On this day, May 5, 1903, James Beard, US culinary expert, author (Delights & Prejudices), was born in Portland, Ore.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, A Japanese balloon bomb exploded on Gearhart Mountain in Oregon, killing Mrs. Elsie Mitchell, the pregnant wife of a minister, and five children after they attempted to drag it out the woods in Lakeview, Oregon. The balloon was armed, and exploded soon after they began tampering with it. They became the 1st and only known American civilians to be killed in the continental US during World War II.
Also on this day, May 5, 1945, Bly minister Archie Mitchell, his pregnant wife Elsie, and five children from Mitchell's Sunday school class were on a Saturday morning picnic. Thirteen miles northeast of Bly, or about sixty miles northeast of Klamath Falls, Mitchell parked the car, and Elsie and the children headed to Leonard Creek. Mitchell later remembered: "As I got out of the car to bring the lunch, the others were not far away and called to me they had found something that looked like a balloon. I heard of Japanese balloons so I shouted a warning not to touch it. But just then there was a big explosion. I ran up there--and they were all dead." It was a Japanese balloon bomb. They were 70 feet tall with a 33-foot diameter paper canopy connected to the main device by shroud lines. Balloons inflated with hydrogen followed the jet stream at an altitude of 30,000 feet.
The state is getting close to the artificial threshold of 70%
In a
letter to Governor Kate Brown House Republican Leader Christine Drazan scolded the Governor for the level of COVID-19 restrictions still in place in Oregon and asked her to consider easing restrictions, comparing Oregon to California and other states.
We urge you to join California today by reopening Oregon immediately and rescinding the COVID-19 emergency orders in the state.
Oregon does not need to be the most restrictive state on the West Coast, or one of the last states to reopen nationwide. Oregonians have sacrificed so much during this pandemic. We should recognize their contributions by reopening the state at the same time as our
neighbors.
Hospitals are much better equipped to treat COVID-19 patients, and vaccines have greatly reduced the potential for emergency room visits for our at-risk population. The effectiveness of natural immunity is very promising. If we include Oregonians with natural immunity, then we are well above the 70 percent threshold to reopen the state.
Oregonians have been through enough. They do not need to wait another day. Vaccines are readily available and individuals can still wear masks if they choose. It is time for the state to return to normal by lifting emergency orders now.
Oregon has failed to develop policies that address
natural immunity that is acquired by persons who have had COVID-19 and recovered. About 5% of Oregon's population has natural immunity to COVID1-19 and some think that these should be classified with the vaccinated. The state is getting close to the
artificial threshold of 70% but the rate of vaccinations is slowing, making that target ever elusive.
--Staff Reports| Post Date: 2021-06-15 12:45:36 | Last Update: 2021-06-15 16:21:03 |
