. Rhythm-and-blues singer liver information related to the national Al B. Sure! is 47. Actor Scott Wolf is 47. past couple of days that wasn’t touting the for- Caitlyn, like Bruce, seems to need the ap- address changes to Yankton defense to Israel. (He is serving a life Actor-comedian Rob Huebel is 46. Co- mer Bruce Jenner for her courageous transgen- plause of an audience as much as she needs the Daily Press & Dakotan, prison term.) median Horatio Sanz is 46. Actor Noah der metamorphosis or admiring her “gorgeous” transformation itself, her protestations in the 319 Walnut, Yankton, SD In 1990, Dr. Jack Kevorkian carried Wyle is 44. Rock musician Stefan Lessard new look. Vanity Fair profile to the contrary. 57078. out his first publicly assisted suicide, help- (The Dave Matthews Band) is 41. Actor- ing Janet Adkins, a 54-year-old Alzhei- comedian Russell Brand is 40. Actress Within moments of the release of Vanity Fair’s This is not to suggest that Jenner’s transgen- * * * mer’s patient from Portland, Oregon, end Angelina Jolie is 40. Actor Theo Rossi is July cover featuring Caitlyn Jenner, was der is anything but heartfelt and neces- her life in Oakland County, Michigan. 40. Alt-country singer Kasey Chambers is “trending” that she looks a little like, OMG, Jes- sary. As we learn more about transgender issues MEMBERSHIPS In 1998, a federal judge sentenced 39. Rock musician JoJo Garza (Los Lone- — and presumably education is the nobler inten- Terry Nichols to life in prison for his role in ly Boys) is 35. Country musician Dean sica Lange! The Yankton Daily the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Berner (Edens Edge) is 34. Model Bar In the brightest moment of the day, Lange, tion driving media attention — it becomes less Press & Dakotan is a Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Refaeli is 30. Olympic gold medal figure when asked over the phone for comment on her easy to ignore such people or deny them equal member of the Associ- Ten years ago: The skater is 30. Rock musician trending, said, “What does that mean?” Upon be- protections under the law. ated Press, the Inland downplayed a Pentagon report detailing Zac Farro is 25. But I’ve learned more about transgender Daily Press Association incidents in which U.S. guards at Guan- Thought for Today: “When you ing tutored by the caller, the Internet-free Lange and the South Dakota tanamo Bay prison had desecrated the betray somebody else, you also betray graciously said, “That’s so wonderful.” individuals and their families from the tender Newspaper Association. Quran, saying in a statement, “It is unfor- yourself.” — Isaac Bashevis Singer, Pol- Before proceeding, let’s pause, shall we, to poetry of Sue Ellen Thompson than from maga- The Associated Press tunate that some have chosen to take out ish-born American Nobel Prize-winning stipulate that we wish Jenner the best in her new zine displays and televised hype. In her latest is entitled exclusively of context a few isolated incidents by a author (1904-1991). life. It must be terribly difficult to find oneself not collection, “They,” Thompson writes lovingly of to use of all the local at home in one’s own physical and societally rec- her own transgender daughter’s journey and the news printed in this challenges her evolution poses for three genera- newspaper. FROM THE BIBLE ognized self. Obviously, no one would go through such a doubtless trying process to become tions of family. I commend her book to those * * * Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst entirely another — or rather to make the skin fit interested in insight over titillation. — if this weren’t a real and devastating situation In stark contrast, seeing Jenner all gussied up SUBSCRIPTION is the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 12:6. Portals of Prayer, Concordia that many feel requires remedy. like some 1940s Vargas girl (part Madonna, part RATES* Publishing House, St. Louis. What concerns me here is the cultural, Kardashian?) — wearing long tresses and corset- (Payable in advance) primarily media, treatment of the Jenner case inspired lingerie — seems a mockery of her new CARRIER DELIVERY LETTERS TO THE EDITOR in particular — and the assumption that we all womanhood, as well as the human dignity her 1-month...... $12.09 need to be a part of this. public outing purportedly is intended to inspire. 3 months...... $36.27 With Honors! money they spend on us must From the interview in April with Diane Saw- Photographer Annie Leibowitz, whose por- 6 months...... $72.53 be considerable. yer, to the Vanity Fair cover, to the breathless traiture collections grace coffee tables, including 1-year...... $133.09 Verne Hull, Yankton Yankton’s own Tom Bro- media coverage this week, one’s overwhelming my own, perhaps chose this representation for MOTOR ROUTE Sometime ago I submitted kaw called us “The Greatest sense is that Caitlyn Jenner — and only inciden- ironic reasons. Exaggerated femininity may be (where available) to Kelly Hertz a summary of my tally, transgenderism — is the Next New Thing! her own pointed commentary as someone who 1 month...... $14.51 Generation.” In the twilight of World War II experiences with our lives the attention is flatter- Every movement needs a celebrity, we’ve typically eschews such trappings. Or perhaps, 3 months...... $43.53 the hope it would be published given Jenner’s preference in women when she 6 months...... $87.05 ing. It warms my heart. Maybe come to accept, and Jenner is the self-appointed in the P&D. But Kelly soon we were in the wrong place at transgender community’s poster girl. But is was a married man (see Kardashians), the uber- 1 year...... $139.14 female model was selected as an arch represen- MAIL IN RETAIL informed me that it was too long the right time. But, truthfully, I Jenner really the best face for such a profound Trade Zone for inclusion and said, “Sorry, experience, no offense to her plastic surgeon? tation rather than the caricature it seems to be. don’t think we are any better or All of the above suggests much psychological 1-month...... $16.93 Verne.” I recognized that Kelly worse than any other American Though many of us remember Jenner as the 3 months...... $50.79 was correct. stunning 1976 Olympic gold medalist, and emotional work left to do, for which Jenner generation so far. the erstwhile model is best-known to surely deserves privacy rather than spectacle. 6 months...... $101.57 Thus aware of my tendency Recently, Dave and Doug 1-year...... $148.82 to overstate things, I still wish a younger generation as Dad in the reality televi- She has averred that with the Vanity Fair cover, hosted a luncheon for us at sion series “Keeping Up with the Kardashians.” she is “finally free.” One would hope the same MAIL OUTSIDE to join the chorus of World the VFW in recognition of V-E RETAIL TRADE ZONE I can’t speak to the appeal of the show, hav- for the rest of us, but, alas. A new E! reality show War II veterans in the Yankton Day (Victory in Europe) 70 following Jenner’s progress as a woman is in the 1 month...... $19.35 area who sing the praises Dave ing never watched it, but few could have escaped 3 months...... $58.05 years ago. Bill Kerr stood and exposure to the Kardashian name and the fam- works. Hosmer and Doug Haar and proposed a champagne toast to ily’s most infamous daughter, Kim, who lurched Cue the audience. 6 months...... $116.09 their associates for all they do 1-year...... $186.33 Dave and Doug and their associ- to notoriety owing to a sex tape, her friendship * Plus applicable sales tax to bring recognition to us World ates. We all joined in. Afterward, with fellow exhibitionist Paris Hilton, and her Kathleen Parker’s email address is kathleen- for all rates War II veterans. The time and Bill and I saluted them as well. rather robust derriere. [email protected].